"Will all applicants who passed the First Phase please enter?" A voice called from inside the forest park. Eager to move on, I hopped down from my place in the tree, speeding past Hisoka and winding my way through the crowd of applicants to get to the front. Being one of the first ones to enter, I could take my time to examine my surroundings. At the far northern end was what looked to be a huge mansion, and along the stretch of lawn before it sat what seemed to be...very large counters. I stared, perplexed for a few moments before focusing on the two people at the front of the mansion. A young girl with bright green hair styled in elaborate spikes sat on a cushioned lounge chair, while behind her sat a mountain of a man who looked as if he weighted over a few hundred pounds.
"Welcome," the girl greeted us with a smile as we all entered. "I'm Menchi, the Second Phase examiner."
"And I'm Buhara, the other examiner," announced the man sitting behind her, a wide smile on his chubby face.
We all stared at the two in silence, before that silence was interrupted by what sounded like a dying animal's cry.
"W-What was that sound?"
The question rose up from most of the applicants, who looked around in utter confusion. I had a faint idea of what the sound was and who it had come from, considering Buhara had placed his large hands on his equally large stomach, a slight crease on his forehead.
Menchi turned her head, smiling up at her partner. "You must be hungry."
"I'm starving..." Buhara complained, and my suspicions were proven correct.
"There you have it," Menchi stated, standing up from her seat and placing her hands on her hips. "Phase Two will involve...cooking!"
"C-cooking?"
"Wait, cooking!? We're here to take the Hunter Exam!"
This was hardly what anyone expected, and it was obvious by the dropped jaws and the complaints that came from those around me. I for one felt quite giddy about this decision, considering the chances of dying would be slimmer than running through a swamp full of things that wanted to eat me for lunch.
"That's quite right. Your challenge for the Second Phase is to produce a dish that will satisfy our palate," Menchi explained.
"Why do we have to cook?!" Someone still called out, irritation lacing their tone.
'Why do you have to keep complaining?' I thought to myself, rolling my eyes heavenward.
"That's because...we are Gourmet Hunters!"
There was a short silence before laughter broke out among the applicants, the loudest and most obnoxious laugh coming from applicant #255, Todo.
"Man, what a letdown."
"They're Gourmet Hunters..."
I couldn't understand why the others were laughing, but I could understand that it was making Menchi very unhappy. Her smile was replaced quickly by a scowl, and I could feel the anger rolling off her in waves.
The laugher for the most point finally died down, and Todo the wrestler spoke up. "So, Gourmet Hunters, what are we supposed to make?"
"Buhara," Menchi called forward her companion in a tense tone of voice. Buhara stepped forward, the ground shaking under each step he took.
"The required ingredient is pork."
"Pork? As in pig meat?" An applicant called out.
'Obviously; I'm pretty sure there isn't anything else called pork that isn't made of pig.'
"You're free to use meant from any species of Biska Forest pigs. You must use the cooking facilities here to prepare the pork."
'Ah, so that's what those large counters were...'
"And you only pass if we both find it delicious," Buhara concluded.
"And we will evaluate more than just the taste. Don't underestimate the intricacies of cooking. Got it?" Menchi's tone sounded relatively threatening. "When we've both eaten our fill, the exam will end."
"We get it. We get it. Let's just start," Todo called out, waving at them aimlessly.
"Then, the exam's Second Phase begins now!" Buhara called out, and brought the palm of his hand against his stomach, like a hammer hitting a large gong. The sound was thunderous, and rang throughout the park. The applicants at the very back turn and dashed away, and those of us in the front followed suit. I was now at the back of a very large group, on our way to hunt pigs.
'My only weapon is my bow...that should be able to take a pig down. But this is a forest, and pigs don't live in forests. Hogs do...,' I thought to myself, chewing on my lower lip anxiously. I stopped in my tracks and slipped my bow from over my head, and drew an arrow from the quiver strung across my back. I knocked an arrow in place, knowing I had to be ready for anything. Following the other applicant's example, I began searching around the area, near the darkened underbrush where I was sure hogs or pigs might be. I didn't know where Hisoka had gone off to, but considering he wasn't around bothering me at the moment, I could really care less. I took my time, patiently searching through the underbrush. I was worried about wandering off farther from the main group, but finally decided to do so, knowing that with all the noise they were making they were sure to scare off any animals.
