I was sitting down on a bench in front of the courtyard with Eevee seated next to me and let me tell you I was furious. "Who does that guy think he is I told him and the others not to go around killing the other competition and to make things worse it wasn't even his own opponent" I ranted at Eevee.
"Is that what your mad about?" asked Eevee with a sweat drop
"Yeah, he made a mess of it and I had to clean it up since Netero pinned the job on me and I don't even get paid for this." I ranted
"But it was strange I never thought that Killua would do something like that."
"What you give him too much credit he is an assassin after all."
"Well yes but he just wasn't himself especially after he forfeited for his brother."
"A coward's way out I would say." I said angrily
"Varian I know you noticed as well something wasn't right" said Eevee seriously
"Fine your right I did notice." I said grumpy
"Well what was it?"
"His aura something was wrong with it as if it was being manipulated kind of like when hypnosis is used on someone but other than that there is no proof."
"Poor guy."
"Well there is nothing that we can do about that." I said standing up from the bench bending down I picked up my duffel bag and started to walk "Come on Eevee I don't want to stay here more than I have too our work here is done"
We both were leaving when we saw Gon's gang Kurapika sat on the bench and Gon stood in front of him. Leorio stood next to Gon.
"Kukuroo Mountain? Never heard of it." Leorio said, thinking over the name of the Mountain Killua lived on. Kurapika looked down to the ground in his own thoughts.
"Kurapika, do you know where it is?" Leorio asked him, expecting him to know the answer. He didn't answer right away. He seemed spaced out.
"Hey, Kurapika!" Leorio said making Kurapika snap his head up and jump out of his thoughts.
"Huh?" He said looking up at him a little surprised. He stood up quickly, regaining his composer the best he could.
"Oh, what is it?" He asked Leorio.
"The Mountain! He said something about Kukuroo Mountain. Do you know where it might be?" Leorio asked him, waving his arms about as he explained his question. Kurapika brought his head down.
"No, I don't… We can look it up online." Kurapika said bringing his head back up again. I was about to interrupt when there was the sound of footsteps from behind and turning around I saw Hanzo.
He raised hand up and smiled widely at us.
"Yo!" Hanzo said. Gon waved his hand in the air waving his over with a large happy grin.
"Oh, Hanzo and Varian too!" Gon said to us. Hanzo walked over to us and stood in front of us, continuing to smile at us all.
"I'm going back to my country. It was a short, yet seemingly long acquaintance, but I had fun." Hanzo said to Gon. Gon continued to smile at him happily and nodded his head.
"So did I." He said to him happily.
"If you ever visit my country, let me know. I can show you the best tourist spots." He said taking out a slip of paper from his pocket and handing it to Kurapika. I looked at the back of the paper and watched as Hanzo began walking away waving at us.
"See ya." He said, making Gon stand on his toes and wave his good arm at him.
"Bye!" He shouted as Hanzo walked away from us. We all looked at the paper Hanzo gave us. It was brown in color and had odd written all over it. There were four of them. Raising an eyebrow, I looked at it questionably.
"What a weird guy." I said as Gon shrugged his shoulders and looked at it with a wide smile.
"A shinobi who tries to leave an impression…" said Kurapika
We heard someone come towards us and looked up at who it could be. In front of us we saw Pokkle.
"Hey." He said simply. We stared at him for a while until he began speaking once more.
"Sorry about getting so excited back there." He said to Kurapika and dropped his head. Kurapika furrowed his brows and smiled at him.
"No, I had lost control. Forgive me." He said bowing to him slightly with his question for forgiveness. Pokkle brought his head up looking at my brother once more.
"No, I only got mad because you were right. I was using you to take out my frustration for winning by default. But I'm over that now. Since I passed, I'm going to make the best of it!" He said and jogged over to us with a smirk on his face. He carried something close to his hip, what though I couldn't quite tell.
"The question is what to do next." He said looking at the four of us.
"Yes, you're right." Kurapika said to him.
"I'm going to travel the world, gathering information and discovering new species, as an Exotic Game Hunter." said Pokkle bringing the thing under his arm up towards him.
"Seems interesting." I said to him as he looked down to me and nodded his head.
"An Exotic Game Hunter…" Kurapika said in almost disbelief. Gon pointed at the thing under his arm.
"Hey, what's that?" He asked as I looked at it in curiosity since I have never seen something like that before.
"Oh, this? You can use this to get all kinds of information. Is there anything you'd like to know? I can look it up on the spot." He asked and said to us holding out the little black square.
Gon at it excitedly with wide eyes he smiled widely and looked back at Pokkle holding his finger up.
