H×H: 108 Stars of Destiny [IC]

[Asriel Dreemurr]

Alaster was most certainly surprised to see just how spry this particular old man was, and in fact he knew that unless they acted quickly they would lose him.  To that end, he sent Rexxus on ahead to track the man and leave a more obvious trail behind for them to follow.  It did help having a partner who was so much faster than he, and the pup even seemed to enjoy it as he bolted on after the old man barking the whole way.  True to the command, his friend left quite the fine trail for them to follow.  Even when they had to cross the odd stream, the other bank was properly torn up from the running dire wolf making his presence known.

 

Arrival at the exam site was quite a relief to the young nobleman, as was receiving the badge which proved to be necessary for participation.  After all, one of the members of the group right behind them was prevented from entering due to the examiners running out of badges.  Regardless, the male made his way into the room where all waited after meeting up with an exceptionally filthy Rexxus.  Of course the copious amounts of mud covering his canine friend did not stop the wolf from nearly tackling him to the ground and licking all over his face.  It took every ounce of the young boy's strength to get the heavier creature off of him, and a minute or so after that to calm him down enough that the would-be hunter could examine the crowd.

 

He rather quickly saw that he was not the only prospective hunter to have brought an animal companion.  In fact there were many with companions of various persuasions, but he took pride in one thing.  He was the only one there with a fearsome Dire Wolf, and he had to hold in the urge to gloat about it to the others present.  They were soon to be in the midst of the action, and he needed to be focused on the matter at hand.  Remembering the issue, he untied his scarf from around his waist and stuffed it inside of the armored shirt he wore.  Good thing too, as the collapse of one of the walls revealed thirteen...well the only word for them was ninjas.  Those assassins that stood there went on about how the exam was to begin, eliminated a baker's dozen of the competition before the test had even begun, and gave all of those in the room a ten second ultimatum to get as far ahead as they could before starting things off.

 

This was where having a companion as heavy and powerful as a Dire Wolf came in handy.  Gripping his spear tightly to avoid losing it in the chaos, Alaster charged forward alongside his companion.  Rexxus ducked low to the ground as he ran, knocking the legs out from under the competition as he went, while the young man took advantage of their being thrown off balance to send them falling to the ground and properly clear a path through the chaos.  Normally he would have sat back patiently to let the chaos unfold, but it would take minutes rather than seconds for that in this case and he could not afford to wait that long.  He did catch a glimpse of Anemone running across the top of the crowd, which honestly was a fine option for those that could manage it, and vanish into the tunnel beyond just shortly after a spray of blood and viscera opened a hole to get through.  Seeing as it was the best option for getting through that last bit of the crowd which was rapidly growing violent, Alaster and Rexxus bolted for that gap as well to get through before it closed.

 

Managing to make it through by the skin of their teeth, and with more than a few choice words in angry tones being sent after them, wolf and boy had a new goal: get as far ahead as possible.  They would need time to get through the challenges ahead, and could not afford the interruptions of those behind them that made haste towards the end.  With any luck, they would reach the second part of this test far enough ahead of enough of the others to avoid as much interference as possible.

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

Torben hadn’t thought their small group would be the only ones taking the exam, however he did not expect such numbers. The crowd made him uncomfortable, no room to maneuver and get a good shot if he had to, however it would make it easier to blend in. Now was not the time to stand out. Torben kept on his stupid grin but didn’t make any move to talk with anyone.

He observed the other examinees carefully. There were many kinds of people here. To be expected, the Hunters took all kinds. He singled out those he had arrived with. Should’ve worked more towards forging some kind of alliance. But it was too late for that. Hopefully what little he did would help in the end.
Most everyone here looked capable in their own way. Those who didn’t probably, similar to Torben, only outwardly appeared inept.

But there was one. Near the front. A red-haired man. Something about him felt familiar to Torben. He didn’t think he had ever met him but there was a strange sense of recognition, and foreboding.
He was forced to put that thought to the side as what appeared to be ninjas came in and the rules of the exam were explained.
Upon learning the ninjas already took some badges Torben quickly checked for his own. He hadn’t even noticed, that wasn’t good. Missing something that important could mean death, he would have to pay more attention.

So a race of sorts. Well all he had to do was keep from falling behind, and avoid getting injured or worse by the various hazards. Simple enough in theory.

As the exam started everyone rushed forward like a bull for the tunnel. Torben clutched his rifle case close and moved forward, going with a quick pace through. He carefully picked out every opening and slide into them to advance without too much of the pushing and shoving everyone was doing.

There was a sudden and startled halt as the red-haired man ripped through the group who reached the tunnel first. Torben cringed at the excess violence. The blood and death wasn't an issue, he had seen that before, but the violent act itself was disgusting. This man was dangerous, and also was just the kind of man Torben wanted to avoid most.
He might have to find a way to hinder him from becoming a Hunter if he could. Someone so ruthless with the power and standing of a Hunter was a bad combination.

Pressing forward and taking advantage of the slight hesitation, Torben followed through the path created by the slaughter; just behind the previously kidnapped girl and the man with the wolf.

[Tesability Black]

Unlike the other participants, whom most had placed their badges within a pocket or some part of their body that allows them to free their hands, the Armagnis held his in his mouth, his fangs purposely piercing the badge so that he wouldn't easily let go of it. Sure, he wouldn't be able to use his fangs to bite, but it would be a whole lot easier to keep track of it this way instead of keeping it in one of the pockets of his fireproof saddle-packs to either side of him, where a ninja could easily swipe it from him without notice. He had his whip-arm, and if he could find something along the path that could act as a weapon, he would be good to go. Sure, he forgot his favored reinforced-glass battlestaff back home, but there was nothing that could be done about it now...

 

He felt many gazes upon him as he took the badge, one of them even belting out a complaint that an 'animal' shouldn't be a Hunter, though the foxish creature sent her a fiery glare her way. She should be thankful he wasn't flash-roasting her.

 

The wall suddenly falls nearby and the beast's green eyes catch sight of the multiple duplicate ninjas. Something smells off about them, but now was not the time to try and decipher what that could be.

 

As soon as the man announced that the 'race' could begin, the Armagnis jumped clean over many heads and ran with the speed of a race horse, his aura of heat extending outward to make approaching him rather uncomfortable and possibly force any that managed to get ahead of him at the start to move to the side as he approached.

He was one inferno these beings wouldn't want to mess with in a fight...

[宇佐見 蓮子@C94]

Morrigan only took a small glance at whoever approached him before turning his back again and advancing deeper into the woods, seemingly without a single hint of care for the world. He ventured deeper into the woods, along with the rest of the bunch from the Skytower, before finally arriving in some small shack with a small, naked old man in it. Obviously he was disgusted by the sight, and probably would've even killed him on the spot if it wasn't for the fact that he's a navigator. And thus he followed the old man up the hill. His rage and bloodlust had died down. Slowly and he climbed up, burdened by his sickness, his body making slight twitches with each step, and his head tilted in a somewhat bizarre angle. Those who see him can immediately notice that he's not right in the head. 

