It was almost midnight. Black cloaks shadowed our presence as we scurried through the streets. Little to no streetlights dwindled across our paths. The only light speckled from windows of houses and the luster of the moon, glossed with an iridescent hue. The streets almost seemed wider from the absence of people while the three of us gracefully glided and weaved between buildings in our Zetsu form. Bisky lead the line while I covered the back, sensing for unknown followers. And if Hisoka loomed near, I couldn't detect him either.
We arrived at the masked location and snuck around to the back. There, a dark green wooden door stood before us, but it wasn't closed all the way. Bisky gently knocked before slowly entering while I searched our backs once more.
"Here," Ajij gestured us in from the stairs and we followed him to the second floor. The house gave a warm presence, petite but well refined. The walls were creamed colored with a cemented texture. Purple and teal tapestries decorated both floors of the house while accents of golden accessories hung here and there. A symbol of recognition.
We gathered in a small living room with cushioned chairs and a flat coffee table in the middle. Candle lights flickered on surrounding shelves, setting the scene while the windows were completely shut so no one could peek through.
"Please sit," Ajij said.
"This is Kurapika, he is with us," Bisky introduced him.
Ajij nodded, "It's important this remains secluded. This city is filled with mischief."
"We understand," Kurapika said. "What can you tell us about the city and the tribe within Jujib?"
"The city holds many secrets, some that are connected to Jujib. People out here are always looking for valuables, throwing their lives away to obtain them. As you saw earlier, money controls us heavily. There is little enforcement here but it's mostly from authorities overpowering others. One thing every native person would know is of the treasure in Jujib, the destination you seek. Archeologists or Treasure Hunters frequently stop by to obtain information, but for us to open up our secrets takes something, let alone find us." His voice was very hushed and sincere compared to earlier. He then met the eyes of Bisky and me. "I was very moved by your kindness, something I never grew up with. I hope I can return the favor."
I could tell the others were still on edge, but his aura remained earnest. Of course, he was hiding things but he had yet to open up. We nodded in acknowledgment.
"So, I assume you are a true native here," Kurapika confirmed.
"Indeed. One of six. This leads to why I have asked you to come in secret. The information I am about to reveal is known of high value for two reasons. One, it is rare to find a native person in this city. And two, those who have this information become targets. People are known to torture secrets out, but I trust you to protect them. Something tells me this isn't just a treasure hunt..."
I let out a breath, grateful he understood.
"May I see your map?" Ajij asked Kurapika.
It was spread over the table, Ajij holding a red pen to mark it. He drew a triangle overlapping the entire city, then drew an inverted triangle directly over creating a six-pointed star. "This is the symbol of the 'Star of David' which signifies us as protectors."
He then pointed to the northwest tip of the star, "This is our location. Each point is where a member of the Golden Dawn lives, myself included. We are responsible for protecting the secrets of Jujib and Shezun. This small organization is the only way you'll make it to the hidden tribe in Jujib. However, there are two parts to our group. The points on the inverted triangle are those who hold the secrets of the city. The points on the upright triangle, hold the secrets of the jungle. You would not find them without going through me or the other two. The jungle members are purely in charge of guiding people through Jujib safely to the hidden village, so I apologize, but I do not know much of the Jujib jungle. The purpose of these two parts is to keep the information as scarce as possible in case it falls into the wrong hands."
"You also mentioned Raine's necklace," Bisky pointed out.
"Ah. The secret we are protecting has to do with that stone you have there. There's a so-called balance that takes place in the hidden village. A balance within their traditions associating with the sacred jewel of the Jungle, the 'Moon's Phases'." He turned towards me. "Raine, do you feel some sort of power under the full moon?"
My eyes widened. "Yes," I said abruptly. The shock spread through my aura. Thoughts ran through my head so fast they started to clump.
Does father know?
Did mother know?
Is this why my village was attacked?
For my necklace?
Was mom a target?
Am I walking into a trap?
Kurapika's eyes softened connecting the dots but unfolded under a look of determination. "So, we just need to contact the jungle members?"
Ajij nodded. "You only need to be escorted by one. An old man named Adhiarja or Adhi for short. He lives at the northern point of the Star. We keep contact within the group minimal to avoid being traced, but I believe he has a son who can guide you through the rainforest. He is your best solution."
I squeezed the necklace in my hands then tucked it in my shirt. Bisky gave me a look of me with concern.
"If Riv came to my village for this piece, does that mean I'd be handing it to him?" I asked.
"Looks like it..." Bisky said.
"We should wait on assumptions until we talk to the jungle member," Kurapika said. "Maybe he'll tell us more about the people of the village. He might know of Riv."
"Thank you Ajij," I said. His heart swirled a vibrant purple, a serene color of loyalty and justice. We stood up to head out but he stopped us.
"Before you go, take this." He handed Kurapika a gold coin carved with the symbol of the Star of David. "You must show this to them as a token of approval from the city members. He will take it but won't react until you say my name. That is when he will open up his home to you."
A name and coin in case people stole just the item. Smart.
Kurapika stashed it away.
"And whatever you do, guard that map and your necklace at all costs," Ajij finished.
We left the building and huddled on a nearby roof.
"I don't feel eyes on us, does anyone else?" I asked. They both shook their heads.
"Maybe Hisoka took care of them," Kurapika said.
I frowned before we started racing back to the Inn, following behind once more. Not a cloud wandered the sky, the stars freely twinkled as if talking to each other. My mind drifted towards the city while little sounds here and there perked my ears.
But as I leaped a building...for a brief second, something tugged my gut. Something sharp. But I'd have no way of describing it. I glanced back over my shoulder still running quietly, uncertain.