"Can you look up a Hunter named Ging? Ging Freecss." Gon asked him excitedly. Pokkle set the machine the little box machine up and began typing onto it looking for Ging Freecss.
"Hey, who is this Ging guy?" Pokkle asked making Gon look at him confused.
"Huh?" He said to Pokkle sounding confused.
"All information related to him is behind a tight security system that requires a bunch of different accesses. He has some serious influence even at the national level." Pokkle said taking Gon back by surprise.
"Huh? Really? Forget it, then…" Gon said, smiling at him apologetically. Leorio leaned down and began whispering something into Gon's ear as Pokkle looked at me smiling the same smile he had beforehand.
"You look like you want to ask something as well." He said as I looked away and looked down at Eevee who nodded his head in agreement.
"Well I don't expect much from this but I would like to know about Sir Aaron"
Pokkle typed out the name in his machine "Sorry but there doesn't seem to be anyone by that name."
I looked away trying to not let my disappointment known "Its okay I expected as much."
"And I thought we had something" said Eevee in disappointment.
Pokkle closed the little machine and placed it under his arm as he looked at all of us.
"Okay, let me know if anything comes up." He said to us and handed Gon a slip of paper.
"This is my e-mail address. Bye!" He said and ran past us as we turned around slightly to watch him. Gon turned around and waved his arm at him.
"Bye!" Gon shouted back to him with a wide smile.
Gon turned his head to face me as I turned mine to look at him as well.
"Hey Varian. Who's Sir Aaron?" Gon asked me looking at me questionably.
"No one important." I said looking away from him
Gon nodded his head and smiled, pocketing the piece of paper with Pokkle's e-mail address written on it. After a few moments of silence Leorio suddenly jumped making us all look at him in question.
"We should have asked him to look up Kukuroo Mountain." Leorio said slumping down.
"That's right." Gon said, remembering the small detail himself.
"It's alright. As Chairman Netero was saying, we are all Hunters now. It's a bad idea to let other Hunters know what you're doing. We can look it up ourselves." Kurapika said holding out his arms as he looked between the four of us. Leorio and Gon scratched the back of their heads as I opened my mouth to answer their question.
"Gon." We heard a voice say and turned our heads to see who it was. Walking over to us was Satotz. He stopped in front of us and looked at us with the same bored look he had when we were doing the First Phase.
"Satotz!" Gon said running over to him happily. He stopped in front of Satotz who looked down to him and held out the black Hunter card book.
"Gon, you forgot this." Satotz said to him simply. Gon took the book and looked up to Satotz once more.
"Oh, right… Thanks!" He said to him happily. Satotz held up a finger taking Gon back by surprise.
"And do you have a moment?" He asked him politely. Gon looked back to us with a questionable look on his face. Leorio began turning around to walk back to the lobby.
"We'll be waiting in the lobby." Kurapika said and turned around himself.
"Hurry up I have some information on that Mountain" I said to him and walked off. Gon nodded his head, walking away with Satotz.
After a while Gon had come back and ran straight over to the three of us. I looked up from my seat and acknowledged him.
" Ok listen because I'm only going to say this once Kukuroo Mountain is three thousand seven hundred and twenty-two-meter-high mountain, in the Dentora region of the Republic of Padokea." I said
"The Republic of Padokea? Never heard of it." Leorio said sounding dumbfounded.
"Hold on. I have a map." I said taking out a map on where The Republic of Padokea was. The map was brown in colour with all the countries being a darker brown. There was a little red circle and a little red cross on the map as well.
"This is the Republic of Padokea. It should be fine. It appears to be a stable country. It allows ordinary tourists." I said.
"That's where we'll find Killua?" Gon asked, placing his good hand onto the back of Kurapika's chair.
"By airship, it will take three days to reach… When do we leave?" Kurapika asked, placing a hand onto his chin and raising an eyebrow in question.
"Today! Right now!" Gon said. He turned his head to Leorio, who had also brought himself closer to Kurapika to speak and placed a hand on the back of his chair.
"Yeah, no objections from me!" Leorio said excitedly himself. Kurapika stood up and started walking towards the computers
"Understood. Then, I'll order tickets." He said.
"Well, you do that I'm leaving." I said standing up
"What do you mean you're leaving!" said an angry Leorio as he pointed a finger at me.
Turning around I said, "as I said I don't want to be here and the exams are over I'm going home"
"Well, what about Killua?!"
"What about him?"
"You're just going to leave him?" asked Leorio
"I never said that he has you guys so there is no need for me to go help and I doubt he considers me a friend since we just met" I said with an uncaring expression
"Why you!" Leorio seethed out by this time Gon and Kurapika watched the argument.