 

[divider1]

 

500 participants surround the sickly boy. 500 who are likely to be more powerful and fit than him, both physically and mentally. But really, advantages can only get you so far. His badge sits nice and cozy under his respirator, hidden from sight and from the bastard ninjas. No matter what, all he can do at this point is suck it up and hope he blends with the crowd enough so the ninjas don't target him. Immediately after the race started though, he can feel blood drips on his face. From what it seemed, someone has already mowed down a path from the human wall in front of him. Something Morrigan definitely approves of. He didn't stick out from the crowd, and it seemed that everyone is already too distracted by the psychopath with a knife. "'Scuse me." He said in a someone joking tone as he shoved his pistol into the ear of a distracted Hunter-to-be, injecting his skull with a lethal dose of lead. "Terribly sorry for this." This time someone falls victim to a crowbar sweep followed by a swift headshot. Soon enough, he reached the path opened by the psycho earlier, and suddenly felt the rush to run as fast as he can. Maybe he felt that he's finally found someone he can connect with.

[Love of Ghibli]

Lettess had arrived to the scene far later than everyone else but that was simply because he took his sweet time getting there. He quickly realized that there wasn't going to be any sharing of the wolf meat so he donated to a nearby ktichen near this random cabin. As he went inside he realized it wasn't truly that random. It was the entrance to the Hunter's Exam. He was elated as he picked up his badge. Hilariously though, he kept darting it from side to side as he noticed fine slits starting to appear in his sleeves. Well the test must already be beginning. He thought. He managed to make his way down to the group with everyone else where the massive group was.

He heard as the group of ninja started to explain the rules of the game and he was interested in another run to the finish line. Though this was only the first leg of the exam. During the explanation Lettess used his Rhythm Echo to stealth walk through the crowd to get a little closer to the front.  Lettess laughed as everyone made a mad dash towards the exit and he proceeded to join them. Unfortunately, things got a tad more serious as everyone who was in the initial crowd with him were getting decimated by some mysterious red haired indiviual. Lettess could only look on in horror as he was hoping to make his way to the exit before this psycho did to him what he did to others. Luckily, by the grace of the food Gods he managed to trip on the Anemone's trident which had managed to loosen itself from all of the commotion. After falling almost flat on his face he managed to actually avoid the wrath of the red-haired man.

He then picked up the trident and made his way immediately on the path. Most likely this was due to the litany of adrenaline and fear pumping threw his heart. In the VERY back of his mind he would have to make sure to return Anemone's staff to her...and thank her.

[Raine]

“Listen up, I stumbled into the middle of a massive conspiracy! Think about, I’m gonna talk about the map. I’ve been dying to talk about the map. All I hear about is the map. Map. Map. Map. It’s all about this damn map. So I’m sitting in the middle of traffic with a stick of my butt like an idiot holding this scrap and I’m saying to myself, ‘Calm down, man. There’s supposed to be an exam here. I swear, there was supposed to be an exam here. Surely, something is going on.’ I pick myself up and decide to get to the bottom of this whole mess and I follow the paper trail and guess where it takes me! Guess! That’s right, the tippy top of a skyscraper! Right away, I’m suspicious. There is no room for an exam up here; I’m in the middle of something weird, right? RIGHT! I show up and it’s a trap! It’s a damn trap; I was in the middle of the whole damn conspiracy! This whole operation was being uncovered by yours truly and I’m up shit creak without a paddle. So what do I do? What do I do? I’ll tell you what I did. I roundhouse kick all the henchman on that rooftop in a heartbeat and escape down a rope with the all the map pieces and what do I uncover? I find out it makes a picture! There! IS! NO! MAP!, I say! This whole thing was one damn wild goose hunt! But it’s all about the map. Map! Map! Map! I’ve gotta dumpster full of map pieces surely there’s a map! I gotta get down to this exam otherwise I’d never get in! So I march my way down the picture to the picture and I’m crying out, OLD MAN! OLD MAN! But there is no old man! Actually, there was! I must have scared him or something because he’s flying across jungle like a bat out of hell! AH! SHIT! I gotta dig a little deeper! It takes me 10 minutes in my Porsche but I catch up the MotherFruiter and bop him on the head and send him off to the remote desert I can think of. Turns out though, I’ve been in the exam center the whole goddamn time I stuck him in the mail box! There is something fishy going on here and I am NOT STOPPING NOW! HEAR ME! I-“ Ozymandius’s story time to an unknown and uncaring contestant was brutally interrupted by the commencement of the exam’s test. He had been consumed in retelling his riveting tale of mystery and intrigue that he missed the appearance of the ninjas who, out of sheer luck, neglected to take his badge of honor. 

 

About time someone did something in this absolute mess of a test.  The ninjas were very scary looking; they had a matching ascetic to their terrible demeanor. It was only seconds passed before the mob of 487 went to 486… 485… 484… 48- Oz tapped into his inter-Marathon runner as he cut through the outskirts of the madness.  The blood was the worst part; the seeming mass of strangers gathered under common cause had been reduced to the results of panic and terror, unadulterated violence. We are barbarians. 

 

It wasn’t long before his routes of escape became few and far between, the sheer number of people being funneled down such treacherous roads could only lead to this level of conflict. A disgusting ordeal but not one he was unfamiliar with. His eyes skated over the growing crime scene until he scanned over some of his own associates dodging and weaving their way through an ocean of human skill aimed to destroy but also to survive, the most devastating of human motivations in combat. Oz supposed that in order to survive this he would require a bit more from himself than his typical antics of claiming advantage and avoiding direct confrontation. This scenario called for harsh punishments just to allow him to survive. The nature of this exam was lost on him an hour ago but the truth grew very real to Oz, this was very real. 

 

Oz found momentary refuge in a small crevice in a rocky cliffside not far off the main route that contestants were frequenting. If he was to keep his life long enough to succeed or even escape should the inopportune come, he had to do something he had only done in solitude and practice. Fight. Oz withdrew from his clothing a curved blade of 2 feet in length bearing a bronze tinge and an aged handle, for it to see blood after such a long absence from its ancient history must please it a little, Oz thought to himself. Oz stood and moved to continue down the path as cautiously as he could, he mustn’t be overcome by the bloodlust of his fellow contestants, he was never that kind of man, a sword won’t change that. 

[宇佐見 蓮子@C94]

Hidden amongst the sea of examinees is a seemingly out of place girl, Meryl Valentine. Her timid, scared look is definitely very out of sync with the determination and burning spirit in that area. Surrounded by dangerous people all of whom are certainly more capable than her, Valentine could do nothing but keep her head down and try to avoid making eye contact to any of the 500 around her. Many thoughts raced through her head at that point, and none of them are positive. "What if they're going to kill me in the first round?" "Will I really be able to survive?" and so on, and so forth. To make matters worse, Boss hasn't called her ever since she received a scrawled-up piece of paper 24 hours ago. Without him, Val is basically a walking nervous wreck. There's still 15 minutes before the exam starts, so she still haven't given up hope on Boss making a call.

 

"Ring Ring Ring~ Huh? B-boss's ringtone! Ring Ring Ring~" Suddenly, things started to look brighter for her. Those three notes sounds like something from the gods himself. Even though her sudden voice drew attention onto her, she didn't care. Boss's calls have to be answered. Valentine picked up her phone and rushed to answer the call. [glow=#FC0019]"Good morning. I trust you have been well?[/glow] Of course! Well, I'm not doing too hot right now... I don't like crowds, and I'm in a really big one right now... [glow=#FC0019]I know. It must be though, no? This, too is part of overcoming your fear.[/glow] I know that! But it's just... [glow=#FC0019]I need you to listen close to what I'm saying next."[/glow]

 

All of a sudden, Boss's tone changed from comforting to serious. By now, a large group of the crowd is looking at her, much to her obliviousness. Their faces range from being weirded out to some holding back their laughter. "What's so weird? I'm just talking to someone over the phone." Valentine thought to herself. She can sense the prying eyes, but she didn't know just how many people are focused onto her.

