A/N: Yumehime, scarleteyed, Neo-digital: I mostly recovered from my cold. Thanks for reading & reviewing!
Whenever I'm unwell, I have a habit of over-talking as well as over-writing. Please bear with me in this chapter, guys =)
CHAPTER 19: A SUICIDAL BET
It was definitely not one of Clandestia's best days.
She did not remember forgetting her phone until she was kidnapped to the shopping mall by Neon. She vaguely recalled catching a glimpse of her little gadget lying on her bedside table early this morning while rushing out to meet Kurapika. Perhaps the fatigue she was generously awarded after all these eventful and sleep-deprived days in Yorknew had finally sunk in and made her absentminded like a fool. She was a bit concerned about Kurapika, Melody and the others but she had no means to contact them. After that, she decided that she had enough of Neon's nightmarish shopping spree and went back to the hotel but the heavy rainfall accompanied by the terrible traffic did not give her much peace of mind.
When she finally managed to drag her feet back at the hotel, Clandestia eagerly headed for the elevator, longing to get back to her room as if it was her number one favorite spot in the world. Well, practically it was at the moment. The descending numbers flashed in sequence on display as the lift swiftly reached the ground floor. A couple of hotel guests passed by her as she settled into the elevator car alone.
Bump! Lines drew up Clandestia's forehead as she heard a jarring metallic clashing noise followed by an abrupt jerk of the lift. Before she could regain her composure, the elevator car was covered in darkness. With a little luck, the elevator door was still open at the ground floor. The young professor hurriedly stepped out of the dark elevator and was once more greeted by the hotel lobby's soft music. Strangely, she did not feel any tinge of relief as expected. A faulty lift was such an awfully rare occurrence at a six star hotel like Beitacle. Ominous, dark void of the elevator car stared back at her and she felt stricken by an absurd sense of foreboding.
As she headed for the hotel reception, Clandestia caught the sight of five people entering from the hotel entrance. She stopped dead in her tracks and almost wished her eyes were only playing tricks on her or she was just seeing her grim reapers in other forms.
Two young boys with hands tied up behind their backs, accompanied by three adults.
There was one unfamiliar face among them. But for the rest, she could not possibly forget. They were the people that appeared in Killua's memories.
The Phantom Troupe in flesh and blood.
They've caught both Gon and Killua.
Clandestia involuntarily took a step back and hastily scanned her surroundings. A bar waitress passing by caught her eyes. She promptly followed the woman.
The group of three Spiders quietly settled themselves around a pillar in the middle of the hotel lobby. They had Machi keeping watch on Gon and Killua while waiting for Pakunoda and the rest to return.
Out of the blue, a tall man in black suit stomped into the hall and propped himself down on a sofa.
"Idiot! It's Takura Beach hotel! Not "Bay Rock"!" He screamed into the phone in his hand, earning himself plenty of annoyed glares from the people around. "How could you make such a mistake, you idiot?!"
Gon and Killua instantly recognized the man.
Leorio!
"Hmp, I'll ignore it this time but you know what the price if this happens again, right?" He continued to roar with all due enthusiasm. It was quite appropriate to picture how drenched his poor little phone was in his own saliva at this point.
"Listen carefully! I want you here at 7:00 sharp, in the hotel!" He grunted each word to the imaginary guy at the other end of the line. "-If you're one second late, you're FIRED!"
Gon and Killua secretly grinned in satisfaction as a gleam of hope returned to their eyes.
Meanwhile, a slender, young brunette was quietly observing the little show from another corner of the hall.
That was Leorio's message. Gon and Killua must have got it!
It means Kurapika is currently somewhere nearby.
They're waiting for something at 7 pm. Maybe a chance to counter-attack?
She pondered hard on what had gone wrong that got both Gon and Killua at the hands of the Spider. They must have crossed paths with some really nasty black cat to get into this messy situation. Whatever plan they're sketching right now, they're clearly not having the upper hand. One wrong move and those two boys would be in fatal danger.
