Prologue: And So He Was Chosen.
Special thanks to Audiodelus for being such an awesome beta reader for me! Hurray!
Disclaimer: League of Legends aren't mine.
"Ahhhh…." Grey sighed happily. Finally, he was out. It's currently the closing of Rampage 2014, an event for a game called League of Legends, one of the most popular games in the world. There are cosplayers roaming around, various booths selling their technological wares such as motherboards, video cards and whatnot, and of course the merchandise shop. Ranging from Teemo caps to Ahri hug pillows, none was spared as the beloved shop was stripped of product in an eye-bat. Luckily, he was able to get what he wanted most.
The Summoner's Robe.
It was basically a long, collared robe with a hood, lined with gold trim and a shirt-pant combination beneath. It comes in different colors: red, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet, white and black and was also fully customizable. The procedure was to choose your design and color; Demacian, Noxian, Ionian, and other patterns based on the locations in the League Lore. Afterwards, you are to buy your décor which usually came in the form of trinkets and other novelty items, such as summoner icons, champion icons, and a lot more. Then finally the confirmation, where you review your choices before making the purchase.
"Oh yeah…" He said, wearing the cloak. He bought a black Void-style robe with red trims. He then heard the sound of footsteps running towards him.
"Hm?"
Turning around, he saw two of his friends, panting with hands on their knees. He raised an eyebrow questioningly.
"You guys done?" He asked to the two. One is a girl wearing a red Noxian Robe while the other one is a boy wearing a blue Demacian Robe. The girl was carrying a replica of Darius' Axe while the boy was carrying a Katarina hug pillow.
"Bro, What the hell?" Grey exclaimed, extending his palms in the pillow's direction.
"What 'what the hell'? I buy what I want to buy!" The boy replied, chuckling slightly. Suddenly, a person cosplaying as Lux grabbed Grey's shoulder.
"Wha—"
"Come quickly!" She whispered at his ear as she ran. Dragged along, he heard the hootings of his friends. The girl dragging him was indeed eye-catching. Turning his head to look at the woman who had pulled him away out of the blue, he was surprised at how beautiful she looked. Blonde hair, blue eyes and a sincere smile made up her pale, blushing face. The faint yellow strands danced through the wind in lieu with her translucent skirt as they bounced through the crowd. Noticing her wear, both armor and staff seemed so real, as if they were made of genuine battle-ready steel. Light rotated like neutrons on an atom at the balls of illumination present at both ends of her staff. A sort of translucent coating was seen beneath her armor. The somewhat fit dark blue clothing hugged her curves, showing off her body even more.
Grey subconsciously ogled her as they made their way towards a deserted area at the backstage. It wasn't an easy task for the woman since wherever they ran, people would follow them and take pictures.
"This can't be real. A woman like THIS dragging me off? Am I in a sort of prank show? Or maybe she's a part of an international crime syndicate?!"
Seeing that her target was in a mix of panic and exhaustion, the woman was confused. Noticing that the woman was looking at him strangely, Grey collected his wits and asked her.
"Wh-what—Miss, excuse me, but who are you and why are we here?" He asked. The girl covered his mouth with her right hand and with her left hand put her index finger on her lips.
"Shh!"
She then hurriedly removed her jacket and fixed her hair. Afterwards, she picked up her staff and pointed it in the air.
"Um, excuse me?" He said, lower this time. Instantly, a blue beam shot from the sky as the girl suddenly embraced him. Just as sudden as the girl's bold action, Grey's brain shut down instantly, leaving his jaw hanging open.
And off they went, through the blue sky and into the portal.
Wait, portal?
…
Ow.
That was the single word that described what he felt the moment he regained consciousness. That, and a strong, cool gale. The gently soothing wind caressed his face as he opened his eyes.
"Where…where am I?" He thought. The floor he was lying on was cold, with various rune-like markings etched on it. There were also circular lines around him, a circle inside another circle inside another, with him at the center.
"What is this place?" He thought again as he tried to stand up. A gauntleted hand reached out to help him up. It was the hand of the girl earlier. Taking her hand, he stood up groggily and dusted off his clothes.
"Are you alright?" The girl asked, smiling.
"Um, yeah, thanks." Looking around, he saw that he was in a sort of pit, surrounded with a large stone wall. At his far left side was a large, wooden, two-doored…door, with "runes" indentical to those on the ground, but larger. In contrast to the floor, the wall had no runes, but instead it had engraved art of sorts. There was various scenes of battle, construction, and other scenes etched on it. Each scene was separated by a large stone column. On top of this column was like the head of a rook chess piece, featuring a crenellated battlement, but instead of a square base, it was circular. At the opposite of the dual doors was a column larger than the rest. There was also a very large blue crystal hanging from the roof. He pondered all this as he approached each scene on the wall, touching the sculpted stone in complete fascination.
"Wow…Wherever I am, it sure is a cool place!" He thought as he traced the events one by one.
She kept smiling as he explored on like a little child seeing a car for the first time of his life. She was amused by just looking at him. The expressions on his face as he looked, the way he keeps adjusting his glasses, the cautious yet adventurous vibe he was giving off. This denizen of another dimension is certainly interesting, she giggled.
