Thankfully Satotz was aware of who arrived first. He told them it was a tie, saving me the trouble of actually doing my job as a referee. Woohoo!

We were now standing off to the right side of the exit as we waited for the rest of the candidates to arrive. We were in the middle of an open field on, top of a hill. White, stone flooring and the square blocking entrance behind us were the only things in the whole field. Beyond that was solid grey. I stared off into the thick, blank of fog that surrounded the entire area. You couldn't see a damn thing here, not even ten feet in front of you. Past that and it was just shadows and ideas. An infinite expanse of white and grey.

Even with the unknown standing all around me, I felt great. Tired as shit for mostly no reason, but I still felt awesome inside. No matter what happens in the future, being superhuman is badass.

While I leaned on the wall of the tunnel exit, enjoying the afterglow of the run, Killua had decided to take that time to bug me while

"Feel cool about running up the stairs so fast, huh?" Killua said with a raised eyebrow and a smirk...

I answered his smirk with one of my own as I shrugged, "Hell yeah. Feels good to be able to let loose a little."

"What about, 'not showing your strength'?! You could have pushed me more while we waited then!" Killua said with a point of his finger, genuinely annoyed.

Gon looked between the two of us, confused as to what was going on.

"Yeah, well... I dunno, I get excited sometimes. Forgive me, oh eleven year- wait, how old are you anyways?"

Killua frowned, "I'm eleven, yeah. I'm about to be twelve," he turned to Gon, "What about you?"

Gon's eyes lit up, "Really?! I'm eleven too! How old are you James?"

I pumped my fist while closing my eyes. Nailed it.

"I'm twenty-eight," I said with a shrug as I realized how unusual my situation was.

To put it into perspective how weird this was for me... I was twice their age and a six-year-old kid put together. They spoke, not like dumb little kids should, but like adults. Gon was closer to speaking like how a child should, but it still sounded off to me. His eyes were too sharp and intelligent. Not as much as Killua mind you, but it was there. They were too aware of themselves. Like seeing a chimp think and speak. That may be a little bit insulting to children or Gon, but that's the closest thing I could describe something not supposed to happen. And that's from a guy who fought semi-talking monkeys.

"Hey, we should make James pay for our meal. He was supposed to pay attention instead of run ahead," Killua said as he decided to throw me under the bus.

Gon furrowed his eyes, "Yeah, that's right! You were supposed to be our referee James! Maybe you should pay for our dinner!" finished, deciding to take the driver seat of said bus and run be over with it.

I glared at the two. Cunning and childlike cleverness dancing in their eyes. Their talent and genius far beyond their age. This was a battle of wills, wits, and courage. War of the minds. I needed to be deliberate and careful with my next response...

"I ain't payin' for NOTHIN'! Get outta' here!" I said as elegantly as a car crash. I turned away from both of them and dropped Leorio's suitcase onto the floor while leaning Stick against the wall. There were still a lot of people flowing through the exit. By the droves. This would take a while.

"Hey, that's not fair! You ran ahead of us!" I heard Gon say as I organized my stuff. I slowly turned around, my eyes wide open while holding a hand onto my cheek like I made a mistake. In my best Derek Zoolander voice, I spoke.

"Oh... Does that mean I was the fastest? Oh... oh my, maybe I deserve two meals? From each of you," I said as haughty and looking as surprised as possible, my mouth making a perfect "O", before puckering my lips into a duck face.

I was Derek Zoolander's Magnum as I stared at them, gyrating my head left and right while wiggling my eyebrows.

Killua's eyebrows twitched in annoyance, unable or unsure what the fuck I was doing. Gon's confused frown was the best though. His eyes looked like dots as he didn't know how to respond. I stared back at them with the same irreverently, surprised face; fighting to keep my face straight.

The three of us had the most awkward stared down in existence. Gon and Killua looking bewildered, uncomfortable, and somehow sweating. My eyebrows wiggling up and down while my head moved side to side like a cobra. A really stupid cobra.

It was an exercise of pure will not to laugh and break character. Green lantern levels of will.

Before they could rally back from my insanity and defeat my insane troll logic, irresponsibility, and my stupidity in general, Leorio's voice smashed through our ridiculous face-off.

"Give me back my damn suitcase!" the ma- teen with a severe case of Tom Hank's Big walked between the three of us. He pointed a finger at my face. Then looked me up and down. Then his anger gave way to confusion.

"What the hell are you doing?" he turned from me to Gon and Killua, before turning back to me. I was still in my posing as I stared at him, gyrating my head back and forth.

"Are you some kind of pervert or something?" Leorio whispered, eyes twitching and face incomprehensible at what he was seeing.

With that, I died of laughter. I turned away from the overgrown teen and crouched over, holding my belly in pain from the uncontrollable giggles. My body fell to the floor as I couldn't control the mirth coming from my mouth. I had to pound the wall next to me, I had to. Their faces were the best. This situation was the best.

I needed this. The stress from Tonpa and having to be on guard all the time was starting to wear on me. A laugh is the best medicine in times of difficulty.

But it was apparent neither Leorio nor anyone else understood that, as he pointed down at me with one hand and shook his fist up in the air with the other. That, or I only found the ridiculousness of the situation funny. Probably that.

"You bastard! Stop laughing! What's wrong with you?! Stay away from these two! And give me back my suitcase!"

I couldn't stop laughing. I'm pretty sure everyone was staring at me at this point. I didn't care.

"Hey! Are you listening?!" Leorio said as he grabbed my suit and pulled me up to my standing height before pushing me against the wall.

At that point, I did stop laughing.

I hated it when people grabbed me like this.

The humor and joy in my face crumbled away as a cold mask of anger replaced it. I stared right at Leorio, my Killing Intent that I have been practicing for the better part of four hours fully unleashed.

"Let go of me. Now," I said with the patience of a saint and all the evil of the devil.

The taller teen sweated and trembled, but to his credit, he didn't falter. On the contrary, he doubled down, holding on tighter to my suit jacket and pushed me even harder against the wall.

"Not until you promise to leave these two alone and give me back my suitcase..."

At this point, I was becoming angry. Extremely angry. I glowed.

Who the fuck does this guy think he is?

I slowly raised my hands and grabbed his wrists, strengthening my grip bit by bit. He tried to shake his arms from my hold and found he couldn't. I was far stronger than he was. Has face slowly realized what was going on as his eyes widened in fear, his teeth barred like a dog. His snarl game was on point. I didn't care.

"You bastard! Let go!"

My green eyes continued to drill into his brown eyes, refusing to break, "Let go of me first or I'll snap your wrists like twigs..."

I could see the fear and shock in his eyes. He knew I was dead serious. But he refused to let go too.

"I would suggest you both let go. You are both making a scene and are on the verge of being disqualified," it was an effeminate male voice that spoke. It commanded attention and authority.

"Yeah. No reason to start something now," Killua spoke up from beyond my glare.

