Chapter 62: The Flying Star Bubble
The situation was so bizarre that most of the passengers were still in denial.
The Phantom Troupe? Here? It was like seeing Bigfoot on the subway. No one believed it.
If anything, the screaming, skeleton-faced man threatening to bomb the ship seemed like the real villain. The Phantom Troupe members just looked like... well, weirdos. But not monsters.
Ruiwan's life force was rapidly transforming into hundreds of invisible Nen bombs, but to the average passenger, he was just a crazy old man ranting about revenge.
And truthfully, the real danger in their minds was still the unsolved murder of Ojiesky in the nearby suite.
"Stop!" Several security guards, though confused, knew they couldn't just let these suspicious characters leave. They drew their batons and tasers, rushing toward Chrollo's group. "Please cooperate with the—"
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Without any visible movement from Chrollo or Machi, the guards collapsed, unconscious before they hit the floor.
The crowd froze. Then, panic erupted.
Oh god. They're real.
"Is it really the Phantom Troupe?!"
"Who cares?! Run!"
"Get back to your rooms!"
People scrambled over each other, fleeing in terror. Sleepy passengers poked their heads out of cabins, only to be trampled by the stampede.
"Wait, what's happening?!"
But not everyone ran. A few burly men, seeing the guards go down without a fight, stepped forward, trying to be heroes. "Hold it right there—"
Wham! Wham! Wham!
They were sent flying backward as if hit by a wrecking ball, crashing into the fleeing crowd.
The screams intensified. The flight attendants cowered behind the counter, frantically dialing emergency numbers on shaking phones.
"You... you..." Ruiwan stared, his eyes bulging. Even he seemed stunned by their casual violence.
Machi glanced back at him, a cruel smile playing on her lips. "You're planning to blow up the whole ship and kill everyone anyway. Why do you care what we do to them?"
"Phantom... Troupe..." Ruiwan's face flushed with a manic, feverish heat. His life force was draining faster now, fueling more and more bombs. He gritted his teeth. "It's useless! You have nowhere to run! We're over the ocean! You're coming to hell with me!"
The Troupe ignored him. They walked calmly through the chaos, heading straight for the panoramic windows of the observation lounge.
CRASH!
Chrollo punched through the reinforced glass.
Instantly, a howling gale roared into the lounge as the cabin depressurized, sucking loose papers and debris out into the void.
The passengers screamed even louder. What are they doing?! Are they suicidal?!
Ruiwan stared, dumbfounded. They weren't wearing parachutes. Jumping from this height was certain death.
But as he watched, Kortopi climbed out of the broken window. With impossible strength, he clung to the exterior hull of the airship, the wind whipping his hair wildly. He reached out his right hand, touching nothing but empty air.
Then, a miracle happened.
A massive, metallic shape materialized next to the airship.
It was... another airship.
An exact, perfect copy of the one they were on, floating silently alongside them.
[Hatsu Analysis: 'Gallery Fake' (Divine Left Hand, Demonic Right Hand)]
[Type: Conjuration]
[Kortopi can create a perfect copy of any non-living object he touches with his left hand by visualizing it with his right. Copies last for 24 hours.]
"By the way," Machi asked, stepping onto the window ledge, the wind tearing at her clothes. "Do either of you know how to fly an airship?"
"Should be simple enough," Chrollo said calmly. "We'll figure it out."
"Hey... you..." Ruiwan watched in disbelief. His face was burning red, blood trickling from his mouth as his body began to fail. They're escaping!
Kai, amidst the chaos, had quietly moved to a window near the Troupe.
He extended a finger, using Shu to coat his nail in a razor-sharp layer of Aura. He pressed it against the glass.
He glanced over his shoulder. Pariston was watching him.
And he was smiling.
Smile at this, you freak! We're all gonna die!
{Shizuku,} Kai projected his thought, {make some noise. A big distraction.}
Ruiwan was at his breaking point. He had to decide. Detonate now? Kill everyone?
He only wanted the Troupe dead. But if he waited, they'd be gone.