"Varian!" said an angry voice
"hm?" looking down I saw Eevee and he didn't look happy
"You're just going to leave when one of your friends are in trouble?"
"What are you talking about I just met him if it counts I think of him as an acquaintance."
"That's not the point you heard him, he thinks of both you and Gon as a friend when Killua was against his brother"
"What I remember that, but he has enough of his "friends" going to visit him"
"Well, if you're not going then I'll go with them then."
"Huh?!" I said, giving him a deadpan expression
"That's right, you need to get out more and make more friends, preferably human that's what Master would have wanted."
"So you're going to use that card on me, huh fine, I'll go happily?" I grumbled out scratching the back of my head
"Very." said Eevee in victory
*X*
As Varian was talking to Eevee Leorio leaned toward Kurapika and whispered "What is she doing?"
"I think talk to it…"
"That doesn't make sense!"
"Shut up she's coming."
*X*
I walked back towards the seat with Eevee right on my heels and took a seat looking up I saw Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio looking at me with strange looks glaring at them, I asked "what are you looking at?" after that they turned away as if nothing had happened.
*X*
The airship finally landed and the five of us quickly got off it with our belongings. We could find the train station and we boarded the train. Gon, Kurapika, Leorio and Eevee opened the window and stuck out their heads slightly to get a better view. I on the other hadn't bothered and stayed in the train; we either walked or travelled by bus to get to our destination.
"There it is." Leorio said as they all brought our heads back inside. Gon had taken a seat next to Leorio I had taken a seat next to Kuapika while Eevee was on my shoulder. They all continued to look out of the window while looked through it at the mountain. Leorio leaned his elbow onto the window seal and lazily leaned his hand into his palm.
"The base for this family of assassins is on that mountain?" Leorio questioned quietly, staring bored at the mountain.
"It sure looks creepy." He finished off as Gon continued to stare at it with wide eyes while I had an unimpressed look on my face.
"Yes. Once we reach our destination, we should start gathering information." Kurapika said looking at Leorio. Leorio nodded his head at Kurapika as he turned to face him. Gon just sat up in his seat a little to look at the mountain.
"Okay." Leorio said to Kurapika.
We got off the train and walked into town. Kurapika decided the best way to get information was to ask the local people. We walked over to a lady who stood behind a stool. She was rather large, had brown short hair and very small eyes. She wore a pink bandana and orange shirt.
"Kukuroo Mountain? In that case, you should take the scenic mountain bus tour over there." She said to us as she placed her hands on her hips.
"The tour only runs once a day, but you'll have a guide to show you around." She said, pointing over to a red and yellow tour bus. It had a line of people next to it, wanting to get onto the tour themselves. She said as we nodded our heads as thanks to her.
We got onto the bus quickly we all decided to sit in the front. Kurapika at the very front behind the driver as Gon and Leorio sat in the seats behind us. While I sat in the row behind them with Eevee hiding in my duffel bag because apparently, there are no animals aloud. The bus began travelling off the main street and onto an up-hill road. It was bumpy, but on either side of the road was green grass with flowers blooming. It was very pretty. Our tour guide was a lady with very big orange curly hair; she saw a blue skirt suit and a little blue hat. She also held a microphone to her mouth. Her eyes were green and her skin as a little pale.
"Okay… Thank you for taking the Lamentation Tour today." She said bowing and stood up straight once more with a wide smile on her face.
"We will be visiting Kukuroo Mountain, home to the famous Zoldyck family of assassins." She said holding a hand out to her side. I saw Gon starring out the window excitedly. Leaning back, I turned my head and in the back, there were two men at the back. One was large and had blonde spikey hair on the top with darker blonde on the bottom and shaved close to his head. His shirt was brown with a fur collar. The other guy was a lot smaller than him. He had black hair that was spikey and slicked back and a green shirt. Eevee seemed worried since they looked like trouble and looking in front it seemed that Leorio and Kurapika noticed as well.
"Everyone… Please look to your right." The tour guide said as we turned as she instructed. We could see the Mountain now.
"That is Kukuroo Mountain, where the Zoldyck family lives. A forest surrounds the three thousand, seven hundred and twenty-two mountains, and the Zoldyck estate is somewhere on that Mountain. But no one has actually ever seen it." She explained to us. The bus drove around on the hill, going in circles. The road had no barriers, so the bus driver had to be careful to not drive us all off the edge.
"The Zoldyck family includes ten members: A great-grandfather, grandfather, grandmother, father, mother, and then, there are five children." The tour lady said holding out five fingers on her free hand. I kept my eyes looking outside.