Even though we were the only two that looked like adults between the five of us, we decided not to act like ones. We continued to stare each other down, out pride and rage out of control. I clenched my jaw as I heard Killua's knuckles softly crack as he subtly flexed his fingers. That was the only thing that made me hesitate in my resolve. I didn't want to drag Killua into an unnecessary fight just because he felt obligated to...

It was Gon's words who broke through our macho stubbornness. He ran next to both of us and spoke up with a balled fist.

"Come on you guys! There's no reason to fight! He was just being weird Leorio! But he's not a bad guy! And Leorio's just being protective James!"

We stared at Gon for a second, then back to glaring at one another. For a moment, I think we both were ready to keep this going forever. Ultimately, this was pointless and we both knew it. Or, at least it was pointless now. Both of us slowly let go at the same time, honestly because our pride refused to let go first. In our minds, it would have been a sign of losing if either of us let go first.

I held my hands up as Leorio backed away from me. I patted myself down like he had left his dirt on me and was far filthier than he was. Leorio's eyes bulged at that last shot, but he managed to stay calm.

My anger had not subsided though. I hated it when people pinned me to walls. When they bullied me. When people tell me what to do.

So much for that laughter relieving my stress.

I bent down, picked up the suitcase, and lobbed underhand it at Leorio. Not kindly.

"Stay the fuck away from me. I appreciate that you care for those kids, but you don't tell me what to do! No one does! Not unless I say so," I finished with a point of my finger.

"Yeah?! Well stay away from us, you Tao Long scum! Whatever you want with those kids, I won't let you do it!" Leorio yelled back, not willing to back down either.

It's funny how anger and frustration are two different emotions, yet feel so similar that people get them confused. I was angry before because he touched me and tried to intimidate me. It didn't make me frustrated. I was now frustrated because he just yelled my background to the entire Exam. If they didn't know because of the Amori brothers, they did now.

And now I was fucking furious.

I could see hundreds of people stare at me: some indifferent, some in fear, some in disgust, some in anger...

The ones that worried me were the competitors that looked at me like I was a walking, talking piggy bank. Greed shined golden in their eyes.

It was the Ecstasy of Gold...

My face was emotionless as I stared at the crowd, then back to Leorio. My eyes moved on to the person next to him. Kurapika...

Leorio didn't know about the suits. He couldn't have known about me being Tao Long. He wasn't a criminal, even if he looked and acted like one. Not many people knew about these suits outside high-level criminals in the underworld. Since only, well, two people wore the same suit in the Tao Long organization. I also had my gloves on, so no sign there. I doubt Tonpa told them, he only knew after asking the Amori brothers. Plus, he would want some plausible deniability about knowing about the Tao Long and me. If I died, the Amori brothers would be the next people to die after whoever killed me. They would die on principle alone: you don't kill a Mafia Heir, even indirectly. No matter how fake my position was, Evira would do it for no other reason because she would be forced to.

And, honestly, she wouldn't even care if I died. She'd probably be more worried about the reputation of her organization.

But... Tonpa only knew I was Tao Long, not that I was heir apparent. So that meant the Amori brothers knew I was Tao Long, but they were too stupid to know that I was basically the same as Made Man or a Mafia Prince or some stupid shit like that. I was untouchable, but so far as to other criminals were concerned. That meant they were petty criminals or mercs, not actual mobsters...

Not much use a threat of death is if the people who kill me don't know about that threat... If this is similar to making me put on a black parka in a white forest full of crazy apes to make me 'stronger', I'm going to be pissed.

And it was looking like it, so I was...

What I'm getting at here is... the criminal underworld here was just as shadowy and nebulous as the one back home. Only someone knowledgeable, either studied it or was around it, would know that my green suit meant Tao Long...

"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm simply a man taking the Hunter Exam. Just like any other. Bothering no one. Understand?" I said severely as I ignored Leorio and drilled holes into Kurapika's grey eyes with my own. I could see Killua in my peripherals, annoyed by the whole situation, but tense. Gon was equally as tense, but worried instead.

The brains of the trio understood my message immediately.

Don't fuck with me and I won't fuck with you.

He nodded back with narrow eyes. The sound of a mechanical door sliding down punctuated the end of our discussion. Someone yelled to wait up as it slid down, denying any more applicants a way through. I grabbed Stick and walked off further off to the right of the area, looking calm to the world, but inside burning with rage and frustration. I leaned against the edge of the building and pretended the rest of the world didn't exist.

I tried to calm down as people continued to stare at me. It felt like I was a petulant child or something. Worst of all was my temper. It was getting the better of me again. My outside was that of indifference. Inside I was a maelstrom of thought...

Calm down. Breath. Control yourself and control the world. Leorio was just being protective. I am a mobster. Or at least act like one. It's only natural they would be worried...

But he did scream my identity to everyone and put me on the spot like that...

People were still staring at me. Whispering. Judging. I wanted them to stop. I wanted to beat the shit out of them.

But nothing I could do would change their opinion of me. Even if I shouted at the top of my lungs in a speech that was no doubt passionate and convincing, in my head, it would just be embarrassing and cringy when spoken out loud...

So I stewed in my own emotions. Keeping my guard up against the hundreds of people around me. Ignoring out every little idea, assumption, or prediction of attack I saw and focusing on the major ones around me. Fighting off the stress and anxiety getting to me. Trying to ignore the stares of everyone. Especially the three people who look like they have flowing, glowing bubble of plastic around them. The fucking Examiner, Hisoka, and Pinhead.

No, Satotz and Pinhead had some thin field around them... Hisoka was glowing...

And I was glowing...

I hate my fucking life right now...


"Why'd you go do that Leorio?!" Gon said with a pout, two fists balled up as he looked up at the older teen.

They at the entrance of the gate as the four of them looked between each other. Killua stood closer to the right side of the gate, while Leorio and Kurapika further to the left. Gon was directly in the middle.

Leorio was confused, "Huh? What!? That guy's a mobster! He's part of the worst crime family in the world!"

The towering teenager lowered himself to the green-clothed boy's height, giving a token effort to whisper as he closed a hand around his mouth.

"You probably don't know this, but the Tao Long likes to kidnap people your age and sell them off. They're lying, two-bit scum."

Kurapika walked forward, his eyes closed, "They may be scum, but they're anything but two-bit. Their leader came from the shadows ten years ago and waged war with the Don of the United States of Saherta and his Five Families. It was a heinous war: primarily because of Tao Long's methods. Kidnapping, torture, bombings, banned chemicals; everything and anything was used. Nothing was off-limits. Worse, no one was safe. She would target her enemies families, friends, children, allies. No one was safe from her soldiers..."

The three of them stared at Kurapika with surprise and shock. Even Killua's normal indifference was gone.

Leorio narrowed his eyes at Kurapika, "You're talking about The Valentine's Day War."

Kurapika nodded, his face set in stone as he opened his eyes, "Yes... the very one. The collateral damage became so extreme that Blacklist Hunters were called in to stop the fighting. Instead... she somehow managed to convince several Hunters to join her organization. Where before the two factions held a bloody stalemate, the addition of powerful Hunters into her Mafia allowed her to wipe out her enemies drive the Don and his Five Families into East Yorbia..."