 

[glow=#FC0019]I need you to ascertain the skills and power levels of your fellow examinees.[/glow] Huh? [glow=#FC0019]I don't have much time left, but that's the gist of it. You have to gain at least some information about them.[/glow] I... I really don't get it, boss. How do I do something like that?! [glow=#FC0019]I'm counting on you. Good luck.[/glow] Waaait! Boss... Beep Beep Beep~" Valentine sighed and dropped to her knees in apparent confusion. Her face looks like she's on the brink of crying, confused and disappointed at her boss's words. What could he possibly mean? Still, it's the Boss's orders so she has to suck it up and do it to the best of her abilities.

 

Valentine turned off her phone and looked at her surroundings. Being the center of attention... Isn't something she's fond of. Mercifully though, the examinees' attention was diverted when the ninjas started explaining things and kicking off the stage. Perhaps it was sheer luck, but she somehow avoided getting her badge torn to shred by them. The game has started, and despite everything, Valentine is quick to leap into action. Sensing the area isn't safe anymore, she used a tall, burly man close to her as springboard and leapt onto the air, with a flaming beast being her only companion in the brief period she was airborne. Regrettably, she had to leave her precious phone behind. The only trace of her existence there, a red sneaker with no owner to claim.

 

[divider1]

 

Her quickness and agility propelled her to the front of the mad dash, avoiding the madman slashing through entirely. Her throwing blades are poised and ready to launch the moment she feels danger, which might be soon. "Ring Ring Ring~ N-now?!" Boss's calls are top priority, even when running through a narrow tunnel. Valentine luckily found a phone and answered her all-important phone call, even though she had to kick a poor guy in the mouth to take said phone. She moved to the edge of the tunnel, away from the crowd and her running slowed to a brisk walking pace. This time, the call seems to mostly be small talk to bolster Valentine's confidence. A chat that continued all the way until she made it out of the tunnel. [glow=#FC0019]Well, that should be it. Goodbye, and, look to your right."[/glow] Valentine put down the phone and looked to her right as her boss instructed, and immediately saw a ninja leaping at her to take her badge. "Waaah!"

 

Through sheer reflex, she managed to ward off the ninja (for the time being) with her knives, though she had to leap back quite a lot which caused her to stumble into a small crevice, upon which she discovered an odd man looking at a sword. (Oz) "I-I-I'm sorry for interrupting!" Naturally, her first reaction is to distance herself from him and immediately apologize profusely.

[(GigaDrillBreaker)]

Valko had found himself to be whisked through the events that followed his remark toward the younger siblings. A fight had quickly broken out, and despite his own comments, he managed to remain uninvolved in it. This was a convenient chance for him to gain knowledge on his companions, without giving away any of his own. So, the younger of the two has a large blade of sorts. The older one - the smart one - isn't doing much of anything, likely to conceal her abilities. Frustrating, but understandable. Now, as for the girl with teal hair...

 

The thought was promptly interrupted, as Celia flung herself at the two, quickly engaging in battle. Did she honestly hope to fight off both of them at once? The skirmish progressed at a lightning pace, and before even 30 seconds had passed, the teal-haired girl seemed to be employing what would be a finishing move. Valko sturdied himself, using Nen to protect his body from the shockwave that never came. Before the hit could possibly land, a new entrant, a girl with brown hair and a bothersome swagger in her step, had gotten between the fist and its target, and promptly incapacitated the attacker with a punch to the face. I suppose I will have to wait a while longer before I can see the full effects of that move. Shame. The new entrant very quickly assembled the pieces into what they obviously were to create: a map of sorts. Of course, before anyone else had a chance to catch more than a glimpse of said map, she had burnt it to a crisp. 

 

Wonderful. So the new girl is a pyromaniac. Just what we needed. Valko chose not to react, simply following the girl quietly as she led the way. The whole group walked for quite a distant, until they found themselves at a small glen, and they began to set up camp when a cawwing sound was heard from the sky, its source being large predatory birds. Each member of the group prepared to fight off the aven through various means, as Valko quietly shrunk back, deciding to take a moment to observe the capabilities of the others. Not unexpectedly, the hunters-to-be tore the birds apart mercilessly. The girl who incinerated their only clue showed this pyrotechnic talent once again, roasting one of the creatures from the inside out. 

 

The girl in the armor, who had been the first Valko had said anything to, finally answered the question that he had posed, but before he could further respond, he heard a screech coming from behind him. "Excuse me for a moment, it appears that I will have to fight a bit, after all." Swiftly turning around, he dropped down, resting a hand on the ground as the other rose up, dagger in hand. The bird had been approaching him at speed, and was not able to change its course soon enough to avoid getting its wing clipped by the protruding edge. Valko stood again, turning toward the flailing mass of feather on the ground, and tossed the knife down, embedding it within the skull of the bird. 

 

"I apologize, but I think we will have to continue this conversation another time." As he pulled his knife out of the bird, wiping the blood off against the soft down directly beneath the undamaged wing, he sheathed it at his waist and nodded in the direction of the middle-aged woman who had arrived at the scene. He paid little attention to the words that she said, though managed to pick of the general gist of what they were to do, go to cabin, enter cabin, await further instruction.

 

After reaching their (hopefully) final destination, Valko was handed a badge as he surveyed the new area. There were hundreds of other entrants, each with their own skill set. He didn't have time to learn everything about each of them, so he paid closer attention to the new task at hand. Beginning to understand where this was going, he approached the tunnel quietly, making sure not to take his eyes off of the ninjas. Appearing distracted, he crashed into another entrant, swiping their badge in the process without them noticing. He had already used this method of pick-pocketing on the way to The Brick House, but he was fond of it. The moment the race began, he felt a foot push down against his shoulder, apparently from somebody trying to get ahead of the crowd. Looking up, he saw a young girl, carrying a trident. Kids these days... Valko sighed as he slipped through the crowd into the tunnel, unaware of the bloodbath occurring very near to him.

[Raine]

Oz’s heart stuttered as if a hand physically grasped it tightly and flooded his brain with panic at his surprise to the blurred object resonated all the way to his trigger-happy fingertips curled at his blade hilt. He was too edgy, he came to realize as the falling object went from an unwelcome mystery to the outline of a young boy-ish teenager (?). His brain tried to process the unidentified by gender and assumed it safe to be a boy, but he felt a vague déjà vu to that one afternoon when he was wasted to Timbuktu and back and had an unfortunate outing with a pair of he-shes, however he digressed.  He hadn’t particularly met this character in his lifetime, to be honest, it was refreshing to meet someone who had neither an immediate desire to draw fresh blood or filled with hate towards his person for past grievance (regardless if they were justified). She scrambled for an apology for interrupting, but it wasn’t as if this was a very excellent evening that was so abruptly ended by her appearance… but it might just become a better one. “Oh no, Oh no, think nothing of it!” Oz responded heartily and with open gestures, “The sheer fact that you didn’t fall from the sky with the intent of skewering me like a pig puts my heart at ease.”