"Wow Killua's family is very big!" Eevee whispered to me.
"Yeah but I doubt their very friendly." I whispered back as I continued to stare out of the window again.
"All of them are assassins!" The tour guide said to us in a happy voice as she finished off her sentence.
"Then, let us approach the mountain." She said to us as the tour bus continued to travel.
The tour bus stopped outside a giant wall. We climbed out the bus and looked at the doors. Eevee got out of the duffel bag and stared at the wall in awe while I noticed that they looked like doors and they had an aura surrounding them. Other than that, it looked as if it was made of metal and had a giant metal dragon running over the top and all along the wall.
"That's really something." Leorio said, covering the tops of his eyes with his hand. People stood in front of the doors, posing and taking photos of each other. The tour guide held a hand out towards the door as she began talking once more.
"This is the front gate to the Zoldyck estate. Also, known as the Door to Hades because no one who's entered has ever returned alive. To enter, you must pass through the door beside the security checkpoint." The tour guide said as I looked over to my right. There was this little square yellow building with a blue roof. Next to it was a brown door.
"It's a trap" I stated
"What do you mean?" asked Eevee
"Nothing that concerns us at the moment." I said turning my attention toward the tour guide. There was something behind that door I can feel it but what.
"But the area beyond the gate is private property, so we can't proceed." She said to us happily. Leorio turned to her, glaring angrily at the woman.
"Hold on! This is the front gate? The mountains all the way over there!" Leorio said to her, pointing towards the mountain.
"Correct… The Zoldyck owns Kukuroo Mountain, as well as the surrounding land." She said making Leorio slouched down slightly as he looked at the gate with disbelief to what he was hearing.
"This whole area is their backyard?" He asked in a whisper as he slouched down some more.
Gon turned his head towards the tour guide "Hey guide… What do we have to do to get inside?" Gon asked her pointing at the gate. I turned my head towards the giant wall to try to find the best way in since the smaller door seemed like a trap. The tour guide smiled widely with her eyes closed and placed a finger on her cheek, tilting her head slightly to the right.
"Little boy, were you listening to my explanation?" She asked him, making Gon put his arm back down to his side and nod his head slightly.
"Uh-huh. But…" He began saying until the tour guide butted her voice back in.
"If you go inside, you'll never get out alive! Assassins live inside." She said, looking at him angrily before going back to her smiling way once more and tilted her head once more. The two guys from the back of the bus walked behind her.
"It's all a sham." The smallest one said making the tour guide look at him questionably.
"Huh?" She asked him and turned her head slightly to look at him. I turned to him unimpressed with his conclusion.
"A family of assassin's that no one's ever seen." The biggest guy said as they walked towards the brown doors.
"Just a photo of their faces is worth a hundred million." The smallest one spoke one more, smirking as he continued to walk forward. Leorio ran forward slightly, staring at them in disbelief.
"Seriously?! Damn! I should have taken a picture of Killua!" Leorio said snapping his fingers angrily and swung his arm across his body. I sighed at the statement because even if he did who would believe him anyway? Gon looked at him questionably while Kurapika looked at him annoyed.
The two-people walked up to the security checkpoint.
"It's just another case of rampant rumours masking a mundane truth." The smaller guy said as they stopped next to the security checkpoint.
Smirking I said "Perhaps but all rumors have some truth in them."
Ignoring me the bigger guy ripped the door off the hinges he threw his hand in and pulled out an old man wearing a grey suit with a grey security hat.
"Open the gate!" The big guy demanded of the security guard.
"I-I cannot do that. The master will not be please." The security guard said to him.
"Don't worry. We're going to kill your master." The little guy said to him. The security guard sighed in defeat and started rummaging through his pockets. He pulled out a brown looking key and held it up for the two guys to take. The guy holding him snatched it out of his hands and threw the security guard onto his back to the ground. He began sitting up as Gon was the first to run forward. I walked behind him while Kurapika and Leorio both ran after me towards the guard.
"Are you okay?" Gon asked him, furrowing his brows as the security guard rubbed his head. Gon knelt down behind him as I stood next to him.
"Yes, I'm fine." He said as the brown doors closed shut. The three of us looked over to the door.
"Nice acting old man." I congratulated. The change in aura was there.
The others looked at me questionably while the guard slowly stood up "Thanks. Man… Now Mike's going to end up eating between meals again." The security guard said we heard screams coming from behind the door.