Kurapika closed his eyes and sighed, "To end the war, the Dons offered the leader of the Tao Long into the Ten Dons, or now, the Eleven Dons. That was why Leorio was so concerned about you, Gon."

Killua stepped forward, his eyes narrowed, "You mean Mayer Domo, right? That's one of the Hunters who joined?" He didn't know anything about the jobs he took for the Tao Long. He just did them...

But that was around the time Mayer stopped visiting.

Leorio flinched at the name as though it were cursed.

Kurapika opened his eyes and narrowed them upon Killua. He nodded as he stared at the stranger, "Yes, the former second-in-command of the Pure Paladin Squad before their disbandment..." Kurapika said, his hands clenched, their grip like steel, "Four years ago he decided to join the Tao Long. He was the deciding factor that swung the war in favor of the Tao Long. Arguably the world's greatest Blacklist Hunter... joined one of the most dangerous organizations in the world..."

Killua stared wide-eyed at Kurapika, before turning back to James. He was staring off into the distance. The man looked calm, but rage radiated off him like heat. No one wanted to be near him.

'That's what happened to Mayer... And someone like James is Mayer's apprentice?'

Gon looked up at Kurapika with genuine curiosity, "Why would someone who hunts criminals become a criminal?"

Kurapika shook his head, his face calm but his body shaking with rage "No one knows... but he couldn't have joined a worse group of individuals. Leorio is right: you two should stay away from him. The Tao Long are notorious for slavery and human trafficking. As well as fleshing collecting... outsourcing of assassination, torture, the stealing of precious artifacts, and even the poaching and selling of exotic and endangered beasts."

The Kurta sighed as he held his eyes closed. He almost let slip about the Scarlet Eyes, and worse, he almost lost his composure...

From all Kurapika's research, the Tao Long held the largest collection of the Scarlet Eyes in the world. Almost all of them.

The eyes of his people...

Anyone who was a leader of that organization had to know about them... he would make sure that man, James, told him everything...

Kurapika opened his eyes and turned to the mobster who walked away minutes before. He had taken up the corner of the building to himself and was giving off a threatening atmosphere. The man radiated that kind of power the whole time Kurapika had seen him, but now it was far more powerful...

When Kurapika saw the green suit and laid eyes on him in the tunnel, it took all his training to not pause on him. Leorio was right, the Tao Long were scum, worse than that, and would suffer for participating in the slaughter of his people.

But the blonde would have to be careful. That Tao Long radiated power... similar to a few of the contestants. Kurapika had seen how easily and quickly he dispatched Tonpa, making it seem like an accident. But his movements were deft and precise; a practiced combatant that hid just below the surface of the man's stoic and reserved appearance...

Gon's voice snapped Kurapika's attention away from the Tao Long. Kurapika turned to Gon, the child's eyes burned with understanding beyond his childlike attitude. One of the many reasons the boy interested him.

"He's not a bad person. I can tell," Gon said with a nod, his lips pressed together in a thin line of resolve.

Killua looked at Gon with surprise. Killua knew James was nothing like how he looked, and he looked every bit of a criminal. But that was only because he spent two days with the man.

Leorio raised his hand up in a shrug, his face as dismissive as it could be, "Listen, Gon, he may act like a good guy, but he's a Tao Long through and through," he said as he jabbed a finger at the man taking over the right corner of the exit.

The older teen moved the same finger and pointed it at Gon, "You can't just trust a guy you just met so quickly! Even if he comes across as a nice guy! It's just an act, ya' understand Gon?!"

Gon looked up at Leorio, confused innocence in his eyes, "Yeah, but I've only known you for two days Leorio! And you're not a bad guy either. And you look and act like a criminal too!"

Leorio somehow almost tripped while standing still, "Hey! Just 'cause I wear a suit doesn't mean I'm a criminal! And I don't act like one either!"

Kurapika stared at the three of them, his voice subdued, "Leorio's appearance and demeanor aside, he does have a point. You have some measure of who we are, Gon. But that man is a mystery, just like the rest of the Tao Long Family," the blonde turned his gaze to Killua, "I do not know who you are, or your relationship with that man, but I suggest caution. The Tao Long are not to be trusted."

Killua looked at the blonde teen, annoyed. Who was he to talk down to Killua? He knew James the best out of all of them, and he was finding them to be more annoying than James was. Well, everyone except Gon.

And if this guy thought he would hurt James, Killua would make sure he had another thing coming...

The white-haired boy shrugged, "It's Killua, and worry about yourself, ok?" Killua said as he looked away.

"Hey, we're just looking out for you, kid! No need to be a brat about it." Leorio said with disdain.

"Who asked you to look out for me, old man?"

"Why you little punk!"

Gon pointed to the Examiner, "Hey you guys!"

Satotz stared at the group, dispassionately. He had waited for the disruption from the five at the exit to end before beginning the next phase of the Exam. While it may have been more of a rest then the Examiner wanted for the group, he could sense the atmosphere bubbling amongst the candidates after that revelation. Satotz sense the tension and worry in the air. He could see it in their eyes as they stared around at each other: what other monsters were lurking amongst the candidates?

Waiting...

The Examiner could see it now. Their worst enemies maybe themselves, not the creatures that inhabit this swamp...

The next part of this phase was to be a bloodbath.

"All right everyone. Now that you have all reached this far and are ready, we may continue the first phase of the Exam. In front of us is the Milsy Wetlands, also known as Swindler's Swamp."

The Hunter turned towards the swamp, almost as if presenting it to the group. Grey, foggy, and moist; the Misly Wetlands was everything its name implied, and absolutely what its nickname suggested. Thick, tropical trees and even thicker undergrowth surrounded the area. Ferns, vines, and enormous bushes hid the environment around them. Worse, the fog was so thick it blocked all vision except for a few meters around them. As if God had created a place that was shrouded in secrecy, but once stepped into, a person would become part of that secret...

The swamp would make sure of it.

"We must cross it to reach Phase Two of the Exam. This place is home to a variety of truly bizarre animals, many of which are crafty, voracious creatures who deceive and feast on human prey. So please, be very careful."

The Examiner turned around to the crowd of participants and raised a finger up before continuing his lecture, his eyes dull and disinterested, "If you're deceived, you'll surely die," Satotz said as casually and as factual as a tour guide.

"These wetland creatures are not to be underestimated, for they will use every trick in the book to fool their prey. This is an ecosystem in which all creatures hunt by the art of deception. And that is why it's also known as Swindler's Swamp."

The Examiner turned around, "Now then, please follow me closely so you won't be deceived."

Satotz heard a man in the back dismiss him. It was the man who started the commotion with the Tao Long. Oh, how foolish. Ah, he could already sense a resident of these wetlands come to serve as an example. Good.

"Don't fall for it! Don't let them fool you! He's lying! that man is lying to you!"

Everyone turned to their right to see a blonde-haired man in tattered clothing pointing at the Examiner. His arm was precariously close the red-haired mobster's face.

The crowd gasped as they turned from the blonde-haired man to the purple-haired 'Hunter'.