"But, wait a minute. This is awfully similar to the pit used in the Champion Judgements in League. There are of course the things that weren't written in the lore but damn, is this even real?!"
As she giggled, Grey turned his head to look at the woman. He started getting the feeling that he is somewhere far, very far from familiar territory. But, at the moment, he did not care. The place where he is is so fascinating for him. It was like seeing the Aboriginal paintings up close for the first time. That, and the beautiful giggling woman behind him.
"Oh yeah, this girl looks an awful lot like Lux. Can it be…?"
"Um." He called lowly.
"Hm?" She smiled again.
"Erm…where are we? And who are you?" He asked. If he was really kidnapped or something like that, he was pretty sure he would be bound and gagged. And besides, this place seems more like an ancient ruin rather than a hideout, except that it isn't really a ruin. It's as if he was transported to another dimension.
Wait. Wait a minute.
Another dimension?
Oh yeah, just before I was unconscious this lady here somehow summoned a blue beam from the sky. After a few seconds of the beam hitting us and narrowing, we suddenly skyrocketed. Then I lost consciousness. Which means…
He then turned to the blonde, who kept smiling at him.
Luxanna Crownguard? The real one? No, no, that's impossible. This must be a dream. Yes, a dream. Too much Le—
Suddenly, the runes on the floor glowed blue, as well as the carvings on the walls. The room lit up as the ceiling crystal shone in fiery blue. Atop the stone columns were some sort of orb, one in each column, with a hooded figure behind it, holding the orb.
This…this is…
Real.
"Welcome to the Institute of War, young one." A low voice echoed from the northern column. The figure appeared to have a more sophisticated and longer robe, implying that he is a superior. The orb he was holding was also larger and seemed to burn, though he wasn't scalded.
I'm not dreaming, am I?
"Thank you for your effort Luxanna. In return, your permission for a week of free time has been approved. Congratulations." A man said from atop the gold-and-blue column. Is this Demacia?
"Yay! Thank you very much sir!" She almost jumped in happiness. So this is really Lux. The red-and-black column shone as the person atop commented.
She IS Lux. Still can't believe all this.
"You look like a lost puppy. Grow some backbone, boy!" Noxus, definitely Noxus.
"We are sorry for his rude behavior, mister. May we have your name?" A mature feminine voice echoed from the green-and-marble-grey column. Ionia?
"Um, it's Grey. Grey de Rivera." He replied nervously.
"There is no need to fear us, Grey." A voice came from a purple-and-white column. I'm not sure but…Piltover?
"Anyways." The voice from the middle column coughed to get our attention.
"Do you know why you are brought here, Mister?" He asked.
"Um, no sir."
"Do you want to?" An enigmatic voice, this time from a completely violet column. Most likely Void.
"Of course he does, Kassadin." The middle one replied.
"You see, when Kassadin here was walking around the Void, he stumbled onto your world and found it fascinating." The man showed by conjuring something similar to a hologram, showing Kassadin walking around the strange Void and stumbling onto a portal, which showed a glimpse of our world.
"Then we figured it would be beneficial to both parties if we made contact. After all, we have magic and you have technology. Our hextech cannot measure up to your advanced engineers." The Piltover lady continued.
"However, we were worried that your people might make an aggressive decision against us." The Demacian explained.
"Which is why you were brought here, whelp. To see how you measure up to our expectations." Noxians…
"We are not making threats here, mister. We just want to see how a person from your world will act around ours. I understand that you have no problems with this, mister de Rivera?" The Ionian asked. The other columns were mostly silent, with only the aforementioned participating actively. Wait, if Kassadin is on the Void column, then…
"No, I am the only champion on this column. I do not trust Malzahar enough to represent Void, and Vel'koz even more so." He explained.
"Moving on from that, you, mister, are to become a Summoner in the League. We would have put you in as a champion but…it seems that you don't have anything special or extraordinary feats." The Demacian continued.
"You will stay in the Academy for a week to learn magic. Let me ask you a question, mister. Do you know the summoner spells?" The Ionian asked.
"Let's see…Flash, Revive, Clarity, Exhaust, Smite, Ghost, Heal, Teleport, Garrison, Ignite and Clairvoyance. There's also the extinct Rally and Fortify. Both Promote and Surge are put in items; Banner of Command and Guinsoo's Rageblade respectively. Am I correct?" Grey replied.
"Hmm…It seems that you know the basics in the summoner spells. I will assume that you know of the Summoner's Code, the basics of the Institute, and all this?" She asked. He's not sure if the woman dodged the question or not, but she never questioned how Grey knew all this despite being here for the first time. The Noxian seemed to ask but the Ionian stopped her.
"Yes, ma'am."
"Very good. A week it is, then." One by one, each column lost it's light as the people atop them started leaving one by one, until it is only Grey, Lux, and the person on the middle column.
"Lux."
"Yes?" She asked jovially.
"Escort this man to the Summoner's Academy, and tell them it's the special case."
"Yes sir!" With that, she gestured for her to follow me outside the door as the light of the central column faded.
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