The door soon opened, Kuapika and Leorio took a slight step back as Gon just glared towards the door. A skeleton head popped out. I heard Eevee give squeak a little out of shock as we looked at the skeleton. I heard something hit the ground and scatter all over the floor. Everybody started screaming and running back to the tour bus, everyone but us four.
"Please… He's only supposed to eat at assigned times. Mike! Don't blame me if you get fat!" The security guard shouted over to the doors. I looked at him as I tried to calm Eevee down.
"What was that?" I heard Kurapika ask as he and Leorio both looked at the door.
"Hey, boys and girl! What are you doing? Get on the bus!" The tour guide shouted making us look over to her. She waved her flag in the air and kept going side to side from the bus, trying to get us to come back. Gon stood up and smiled widely at her.
"You can leave. We're staying here." Gon said to her holding a hand out to his side as he turned to face her fully. The guides eyes went wide as she looked at Gon and stopped her swinging and flag waving.
The bus had left. The security guard invited us into the security checkpoint where we could explain our story to him. The sun was being to set, making the sky an orange red color.
"I see. So, you're young Killua's friends. I'm happy to hear that." He said as he poured out some green tea for Gon.
"I would say acquaintance" I corrected
The inside was a lot bigger then it looked on the outside. There was a table and a cabinet with different utensils. I stood away from the group as I listened to the security guard talk. He lifted the teapot upwards again after he finished pouring his tea. The security guard smiled widely to himself.
"I've worked here for twenty years, but this is the first time any friends have come to visit." He said handing the handless cup to Gon on a saucer. The guard sat down on the chair behind him after making himself a cup of tea. He leaned his hands onto his thighs as he smiled up at us.
"Since I work here, I shouldn't say this, but the place is rather lonely. No one ever visits. Though we do see a lot of those…" the guard said and pointed his thumb to the bin containing the skeletons.
"Well, a family of assassins is pretty unusual. So, I suppose it's the price they have to pay. Anyway, I'm glad you're here. Thank you." He said to us, bowing in his chair slightly to show his thanks.
Leorio waved his hand at him, feeling uncomfortable with the thanks. "Don't worry about it." He said to him and placed his hand back down onto the table again.
"However…" The security guard said and opened his eyes. He brought his head up to face up probably with a smile on his face.
"I cannot let you inside." He said seriously
"Why not?" I asked
"Didn't you see the large arm of the creature? Its name is Mike. It serves as the Zoldyck family watchdog. It only obeys family, and will attack anyone else. The beast still follows the order its master gave it ten years ago… To kill every single intruder." The security guard said continuing to look at us seriously. The guard lightened up and sat up straight again. He slapped a hand onto his head as he closed his eyes once more with a nervous kind of smile.
"But technically, he isn't following the order. Because he keeps eating them…" He said and laughed at the end of his sentence. He picked up his cup of tea and looked back at us with a friendly smile once more.
"Anyway, I can't let you inside. I wouldn't want to reduce young Killua's friends to skeletons." He said laughing once more.
"Sir, how is it that you're safe?" Kurapika asked him
"You go inside, correct? If you never needed to enter, you wouldn't have a key." Kurapika said. The Security guard chuckled slightly and opened his eyes to look at him quite seriously.
"Quite perceptive of you. But you're only half right. I require no key to get inside. This key is for intruders." He said and dug into his jacket pocket. He pulled out the brown key once more, holding it up in the air. That was the key those two-people snatched from him.
"A key for intruders?" Leorio questioned as the security guard kept looking at us quite seriously.
"I see it's a trap to protect the actual entrance" I said finally piecing the clues together though the fact that it was so easy to get in through the small door was a big red flag.
"That's right for some reason, eighty to ninety percent of intruders attempt to use the front gate. If I don't open the gate for them, they'll try to break it down. Such troublemakers… So, we added a locked door to one side. The intruders take the key from the helpless guard, and then Mike eats them." He said, pocketing the key back into his jacket once more.
"That's it!" I heard Kurapika say suddenly
"As you just realized, I'm not a guard. I merely clean up after Mike." The now fake security guard said to us, leaning forward once more.
"And the actual gate isn't locked!" Kurapika said sternly to him as the fake guard leaned forward some more.
"Exactly." He said. Leorio turned around in his chair and looked outside through the gap in the wall where the old door used to be.
"What?" He said as he looked at the giant metal gate.