 

Oz eyed the terrain forward, his expressway to freedom was about to open back to the pastures of 500 madmen. Perhaps, he thought. “Listen up, person,” Oz interrupted himself and held his hand to his face, “Unless you’re favoring leaving my company this very second, could I interrogate you for your name? I’d hate to keep calling you buddy.”

 

Oz tilted his head to continue looking towards the exit of the crevice as Valentine picked herself up to a stand. He closed his eye momentarily and made a hum sound to signify his was thinking hard, “You’re obviously here as part of the test and I feel particularly terrible wandering around these earthworm infested wastes all in my lonesome.”

 

Oz felt he said something wrong and scrambled to correct himself, “N-Not that I couldn’t have gotten an ally previously, I assure you I am quite capable if you agree. I just never had much preference to having some of these 350-lb dinosaur brained musclemen and gangsters watching over me as an ally. I’m allergic to daggers, especially when they are in my back. You feel me?” Oz’s ears twitched as the sound of stampeding crowds echoed behind him, “Final comment, I’m gonna to force you to decide on the road because in either case we should make a leaf and leave ASAP.”

 

Oz sped past and Meryl and forcefully grasped her hand, and began to drag her with him towards exiting and further away from ninjas, baddies, and bears.

[Tesability Black]

His paws made the sound of thunder as he ran near the head of the pack, his fangs still embedded into the badge he held in his muzzle as he did. One of the ninjas dared to jump in front of him with weaponry at the ready to possibly slay him. Eyes narrowed at the obstacle, the large beast growled and allowed himself to burst into flames while still maintaining its running shape before moving through and around the ninja to leave it as a flash-roasted corpse.

 

It immediately reformed afterwards back to its solid state of muscle and fur when it crossed paths with a group of bears, one of them clearly the mother bear. It roared at him to stay away, but he simply punned back the ears and jumped clean over them, up and out of the way of the claws while momentarily airborne.

 

He didn't stop running until he hit the frail bridge, pausing with his forepaws just before the first step. It didn't look like it would support his weight, and even if it managed that, there's not guarentee he wouldn't accidentally set it ablaze...

[Astolfo]

Recap…
Just as Celia was about to unleash a rather pretentiously named "Certain Kill" attack upon Malnova, a redhead girl interrupted her, knocking Celia out with a punch to the face. When the new arrival shot her a look as if her presence had saved the Nyx Sisters, Malnova snorted with contempt. With a growing feeling of anger, she realized what the girl planned to do, but couldn't manage to stop her before the pieces were incinerated. Following the girl angrily, realizing there was no other option, they walked for nearly the entire day before they arrived at some seaside cliff.

Sitting back as she observed the other members of the reluctantly-formed party attack about at the birds, Malnova noted it all down inside her head. She herself didn't partake of any of the meat, deciding that while capturing and killing them might be easy, cooking them would be not worth the effort. Her younger sister didn't partake of the food either but seemed to content herself with slaying birds by slicing them into pieces as they flew around. Getting out rations from her bag, Malnova tossed several to her younger sister before slowly making her way through one herself. When she saw the pyromaniac from before burning a bird as well as that fire beast from earlier, she clapped sarcastically.

“Fancy.”

When a powerful presence suddenly descended upon the group, both of the sisters' attentions immediately locked onto its source - a grandmotherly figure. After seeing the woman slam the fire-head into the ground with a gentle tap, their suspicions were confirmed, and then officially confirmed when the woman spoke once more. The Navigator's finally here, huh? When the Navigator mentioned the word "demon", Malnova wondered just how far the woman's powers reached. The woman continued to speak, saying that the Exam would most likely eliminate them all near immediately. If any other figure besides that particular one had said those words, Malnova would've probably dismissed it, but given her position and level of power, she actually noted it down to herself to be wary. Iom was riled up by the dismissive remark though and was about to lash out at the grandma like the pyromaniac from before had done, only to be restrained by her older sister. This was neither the time nor the place, and despite how bitter it tasted, Malnova realized they would almost certainly lose.

When they got their directions to the next place they were assigned to go, Iom leaped ahead, using her massive arms to sling herself forward, Malnova ghosting alongside her across the ground without barely a disturbance.

[divider1]

Exam Part I Continue…
Arriving at the cabin soon enough, they each received their badges which immediately disappeared into somewhere on their person. As a fuss was stirred up, they turned to see the knight girl being rejected, presumably due to the number of badges running out. Cackling, Iom pointed at her and laughed out.

"Oh dear, our lady in shining armor can't even get to the start of the Exam! What a goddamned shame!"

The two Nyx sisters got a strange unsettling feeling when they first entered the cabin, and after looking around discretely, they realized it was from a red-haired man who seemed almost coiled, like a snake poised to strike. Keeping it in mind just in case as they walked down the staircase, they met the other several hundred people trying to take the Exam. While the older sister calmly observed the path ahead of them, Iom prepared to change into a full-fighting mode if it was needed at any moment, viewing the thirteen identical ninjas. Waiting before rushing forward a moment so they wouldn't get enveloped by the massive stampede, they realized that luck had saved them, when they saw the redheaded man from before literally turn people into body parts. Thankfully, in a rather violent way, it had still cleared a path.

Iom swung a massive fist straight into the crowd, shattering bones like balsa wood. Multiple people would never wake again, but Iom really couldn't care less. After clearing a path, the two Nyx sisters sped through the crowd, Iom continuing to literally cut open a path with her now giant blade of an arm. Inevitably, a few muscle-headed idiots and a ninja made their way over to the savage duo. With a blur of motion, Malnova concentrated Nen around one of her hands which had multiple somewhat elongated and lacquer-hardened fingernails, all of which were razor-sharp. Making a flicking arc motion, blood sprayed into the air as their throats gained a new mouth a few seconds later, Malnova grabbed the ninja's short sword-like weapon and tucked it away just in case. Continuing to run along, the two sisters bashed apart or simply sliced at anyone who got in their way.

As they neared the bridge, the duo saw the fire beast from before. Neither of them had the power of flight and even with Iom's throwing and propelling abilities, the chance of making that jump would be impossible. Luckily, the damned beast hadn't stepped on said bridge quite yet, and not wanting to risk the chance, Malnova slid out the weapon she had lifted from the ninja just a while back before throwing it as hard as she can at the creature.

[Tesability Black]

Footsteps.

 

Slow. Careful. Deliberate.

 

Approaching towards him with percieved silence shattered by his Gyo-enhanced hearing.

 

His red and green ears flicked around in several directions before finally closing in on the source, allowing himself to take in a deep breath as well to capture scent also enhanced by Gyo.

 

There are two. Siblings. Possibly twins. Not ninjas.

 

A faint 'swoosh' came from the source of the sounds and scents, the forewarning enough to have the creature side step quickly to dodge the short sword that zipped past before catching it with the tip of the tentacle-like limb sourced from his back. Turning toward the pair, seeing them made him feel somewhat off about them but unsure as to why, the beast lowered the short sword in front of him with care before removing the badge from his mouth, revealing the four holes he left in it.

 

"The pack lives if the pack works as one," he barked in an attempt to reason with the pair in hopes to find a way for all of them to reach their shared goal, revealing his pack mentality in such a statement.