"He's an imposter! A total fraud. I'm the real Examiner, you got it?!"

Half the crowd looked back and forth, trying to understand what was going on. Killua was annoyed at the stupidity of it all, while Leorio cried out in confusion.

The atmosphere changed from exhaustion to confusion... but it was transitioning to outrage. All it would take is one last push.

"I'll prove it, look at this!" the man said as he dragged out a thin, skinny ape that had a face exactly like the 'Examiner'. Brown fur covering most of its body.

The crowd roared in surprise. Then quieted in absolute shock from the harsh crack echoed around the area...

The man holding the ape fell to the ground from a single punch to the side of the head. By the mobster. Before anyone could react a second kick to the rib cage to the downed monkey sent it yelling in excruciating pain. Its rib cage was shattered by the blow. The whole crowd stared, dumbstruck, at the green-suited man who struck down the 'real' Examiner.

The Man-Faced Ape, that was what the creature was called that was writhing in pain on the floor. The one person in the exam who knew for sure stomped on the creature's neck, executing the animal and delivering it from pain.

The Ninja named Hanzo yelled, "Hey! What are you-"

The mobster stared at the crowd and spoke loudly, his deep voice cutting through the silence of the fog like thunder. His anger no longer restrained, "Are you fucking serious?! I can see it on the half you that you have no idea about the creature right there, and the other half of you are confused! There's, like, ten of you who might know what this thing is! How are you guys even trying to be Hunters if you don't know how to hunt?"

The Tao Long emitted uninhibited rage and contempt at the crowd around him as he furiously pointed at the human slowly turning back into a thin ape, it's appearance exactly the same as other simian except with clothing. The other ape's face slowly turned back into a normal, albeit incredibly human-looking, furry primate.

James did not like apes.

With a wave of a hand towards Satotz, he ignored the rest of the crowd that stared daggers at him and spoke, absolute fury in his voice "Let's get this going already! This lecture is pointless. If they're unprepared for this, that's their fault! We've already ran like dogs! I'm tired of standing here like some fool with the rest of these even bigger fools!"

The clown chuckled. The rest of the crowd reacted with muted rage. Only a handful of people were aware of the animal in front of them. Even less studied the creatures and environment that surrounded Zaban. The rest had fallen for the deception.

Satotz stared at the man for a few, long seconds before closing his eyes and nodding, "Very well, we have waited long enough as it is. Let this be a lesson to you all who were fooled into suspecting my identity. These attempts are to be expected and frequent. If you lose track of me, you have no hope whatsoever of reaching the Second Phase of the Exam. You have been warned."

He turned around and began 'walking', "Now let's begin. Please follow me."

They followed close behind as the swampy grass soaked into their shoes and socks. The soggy soil sinking deep with every step and sabotaging their footing and running posture. Every step was glue, the difficulty and stamina use ramping up exponentially for all the applicants, sapping their energy and making every step several times more tiring. Physically, the humidity and heat formed a blanket of sticky, wet air that made it hard to breathe or sweat correctly. The contestants to the world's worst foot race felt as if they were running with masks on their face, or as if breathing into a plastic bag. The heat they gave off was retained inside their body with no way to escape. The air was hotter than their body temperature and the humidity denied evaporation of sweat: the human's overwhelming evolutionary advantage had become nigh-useless in this swamp. The sweat. The heat... There was no reprieve, no escape from the conditions of the swamp. Many of them vomited, their bodies believing something was wrong and reacting according to the biological instinct to get rid of the problem in their body. Others simply collapsed; their bodies no longer capable of pushing themselves after running for so long. Some just died, dropping like puppets cut from their strings as the heat pushed them to into the next life...

For those who could survive the physical burden, the mental strain was no better. They were being driven to the brink, their wills tested beyond what they had ever experienced before. There was no pleasant environment to distract them from the pain and fatigue their bodies felt. And there was no music or sound to divert their attention from the strain of running. They wished let their minds wandering, to escape the suffering, yet they couldn't. They needed to stay in reality and pay attention or they would lose the Examiner. Their minds were completely trapped in the there and now, their minds wishing to escape the sensation their bodies felt and wishing for the sweet, melodious drug of imagination to escape their endless waltz. Instead, their environment was a grey canvas of wild and horrifying fear. Fear... fear crept inside of their minds... fear: fear of the unknown.

The deepest and darkest fear of mankind.

All fear stems from it. Rational to irrational.

What was beyond the dark? Underneath the bed? Who is that stranger in the park? How hard will the final test for class be? Do my parents love me? Are they going to fire me from work? Will I ever achieve my dreams?

What was beyond the bushes? What was that sound? What just touched my skin? Was that movement? Am I safe right now? How long will we keep running?

Can I keep running? Can I even stop anymore?

Can I even do this?

Even the most powerful, dangerous, and cocksure people on the planet succumbed to it: fear of the unknown. These applicants were no different.

There was no sign of stopping. No sign of slowing down. The fear danced at the edge of their minds. Madness crept in. The environment hid dangers behind the fog mere meters away from them. It was as if running blind and delirious, with only the sound of footsteps and heavy breathing their only music. What was out there lurking in the fog, only an arms stretch away? Were their claws or jaws to their left? Maybe a sudden cliff drop to their right? What about the other competitors? What's to stop them from plunging a knife right into their back...

It only became worse when the screams started.

Quickly the crowd began to thin, people disappearing into the fog, nightmares made real devouring and incapacitating those unfortunate to encounter them. Applicants would see a movement in their peripherals and the person beside them was gone. Turn away one second and the person in front of you was missing. Only screams left in their wake. If the creatures allowed it.

They were coming out to feast.

The bizarre and otherworldly beasts whose form were hidden in the grey and practically invisible; yet completely able to see you. It was not the boogeyman, nor the monster under your bed. But the true monster humanity had always feared.

The world itself. The environment and animals all around them. This is why we humans subjugated it.

The ones that were quickly eaten met merciful fates.

Not the ones that were eaten by grey, nearly invisible mosquitos the size of locusts. Those injected paralyzing agents to allow their children to feed. How bright red they became as they engorged on those who ventured onto their nesting grounds. Or the waterfall of spotted leeches that fell from trees or hid in ponds. Those buried themselves into the unfortunate victim's body and hatched their eggs into your bladder; All the while drinking your blood. The sounds of screams became a song that filled the white abyss around them; to some, it was a dirge of death and horror. To Hisoka, a sweet flamenco that sent shivers of ecstasy down his spine. He couldn't wait for number seventy-six and his friends to ambush him... the tantalizing foreplay almost too overwhelming...

To the contestants of this hell game, Hisoka's ecstasy came off as a blood-curdling atmosphere that shook most who could sense it to the core...

Inadvertently, it served as a warning. To those too ignorant or arrogant, it served as an annoyance or ignored. In this case, ignorance was not bliss... or maybe it would be to Hisoka.

"Gon, let's try to move up to the front," Killua said as he scanned the area the crowd in front of him as he tried to search for the mobster. He had lost track of James and didn't know where he could be.