Night had fallen by time we had finished our tea. We walked outside with the fake security guard. Leorio stood in front of the metal door as the rest of us stood away from him. Leorio started waving his right arm in a circle and then leaned forward, pressing his hands against the metal doors. He began pushing at the doors, but they weren't doing as so much as even moving a little bit. They must have been heavy. Leorio stopped pushing on the doors and hunched over, red in the face and started breathing heavily to get his breath back. He then tried pushing the doors open again before trying to pry them open to the sides they wouldn't move a single inch. He stood up straight and started swaying his hands backwards and forward. It looked like he couldn't move them from the wrist at all.
"I've tried pushing and pulling, but it won't budge! Are you sure it isn't locked?" Leorio asked the fake security guard.
"You just aren't strong enough." The fake guard said making Leorio turn around and glare at him.
"Which means your weak." I decided to add
"Varian don't be mean" scolded Eevee
"That's absurd! I've been using all of my strength!" Leorio shouted at us angrily. The fake guard took off his jacket, shirt and tie leaving him in his trousers and white tank top. He looked really muscly without the layers and if anything, it kind of disturbed me slightly. He began walking to the door as we watched him with interest.
"Just watch." He said and stopped in front of the gate next to Leorio. Leorio moved away from him slightly as he watched the fake guard.
"This gate's official name is the Testing Gate. Anyone who cannot open this gate is unqualified to enter the Zoldyck estate." He said as he crossed his arms over with his fists clenched. He threw his arms down with his hands straight. Suddenly I saw his aura fluctuate and go into his muscles enhancing them making them bulge With one push, he opened the gate with ease. He let go after a few seconds and took a couple of steps backwards; the bulges in his muscles on his arms disappearing as he stood up straight. The fake guard turned around facing us with a smirk.
"As you just saw, the door closes automatically, so you'll want to run in, the second it opens. You don't need to worry about Mike. He has orders not to attack any who enter through the Testing Gate." He said and rubbed his head with his arm. He had begun sweating after opening the gate.
"Still, this is getting harder as I age… But they'll fire me if I can't open the gate, so I need to keep in shape." The fake guard said as he turned his head towards the door slightly, the kind smile returning to his face.
"I should mention that each of gate one's doors weights two tons." He said making them stare at him with wide eyes.
"Two tons? You're not supposed to be able to open that!" Leorio said waving his hand in a dismissive manner. He then placed his hands back onto his hip and bent down a little with a disbelieving look on his face.
"Wait, what did you say? Gate one?" Leorio asked him as the fake guard turned his head slightly to look at us with the same smile.
"Yes, have a look. There are seven gates. When you go up a gate, the weight doubles." He said as we began looking up at the gate, counting the numbers. I stared at it impressed as Gon stared at it with his mouth slightly open and wide eyes. Even Kurapika couldn't help but stare at it with wide eyes in wonder. Leorio did as well, and he even complained more about it.
"Doubles?!" He said as the old man looked up as well and placed his hands onto his hips.
"The number of gates that open depends on the amount of strength you use. Incidentally, when young Killua returned, he opened gates one through three." The fake guard said to us.
"Gate three? That would be twelve tons!" Gon said
"Sixteen tons, Gon." He said making Gon rub the back of his head and laugh at himself for his bad math.
"Do you understand now? This is what's required just to get in the door. They live in a completely different world." The fake guard said to us as I raised my eyebrow at him.
"Hmm, I don't like it. Mister, lend me the key." Gon said to him and turned slightly to face him.
"We came here to see our friend, not to be tested. You can consider me an intruder. So, let me borrow the key. I'll use the intruders' door." Gon said turning around and holding out his hand to the fake guard. I turned to Gon since I didn't expect that reaction from him and he seemed like the type to want to get challenged.
"Gon!" I heard Kurapika say to him angrily
"Hey…" Leorio said to them quietly, either believing what Gon was saying or not believing the tone that Kurapika used.
The security guard looked at Gon sternly before continuing to talk.
"It doesn't matter if you won't loan us the key. We'll just climb the wall, if that's what it takes." Gon said
"Don't be stupid, Gon! Didn't you see that monster? Its arm was bigger than your entire body!" Leorio scolded Gon as he tried to talk sense into him.
"I won't accept this!" Gon said to Leorio making him stand up in shock. I shook my head quickly and closed my eyes tightly as my brows stayed furrowed.
"Why would you test your friends? We'll never enter through that door." Gon said speaking for the both of us as he glared at the fake guard.
The fake guard scratched the back of his head as he furrowed his brows himself with a frown. "You are absolutely right. However, forcing your way through is impossible. Mike will kill you." He said to us holding out a hand trying to reason with Gon about the decision. I guess it was the stupidity that I saw from the Hunter Exams.
"Shouldn't we stop him Varian?" asked Eevee
"No what he does with his life is his own choice so if he dies then oh well" I replied
"I don't think you should say things like that." sweat dropped Eevee as we went back to the conversation at hand.
