A New World

~17~

Kalluto's head spun, he felt dizzier than he'd ever been in his entire life. Where...am I? Something about his surroundings felt strange. His body felt lighter, and there was something strapped around his face. "Stay calm, my child. Can you breathe now?" A low voice rumbled from nearby. Kalluto's eyes slowly opened, trying to make sense of his surroundings in spite of his disorientation. "Breathe...? Yeah. I could always breathe." He mumbled, confused by the wording. As his eyes fully opened and registered his surroundings, Kalluto was met by a peculiar sight.

A humanoid mass of mist was standing over him. Behind the gaseous form, was a bar. The place was dimly lit, and he seemed to be sitting on a rather comfortable chair. "You must not remember. When you appeared here, you were gasping for air, choking on it. So on a hunch I stole this mask, and by some miracle it seems that you have the very medical condition it was made for." Medical condition? Kalluto sat up, eyes darting around. There seemed to be nobody else in the room with them. "I've never had a medical condition." He said slowly, feeling the object strapped around his face with a hand.

There was a low blue glow emanating from it, and it seemed to be shaped vaguely like a gas mask. "Well, that is very intriguing. Tell me, child. What is your name?" Kalluto raised his head, wary of this creature still. "Kalluto Zoldyck." He spoke firmly, keeping an eye on the thing's expression to gauge its reaction. The creature let out a soft grunt of acknowledgement. "Do you remember how you arrived here?" He didn't react to my last name, which means he already knew who I was. This only gave him more reason to be mistrustful.

"No."

In fact, Kalluto couldn't recall a single thing about what he'd been doing recently. It was like someone had taken a spoon and scooped out a portion of his memories, leaving nothing but an empty void. The creature appeared to nod in response. Before Kalluto could open his mouth, he sensed a presence coming down the hallway. Kalluto's eyes snapped to the doorway, and he reached for his fan only to realize it wasn't with him. Damn, I'll have to make a new one temporarily. Kalluto's own fan was specially crafted, he'd had it ever since before he'd decided to use it with his Nen ability.

He had an attachment to the object, which somewhat boosted its effectiveness. He could make a new one, but it simply wouldn't be as powerful as the original. The mass of mist shifted a little, then spoke again. "There is no need to be frightened, boy. That is Shigaraki, he is the leader of the League of Villains. And I am meant to serve him." Interesting. Kalluto watched as a man slowly swung open the door. He seemed to be human, although he was definitely dressed...interestingly. Are those hands real?

"Kurogiri, who's that brat?"

The creature, Kurogiri, let out a soft rumble. "This is Kalluto Zoldyck." Kalluto's eyes narrowed slightly, awaiting the man's reaction. He was taken aback at the next words to come out of that man's mouth. "Why'd you bring some random kid here? Throw him back out on the streets or something." They don't recognize my family name? He must be incredibly far away from home then. "I'll have you know, I'm not just some 'random brat'." Kalluto replied, in a soft but confident tone. Shigiraki scowled at him, about to open his mouth. However Kurogiri spoke first. "Oh? How do you suppose you could be useful to us?"

Kalluto weighed his options. I could leave, or I could probably get a job working for these people. They seem like the underworld type of crowd, although they don't seem very strong. "I happen to be a trained Assassin." At that, both figures were still at that revelation. Kalluto saw a look of interest spread across Shigiraki's face. "A trained assassin? At your age?" Kurogiri questioned, sounding vaguely impressed. Kalluto brushed some dust off his Kimono, nodding. "At ten years old I'd successfully joined the Phantom Troupe." Kalluto explained.

"Although, since you don't recognize my family name I doubt you know them either. Anyways, that was three years ago now." A thought struck him suddenly, as he remembered hearing a few months ago how his older brother had supposedly just vanished from the face of the earth. I wonder if Killua is somewhere around here? He'd been aching to talk to him, to ask him why he left. Why he abandoned them. Kalluto had never truly understood his motivation behind leaving, nor why he'd barely paid any attention to Kalluto as a child. I should get a bearing on my surroundings first, though. Kalluto decided, snapping out of his wishful thinking.

"Master must've brought you here for me, I asked him earlier for assistance but I didn't know it would come this soon." Shigiraki rasped, eyeing Kalluto with a pleased look. Kalluto cleared his throat, before speaking once more. "Shall we discuss payment?" Shigiraki's face contorted slightly in irritation. "What do you mean payment?" Did he seriously expect me to work for him for free? Kalluto thought, with indignation. Did this man really think his skills weren't worth even a single penny? "This isn't a charity." Kalluto said, trying to keep the dryness out of his voice. "If you aren't offering payment, I have no reason to work for you."

"Fine."

Shigiraki scratched at his neck with a grumble. Kurogiri materialized beside him, murmuring softly in a voice Kalluto just barely couldn't make out. As he waited, he found his thoughts wandering back to his earlier musings. He was thirteen now, and he hadn't seen his older brother since he was around twelve. And even then it had only been through a screen. The last time he'd actually been face to face with Killua, had been when Kalluto was nine and a half. Maybe, if he's here. Kalluto thought. I'll be able to talk to him without any distractions. Without it getting in the way.

1011 words

To Be Continued...

Kalluto is so overlooked and underrated I've been dying to add him into one of my fics for years but never found a good place for him. But here he is! He might seem slightly ooc since not much is known about him, and I've kind of put a lot of my au into his personality. But I hope you enjoy Shippers!