 

(I think this character's 'simple' way of thinking of things is starting to show in my posts for him...so I apologize ahead of times for possible short-posting.)

[Astolfo]

At the bridge…
Malnova wasn't all too entirely surprised when the large tentacle she saw was actually put to use. It wouldn't have been there for no reason, after all. Raising an eyebrow when the beast offered a truce, she looked over at her sister. She predicted Iom would be able to at least match or beat the firebeast she saw in front of her, but that would only take needless amounts of energy and perhaps risk useless injuries - something the two couldn't afford at this point. There was still a main central problem though which also happened to be the reason that Malnova attempted to strike down the creature in the first place.

“Dear creature of fire, there is but one bridge and it is a frail rope one. Given your large size and affinity for burning things, how would we work together?”

Malnova didn't mind a temporary truce so that she and her sister could get through this stupid first trial, but she needed to figure out a solution to this problem first.

The red-furred beast turned his head back towards the bridge, looking to be in thought about that problem. He had not yet figured out such an answer, unfortunately.

”That, I don’t have an answer for yet,” he yipped in admittance, a saddened look on his muzzle. ”I don’t think I can jump that far…”

At this Iom loudly facepalmed.

"You don’t even have a plan yet and you’re suggesting a truce? What is this, a joke? Stalling?"

”Avoiding waste of strength,” he immediately snapped before a thought crossed his mind. Taking a look at the bridge’s state, he figured one thing. It wouldn’t support their weight, but just maybe… ”So much metal on path, make new bridge with it?”

Iom simply looked at the Armagnis with a long-suffering look.


"You really think we could just go up and make a brand-new bridge out of the metal around here before others catch up? Sure, my sister and I will kill anyone who gets close, but it’s going to take a long time to make a whole ‘nother bridge."

”I give idea, at least,” was the creature’s only response for now. ”Something smell off, though.”

While Iom was quibbling with the fire creature, Malnova was studying the bridge. It should be enough to support at least humans, as long as they weren’t anything of a too large size. Something with fire like this creature or that girl from back then would probably ruin this bridge though, whether it be unintentional or fully intentional.

“Sorry, but guess Lady Luck doesn’t favor you very much right now. Can’t afford to dilly-dally any longer though, so good day. If you are really meant for the trials of the Hunter Exam, then you will figure out a way. I’m curious as to how far your pack attitude will get you though. Don’t cross us and you will be just fine.”

Before the strange beast of fire could, or would decide to stop them, the sister duo burst across the ground before skimming across the bridge.

[Raine]

Oz broke into hysteria. He tossed his head back and laughed a laugh fueled by disbelief and panic, “There’s no way,” he whispered to himself. Eyes wide, he gazed from the temporary refuge of wood and leaf across the excited plain to something that was, is, and will always be forever beyond his imagination. “Why,” he murmured, “How,” he echoed to himself, “is there a horse on fire?” 

 

He had no explanation, there was simply no rational he could draw upon to explain how a red horse was on fire. This was just silly, right? I mean, there’s no way that can be real. It has to be animatronic like those things at theme parks, one of the tests placed here by the examiners. ‘No’ he answered himself, ‘It’s acting as though it is trying to win, is it an examinee? Why did they let a horse apply for the exam? Can it even write? Let alone; read!’ Oz turned his head to Meryl, his newest abductee who seemed too shy to properly introduce herself continuing Oz’s misconception that his new buddy was a dude and not a dudette. He kind of wanted to throw her at the Pagan Horse God as a sacrifice to let him pass and cross the bridge without dealing with the Mexican standoff presenting itself but he dismissed it. Demi-god beasts prefer female virgins to male ones. “Psst, Christmas in July (a reference to her layered clothing, Oz admitted he was running short of good nicknames of late),” Oz motioned her to get closer and peek from the tree and see the freak of nature, “I’m not crazy, right? That’s a Blazing Saddle with killing intent, right?” 

 

Valentine gave no indication of confirmation and just leaned over to look herself. Ozymandius’s vision dropped like a ton of bricks and she lowered her body to view the creature. His sightline extended past the obscured collar from his now top-down perceptive revealing Meryl’s face fully for the first time and giving a teasing view of her feminine collarbone and hints of cleavage. Time slowed to a crawl, Oz knew, he must’ve known at some level; the déjà vu, the shyness, his willingness to relieve himself near her without it feeling ‘too’ gay. Not enough, his thoughts screamed! Then, a light flicked on in Oz’s head. Oz’s breathing intensified. His erratic behavior was not unnoticed as Meryl recoiled but it was too little too late. His body blurred into nothingness and teleported behind Meryl bearing a dark tinge that made his gaze menacing and deviant. In the end, Oz had won. 

 

Squeeze. Oz’s fingertips pressured into Meryl’s breasts over her undershirt, regaling him with sensations that could only be gifted by the most prestigious and naturally gifted of the fairer sex. Oz’s momentary bliss was abruptly ceased bloodcurdling scream that shook the foundations of the Earth and a hand of overwhelming and seemingly impossible force making its way across his jaw. His bones snap, crackled and popped as her hand in slow moment overthrew his balance. Time resumed and Ozymandius’s body flew as a projectile crash landing into the rocky planet that would be his grave. 

 

Unfortunately, his action now drew a lot of attention and he was officially f***ed. Although, he took the risk and chanced his suspicions, he was rewarded by God in his heaven. They were beyond marvelous, he was ready for death. 

 

See you, Space Pervert

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

Torben shook his head at the examinees that raced ahead of the pack so quickly. There was no telling what kind of obstacles they would face and Torben knew it would be best to keep his energy for that. As long as he kept away from the back of the group he should be fine.

He paused as he heard a loud snarl ahead.

Pulling his rifle out, Torben crouched and took aim. He could see a large mountain lion tearing into an examinee from behind. "Dammit this is why you don't rush ahead..." He could do nothing for the man but he could at least take care of this threat. A single shot brought the beast down and Torben continued.

He quickened his pace however, the shot was sure to bring attention to himself and he couldn't afford that now.

 

As he neared what seemed to be a bridge, with a strange beast near it "I've never seen such a thing...well it doesn't seem to be another obstacle...that's a badge in its mouth, an examinee?"

It seemed to be on fire, which would explain why it hasn't crossed the....

 

A scream. Torben's attention was drawn to a young boy who was being molested it seemed....by the same man who had earlier taken a girl hostage. Torben felt sickened. This man, there was something twisted about him that Torben didn't like. He couldn't help but approach the two, even after the young boy gave the man a good punch.

"Hey asshole!" Torben said to the man who was currently on the ground. He brought his sniper around and aimed it at his chest, nearly point-blank range. "I don't know what your problem is. But this is twice now I've seen you do something like this. A third time and I won't hesitate about bringing you down."

Torben tilted his head slightly towards the shocked young boy. "Yo, anyone messes with you like that again try and find me okay? The worlds a crazy place dontcha think?" He said, adopting his usual friendly tone. "Though nice punch, seriously top of the line."

 

He glared at the prone man once more before stepping back. "Hate to leave you like this but I gotta get going, that bridge doesn't look like it'll last much longer."

Torben headed for the bridge, trying to avoid the flaming dog-horse thing.

 

The bridge indeed looked like it could fall at any moment. He made sure his rifle was securely in his case before starting across.