Gon nodded, "Right. The last thing we want to do is lose sight of the Examiner right now."

"I just want to put a little more distance between Hisoka and us. Staying close is dangerous, I can smell it, " Killua answered, calmly, but urgently as he felt the situation starting to devolve behind the two of them.

Killua's green friend was oblivious to the danger behind them as he frowned.

"Smell, huh? Huh? I don't think he smells. Hey, Leorio! Kurapika! James! Killua says we should all move up to the front of the pack." Gon yelled as he turned his head around to the crowd behind him

Killua didn't know at what point into a relationship with another kid his age that you could knock someone over the head. He did it in less than an hour with James, but that guy was a supreme idiot. But Gon was slowly edging him in Killua's mind.

"Hey, calm down, don't you feel the tension in the air?"

Two voices from afar answered. They were at the back of the pack. All Gon could see was grey shadows behind him as he used his mind to imagine Leorio and Kurapika calling back to him

"You idiot! If I could reach the front I'd already be there!" Leorio yelled while struggling to run in the swampy grass and mud.

He was grateful Gon had elected to carry his suitcase. The boy was a monster, and Leorio would pay him back one day. Right now, he just wanted to get through this hell.

"Go ahead, we'll meet you there," Kurapika yelled to Gon. He knew Gon was in safe hands with Killua. While the boy was friends with that Tao Long man, he sensed that Killua would protect Gon. The self-assumed last surviving Kurta clan was more worried about Leorio. He could feel Hisoka's killing intent bubbling up. Leorio was none the wiser and right in the path of the hurricane.

Selfishly... he also wanted to have a conversation with the Tao Long leader...

Killua frowned. James didn't respond to Gon's cry.

That worried Killua, while Gon was disappointed that his two friends wouldn't be coming up to run with them.

"Come on, let's go," Killua said impatiently.

"Wait, what about James? He didn't answer. You think he's ok?" Gon said as he stared at Killua. Killua continued to stare forward.

"He'll be fine. He may act like an idiot, but he's definitely strong..."

The Zoldyck was only worried about one thing... would James hold back?

I Killua's opinion, James was too soft. He had a kindness and mercy that was opposite to what was to come. Especially for a mobster.

That question belied an ever deeper question...

Would James be the same person Killua knew when he exited this swamp?

Because there were several missing applicants, and Killua could spot trouble from a mile away...


Killing those two apes made me feel so much better. In a weird, guilty, bittersweet way. I had no sympathy for those creatures. Any creature that tried to trick me.

After dealing with those White Apes, I fucking learned about all types of animals before my trip down here. Especially ones located in the Kukan'yu Kingdom. Specifically ones near Zaban...

Knowledge is power, ignorance is bliss, and stupidity is easy to keep mollified. These fucking people had no idea what they were getting into. Most of them were still confident until I pointed out they knew nothing about this place. They didn't even study! It's an exam motherfucker, study!

Pairo was going to kill me for losing his book, though. It was in the bag...

I sighed reflexively as I continued my thoughts. This place was part of the Visca Forest Wildlife Preserve. But, I don't know if preserving is the right word: more let keeping everyone else away from dying. The Milsy Wetlands was a hellhole comparable to the White Death, but where there was only one species to fear in the forest, here, everything was trying to kill you. This place was a baby Catachan from Warhammer 40K. Swindler's Swamp my ass, more like Sudden-Death Swamp. This place was inhospitable to human life.

But you know what? These fuckers know now since they're screaming their heads off. I haven't stopped hearing screams for over an hour. I snarled as I heard another far off scream. It was like Silent Hill up in this bitch, mixed with, I dunno? What place has horrifying screams? Hell? If I didn't know what animals and dangers were up ahead, I would have half-expected Pyramid Head to come out and fight me. I'd beat the shit out of his triangle-shaped head, but still. This place was terrifying. Yet, I kept my cool: I had to.

More annoyingly, I was being followed by five men who decided now of all times was the best time to fight me. I was too tired to deal with this shit, and not like a jaded cop. My breathing was starting falter in this humidity. I only ran in a dry desert, a normal mountain, or snowy versions of either. Nothing this wet and hot. It felt like trying to breathe while someone shoved a steaming hot, wet cloth over your mouth and nose. And this mud, fuck this mud. My shoes were waterproof, and my socks too, but they were both still wet. My feet would sink into the mud and cause my stride to catch for a second. If I wasn't too careful I would get hurt. I saw a person roll and sprain his ankle because of the mud... then proceed to get eaten by a giant alligator disguised as a bunch of ferns...

I sighed again as I thought something and ran ran to the spot I wanted to get to. It helped keep me from focusing on this sudden ramp up in difficulty. It really grinds my gears that I'm seemingly the only one who trained to actually HUNT. To be fair, most of these people were inhumanely in-shape athletes. I would be confident too if I was in my shape, minus the sudden fatigue plaguing me. But this isn't a Spartan Race or Tough Mudder, motherfucker, you needed more than just physical attributes to survive this part of the exam. I thanked Panza and Mayer for teaching me how to hunt. You would think, right? Hunters hunt, therefore Hunters must be hunters. Nope.

And I don't even want to hear, 'Well, a hunter can hunt anything. Not just animals.' Shut the fuck up, thoughts. You can go fuck yourself. Your input is unwanted, back of my mind.

Regardless... My training as a hunter, lowercase 'h', was why I knew where I was going. I could see the giant footsteps that looked like manhole sized puddles. To these idiots, they wouldn't be able to tell where we were going. And they sucked at trailing prey...

They've been shadowing me my entire time running this swamp. It wasn't even hard to notice. The wasn't the most aggravating thing of all was, it was getting tired. I don't even know why. In my normal condition, even after two marathons, I was more than enough physical shape to run this swamp. And I was way faster than these fuckers that I could outrun them in my normal condition. But I wasn't in my normal condition for some fucking reason!

I've been feeling mentally tired, brain foggy, and just plain cranky the longer the day's gone by. And that's saying something considering I started off feeling like shit. Now I was really feeling it through my entire body.

It wasn't just the stress. I can't be just stress. Anyone would be stressed under this situation. But that fact that I don't know why I was becoming so tired added onto my stress, creating a vicious cycle of stress and fatigue...

I mean, I don't know, I'm not an expert in this world. I don't know shit about it. It could be, JUST THROWING IT OUT THERE, but the fact I'm LEAKING white steam from my body lower body and arms ever since I got into it with Leorio.

And I don't know why! I haven't had time to fix it since I was running through this fucking swampy nightmare.

I stared at the wide-open area around me. I saw head-like shapes floating in the fog, far off to my right.

Fuck. I was here.

I had arrived at my destination and stopped running. So here I stood, in an open field that I led these idiots into. I turned around and began circling to my right, very slowly. That way their eyes would be on me and not on the distant shapes that were now on my left.

My teeth clenched in anger...

I didn't want to kill... which added onto everything, made me tense as a cable holding a bridge. And while it is a cliche, killing did get easier. Everything gets easier...

