AN: HAHA! The Chimera Ant Arc! In space... within Skyfall... with GING involved, what could possibly go wrong?!


"The Moon of Chimera?! Are you fucking kidding me?!" Killua screamed. Gon winced, the Valkyrie's scream rattling his ear drums.

"No, I was lying," Ging drawled sarcastically.

Killua snarled. "What the hell! You said this was a Zodiac mission, why the fuck is it off planet?! Doesn't that defeat the purpose?!"

What the assassin said was true. Zodiacs worked to safeguard Overworld, not the neighboring planets. And certainly not Chimera.

Is this seriously happening right now? This doesn't feel real. I know I'm watching my planet and everything I've ever known disappear with my own eyes… but looking out the window and seeing nothing but darkness feels like some sort of awful nightmare.

Am I gonna wake up soon?

Please, Gods. Let me wake up.

Ging pinched the bridge of his nose. "Stop screaming, alright?" he snapped. "You're giving me a headache!"

Killua lurched forward, and Gon tightened their locked arms, keeping Killua from trying to kill Ging… again.

"Listen," Ging grumbled. "The Moon of Chimera is at war, alright?"

Killua's arms slackened, and Gon turned around to see his face. Silver eyebrows were drawn together, those lips drawn down in distaste. "You can't be serious."

"I'm not joking," Ging sighed.

Killua stepped forward, making to go sit back down. Once Killua stepped away and Gon had nothing to hold onto, he lost his balance. Shit, Gon's legs were refusing to move.

"Gon!" Killua gasped, darting back over to catch him before he hit the ground. Killua leaned in close, smelling Gon's face and checking his pupil's for any abnormalities. Breaking orbit was incredibly strenuous, and Gon and Killua had both been standing up during launch. They didn't know much at all about space travel… but they did know that it was incredibly dangerous.

The hybrid hunched his arms up, covering his reddened ears. Killua was too close. "Sorry," he mumbled. "I can just feel that we're moving and I'm having trouble keeping balance."

"It's alright," Killua murmured, holding Gon upright.

Ging snorted. "Never got your sea legs?"

Gon swallowed a growl, "That's not it!"

For some reason Ging looking down on him like this was really pissing Gon off.

"Piss off, old man!" Killua barked, walking Gon back to his seat.

"It's a perfectly normal reaction," Pariston perked up. "Artificial gravity is no replacement for solid ground. You'll get used to it within a couple of minutes."

Gon frowned at the Demon as Killua walked back around the table to his own chair. Why was Pariston so… sociable? Weren't Demons trouble makers? So why was he acting so agreeable?

Pariston was weird.

"Congratulations," Ging retorted sarcastically, "You've amazed all of us with your unending pool of knowledge."

Pariston's eyes sparkled. "It's the least I could do! This is their first space flight, after all! You weren't any better–"

"-We're not talking about that!"

"Aren't we?"

Gon and Killua watched Ging and Pariston shoot back and forth like petty grade schoolers. It felt like the younger two weren't even in the same room.

Killua quickly grew impatient, slapping the barb of his tail against the smooth surface of the floor with a deafening crack. "Would you two shut the hell up?! You just told us that the Moon of Chimera is at war! A little context would be nice!"

Ging cleared his throat, sitting back down from where he'd been leaning across the table to pull on Pariston's tie. The Demon straightened his suit lapels, grinning like a fool. "Right. As I was saying: this is, in fact, a Zodiac mission. It's true that we're based on Overworld, but interplanetary peace is our priority as well. The alien worlds keep to themselves, save for space travel and planetary immigration. All the other worlds are united under a single government, however, as I'm sure you're aware, our planet - Overworld - has no government. We live in a state of high functioning anarchy, with each individual city or species controlled state running itself and minding its own business. It's a rag-tag planet, and a pretty fucked up place to live if you're born in the wrong area.

"We enjoy our freedom, and everyone does their own thing on Overworld. Obviously this leads to frequent outbreaks of violence, and the Blood Wars and the various Old Time Wars are shining examples of that fact. Peace is fragile, and the only reason the entire planet isn't up in flames is because of the existence of the Zodiacs. We've earned quite the reputation on other planets. We're the real deal, and have proved it time and again. So occasionally, other planets or governing bodies will hire the Zodiacs to take jobs separate from the Overworld and its business."