Ajij's words echoed in my head. This place was sad. To be stripped of kindness? To chase after money as a lifestyle? Who knew what people might have gone through growing up here. I let out a long breath. Usually, midnight runs relaxed me but not this one.
Still, why was I this worried? Why did that matter? Tension riled in my stomach, the same feeling I felt in the forest almost a month ago when Gotoh was in trouble. When he was in pain. I frowned, slowing down my run, turning my head. Looking for something.
Hmmm. By any chance....would Hisoka-- no he wouldn't do that again. He couldn't have done anything yet or else I would've felt p-
I gasped. My body slammed to a stop as if a rope yanked me back. A powerful emotion struck my chest, shrieking with fear and pain, crying for help. The eerie tone rattled my nerves so abruptly, I fell to my knees stunned. My heart began to beat against the emotion, grasping a hold over myself as it stole the breath in my lungs.
The sensation. It was all too familiar because it wasn't just the pain I harbored; it was the even more roaring bloodlust engulfing the streets like wildfire.
Bisky and Kurapika spun around baffled. My Zetsu form had already been deactivated unconsciously.
"Raine! Are you okay?" Bisky asks grabbing my hand.
My head rang dangerously and I squeezed my eyes shut.
My Nen. I could see emotions. I could pick up on the slightest bit of joy, happiness, loyalty, and any positive emotion...and feel it as if it were the warmth of the sun. I've learned that emotions could turn into power, and that power became energy. It was what I slowly extended to each one of my senses.
Seeing auras...
hearing auras...
and now feeling auras.
Over time, I had to accustom myself to my own emotions first, if I wanted to understand others. This deep connection within has brought me a stronger connection with others. To fully commit to their well-being and state of mind as if they were my own.
Over a decade ago, Father saw my mind was unstable after moving to a new home, abandoning everything I once knew. He saw my anger act out in vengeance and hate, destroying little things like plants, then worked my way to animals, for fun. For sport. For practice. I left corpses rotting all over the island. People were looking to find out who did it, but I kept quiet. I thought I needed to become a ruthless killer to avenge our family and everyone. And while I did that, dad worked hard to start over for us, to keep us hidden. Every time I came home, I blocked everything out and stayed in my room after hunting. I would shake and sweat, anticipating death, and forcing myself to stop feeling remorse. Father coped with everything on his own, something he'd gone through before and knew how to deal with it. Something I didn't understand how yet.
But one day, I lost myself too much, I started hunting humans at 8 years old. I thought I was ready after my rampage of killing animals. But before I could get my first kill, Father caught me, hidden in the bushes, about to pounce on a lonely man in the woods who was picking berries. Father called me out, telling me it was time to stop. Our relationship involved me learning on my own because that's who I was until he finally realized I needed guidance. It wasn't until then he saw the pain our loss left on me, exhausting me after every kill. It had been a year of grief and I took it too far. I wasn't coping the way I should. But how could I? I was a child with uncontrollable tantrums.
He didn't see their deaths as I did. He didn't see it twice.
Father finally put me in my place and helped me climb out of depression. He refused to train me and made me sit on the tallest tree on the island to count my blessings in silence. He told me to appreciate every living thing and understand there was more I could do in the future than in the past.
He wasn't the most insightful person, but he was very straight forward and that was all I needed.
Of course, I always argued before I left, and carved into the tree to pass time. It took seventy days of sitting there that I finally understood that life is too precious to destroy. And that mother would rather me protect than kill for her. After a few weeks of starting, I noticed details in nature that I hadn't before. How water not only brought the plants to life, but it had a certain rhythm if you listened carefully, a certain smell long before fell. I started noticing the slight blooming of the flowers, the small shift in their colors. I watched a whole family of squirrels grow up and had named each one. My head was able to rest in stillness, my heart slowing down for the first time, less and less restlessness as the days went by.
And then, I found my emotions at peace, so clear as if I could read it like a book. I mastered them in isolation, listening to my senses and thoughts. I figured out how to balance my breathing and keep track of my heart rate. Those seventy days allowed me to figure out that the key to protecting someone, was by understanding them, the way I understood nature, myself, my father's reasoning, and the past.
People's lives were valuable...as was the lonely man in the woods I sought to kill. But not everyone would see them as important if you didn't know them. My family didn't deserve what happened but neither did strangers who could be going through the same thing. I hoped no one had to give up their life for unconfined emotions. And that's also why I haven't strayed from Hisoka.
On the last day, the seventieth day, I surpassed a barrier in my Nen to hear and feel what others felt. The animals were the first I could see. Small emotions became swirls of colors. Then I surrounded myself with the local villagers which brought me out of isolation and improved my power even more. I saw more complex colors in people, pigments I had never seen in my life. Then I heard the whispers of those who had a strong surge of emotion, and the contradiction of lies with feelings created the energy that manifested into words for me to hear.
So, from then on, I took time out of my day just to listen.
But this was why I was ten times more sensitive to those emotions appearing in the form of energy or aura. Just like I could feel those light-hearted auras, I became susceptible to auras that were so deadly, they could make any normal human cripple under great pressure and stress. Ren. An intense force of aura surrounding one's body. Blood lust. An immense desire of one's malice.
I discovered this during my hunter exam years ago. In the last phase, I had to counter bloodlust with a blockade of my own aura, or my opponent would have crushed me with their emotions. Positive always cancels out the negative.
Still...father always warned me about being around people too much. To take a break and run. Because I would bear the weight of everyone's pain on my shoulders when no one could do the same for me.
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