The forest was relatively peaceful and quiet as I ventured off on my own, and I stopped for a moment to enjoy the nice breeze that cooled the warm summer day. I could hear birds chirping overhead, and small animals rustling the bushes and treetops overhead. The sound of cicadas humming filled the air, and I felt myself slowly begin to relax. I hadn't realized how tense I had become since starting my journey to become a Hunter, but I knew for certain that it was a necessity for me to once again join myself with nature, just as my village practiced.
The village was named Shangri-La, by our founding elder Abengane. He ventured off from his own city where crime and sickness and violence was an everyday occurrence, intent on building a small village for those who wanted to live in nothing but peace. He located it far from other cities and town, knowing that they only way of keeping the village a harmonious place was to isolate it from others who had evil in their hearts. Along with him he brought those who also had the same views and wished to dwell in peace, and our village was created. We were a united community, and treated nature as an equal. We only hunted when necessary, and took gentle care of the surrounding forest that shielded us from the outside.
It had been a while since I had truly reconnected, and as much as I yearned for the power the earth had to offer me, I was currently in the middle of the Second Phase. I sighed gently, my feet once again beginning to move as I searched around for pigs.
I was nearing what seemed like a large clearing, but that sloped downwards into a giant ditch where I heard a deafening squeal. I quickly covered my ears, and frantically glancing around for the cause, I soon found it. My eyes widened as I stared down into the area I had stumbled upon; a herd of massive hogs were grazing below, but not on grass like any normal farm animal. No, these hogs were crunching in their powerful jaws large bones that I assume belonged to other animals that had fallen prey to the giant beast.
'T-They're carnivores...This is bad, this is super bad!'
I frantically stumbled backwards, and felt my heel hit a rock wedged in the ground behind me. I fell back onto an unstable patch of dirt, and let out a piercing shriek as I slid down the slope towards the pigs below. Something besides me charging at the pigs stirred them, and I heard angry shrieks from many of the pack. Before I tumbled head most painfully first into the clearing, I caught sight of Gon and his companions, turning tail and running from the oncoming stampede. I spit out grass and dirt that got into my mouth, my face scrunching up in disgust and pain as tears gathered in the corners of my eyes. My palms had been scraped red, and my dress and cloak had ripped slightly during my fall. Wincing as I balled my hands into fists, I rubbed the water from my eyes, unaware of what was in front of me. A hot puff of air blown directly in my face made me freeze, and slowly I opened my eyes, already dreading to look into the face of the beast I knew was before me.
The large pig was hideous up close; a large pointed nose took up most of its face, and it had beady black eyes that focused directly on me. It was about twice my size and I was certain about a few hundred pounds – maybe almost as big as Buhara. The pig pawed the earth beneath it angrily, and I knew that as a sign that meant it was readying to attack. I quickly rolled out of the pig's path as it charged, scrambling to my feet as it swirled around to take another run at me. In the distance, I could hear the screams of the applicants, and knew the pigs had reached the mob that had been searching for them.
The animal was faster than I was, and both of us knew that I wouldn't be able to outrun it. I took to rolling and dodging each charge attack, and soon enough I was completely dirtied, and my knees and elbows had been scraped raw. I was growing tired, while the hog was growing even more furious with not being able to catch me. It pawed the earth again, and knowing I had to do something quick before it actually got lucky and trampled me, I drew my bow and aimed it at the beast. Aiming for its gigantic nose, I took a shot, but the arrow simply bent and bounced off, as if it had hit steel-plated armor.
'W-What?!'
I dashed and rolled as the pig charged at me again, quickly drawing another arrow from my quiver and taking yet another shot at the boar. This arrow also bounced off its large snout, and I was frozen for a minute in utter fear.
'How the hell are we supposed to put these things down?'
I gave a yelp as I dodged again, the boar coming very close to almost hitting me this time. It changed its strategy, and instead of just attacking and standing for a moment after, it relentlessly began to charge at me, kicking clumps of earth up as its feet dug into the earth.
"S-Someone help!" I cried out, beginning to grow tired of dodging its attacks. I tried scrambling up the slope I had fell down, but nearly got myself killed as it came charging again. Not knowing what else to do, I squeezed my eyes tightly shut and berated myself for my next choice of cries for help.
"HISOKA!"
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