As soon as he was half-way across it started to give out. Torben crouched down and grabbed hold of the sides as the ropes holding it up snapped behind him.

He let out a grunt as the bridge hit the side of the rock-face. Luckily the other side was more sturdy and didn't immediately break off and send Torben to his death.

However it wouldn't last long, so Torben gritted his teeth and climbed up the improvised ladder and onto the ground at the other side.

 

Kneeling and trying to get his breath back Torben glanced back at those on the other side. He felt a twinge of guilt as his eyes lingered on the young boy. "Dammit I'm too soft for this, I should've stuck around to help him out..." Looking away, Torben let out a sigh. Maybe it would be best if that one didn't pass the exam. The life a Hunter was not an easy one.

Torben had to focus on the path ahead. He wasn't nearly finished and he knew there would be more surprises ahead.

[Asriel Dreemurr]

Shortly after escaping the tunnel and getting out to where they could move, Alaster and Rexxus disappeared into the foliage alongside the path.  No sense in rushing along without knowing what was ahead of you, that sort of thing got you killed pretty damned fast.  The two kept up a decent pace, but they made sure to move as quietly as possible.  Things were going decently, but puppies will be puppies.  Essentially, Rexxus smelled something up ahead that appealed to him and bolted straight for it before Alaster could stop him.  Rolling his eyes, the young prospective hunter charged ahead in an effort to at least keep his friend in sight.

 

Fortunately, what Rexxus had smelled was not far ahead.  Unfortunately, it was the bloody carcass of a deer...with the cave bear that had killed it still chewing on it.  The sounds of a snarling dire wolf meshed with the threatening groans interspersed with roars of the bear.  Alaster, thankfully, managed to stay out of sight for right now.  He didn't want to risk being attacked, and was hoping that his friend would listen to him.

 

"Rexxus!  We do not need this right now!  Let's go, we need to complete the test.  We'll hunt later!"  This was the opening salvo in a brief telepathic argument between the wolf and the man.

 

"But it's deer, and it's fresh, and it's bloody just how I like it!"  Was Rexxus' response.  Things more or less went on like that for nearly a full minute.  Alaster tried to reason with his friend, while the wolf argued that he wanted a snack like a stubborn child.  Still, he did manage to convince his friend to back away from the bear relatively quickly.  All the same, it was wasted time.  Time that they had now lost in getting ahead of those surging out of the shack behind them.  Still, the two managed to get on the move again ahead of the rest of the main group.  The two came upon the gorge which the bridge crossed...just in time to see it break as their sniper friend from earlier got across.

 

"Hey!  I think you ought to think about losing some weight!"  He jeered, Rexxus yipping his agreement a few times as well.  In fact, both of them were so focused on the loss of the bridge that they hadn't noticed the man laying on the ground.  More accurately, the man laying on the ground which they were standing on.  Alaster has stopped with his foot squarely on Oz's left arm just below the elbow, good thing for him that the nobleman's boots were padded, and Rexxus had one paw on the unfortunate man's stomach.  Still padded, but those claws were dangerously close to his skin.  In fact neither of them noticed until after they had gone forward towards the gorge to try and come up with a new way across, with Alaster turning as he heard that familiar voice groaning while the fellow stood up.  "Well come on now, Oz!  Now's not the time to be laying down!"  Of course there was the problem of getting across the gorge still...

 

And then he saw it.  A tall, strong tree easily five foot across, possibly more, that looked to be a good bit taller than the gorge was across.  A few moments of telepathic discussion, and he and Rexxus made their way over to it.  The Dire Wolf braced himself against the tree and began pushing, while the young nobleman reached down to grasp at the roots and pull upwards on them.  To the untrained eye it might look like foolishness, but to those knowledgeable in the usage of Nen would recognize the technique.  Strangely enough, both wolf and man were empowering themselves through Ren.  Under such force, the tree gave way quickly.  Alaster's grip on the roots gave him leverage to equal his physically stronger companion's efforts, and soon enough they had created a sturdy path across the gorge.  Another few moments, and they had run across the fallen trunk and reached the other side only to once again vanish into the brush.

[Love of Ghibli]

Lettess was having fun running around the grounds all by his lonesome. It seemed as if he had heard some kind of commotion going on up ahead.. Lettess quickly made his way and saw the massive crossing.Of course he noticed the loosely hanging bridge that was about to give weigh, but then he noticed something more interesting happening on the other side. Lettess squinted as he looked closely to see a man and some animal creature fell a tree and make another bridge to cross the gorge.

Awesome. He noted out loud. Within seconds Lettess speed blitzed directly to the fallen tree and looked around. Needless to say he saw a familiar face. It was that violent OZ person that had kidnapped Anemone. Lettess simply tilted his head sideways and gave a polite smile. Get better now. He then proceeded to jump and cross the new tree bridge. Unfortunately, he wasn't the only one on this new bridge. About halfway through Lettess came across a team of three what looked to be siblings trying to carefully cross the bridge together. Lettess already had a great sense of balance thanks to his training in food honor.  Lettess was trying to figure out the best way to get around the trio but it was too late they had already noticed him.

Hey kid, aren't you too young to be taking the Hunter Exam? One of the brothers replied. Well no, but I don't think this is the best place to have that conversation. Do you? He tilted his head and tried to include a disarming smile. The assailants weren't having that though. Immediately one lunged at him and it appeared that Lettess simply walked through the gentleman. A second later all of the man's clothes were fell off his body leaving him very...exposed. The man's two brothers quickly ran to the aid of their brother and Lettess simply continued across the bridge snickering. Well that could've gone better he thought laughing as he made it to the other side of the gorge.

That little incident aside he looked down and noticed some animal tracks. Oh I know these foot prints this is Alaster and Rexxus...Hmmm they're strong and having the wolf does have hieghtend animal instincts. I think I'll follow them for a while. Lettess disappeared in the foiliage to follow Alaster and Rexxus.

[Maeriberii Haan]

"Well, there's no way I'd pass through that log at this rate."

 

Celia sighed when she reached the edge to a chasm, with a broken bridge on one side, and a fallen tree on the other side. Even if she's good with balancing herself and moving as fast as she could, the fact that she's holding a bag of eagle meat on her back, not to mention her seriously oversized backpack would pretty much screw her over on the slippery log.

 

"There's probably no other options aside from this."

 

Grabbing a rope from her backpack, she then tied one end of it to a knife, and started aiming it to another tree at the other side of the chasm. And, with a swing, she managed to score a direct hit on the tree's trunk, planting the knife to it. After tying the other end to a rock near her, she proceeds to jump forward and moving throughout the chasm with her hand holding the rope above her.

 

But then, just as she reached the middle of the chasm, a sound of rope being cut could be heard, and the next second, Celia realized that she was swinging straight into the cliffs, face first.

 

"Damn it! I should've bought a stronger rope!"

 

Just moments before she planted herself to the wall, she punched the wall before her as hard as she could. planting her palm firm on it. She proceeded to do it over and over again, creating climbing platforms by punching the rocks as hard as she could. Not long, she managed to reach the other side of the chasm safely-

 

-until a powerful force tackled her from behind, crashing her into the nearest tree.

 

"Ugh, what the hell's up with that anyway?"

 

[divider1]

 

"I'm afraid, this tree has served its purpose well."