Reality is cliche. Fuck reality...

My head stared up at the sky grey sky as I stopped at the spot I wanted to be in, the weight of my sword on my right shoulder.

Right across the floating shapes.

I remembered Pedro from my old life...

He grew up on a farm in Mexico. It was his job to kill the chickens. He would snap their necks. He said this of the job: the first chicken was the hardest because it was like a friend he saw around the farm. He snapped its neck incorrectly and it suffered.

He cried all night.

The next neck was easier.

By adulthood, it wasn't even a problem. He even joked to me about it.

I'm talking about chickens here, but how many times do we stop to think about how many roaches, spiders, or ants we kill? I bet the first time I killed a spider I was terrified or sad, but I still don't remember the first pest I killed. Why would I?

I saw it in Killua. I could see it coming in myself. My memories... Panza didn't come to help me... not physically at least... I couldn't remember everything after the big fucking ape hit me...

The thing I remember clearly though? I killed those apes. Not Panza.

I didn't want to get to the point where it was as easy to kill a person as Pedro was at killing a chicken. Or me an ape. To the point where Killua had to literally fight the habit not to do it by accident. Both physically and mentally. Even Killua didn't want that, and he was a fucking assassin. Even the way he carried himself, the way he looked around at everyone like they were threats, calculating vectors of approach for his strikes and shit. To see death in everything. That was a miserable existence.

That's why I cared for the stupid kid: he knew what he did was wrong and choose to struggle against it, to move on from what he was taught and supposed to become what he wanted to be.

If he was like those gangsters that walked around my old neighborhood with fish-eyed stares... They're like alien creatures to us humans. They stared back at you like Hisoka or candidate three hundred and one, Pinhead. Not a care in the world...

I heard the group arrive. They were standing there...

My mouth twisted into a rage as my mind stopped letting me be distracted. Damn it... I just trying to avoid the inevitable.

I sighed, my head falling back to Earth before beginning to speak, my left hand in my pocket while my right held Stick over my shoulder. A backpack filled with supplies on my back. I could feel subtle vibrations in the ground. I could see them in the water.

"I don't wanna' fight you guys. Honestly, we could do this later. I'll even let you pick the location, day and time..." I said, keeping my eyes on the leader.

The five of them just chuckled, most of all the leader of the group.

He was a big, tall, round man with a hammer strapped to his back. He had a weird beard and was dressed in purple. Number one-two-three.

Flanking him were the other four men, all of whom had numbers close to him. Except for this guy, who looked like he was wearing bee keeper's helmet or something. He looked nothing like the rest of them, wearing yellow robes and a sword on his left hip. He was number thirty-two. A man in navy gi and mohawk was number seventy-one. A guy with a goatee wearing a yellow beanie, orange vest, and black shirt; number one-zero-seven. Lastly was a brown-haired man in a purple vest with a crazy widow's peak, he was number one-ten.

Maybe I would remember them after this...

Hopefully, someone would.

"I can give you money if that's what you want. I can give you a whole lot of it," I said, honestly.

The man in purple laughed, "No can do. All Tao Long have a fifteen million jenny bounty on their heads. Tack on two more zeros to the end of that for people in green suits on. You know how hard it is to find one of you guys outside of the U.S.S?"

Ok. Well, I can't offer ten million Americans dollars. Why can't they just leave me alone? Damn it...

I frowned, "I can imagine. You do know if you guys somehow manage to kill me, my Family will track you all down and kill you all? Right?" I said, dismissively, all pretenses of being something I wasn't going out the window.

Just be scared and leave, god damn it!

They laughed. All of them laughed except for the beekeeper dude. He just stood there, a hand on his hilt. Tapping it with his fingers...

Fine. Let them die. I gave them three chances. More than enough chances.

I felt the vibrations become stronger, but these bozos still weren't aware of what was happening. I continued to talk to keep them distracted.

"So, I guess you're thinking 'No one will see us in this fog! This is a perfect plan! Five versus one, he can't be that strong!' Too bad you guys picked the wrong fucking place to jump me. At the wrong point in my life."

The purple man laughed again, this time taking his fuck-huge hammer off his back.

"Yeah, and why's that?"

I glared at him, my green eyes cold as ice, "I don't need to tell a dead man a damn thing,"

My mouth was a thin line as I clenched my jaw.

A second later a giant, yellowish-brown, dinosaur-like creature's head erupted from above and bit down over the top part of the leader's body. Immediately he flew up into the sky and disappeared into the fog, a muffled scream coming from the throat of the creature as legs wiggled from its maw, their forms fading away into the grey.

Another dinosaur grabbed number seventy-one by the legs and pulled him away, his fingers digging into the soil as he tried in vain to escape the teeth of the creature. The man screamed at the top of his lungs for help as he stared at his comrades. They couldn't do a thing a damn thing but stare. Then he stared at me. I wasn't going to a damn thing but stare.

My hands balled up in rage.

With a crunch of the creature's mouth and a yank of its head, he was dragged away as fast and as easily as if he were a rake being pulled by car, bloody hands boring holes into the dirt and mud; a bloody trail the only evidence the man existed.

Well, if you ignored the crunching and screaming.

My green eyes stared on as I looked dispassionately at the three remaining men. They stared at me like I summoned the monsters from the mist. No, I didn't. I just followed their trail. If they were hunters they would have seen it as plain as day.

I gave them a chance.

I took a step forward.

That's when the other three panicked and fled into opposite directions. Two running away from me towards where they thought the other candidates should be and one running past me and towards where we exited the tunnel. While they all picked the wrong directions, at least the one who hadn't unknowingly run towards the stocky-sized brontosaurus tortoise creatures might survive this place.

I heard a pair of screams.

Noggin Lugging Mudderfugging Toy-tu-ziz. Not the official name, but that's what I will be calling them for the duration of this Exam...

I shouldn't be making jokes... I sighed angrily as I heard the creatures chomping and swallowing the fools who went after the bounty on my head, or my 'family's' head. I needed to be willing to kill, but I didn't want to kill. So this was my compromise until I grew the balls to actually kill a human with my bare hands...

Or hopefully never. A fool's hope, but only fools can hope. Everyone else suffers in silence.

I would rather be the fool.

My ears twitched as I heard a pair of people stop behind me and to my right. I didn't have to worry about the two dinosaur-sized tortoises in front of me as I turned around. Their mouths were full.

I frowned when I saw who it was.

Ah shit.

"You," was all Kurapika said as he glared at me.

"Me," I answered with a glare. I was not in a good mood to see them again.

Leorio was growling, his tiny, round sunglasses balancing dangerously on the tip of his nose. Sweat was leaking off of him without pause in this miserably humid armpit of a location, his tie hanging down his neck like a soggy noose. A hand hovered over his back pocket, no doubt where he held a weapon of some sort. Most likely a blade of some type... switchblade, I'd say.

The three of us squared off, no one making a move. I'm sure Kurapika had seen me 'deal' with the five people. Or at least saw the guy run past me. Knowing my luck, he probably imagined me doing the deed myself, tossing these people into the mouths of these giant dinosaur tortoises with both hands. He hated me for some reason. It was in his glaring eyes, in the lines in his face, in the tightness of his fists around his weapons...