His heart was pounding, his life flickering like a candle in a hurricane. Please... tell me this is a bluff...
"BOOM!!"
Suddenly, a massive crash echoed through the lounge. Shizuku had summoned Blinky and slammed it into the floor with enough force to crack the deck plates.
At that exact moment, Kai's finger completed a small, perfect circle on the window glass. He flicked the cut piece out into the clouds.
Whoosh! A jet of air hissed through the hole.
Kai bit his lip, drawing blood. He enveloped a drop of blood in a bubble of Aura and pushed it through the hole.
The bubble, carried by his Manipulation, flew outside, hugging the hull of the ship, curving toward the Troupe. Kai immediately slapped his hand over the hole, sealing the leak.
The passengers jumped at Shizuku's noise. Where did that vacuum come from?!
Shizuku ignored them and looked straight at Pariston. "Don't worry," she said, her voice flat. "You are actually very annoying."
Pariston blinked, then laughed. He looked from her to Chrollo, holding up three fingers. "Is that so? Well, how about this? Your ability has conditions. One: You must witness the Hatsu in action. That's why you visited the crime scene. Two: You must ask questions about the ability and have them answered by the user. That's why you approached me. And three: All of this must happen within a certain time limit..."
Crack! Crack!
Chrollo and Machi shattered more windows, climbing out into the gale. They stood poised to jump to the copy-ship.
"I'm from Meteor City!" Shizuku suddenly shouted over the wind, raising her hand. "District Five!"
Machi paused, one foot already off the ledge. She looked back. "A compatriot?"
"Is that so? Goodbye, then." Chrollo didn't hesitate. With his free hand, he produced a dagger from nowhere and threw it.
It flew straight and true, burying itself in Ruiwan's throat.
"Let's go," Chrollo said.
"Okay," Kortopi muffled.
But just as he turned to jump... he saw it.
A small, glistening bubble, floating against the wind, coming from his blind spot.
Inside the bubble... was a tiny, crimson pentagram made of blood.
It drifted closer... and popped gently against his forehead.
Squelch.
Ruiwan gagged, blood gushing from his throat, his eyes bulging. He collapsed, dying.
Snap.
The bubble burst. The blood-star pressed against Kortopi's skin.
Instantly, a Rose-Gold Star Marker flashed into existence on his forehead.
Whoosh!
Machi leaped across the gap, landing gracefully on the deck of the copy-ship. She looked back up.
And saw the impossible.
Kortopi... kicked Chrollo.
Hard.
Right in the chest.
"Chrollo!" Machi screamed. Her Aura exploded into threads, shooting out to catch her leader as he plummeted toward the ocean. She glared up at the small figure on the hull. "Kortopi! What are you doing?!"
Kortopi didn't answer. He didn't even look at them. He turned around and crawled back into the original airship through the broken window.
"Too bad," Pariston said, pointing behind Kai. "Looks like you were too late. He's gone."
Ruiwan hit the floor. His eyes glazed over. The last spark of life left his body.
And as he died... the hundreds of Nen orbs floating throughout the ship began to glow with a blinding, white light.
Kortopi, under Kai's control, grabbed Pariston with his left hand. He raised his right hand toward the empty air.
Kai leaped, grabbing Shizuku's hand. Both of them flared their Ken to its absolute limit.
Pop-pop-pop-pop-pop...
Pariston's eyes widened in genuine surprise.
Instantly, the lounge was filled. Not with people.
With Pariston Hills.
Hundreds of them. Copies.
Kortopi was spamming his ability, filling every cubic inch of empty space with solid, physical copies of the blond Zodiac, creating a massive, fleshy shield of fake bodies.
Buried beneath a mountain of Paristons, Ruiwan's heart stopped. A wisp of Death Aura flew into Kai's chest.
...
KA-BOOM!!!
The airship detonated.
A massive fireball blossomed in the sky, shredding the vessel. The shockwave slammed into the copy-ship, sending it spinning away into the clouds.
(End of Chapter)