"I agree. We have plenty of time. Let's figure out a way to enter through gate one." Kurapika said, sounding a lot calmer as he tried to reason with Gon.
"It's no use; he's not going to change his mind…" I heard Leorio
"Indeed…" I heard Kurapika say, defeat in his voice. The fake guard placed his hands on his hips as he looked down to the ground.
"Unfortunately, I cannot lend you this key. I will not feed young Killua's friends to Mike. Well, please wait here for a minute." The fake guard said as he walked past us. He came back a short while after and prompted us to follow him. We all did so willingly.
We stood inside the security checkpoint once more. I stood next to Gon and in front of Kurapika. The fake guard typed in a number and held the phone to his ear. We could hear it ringing.
"Hello? This is Zebro. Four of young Killua's friends are here to see him. Yes. Yes, I'm sorry. Yes. Yes. Yes, I understand. Yes. I'm very sorry. I apologize for disturbing you." The fake guard, who had called himself Zebro, said and hung up the phone. I followed Gon inside the building as the others followed me. Zebro rubbed his head.
"Yep, I got in trouble." Zebro said with disappointment in his voice.
"You called the mansion?" Gon asked him. Zebro turned his head over his shoulder and looked at us.
"No, I was speaking with the Zoldyck family butler. All communications with the mansion must go through the butler. It's very difficult to reach any of the family members." Zebro said as me and Gon walked over next to him. I stared at the phone as Gon looked up to Zebro.
"Could you call him again? We'll talk to him this time." Gon said referring to me and him.
"Sure, I guess… But you won't enjoy the experience." Zebro said with uncertainty in his voice as he looked at Gon and then picked up the phone, dialling in the number once more. We watched as he dialled the number. I quickly walked over to the other side of Gon interested to hear what he had to say. Gon held the phone so that the speaker and microphone were facing outwards, that way both of us could hear and both of us could speak as well if the need arose. We heard someone pick up the phone.
"Yes, this is the butler's office." The voice said. It was a male voice on the other end.
"I'm Gon, one of Killua's friends." Gon said while I stood there silently.
"Is Killua there?" Gon asked him questionably. The phone went quite for a little while before the voice spoke again.
"Killua has no friends." The voice said and hung up.
I felt a ticked after he did that. "Well we tried" I stated. The phone bleeped as the line went dead. I heard Kurapika and Leorio shuffle slightly. Gon put the phone down and went to pick it up. The phone rang a few times once more until the same voice picked up again.
"Yes, this is the butler's office." The man on the other end said once more to us.
It was quiet for a few moments until Gon started shouting down the phone. "How could you possibly know that?! Put Killua on the phone!" Gon shouted down the phone making me air rang slightly. I was shocked at Gon's outburst and had stepped away.
"I believe you said that you were Gon?" He questioned him.
"Yeah." Gon replied to him as I took the chance to speak to let Gon calm down slightly before he started speaking again.
"Let us pretend that Killua happen to have a friend named Gon. There is no proof that you are Gon." The butler said to us. Gon glared at the table.
"If you put Killua on the phone, he'll recognize us!" Gon said down the phone, sounding just as angry as he did before. He hadn't calmed down one.
"By your voice? That isn't a reliable test." The butler asked and said to him making Gon turn his head slightly to try and look at the phone.
What was said down the phone next shocked Gon
""If you put Killua on the phone, he'll recognise us!" The voice said on the other end of the phone. I wasn't to shocked since Netero told me that technology these days were good at that sort of thing.
"That was a simple recording. And there are many other ways to mimic a person's voice. Next, you'll claim that he'd recognise you both by sight. There are only a few methods by which you could perfectly mimic someone's appearance. But it still isn't impossible. Additionally, it's possible that someone forced you to approach Killua for sinister purposes. As long as the threat exists, I cannot let you meet with Killua." He said as Gon continued to look at the phone.
"The Zoldyck family practices the trade of assassination. Naturally, it has made enemies. As butlers, our duty is to guard our masters from their enemies. I apologise, but please leave." The butler said to him and then hung up the phone. Gon started walking away "Poor guy." said Eevee
"That's all you seem to be saying lately." I said
"Hey! Gon!" Leorio said as I walked after Gon.
"Gon!" Leorio yelled once more after Gon.
Gon stopped in front of the door reaching behind him he brought his fishing rod back and then flung it over his shoulder.
"Hey! Stop it, Gon!" Leorio yelled after Gon.