It pissed me off. I hated being judged before I could speak, let before someone saw me act. I'm not the best of people, but I try, and I'll be damned if someone looks at me with those kinds of eyes.

Eyes of complete and utter disdain. Like I was lower than trash. Worse than that, something that needed to be exterminated.

I hated it when people looked down on me.

The vibrations of the tortoises walking towards us woke me out of my rage. I breathed deeply, exhausted. I was sweating as much as Leorio was and all I did in this battle was stare and stand. My free hand grabbed my head as my eyes followed down to my feet, my eyesight becoming unfocused. I felt woozy. As if my mind had been ignoring the reality of my body and it was just hitting me now. This was the limit and I couldn't ignore it anymore. I realized blinding white steam was continuing to pour out of me like I was a broken pipe, and it had been the entire time I was hyper-focused on the five. Now even worse than before. I shook my head and stared up to see Leorio turning around just as a tortoise swooped down to try and eat him. He jumped back in the nick of the time as the giant reptile eat a mouthful of dirt and grass. It was coming back for another bite.

I hissed in annoyance as I ran forward towards the two, my legs feeling simultaneously more powerful and tired than they ever had felt before. Kurapika tensed up as I ran towards him, but a glance and a shake of my head spoke more than a minute of speaking could communicate. With an even quicker nod he turned around towards the tortoise attacking Leorio, but he did keep his distance and his guard up. I didn't care. As much as these two hated my guts, I wasn't going to let them die. They haven't attacked me and they were Gon's friends. I was better than that kind of pettiness. Stronger than that.

And mostly because Killua was becoming Gon's friend. That stupid kid needed a friend his age. Selfish? Yeah, but I'll admit I live vicariously through others.

Besides. I was too weak to save the fools who tried to kill me before. And I hate being weak.

With a twist of my body, I threw away all pretenses of technique or training as I wound my body up and swung Stick with all the grace of a home run hitter. I smashed the Noggin Lugging Mudderfugging cocksuckin' piece of shit thing as hard as I physically could on side of its' head as it went for another bite at Leorio. Harder than I ever hit anything in my goddamn life, both of them. All my strength concentrated on one spot caused a booming sound like a thunder to blast through the air.

The creature's head moved about a foot. It wiggled its neck back and forth like shaking off a minor headache.

I hit that dinosaur as hard as a car crash. The thing was annoyed. At most.

My legs pushed me backwards as I instinctively jumped to get some distance... only to fly back further than I ever did before. The ground under me fell apart from the force of my jump, mud and grass flying into the air as I catapulted back with strength and force far beyond what I was capable of. As I soared through the air, all I could think of was... God damn body! What the hell is going on?!

I crashed into the mud like a mortar round and rolled to a stop onto my knees. Shaking my head, I opened my eyes doors as I saw how far I jumped. I was more than ten meters away when I never even passed ten feet before...

Teeth met teeth as I clenched my jaw and ran towards the two, again my body doing its best to screw me over as I felt like I was running on the moon. The ground itself sliding and exploding under me from the force of my running. I had to fight to balance and tilt myself to make sure I didn't fall over from my sudden, uncontrollable strength in this terrain.

I'm pretty sure this is Nen. And I can't even fucking control it! Fuck!

Leorio turned to face me, eyes wide with panic, shock, annoyance as he yelled at me, "What the hell are you doing?! Stop messing around and help us fight!"

Oooooh, I wanted to smack the fuck out of him. What do you think I'm doing? Instead, I slid to a stop next to Leorio and stared at him with contempt. The two of them managed to get a safe distance away from the creature while I was fucking around with magical Moon Shoes on Mars. I raised my hands up, presenting them to the two, shaking from pain from how hard I hit the damn thing. My sudden burst of leg and body strength had made my hit so damn strong, and now my hands were in serious pain. Like I smacked a wooden bat against a concrete wall for an hour.

"I hit the tortoise with all my strength. All that did was cause it to shake it's head like I gave it's restaurant a bad food review," I said with a wave of my hand in the direction of the creature ponderously approaching us, "All three of us could fight one of these things for an hour before it dies. And there's about five beginning to surround us," I could feel the tremors around us getting heavier and closer. Multiple steps concealed by the terrifyingly quiet-footed creatures that have evolved to be silent in a swamp of all places. These Ninja Turtles would overwhelm us and kill us if we waited here too long.

We were in big trouble.

"As much as I am loath to admit it, he's right. We can't stay here any longer. The three of us need to escape, preferably in the direction of the rest of the group," Kurapika said as he looked at the shadows of giant dino-tortoises coming closer.

"Me and Kurapika can distract this big asshole over here," I pointed to trampled grass that caused by human feet and not pillar-like legs of the Noggin-blahblahblah-tortoises, "that's the trail of the rest of the runners. Go Leorio! Be careful, there's more of them in that direction, try to feel the vibrations and watch out for footprints to avoid them. They look like manhole sized ponds. Go!"

He grinded his teeth and hesitated, before nodding and turning in the direction I ordered him to go. I sighed as three more of those giant creatures surrounded us. I was fast, but those things struck way, way faster than they looked. Their long, muscular necks letting them attack like a snake. It was bull shit that they were so big, yet be able to attack that fast.

Their only weakness was-

Kurapika spoke up, knocking me out of my thoughts, "We have to let one of the tortoises attack first, then circle it. These creatures can attack quickly but are otherwise quite slow. They won't be able to rotate or catch up to us once we can clear their striking distance. Once the one in front of us strikes, move close to its body so it can't see us. This will also prevent the other two next to it from attacking: the other two won't be able to strike without hitting the other tortoise. After that, we should be fine..."

I nodded at Kurapika, calming myself down and focused on following through with the blonde's orders. My steam stopped flaring. I sighed, I was lucky I was on Kurapika's side for now. My plan was still in the writing phases while he had already finished printing the book, packaged it into a nice little box, and sent his plan out to the stores for sale...

The Noggin Lugging Tortoise in front us wiggled its head left and right, similar to a snake...

A heartbeat later the creature struck. I went left while Kurapika broke right, the creature's massive head-smashing in-between us as its jaws gouged a hole in the ground. It's head hitting the ground with the force of a falling tree: mud, grass, and water flying everywhere from the force of its bite. My legs took me around the left side of its body, my run taking me in a curve as I passed by the giant creature and met Kurapika on the other side. We kept sprinting, thankfully my body finally decided to calm down and not screw me over. I was still spitting that stupid white stuff out of my body, but super thankfully, not intensely as before.

We kept running as we passed a few people running in every which direction. All of them having lost the Examiner in the fog. The two of us tried to direct them and point them into the correct direction we continued moving forward, but the creatures were relentless. None of them survived. We kept moving, putting their deaths into the back of our minds and focusing on avoiding the attacks of the Tortoises as best we could. They were sniping at us from the grey and hitting with terrifying speed from every direction. Kurapika was faster and more agile than me, dodging and jumping over the strikes of the tortoises with grace and ease. It was almost like he was dancing passed them. Sometimes he would leapfrog over their heads with one hand and casual ease, impressing the shit out me. His talent was plain to see, the type of athleticism and natural dexterity Olympians strive all their lives to attain. To be honest, I was jealous.