"Yeah, we knew that already," Killua snapped. "What does this have to do with war on Chimera?"

Gon sweatdropped. He hadn't known any of that…

Ging groaned in annoyance, shifting in his chair and pulling a cigarette out of his pocket. He lit it, blew a puff of smoke, and continued his explanation. "I'm sure you already know this too, but for the sake of being thorough I'm telling you anyways."

Killua glared.

"The Chimera Ants aren't a humanoid species native to Overworld, but an alien species notorious for being destructive and incredibly violent. The Moon of Chimera isn't a moon, but rather a large group of moons. However, even that isn't entirely correct. You guys are well aware of how the Chimeras work. They leave their home land and scour the neighboring worlds, terrorizing everyone and everything in their path on the hunt for nourishment for their Queen. Phagogenisis is some nasty shit. You guys know that some Chimera's defect, but that most are on hunting missions. You know to leave them alone, to just let them be. Death is death, right?"

Gon and Killua frowned.

Yeah.

You didn't mess with Chimera Ants, that was just common sense.

"But do you know how the Chimera Ants actually work? Anything at all?"

Killua scoffed. "They have their own interspecies hierarchy. The Queen's on top, and all the others hunt for her so she can pop out Kings to make more Queens to make more Kings and just keep going."

Ging smirked. "An overgeneralization."

Killua growled, tail twitching behind him.

"This job is pretty damn involved," Ging bragged. "Now listen carefully, m'kay?"

"Gon, I'm gonna kill him. Can I kill him?" Killua snarled.

Ging cracked a laugh.

"It's okay, Killua, just ignore him," Gon reassured. Ging was pretty damned aggravating… that much was true. But Gon had to admit…

He did respect him.

"Let's have a Chimera lesson," Ging began, twirling his cigarette in his fingers. "The Moons of Chimera aren't actually moons. They used to be united in a single, enormous planet. A planet just like Overworld, with diverse populations of animals, beautiful biomes, and vast natural resources. But being Chimera Ants, violence was inevitable. There was only so much planet to go around, and as more Kings were born and more Queens after that, soon there were too many combatting King and Queendoms and not enough territory.

"So, the homeland they have today is a result of thousands of years of interspecies combat. It's just their way. Chimera Ants are meant to rule, but they can't all rule at the same time, right? Long story short, the Moons of Chimera are fragments of the former planet, a bunch of mini-planets, all bunched together and orbiting as one. Some segments are close enough to jump from Kingdom to Kingdom.

"And here's where things get complicated. Imagine this, there is one cake divided amongst a large group of people. There's not enough cake to go around, so every party guest has to fight over it. Naturally, the strongest of the party guests make it out with the most cake, while the weaker party guests get out with smaller pieces. Anyone who's not strong enough to get any ends up starving. Make sense?

"Not all the planetary segments are the same size. Each of Chimera's "Moons" holds a different reigning King or Queendom, and the larger the landmass the more powerful the regent. As it stands, there is one main landmass that is far greater than all the others. The role of the Chimera Ants is to rule, and in order to rule, one's Kingdom must be the one to hold the main landmass. From there, it is possible to defeat the smaller landmasses and place them under your control.

"So if you can imagine…" Ging prompted.

"The Chimeras are always at war," Killua finished, sounding annoyed.

"Exactly! But, here's the catch. For the past few hundred years, the power system has been shifting, stabilizing. The Queendom holding the largest landmass has been in control for an incredible amount of time considering the Chimera's history. The current Queen has been in power so long that she's killed every single opposing Kingdom, and replaced their leaders with her own children. Every single segment of Chimera answers to a single Chimera Ant, she is known as the Queen. Her name is long since forgotten, but her name doesn't matter. She is above us all, and all that matters is that she is the Queen. The Chimera Ant Queen.

"She holds the entire Moon of Chimera under her control, and her goal in life is to unite the entire species for the purpose of taking over and ruling every planet and every being in existence."

