At the End of the Day
The sun was lower than usual on the Rift. Until then, all the matches had taken place in broad daylight, when the sun was at its highest point. Today, however, it was different: the setting sun was casting golden rays on the trees, coloring their leaves with fire. It was the first time the Fields of Justice looked this beautiful. Over time, all the champions had gotten used to the area, familiar with every tree and rock. In the fountain where they had just been teleported, Diana took a deep breath: even the air seemed different, purer and colder. The summoners had all gone crazy about the massive changes brought to the Fields of Justice, and it was the first time champions stepped in this new Rift. Despite their insistence, the champions had been turned away when they had asked about the new features, as it was supposed to be a surprise. The only thing they were sure about was that the general structure of the Rift was the same: two nexuses and three lanes. That was it.
Next to Diana, Taric and Shen stared at the sky with twinkling eyes.
"Enjoy the match!" Taric said before walking towards the bottom lane, followed by Xayah. Shen nodded at Diana and moved to his lane. As she left the fountain, the Scorn of the Moon turned to Lamb who hadn't moved.
"Together, we shall thrive and survive," Wolf growled before she could begin her sentence. "Go now. We do not need your help."
Turning a deaf ear to his rudeness, Diana headed down the path dividing the Rift in the middle. She enjoyed her walk, since the minions took a little while before appearing. The lanes were definitely narrower, and the thick forest around was glimmering with a blue glow: the trees were covered with translucent veins in which a deep blue sap ran. From the east, the sound of an enormous waterfall reached her ears. More than fighting, she wished to explore this whole new place. Unfortunately, it remained the League of Legends, and she had to do the same thing as in every match. Her opponent was Ekko, who was already there, near the... no: there were no turrets. Diana looked around to be sure she hadn't walked past it, but there was no stone structure. Ekko looked as confused as her. One of the main landmarks on the Rift were the turrets. How could they have been removed? Diana chased away these thoughts and focused on the young man. Ekko's allies were Jinx, Thresh, Shyvana and Fiora. After a moment of waiting, Diana realized something: there were no minions either. What was that? Were they just supposed to fight? She walked closer to Ekko who gave her a weird look, not knowing what to do. The ground suddenly shook beneath their feet, destabilizing them. A deafening crack echoed, and Diana watched, astonished, a tree grow behind Ekko, its branches intertwining in a graceful way.
"What the hell is this?" Ekko asked, as he had witnessed the same thing behind Diana.
"Probably the new turrets," the latter replied before frowning her eyes: the roots of the tree had moved to reveal an opening in the trunk. Five small creatures came out. They reached Ekko's waist and were as pale as the moon itself. Walking past the boy, they acted like regular minions, fighting with those who came from the tree behind Diana. They had a pale green-brown color. At least they were back to a normal situation. Diana nodded at Ekko and carefully swung her sword at the creatures, cutting them in half. Ekko suddenly dashed at her. She blocked the hit and summoned three orbs which struck the young man in the stomach. Rolling aside, he took a step back and froze at the sight of Kindred on his right. Lamb was heavily limping, dragging her bow behind her. She walked to Diana who wondered what was happening. Lamb completely ignored Ekko who remained suspicious. There was something wrong: although she hated doing it, she tried to reach her summoner. Dead silence.
"Can you reach your summoner?" she asked Lamb.
"There is something in the woods," Wolf spat, a glimpse of fear in his eyes.
Ekko came closer, his hands in the air to show he meant no harm, concerned about Wolf's words. How could anything frighten him and Lamb? They were the incarnation of death. He called is summoner in his head, but silence was his only answer.
"I can't contact my summoner either. Kindred, what are you talking about?"
"We were wandering down the river, which is now a ferocious stream, when something attacked, as swift and precise as the wind, disappearing each time we set our eyes on its location. There is more: this forest is cursed with numerous monsters. There is nothing we can do.
"Do you have any news of Shyvana?" Diana asked Ekko. "Kindred, you should go back to the base."
"We already tried, but the recall spell is broken."
Diana held the gem that allowed the champions to get back to the fountain in her hand: the stone had lost its color and was nothing more than a black pebble. Ekko turned around and said: "look at the minions and the turret. It's like they've been disabled."
The small creatures were lying on the ground, and the tree branches had started to fall off.
"All the magic holding this place together is disappearing," Lamb said.
"What if it's part of the change?" Ekko suggested.
"I'm pretty sure losing contact with our summoners is not part of the change," Diana retorted. "Something must have gone wrong at the Institute. I believe we should find the others."
"I would not venture into the woods if I were you," Lamb said.
"We don't have a choice if we quickly want to get to the others," Ekko said. "Should we split up?"
"No," Diana said. "We'd better stay together. Who knows what's out there. Let's start with the toplane."
Ekko in the lead, they entered the forest, walking in a complete silence. The light dimmed, and they were soon surrounded by darkness. The only light came from the glowing trees. This place was of an extreme beauty, but according to Kindred, they had to remain on their guards. After a few minutes, Ekko raised a hand, stopping them. Footsteps hammering the ground were coming towards them. Diana tighten her grip on her sword, ready to strike. Lamb had drawn her bow, and Ekko's eyes were locked in the depths of the woods. A human shape appeared, sprinting in their direction. Ekko relaxed when he recognized Fiora who was running at full speed. She bumped into him and he caught her before she fell on the ground.