But my three months of grueling, non-stop training and ass-kickings made me stronger and far more durable than Kurapika. It also left me with seriously crazy reflexes and hand speed as well. So, while my slower body couldn't dodge the snake-strike speed of these damn tortoises, my arms would fly forward and smash them on the head with Stick. That, or I'd redirect the direction of their ridiculously sized heads into some other direction. That'd usually be enough to disorient them and give me the breathing room to escape. They were way too big to dodge the way I was taught to dodge, which was with tiny bullets. Especially when I was specifically taught not to jump around and not covered in magic, ki, or some stupid shit.

This went on for thirty minutes as we ran through the creature's territory. A nigh-unending rondo of violence and movement that continued for what felt like an eternity. I'd dodge or smack a tortoise head down into the ground with all my strength. Kurapika would dodge or jump away from a tortoise with the agility of a rabbit. And whenever the tortoises managed to attack us from a blind spot, the other would be there to stop it. I was there when Kurpika landed in the wrong spot and would have been eaten if I didn't dash next to him and bat the offending creature in the head. Kurapika was there when I was pushed back into the strike of another of these tortoises. He poked the bastard right in the eye and sent it roaring.

It only ended when we saw the tree line in front of us... and Leorio waving at us! God damn! I was never more happy to see another man shirtless in my entire life! And I was straight as an arrow. I could kiss that man on the lips, Jesus Christ!

The two of us caught up to him and continued forward, running deeper into the forest to escape these fucking tortoises. Add fucking torti to the list creatures I hate. That was definitely the wrong word, but I hated that animal group now, fuck them. Whatver their name. I won't be looking it up, that's for sure.

Ten minutes of running later and we finally stopped when it was safe. No animals, no humans, no nothing. Just a clearing in the forest where we could rest for a second.

I was beaten. Tired. Exhausted. I've never felt more tired in my entire lives. I was sucking in air without pause or hesitation, vacuuming it in by the mouthfuls. My lungs couldn't get enough air, no matter how hard I tried. I ripped off my backpack and dropped it on the ground, my sword splattering mud as I crouched over my knees; huffing, puffing and trying to get air inside of me. My body was on fire, the glowing steam not stopping, whatsoever. It felt like asthma, panic attack, drowning, not breathing. Every exhausting feeling in the world. I might as well hold my breath with all the good this respiration was doing me. Do your fucking job lungs!

My body collapsed forward in slow motion as I tried and failed to fight off the effects of the fatigue hitting me as hard as god himself.

"Hey, you ok?" Leorio said with concern in his eyes, but hesitation in his body language.

"I... I don't... know what's... going on... I can't bre...the correctly... never happened... before..." I said, failing to string a proper sentence together while slowly falling forward onto my hands and knees. What the hell. All the energy was being drained from me. Why can't I stop it?!

While carrying myself on my hands and knees, I stared at my body. White steam continued to exit from my legs and lower body without pause, without mercy. At least, not as intensely as before. Like I had less of it inside of me. But having less 'stuff' wasn't enough to stop it. What is this?! It's Nen, but what is it specifically? It was causing my exhaustion, no doubt about it. But it was only coming from my lower body and lower arms. Not my shoulders or upper chest and above. Why?!

I sat back onto my ankles and stared up at the two of them, my arms dangling limply beside me. My body was a wilting flower as I fell backwards onto my back. Leorio came over to me. He wore the face of a doctor as he examined me, eyes shining with intelligence analyzation as he looked me over. The same way Flole looked over me when I woke up after my final week of training.

When he spoke, his voice was calm and collected. Exactly like a doctor, "Were you attacked by any other creatures, or touch any plants while running?"

"No... only the... god damn... the tortoises..." I said as I took big breathes like I escaped drowning. This was so frustrating!

With that, my steaming aura flared and I felt a massive wave of exhaustion hit me without mercy. I keeled over to my side and began dry heaving. Leorio came closer to me and laid me flat on my back as he began checking my vitals. He put a hand of my forehead, then put a finger to my neck to check my pulse. All I could do was sweat profusely and breath like a dying fish on land.

"Kurapika! There should be a bottle of water and some electrolyte pills in my suitcase. He's suffering from severe exhaustion and dehydration. We need to take a break and let him recover."

My listless eyes turned to Kurapika. He stared down at me, but he wasn't looking. I was invisible.

Leorio turned around and looked up to Kurapika from his position. He stared at him, first annoyed, then confused.

I closed my eyes as I realized what I needed to do. As I did, I heard Kurapika speak.

"I have some questions for you. If you answer them I will give you what you need. If you do not, we will leave you here in the forest to die."

"Kurapika! Isn't this going too far!? Even if he is a criminal, he doesn't deserve to die out here! Not like this!"

My lungs sucked in air as I wrestled to take control of my body. I fought my lungs and body, forcing my mind to calm down and relax. The separation of body and mind needed to be one: calm.

"His organization is the reason my clan is dead. Four years ago... they were the buyers of my people's eyes... the Tao Long." Kurapika said, his machine-like in his calmness.

I felt a foot stamp down on my left hand, its weight crushing down on my fingers without mercy...

When Kurapika spoke beyond the darkness of my closed eyelids... is voice was a deathly whisper. As cold as ice. I heard blades unsheath as metal touched my throat.

"And you will tell me everything I wish to know. Only then will I consider sparing your life..."


A/N

Hello everyone! I hope you are well and everything continues to go well for you all!

After that, skip the author notes if you wish! Please, just my usual musings

As I read once: Hunter X Hunter has a child's imagination, but an adults logic.

I always loved the darkness lurking underneath HXH, just underneath the surface like a creature in the sea. There are monsters, so people like Hunters hunt and protect. But why are they so strong, what kind of creatures must they fight so that can justify such powerful humans?

Well then you go through the Hunter Exam. And then you see people like Hisoka, the Troupe, Benoit, the boomer, the Ants, Tserriednich even Pariston's dangerous trollish behavior. I love how Togashi subtly he slips the darkness and it grows at the series goes on.

But this is the world that James lives in now, it doesn't grow. It's always there. And he's going to experience. He'll be pressured. And with that experience and pressure, grow strong.

Most important thing of all! The story that inspired this story just finished! It called Lattices by Rhyss and it is also a Hunter X Hunter story, but with an OC instead an SI. It's far less dark then mine, but I'm sure if you like my story you'll like mine. You can find it on my profile. Check it out!

Thanks again for all the reviews. Shout out to DeadJamesGuest, Jacksonian Democracy (you da' bomb), I'm Da Bomb (you're da bomb, we da' bomb, everybody da' bomb), Rinto, and Watermelonninja.

By the way, I'm not James. But someone called me Rondo, so I guess I'll call myself that out here.