"Yeah. We already knew that," Killua snapped. "Maybe not all the messy details, but we already know that the Chimera Ants want to rule all. And we already knew that they all answer to just one Queen. Why's all that history garbage even matter?"

Ging glared Killua down, "Because their power dynamic is not as strong as they'd lead you to believe. The Moon of Chimera is incredibly unstable. As it stands, Chimera Queens are born to birth more Ants, therefore spreading more Kingdoms and creating more chaos. The Kings are the creatures meant to rule, to lead and to control. The Queen may hold control over her species now, but in order to solidify their union she must birth a King capable of commanding all of the others.

"Now. Do you really think that all those other Kings really want to hand their power over? Because they don't. They want to be the King to unite the species, not some newly birthed Ant. Because of this new age Queen, the goal of the Chimera Ants has changed. It had become a giant power struggle, an enormous game. A game to seize the throne. The Queen has already laid out all the necessary components, all one has to do is lay siege to the main palace and overthrow her before the New King is born.

"The Ants play nice, because they all want the same thing in the end. They want to reign supreme over all species. However, many secretly undermine the Queen, and plot to prevent the crowning of the King from ever taking place. So, there are two sides. The Kingdoms that side with the Queen, and the Kingdoms that side with themselves. However, there is a third party.

"A party that does not believe in violence, a party that does not want to conquer every being in existence. They want peace, and they want to crash the crowning of the King just for the sake of crashing it. If they can mess that up, if they can destroy the unity held, then they can push off the upcoming Chimera War for several hundred years.

"So to summarize, the Queen is dead set on giving birth to a superior King. A King strong enough to control every single Chimera Ant in existence, for the purpose of conquering literally everything. However, there are two insurgent parties. One that craves chaos, all acting of their own accord, and one that craves peace, banding together and plotting to throw the species back in time by hundreds of years. One person this entire mess in a delicate balance, and that person is the King. If he's born and he ascends the throne? It's all over."

"So we're going to Chimera to prevent the birth of the King," Killua exclaimed.

"Wrong!" Ging declared.

"What?" the Valkyrie snapped.

"The King is already born!"

"WHAT?!" Gon and Killua screamed at the same time.

Then this meant that the Chimera Ants were already unified! This meant that the WHOLE humanoid population was about to be at war! This meant that they were joining some tiny band of rebels to try and defeat an entire species!

This was absolutely insane! Was this seriously happening?! These were the Chimera Ants! It was a total lost cause! There was no way in hell they could ever possibly–

"And the King just so happens to be a part of the rebel group," Ging declared, sending Gon's mental scramble to a grinding halt.

"Wait, what?!" Killua snapped.

"Sounds ridiculous, doesn't it?" Pariston chuckled. "A creature bred for chaos and chaos alone? Striving for peace? It's unheard of. I should know."

Gon frowned, Killua squirmed in his chair.

"Remember how I told you that the Moon of Chimera is at war?" Ging asked.

The two boys nodded.

"Well, that is because the King has joined with the peace seeking rebels, and he crashed his own coronation. He doesn't want to take the throne, he wants to sabotage his species and send them spiraling into another thousand years of chaos. He knows that the Chimeras will be unstoppable once they unite under a single ruler, and he doesn't want that to happen. The Moon of Chimera is at war right now, because everyone wants to kill the King.

"The Queen and her forces are fighting to kill him because of his betrayal, and the chaos seeking rebels are fighting to kill him because he is destroying their one shot at ruling. If they don't kill him and save his crumbling throne soon, then the entire setup will fall apart. But they are fighting a lost cause. The King is the most powerful being in all existence, and if he wants to destroy the entire Chimera regime then he certainly will do so. The peace seeking rebels fight at his side, but they're fighting an uphill battle.

"There's just too much at stake, because this entire operation rides on the safety of a single humanoid. The King's hands are too full to properly assure her safety, and that's why we've been hired. Our job is to protect a very important girl, and help the King destroy his own throne."

Gon and Killua stared at Ging like he had two heads.

"That doesn't make any sense at all!" Killua retorted.