"Why aren't you doing anything Varian!" yelled Leorio at me
"Like I told Eevee there no point unless someone can find a better way in." I stated
"It's okay. You three can wait here. I'll do it by myself." Gon said as he turned his head
"I can't let you do that!" Leorio said to Gon as Kurapika stopped next to him.
"I'll be fine." Gon said as he began climbing the wall.
"No, you won't!" Leorio shouted at him. Gon struggled to start climbing the door the string shook all over the place and swung Gon from side to side.
"We should all calm down!" Kurapika said to us as he took a step closer.
"I'm perfectly calm! Come down here, Gon!" Leorio said as Gon hopped up the door. Once he got a little bit higher and nervously put a foot onto the door and waited just that little bit more for Gon to get up a little bit higher.
"And I as well." I said
"But you're not doing anything" said Eevee while I ignored him.
"Don't be stupid." Kurapika said to Gon as he got a little bit higher up the door.
"Gon, I'll give you the key. You can go through the door." Zebro said as he walked over.
"Hold on, pops! We can convince Gon to stop!" Leorio said as Gon climed a little bit further up the door.
"Really? But he appears to be a stubborn child. To make amends, I'll accompany you through the door." Zebro said as Gon stopped climbing.
"It's possible that Mike may recognise me and decide not to attack. Though I'm almost a hundred percent certain that he'll kill us all." Zebro said making me raise my brow at him.
Gon stopped climbing and dropped when he landed he furrowed his brows at Zebro.
"You can't do that. We don't want to cause you any trouble." Gon said
"But that's all you have been doing." I said though I was ignored
"No, I'm coming with you. The result will be the same if I stay behind. If I send young Killua's friends to their deaths, I'd never be able to face him again. If you die, I will also die." Zebro said to us, sternly and seriously.
"Actually, I consider myself his acquaintance I was dragged here by these guys" I said raising my hand and pointing at Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio
"Hey!"
Gon quickly flicked his fishing rod back, bringing back all the string that was being used to climb with.
He turned back to face Zebro
"I understand now. I didn't stop to consider your situation." Gon said to him
"Sorry." he said to him apologetically.
"You must like animals, Gon." Zebro asked Gon. Gon nodded his head slightly, surprised by the question.
"Yeah." Gon said to him.
"Just as I thought. Did you grow up playing in the countryside?" Zebro asked him as Gon nodded his head once more, his face brightening up at the question.
"Yeah, how did you know?" Gon asked him amazed at his guess. Zebro ignored his question though and walked towards the Testing Gate.
"Gon, I'm going to open the Testing Gate again. I want you to see Mike for yourself." Zebro said as he turned his head towards the Testing Gate.
The moon continued to shine down on us. Zebro pushed open the Testing Gate for us, making it scrape across the ground. We quickly entered after him.
"Hey… Is it really okay for us to come in?" Leorio questioned Zebro quietly. Zebro turned his head slightly and looked at Leorio from over his shoulder.
"Yes, you'll be safe because you entered through the Testing Gate. Mike! Come here!" Zebro said as he turned back around and began calling for Mike. Zebro's voice echoed through the woods as we waited for Mike to turn up. I felt Eevee shiver just as a giant dog came out of the woods. He was huge, his teeth were long and sharp. When I looked at his eyes I broke out in a cold sweat while Eevee hid in the duffel bag those eyes looked so empty. The giant dog laid down, continuing to stare at us. I looked at Gon; he looked so scarred that he began to sweat.
Zebro turned his head towards us. "Gon, do you understand now? This is a trained hunting dog. It's nothing like the wild animals you're accustomed to. You must have expected to be able to communicate with him. Until you saw his eyes." Zebro said pausing his sentence. We continued to look at Mike; he just kept staring down at us. Unmoving. Not even an inch.
"Mike is currently memorizing the appearances and scents of humans he's never seen. There's nothing else on his mind. He's like a machine. Gon, could you fight him?" Zebro explained to us before asking Gon that one question. Gon shook his head quickly, the sweat on his face flying off and hitting the ground.
"No, I'm scared. I don't want to fight him!" Gon said to him, never taking his eyes off the creature.
Zebro chuckle slightly as he turned his head towards us. "Well, how long will you be here?" He asked us. Gon instantly turned around to face Zebro, the fear seeming to disappear from his face.
"Until we meet Killua! We won't leave before then!" Gon said to him determined. Zebro chuckled once more.
"Then please come this way." Zebro said to us as he began leading us into the forest away from Mike.
I walked behind trying to calm Eevee down 'well this is exciting therefore I wanted to go straight home I hope your proud of yourself Eevee' I thought annoyed.