Her eyes shifted to the clock ticking on the nearby wall.
3 more minutes left.
With a little luck, they would smoothly buy time until 7.
She should just stand by and watch.
However, worse tidings were yet to come…
"Here comes Paku and the others." A girl wearing glasses announced.
Clandestia's face immediately twisted in dismay.
That woman. Pakunoda! This is so not good!
She glanced at the clock again. Two and a half more minutes.
They might not be able to make it. If that woman touched the boys, Kurapika's deepest secrets will be extorted. Then it occurred to her that Pakunoda already checked them before and found nothing. Let's just pray that the woman would hold no interest in checking on them right now. In this case, they had some legitimate hope to hang on to!
"Paku, check these boys." The man called Danchou commanded, robbing the last sacred shred of hope from Clandestia.
"What do you want to know?" Pakunoda asked.
"I want to know what they are hiding." He said, scrutinizing the boys like a malicious feline watching its prey.
"Got it." Pakunoda promptly reached out her hands towards Gon and Killua.
All of a sudden, an abrupt, jarring sound of glass smashing against the floor caught everyone's attention.
There was a big mess of drinks and pieces of broken glasses all over the place where the gang of Spiders gathered. Some of the wine even splashed onto their feet.
"Ahh, I am so sorry, Sirs and Madams!" A brown haired girl in the hotel's bar waitress uniform squeaked. She frantically showered them with non-stop apologies.
Gon and Killua instantly froze. Clandestia! As soon as her purple eyes glanced over their way, they heard a voice ringing in their head.
On my signal, close your eyes! I'll possess them and keep them distracted. Take that chance to flee! Clandestia wasted no time to slip the message into their minds.
Not good! It's too dangerous, Clandestia! Gon protested inside his head.
Don't worry, I'll join you guys right after that! Trust me! Now!
"I'm sorry, I'll clean it up right away!" She bowed deeply at the group and apologized again as if she only had those words in her vocabulary.
"Should I take care of her, Danchou?" Shizuku nonchalantly asked her leader.
Chrollo's massive figure loomed over the young waitress. She looked harmless like any other ordinary girl. But there was something about those purple eyes!
"Wait. Let Paku check her first!" He said with menace. This girl was definitely not a hotel staff!
From the corner of her eyes, Clandestia saw Pakunoda calmly grab the boys by the neck and murmured a question to them with a poker face. Despite the little show she put on, she still failed to distract Pakunoda. There would be very little they could do now.
The teenage professor broke out in cold sweats as the girl named Shizuku steadily approached her. This was the Phantom Troupe in flesh and blood. Their aura alone was enough to make her quiver in fright. She had heard whispers of their legendary crime records at every corner of the streets these days. Not to mention, their gruesome massacre of the mafia happened just two days ago.
She felt like getting on a roller coaster on the spur of the moment, and then realized there was no way to turn back. What could she do to get out of this? There must be an illusion strong enough to keep these inhumanly powerful people under control.
The young professor racked her brain to find a solution. Time was not on her side.
When Shizuku's chilling hand reached the back of her shoulders, Clandestia's eyes shot up in revelation. That's right. She had no choice but to go all out. Her body started trembling in both nervousness and anticipation.
Lend me your power, grim reapers! She called out to them in her mind. Her eyes turned a hypnotizing shade of violet like she had changed into some kind of spectral being. So long for possessing my body, now it's time for you to repay your host! She spoke to them as their eerie laughter of glee replied to her.
Chrollo saw millions of black shadows looming over his head. Indescribable pain sunk into him. His body was immobilized. He looked around but saw no one. Just him and the excruciating pain. What is happening?
When Gon and Killua opened their eyes, it was pitch-black around them. Here comes the long awaited black out. Thanks to closing their eyes in advance, they adjusted well enough to see in the dark.
All around them, the Spiders were all crouching like they were in pain and had lost their visions while Clandestia stood unfazed among them. This was Clandestia's doings! Gon and Killua flinched in bewilderment.