"Who in the world are we supposed to be protecting?" Gon demanded.

A glimmering palace, constructed of pure sandstone, accented with sparkling rubies and swirling mosaics of red and scarlett glass fragments. The outside was pure chaos, but within this tiny bubble of safety was the only remaining sliver of true peace on the entire Moon of Chimera.

Three all powerful beings stood watch, defending the precious moment within the walls of what had used to be a glorious palace. Only one tower was left undestroyed, and all that was left of the King's palace was a pile of rubble and a single tower, shooting into the sky like a final beam of hope.

With an elegant clack, a white colored tile labeled "Archer" was placed in a precarious position on a game board.

A delicate female voice rang out against the echoing walls of the chamber. "Archer, 1-9-3."

A pair of magenta colored eyes widened in shock, seeing the opening before them.

"5-5-1, Lieutenant General."

A tense moment dragged on, the King of the Ants leaning forward in anticipation. What would her move be?

"9-2-1. New Lieutenant General."

After a choke of surprise, the King deflated, dumping a handful of black tiles all over the board. "You win. Again."

He watched with the eyes of a man infatuated as a blinding grin lit up across the blind girl's face. "A wonderful match! Thank you for playing!"

The King chuckled, "Of course. It is I who should be thanking you. That move was incredible."

The girl squirmed, cheeks flushing bright pink. She fidgeted with the hem of her tattered dress, "Th-Thank you, my King! I am unworthy of your praise!"

The all powerful creature cocked his head to one side, smiling softly at the object of his greatest affections. Honestly, he was the unworthy one. Just a creature of destruction, yet somehow still graced by her presence. Unable to contain his smile, he picked himself to his feet.

"Unfortunately, I must take my leave. I will return to check on you by nightfall."

The girl's bushy eyebrows drew together. She nibbled on her lip, unsure. "Um… I…"

"Hm?" the King hummed, stopping in his tracks. He'd move mountains, realign the stars. She just needed to say the word.

"Well… how is it? How is it out there? Will you… will all of you be alright? Is this… okay?"

The King's face fell slack. She was so incredibly kind. "The situation is dire, there is no refuting that fact. But I will be alright. Everything is going according to plan, once our ship arrives we will take leave of this horrid world. We must only hold out for a matter of weeks. Violence is in my blood, after all. Do not concern yourself with my safety."

The girl frowned. "Al-alright. Just be careful! I wouldn't… I wouldn't want you to get hurt."

The King smiled softly. "As you wish. I will return once the sun touches the mountains." With that, the King of the Ants exited the lone tower of his once vast palace. He marched off onto a hallway, suspended in the air, hanging over a graveyard of bricks and destruction.

His guard were at his side in an instant.

"How long until they arrive?" he asked curtly.

"In one moon's time, my lord," answered an elegant man with the sparkling wings of a butterfly. "Though I'm certain we can request that they travel faster, if that is what you wish."

"No need," the King responded. "They have half a system to cross. We can hold out until then. The more chaos I have time to spread the better. I just worry, is all. She needs to be moved as soon as possible."

"She will be safe, my lord," an androgynous feline declared with a bow. "Rest assured, we will defend her to our dying breath."

"I do not doubt your sentiment," the King murmured. "But at the same time, I do not doubt the others'. Keep an eye on the sky, and do not lose sight of that communicator."

"Of course," they responded with a bow.

"Her name is Komugi," Ging announced. "And she is the reason the King is the way he is now. Our job is to escort Komugi out of Chimera, and to help the King finalize the destruction of the Ants' unity, by killing the Queen. He may very well accomplish this before we arrive, our main purpose is to bring a ship and take them away from Chimera."

"Them? Not just the girl?" Killua asked.

"Yup," Ging sighed, digging in his ear. "We'll be escorting the King, Komugi, his three royal guards, and any surviving rebels in his army. Though it's not expected that many of them will survive the war he's fighting at the moment."

"Where are we bringing them?" Gon asked.

"We're bringing them to a different world, a world they call Nirvana."

"Nirvana, huh?" Killua grunted.