 

On the next second, the makeshift tree bridge was consumed by an inferno, and a laughing Nova ran off into the distance, without looking at whoever might get affected by her irresponsible action.

[Tesability Black]

The crack of a tree falling caught its ears as the furred creature caught sight of a tree connecting the two sides of the chasm, causing the creature to raise an eyebrow as he noted the method in his head. He was still learning about this strange world beyond the Tenere sands, so the more information he obtained, the better chances he would have in enduring in it.

 

But before he could put two paws in front of him towards it, the one that burnt the map set the tree up into a blazing inferno.

 

Well, a refreshing run through the flames would be nice at least.

 

With the thunder in his step returning, he made toward the burning tree, running not to avoid the flames it would otherwise take the time to stop and bathe in, but to keep the increasingly-frail tree from collapsing underneath his weight as he did. As soon as he did, the beast growled at the human that tried a second time to sabotage things and went into hot pursuit after the wench, not caring that the plantlife under his feet were becoming drained of all water from the heat he produced before making an attempt to grap the girl with the whip-like arm...

 

(It has a rubbery feeling against any exposed skin and is also the coolest part of his body, so you're not likely to get any serious burns if you let Nova get grabbed. A minor burn is still possible, though.)

[Raine]

Twin flashes of pain blinded Oz as his crippled body was trampled by a hound and his irritable master from the tower. Ozymandius would have thought that having his body in such a worn state would have only been the result of fighting but so far, he was struck by a woman and marched over by the bestiality patrol. Lettuss passed by, or at least he thought so, he might have become delirious, and offered a nice word. ‘I wish philanthropy came with damned bandages’ he prayed silently to himself. He lifted himself barely to his feet, he felt worn and tattered from his recent traumas but his bones were fine, scratch that, one broken rib accounted for. He could deal with bruises and that one rib wouldn’t be a massive deterrent in the long run unless someone struck it again. ‘I f***ing hate dogs’ he whispered to himself as he spied on the pair tearing down the forest for a new bridge. Torben was finding himself welcome in the distance as well, wielding a rifle with sights obviously brought to bare on his forehead most likely. After an insult, he went on to say something about doing something again. Oz didn’t take interest, between the pain and how little he cared about a fellow contestants words at the moment, he elected that he could survive the next hour without listening to a pissed off man with a gun. 

 

The groups were moving on, Torben was the last one to cross the original bridge before it tumbled below, and Scooby and Shaggy had cross their own improvised crossing moments later followed by Lettuce Wrap who tagged along. The crowds were thinning and the ninjas were still in pursuit, he wasn’t very apt on losing especially after his beating. He dragged his body until he was able to pick up a pace and movement he was comfortable. He sped across the rocky plain between him and launched himself to mount the fallen tree as he favored his right-hand side to protect his rib. The wind was strong over the ravine; it was advised that Oz moved slowly lest he wanted to meet the same fate the first bridge would have met him with. Suddenly, the tree around his caught fire, unnaturally quickly. The wood underneath him began folding under the heat and realign itself into ash. Oz panicked and attempted to turn back but his retreat was blanketed in flame and scorching heat. A blast knocked Oz into the tree below him as a beast soared over and beyond him. “The fire horse to run through f***ing now!,” Oz screamed back to his feet with his hands blistered from burns from the burning tree. Oz suffered through and sprinted as fast as he could through the remainder of the bridge through fire, the smoke inhalation scarred his lungs as he ran. 

 

Momentary relief was filled was severe coughing as the taste of ash consumed his senses and the remainder of the airborne debris was being scrubbed from his eyes. His burnt flesh swelled and made his nerves scream with every contact. Adjacent to Ozymandius during his temporary recovery, a trio of 3 brothers who had crossed prior and had recently retrieved their clothing took notice of Oz’s emergence from the fire. They were deviant and they were angry from their embarrassment so the eldest took great interest in Oz’s vulnerable positioning, “A little too early to be relaxing, huh?” he said with a tinge of arrogance typically associated with Bond villains. 

 

Oz didn’t face to look at the brothers as he was finishing his coughing fit and found difficulty catching his breath. His eyes fixated on the ground, a shadow grew larger and closer. His mind was blank and his ashen sweat beaded off his head. The shadow stopped near and a form appeared out the shadow rising above the man’s figure. Eyes blazon with frustration, the wounded man propelled himself from the grass and swiftly drew a blade in retaliation. His hand jerked as the blade sunk oddly into the forearm of his assailant, it was not clean and was detered by the bone. His vision locked and his victim howled in pain, Ozymandius swung his body weight backwards to tear the edge of the blade free, it could feel muscle fiber tear as his sword came loose. The two brothers did not take long to react and charged with intent to kill; Oz braced, “f*** you.” The left one struck first, hammering down an odd axe vertical towards Oz’s cheek. A spark and a parry, the ax deflected and sank into earth. “f*** you,” another flash and blade drew blood across the stomach of the attacker spraying red. The last one! Surprised, a second axe came from a diagonal and was too sudden to parry as before, he moved his hand in desperation. The axe head was too far, the hilt of the ax made impact on the hand-guard of Oz’s weapon, bashing the metal into his grip. “f*** you,” Oz lunged and sank the remainder of the steel into the final of his assailants. Hands burned and sprained, Ozymandius towered with broken body over the impaled foe. The withering from the sliced brother had ceased as the blood outside his body exceeded what remained inside and his intestines expanded out of the laceration. Finally, the first brother with deformed arm was continuing his fit of agony with periodic screams and grappling his wounded arm pleading. “f*** you,” Oz grasped the ax of the wounded man’s sibling and hoisted it overhead. A downward cut, and motion stopped as the ace head cleaved into grey matter backfiring mist of crimson. 

 

Oz’s eyes glistened then widened as he recovered senses from his acts of desperation. He was speechless that he was capable of such cruelty after all, even with the excuse of fighting in absolute pain and act of survival; he never intended any of this. Oz limped off into the heavy forest adjacent, cringing at the beckoning to stop from his burns and injuries. He wasn’t through.  

[Aix]

With the destruction of the bridges, a good number of people had been left behind, and Anemone had been fortunately one of the first in the chase, at first she managed to run without interruption simply by following the red-haired man in his path of destruction, and when he managed to easily drag away from her and everyone else, Anemone simply switched to another person to follow. By easing her mental state and making herself inconspicuous, she gave no sense of threat to the others. She seemed simply part of the flow of things and melded into the group despite being a good few heads shorter than everyone else.

It wasn't altogether long before another cabin came into site in the distance, and Anemone couldn't help but pick up speed at the site of her goal. It had been a decently long run, and while Anemone did not feel particularly tired, she was terribly bored of running. They had been running around all day. However, as she picked up speed, she was no longer inconspicuous. Someone took note of her. An opportunist. In fact, all of this lead group were opportunists who managed partially out of luck to clasp the lead position in the run. Anemone did not note anything particularly special about them otherwise.

Slipping out a knife, the man suddenly lunged at Anemone from behind, thinking her an easy target. Immediately hearing the change in the steady drum of footsteps as the man made no attempt to disguise his attack (like Oz had earlier in the day), Anemone managed to turn and take advantage of his low lunge to jump up and kick off the man's shoulder. With the added momentum from the man, she managed to pull close to the front. At this point, Anemone broke out into a full sprint. This Exam simply required one to maintain a number of people behind them, and not reach the destination as fast as possible, hence no one else in the run followed her lead.