Run! This won't last long. I'll follow right behind you! Clandestia screamed into the two boys' minds. Her eyes glowed a bright shade of violet in the dark.
Urged by the grave urgency in her voice, Gon ran out, followed by Killua.
All hell broke loose when a cold hand sharply jerked Killua back by the arm. He spun around in alarm and immediately recognized Pakunoda. She looked strained but composed enough to move around. The woman had temporarily lost her vision under some strange power earlier. When she came to her senses, all her troupe members looked like they were seriously possessed.
Clandestia's eyes shot up in dismay. As expected of a powerful psychic, Pakunoda was so quick to resist her power!
Gon pivoted his steps, ready to join Killua when he got another telepathy message. Gon, no! Go to Kurapika! He'll think of a way to save us! Clandestia was almost begging Gon. Much to her frustration, Gon was not persuaded.
Damn, there's no time to waste, Clandestia cursed internally as her distressed brain found only one single solution. It was an almost irrational solution but she was too stubborn to give up now. She would not be able to hold on much longer and at this rate, they would all be caught. If she couldn't save them all, she would at least secure Gon's safety first. Steeling herself, she sent another illusion into Gon's mind and it effectively sent him running.
Meanwhile, Killua was busy dealing with Pakunoda. The young ex-assassin swiftly raised his free hand and chopped down on the arm that was grabbing him, making a merciless pop! of bone snapping. When he was out of her grip, he plunged forward, ready to rip Pakunoda' heart out with his bare claws. Pakunoda was not at her best. However, she still managed to dodge his attack with her well-polished combat skill.
The next second, Pakunoda was right behind Clandestia. With a flex, she roughly threw the brunette down on the floor, grabbing her by the neck while glaring at the young ex-assassin. "Stop right there or I'll kill her!"
Although she loved the idea of killing the little brunette right away, Pakunoda was deliberately delaying the act. She did not want to risk it until she figured out what this girl was doing to the rest of the Troupe.
Clandestia grimaced in pain as the woman tightened her iron grip on her slender neck. Her face was turning white from the lack of blood circulation and oxygen. This was not unexpected. Creating two illusions at once really added up the stress on her and distracted her attention. It was more than a risky decision; it was close to a suicidal move!
"Stop whatever you're doing to my comrades now or I'll break your throat!" Pakunoda glared down at the young girl in her hand and made a grave mistake of meeting her seemingly helpless violet eyes.
The corner of Clandestia's lips instantly curled up into a defiant smile as she wasted no time to summon her energy at full peak.
As if, old lady! Clandestia gaze deep into Pakunoda's bewildered eyes. I'll get back my comrades' stolen memories! The young professor thought with hardened resolve as she set out to dive into the woman's mind. This would be her only chance to erase Pakunoda's memories. She couldn't afford to fail. She must make it at any cost!
Unfortunately, the barrier to Pakunoda's mind was even harder to penetrate than Clandestia had predicted. Just a little more! The young professor desperately clung to her last resort, summoning every bit of her power with her shaky breath.
Pakunoda immediately released the girl and doubled back in shock. Getting near to this little brat was a mistake. Her power seemed to intensify in close contact! She felt a million tons of weight crushing her every bone in just a few seconds she touched the girl.
Clandestia felt like all air had escaped her lungs. This is the worst! She grimaced. She had lost the only chance to erase Pakunoda's memories. She failed utterly!
Kill her now, Killua! She cried out to him through telepathy. The only option left was to thoroughly discard any chance of Pakunoda revealing Kurapika's information. Now!
The silver haired ex-assassin instantly charged forward with his steely claws erected, ready to strike.
All of a sudden, an awfully familiar stoic female voice stopped him halfway.
"Playtime is over!" Machi rose from behind Clandestia with a blood-lust expression.
The light went back on. The blackout was over.
Killua's eyes widened in horror as he watched Clandestia's body hit the marble floor like a ragged doll.