"The King has been in contact with the peace seeking rebels for months now, and they have scouted and begun construction on a new and peaceful planet. It will be the peak of societal achievement. The King is born to rule, after all. He will rule a new planet, a world that will accept any and everyone. We just have to deliver him to his kingdom. Sounds simple enough, right?"

"No," Killua snapped. "This sounds like the most volatile operation in history! What if we die?"

"It's highly likely. But now that we've got a Dragonite Prince on our side, how hard could this be?" Ging snorted. "Besides, the King is quite literally the most powerful being in existence. He'll be doing all the work, him and his royal guards. We're just there to fly the ship and guard the girl."

"How exactly did the King of the Chimera Ants meet some random girl? Is she an Ant too?" Killua demanded.

"Nope, she's a hybrid, from Overworld, actually. Shipped there to be a Blood Bag."

Gon paled. Seriously? How was she still… alive?

"If she's a Blood Bag then why the hell is she so close with the King?" Killua retorted.

"Hey! Quit the interrogation, would ya? I don't know all the fine details and I don't need to! All that matters is we've got this job to do, and we're getting paid a fortune to do it. Or at least, I'm getting paid a fortune! You're getting paid with information. Now, ready to hear the good stuff?"

"Uh–"

Seriously?! After all that Ging was just gonna up and tell Gon out of nowhere–

"If you really must know," Ging sighed dramatically, ripping the cloth off his head, "I'm half human and half Terran Elf."

Gon sputtered. What–

What–

He seriously couldn't process–

He hadn't been prepared to hear this yet–

Ging ruffled his wild hair, a pair of elven ears now uncovered and laid bare. That was really… it. Ging just looked like a regular old human, dark tan skin, dirty from travel. Wild amber colored eyes - from the Terran Elf in him - a messy stubble across his chin. That coarse black-green hair.

Ging just looked like a… glorified human. He was a glorified human.

Huh… Gon had always thought he'd be some spectacular creature.

But no. He was half human, half Terran Elf. Terran Elves were the humanoids most closely related to the humans. They were dead last on the hierarchy, and had little to no blood power whatsoever. They might as well have been humans… They were known as the Plain Janes of the humanoid world. Nothing special.

Gon supposed his earthy colored eyes, hair, and skin made total sense now…

But… this was seriously what he'd been chasing his entire life for.

To learn that he was just… half normal.

But then… where had all the rest come from?

"Now, that's just me," Ging said. "You're mother is a whole different story, so don't go getting all droopy on me. I know you know how weird you are. That's all her. So help me with this mission so I can hurry up and tell you. The sooner I get this off my chest, the sooner I can forget she ever existed!"

Pariston chuckled into his hand, earning an aggressive glare from Ging.

"So that's–"

"-Yup!" Ging exclaimed, interrupting Gon with a clap of his hands. He stood up from the table. "That's it! Now, how's about I show the two of you around? Get you two used to the whole space travel thing? I'm gonna have to get you two rooms… How disgusting. Pariston! Come on, help me count this out!"

Gon watched as Ging and Pariston just… got up and left.

"...Gon?" Killua murmured, reaching his hand across the table.

"Hey!" Ging snapped, sticking his head around the corner and shattering the moment. "You coming or what? This ship's moving, ya know! You two'll be completely useless if you don't know how space works!"

"Uh, coming!" Gon exclaimed, scrambling out of his chair to hurry after Ging.

Killua darted to his side. "Gon, are you sure this is okay?" he asked, resting his hand on Gon's elbow to make sure he didn't fall again.

"Yeah!" Gon answered, shooting a smile Killua's way. "I'm totally fine!"

"You're seriously sure?"

"Yup! I'll think about all this later. For now, we've gotta get all this figured out."

The Valkyrie sighed, "Alright. Let's go then, that asshole's gonna leave us if we don't hurry up."


AN: that was a lot of exposition! i hope that made sense!

but haha, you THOUGHT! This will be a WHOLESOME Chimera Ant Arc! (Yorknew City was enough depression to last the entire fic) well, as wholesome as we possibly can be when Shaiapouf exists :3

buckle up, cause this gonna be the BEST arc