Carelessly and somewhat cheerily, Anemone came to the designated cabin, a large wooden house really, with signboard detailing that she had passed the First Phase of the Hunter Exam. I'm first! Anemone thought childishly, before swinging open the door. And at that point she suddenly shivered as a sudden flare of malicious aura filled the room before dissipating.

She remembered she wasn't first after all, as her eyes met with the red-haired man from before. He smiled and waved at her, and she promptly sat down on a bench as far away from him as possible.

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

Torben "tsk"ed at the man he spotted camping out a fair distance from the bridge. If they were going to ambush someone they should at least try and make it much less obvious. Bringing his rifle to bear he took careful aim. His first shot hit him in the right shoulder, and the immediate second his left.

Not pausing to see the result, he had at least crippled the man, Torben pushed onward. He sensed an attack just before the hit landed and Torben shifted to the side of the spear that had been aimed at his chest.

"So that other was just a decoy." Torben realized. Of course, he should have expected those who reached this far would be somewhat more clever. Though not by much.

Torben slammed the butt of his rifle into the attacker's gut, doubling them over. A swift, nen-infused, punch to the temple knocked them unconscious.

 

Moving as quickly as he could while still staying cautious Torben found himself at another cabin. "What is with these people and their cabins anyway?"

He paused, waiting for the person behind him to enter, and examined the area.

Once he was satisfied it was safe to enter he walked through the door.

And that's when he realized it was, in fact, not safe at all. Not really.

 

There were a few people who had made it before him. Though not nearly as many as he had expected.

His eyes passed each of them however as he saw the red-haired man from before. Of course he would make it. Torben was closer to him now, and the dangerous feeling was much sharper than before.

"This is probably a horrible idea...But I have to keep an eye on this one." Putting on the friendliest and most dopey smile he could muster he took a seat right nearby the guy. "Well hello, you seem lonely, my name's Torben."

[Love of Ghibli]

Well within no time Lettess had successfully lost track of the pair he was actually trying to follow this whole time. It seemed that their ability to keep themselves from being followed was better than he had thought. That or it could've been that he wasn't as good a tracker as he thought he was. Either way that was the past and now it was about time to have fun with finishing the first leg of the exam. That was his intention at least, but once again he found himself lost.

Fortunately he heard a large amount of movement between the rustling of the leaves. He climbed a nearby tree and looked out in the distance. He could see a large group of people making a run for the cabin. That must be the goal we're supposed to reach. Which means Alister and Rexxus are probably already there. Hmm, no wonder I lost them. There was no more trail to follow. Lettess proceeded to jump through the trees so he could be above the others and not be spotted. As he closed in he thought about some of his friends from the Skytower's Summit and he didn't want them to get left behind. So what would be the next best thing to actually do in this case. Knock out all the weaklings to reduce the numbers.

Lettess thrusted down from the tree and immediately hit one of the runners in the back of the neck and knocked him unconscious. At this point he caught the attention of some of the other participants. Lettess tilted his head and smiled as pulled a pair of kitchen knives out of his backpack. Yeah this is going to be quick. He said with a sincere smile. Minutes later Lettess walked through the cabin door and he looked around. He noticed that there were some people already there. Most notably the red haired man that almost killed him earlier. Lettess immediately took a step back and looked to see if there were hopefully enough people to actually fight this person if he ever got out of control.

Upon his examination of the other people he noticed that Anemone was in the cabin. He immediately looked surprised but the good kind of surprised. He immediately ran over to her and pulled her trident that he had been carrying this whole time. Hey Anemone, this is yours right? He said as he motioned handing the staff over to her. Thanks for letting me borrow it for a while...It literally saved my life earlier. His eyes narrowly glazed over to the red headed man once again. But now was not the time to think about negative thoughts he actually made it past the first stage of the exam so congratulations were in order.

[Maeriberii Haan]

Quite annoyingly, her crashing towards the tree left Ceiia in a daze for quite a while, longer than even how much should a normal human should. Realizing that she was slowly going to be endangered by the all of the examiner ninjas chasing behind the examinees, she prepared herself for a mad dash, deciding that she would need to use her running speed to close the gap between her and the other participants of the exam.

 

Strengthening her legs by shifting some of her floating nen into them, she took a deep breath-

 

she went on and run as fast as she could-

 

as fast as a speeding arrow-

 

ignoring anything standing in front of her-

 

bushes, people, trees, all didn't matter-

 

ignoring the fact that she didn't really have the stamina to do this-

 

-and not long afterwards, she reached the cabin where other contestant had been gathering there, completely drenched in sweat, almost losing her breath. Before long, she moved inside, finding a vacant place for her to rest, then immediately took a nap while leaning herself to the wall of the cabin.

[Asriel Dreemurr]

After the initial mad dash from the previous cabin, over to the gorge, and then across the impromptu bridge the rest of the journey was relatively uneventful.  Vanishing into the underbrush, and not distracted by the scents of any prey, the two made good time along the way leading to the next cabin.  They would have continued making good time, were it not for an opportunity which presented itself for a blow to be struck against those that had made an enemy of him.  None other than Ozymandis was busy making his way along the path a ways behind where wolf and nobleman lay hidden in the brush.  Seeking to remain as hidden as possible, the two of them quickly ceased the outward flow of their auras to avoid detection from those that could see such things.  The two spread apart from one another, and set an ambush as they lay in wait for Oz to make his way to where they could strike.  For his part, the wounded prospective hunter was too distracted with...something inane that Alaster could not make sense of from his words.  Too distracted to notice an ambush.

 

A trap was quickly sprung, but not Alaster's.  One of the ninjas, having made his way to the other side of the gorge to prey upon the weak and wounded that managed to cross, sprung from the brush on the opposite side of the path in an attempt to eliminate Oz.  My would have succeeded as well, were it not for a blonde young man in subdued leather armor concentrating Nen within his legs and springing from cover to engage him.  Still, this was of little trouble for the experienced fighter.  Despite the swiftness of the nobleman's attack, it left him open.  All he needed to do was grab that spear and-

 

Well, the sensation of having a large pair of jaws clamp shut around his chest was not something this particular assassin expected.  Ribs cracked, flesh was torn, and internal organs were punctured.  The shock of that, combined with the force of the two slamming into him stunned the Ninja and the three fell into a heap on the ground.  Alaster recovered first, by virtue of not having a wolf biting onto his chest, and rose to his feet with his spear readied.  A quick downward thrust through the would-be assassin's neck was all it took to finish him off.  A moment or two later, and Rexxus recovered from the attack so the two could turn to the one that should have been their rival.

 

"Consider that repayment for leaving you behind."  Those were all the words the nobleman shared with Oz, before he and Rexxus made all haste up the path towards the cabin near its end.  The rest of the trip there was as uneventful as it had been prior to encountering Oz, and in not much time the wolf and the nobleman entered the building with Alaster thrusting his spear into the air.  "Good show all!  Good show indeed!"  He laughed aloud, finding his way to a seat while his longtime companion laid down to rest near his feet.  "Ninjas, bears, and other Nen users stood in our way and the lot of us have come through the trials.  I'd say this calls for a celebration!"  Of course he didn't have much on him to celebrate with, but he was certain there was something to be found in that cabin somewhere.