"Are you alright?" he asked her.
"We have to leave, now. Something's not right here."
"Where's Shen?"
Fiora's eyes widened. "I think he's dead. We fought at the beginning of the match, and I killed him, but he never came back."
"Are you sure he's not on another lane?"
"His body is still over there," said replied, pointing at the direction she came from.
"What are you running from?" Wolf barked, startling Fiora.
"I couldn't recall, nor contact my summoner, so I deiced to meet Diana, but this... thing chased me. It's everywhere... calling my name, trying to pull me somewhere."
Ekko sword out loud "Dammit, we have to warn the others."
When they finally reached the bottom lane, Xayah and Jinx were there along with Shyvana.
"Where are Thresh and Taric?" Diana asked without any form of introduction.
Xayah's look darkened and she motioned her chin to her left. "Over there. They're dead, and I mean, really dead."
"What happened?" Ekko asked.
"It's all because of her," Xayah shouted, glaring at Jinx who replied with a provocative smirk. "After we killed Thresh, we noticed something was wrong: his body would remain there, and he never came back. Taric tried to convince Jinx to stop attacking, but she shot him in the face."
"He was way too close to me," Jinx said.
"Listen," Ekko said. "It is the same for Shen. Our summoners are unreachable, the turrets and minions are down, and the recall gems won't work anymore."
"Shyvana," Wolf started.
"Have you seen anything suspicious while you were roaming in the forest?" Lamb finished.
"Yes, I did. All the creatures here have been modified and replaced, but I did not try to fight them. These things are extremely dangerous, and unlike the previous ones, they are smart."
"How do you know?" Xayah asked.
"Because I can sense it."
"So what do we do?" Jinx asked, interrupting the conversation.
"We can't stay here," Shyvana said. "Maybe we should go back to one of our fountains. They're the safest place we can go, and since the turrets are down, I'm sure we can all go together."
Ekko glanced at Diana who nodded to show her agreement. Making sure to remain on the path, they headed towards Ekko's team fountain. The young man was walking in the lead, along with Shyvana. His mind was busy with unanswered questions, the most disturbing of which was how they were going to get out of there. He shot a quick look at the Half-Dragon who was quietly walking by his side, her eyes locked on the dirt path. Although he got along with almost everybody, he had never taken time to speak with Shyvana who, as many other champions, disappeared after each match. A little behind them, Xayah, Fiora and Jinx were chatting about the possible reasons behind this situation. Jinx was exasperating them both with her crazy theories. Diana was at the back, Wolf floating between her and Lamb. Diana was staring at the woods, wondering what other nightmares were living there.
"Lamb," Wolf snarled, "I'm hungry! We haven't chased anything today."
"Do not let this feeling consume your heart, dear Wolf," Lamb said. "I feel another lonely day might await us." She was still limping from the attack, and her loss of mobility concerned her more than she could ever admit. She then laid her eyes on Diana, and although she was looking at the forest, she didn't seem to see anything, her mind lost in her burning thoughts.
"What is troubling you, child?" Lamb asked her, drawing the Scorn of the Moon back to the reality.
"I was wondering: how did you not know Shen, Thresh and Taric died? After all, they were supposed to meet you and Wolf."
"We are drawn to fading spirits about to leave this earth. We should indeed have felt those of Thresh, Shen and Taric, but it never happened. When we were by Taric and Thresh, their bodies were empty."
"But how can this be?" Diana frowned.
"It is a mystery to us. Our own nature has been rattled, as a soul cannot leave before it meets us. We are the passageway for the soul to leave to body. Yet, something is different here."
"Is there any chance another...you exists?"
Wolf furiously barked "We are Kindred, the eternal and unique hunters of lives. Nothing but us has roamed the world since its creation."
"Until now," Lamb replied. "It feels like something has the ability to suck up one's soul and keep it as a toy, a mere puppet. It sounds familiar to what Thresh does with his lantern, but there is something more. Something I cannot explain. I felt a strange sensation, something I had never felt before."
"Did it try to take your soul?"
Wolf burst out into laughter and faced Diana who kept walking, staring at his cosmic eye. "We have no soul! This is why we feast on others'. You have much to learn about us, Diana."
"So do you about me," Diana aggressively spat before speeding up.
Once in the fountain, Xayah walked to Ekko and Shyvana while Jinx sat on the ground, fiddling with her pistol. "So, now what?" the Vastaya asked. "Coming here was a great plan, but I don't know how it'll get us out of here."
"Shyvana might have a plan," Ekko said. "If we destroy the nexus, it could trigger the teleportation spell, as it always does.
"You call that a plan?"
"If you have something better, tell us ma'am." Ekko barked.
Xayah sighed. Of course she had no other plan, but she hated to admit it. "We're gonna need something strong to destroy this nexus, since there are no minions."
"Hey, Jinx!" Ekko shouted, drawing the attention of the pink-eyed girl. "We need you to blow this thing off."
Jinx jump up her feet and grabbed her beloved Fishbone. "Always ready to help with that."
Shyvana's eyes turned red, and she transformed into a dragon. While she was tearing apart the nexus' structure with her sharp claws, Jinx waited for the core to appear, whispering to her weapon "It's as good as blowing people's hearts, boy."
Xayah shot her a weird look, but kept silent. When the blue gem was revealed, they all took a step back while Jinx aimed at it. A deafening explosion along with a powerful tremor shook the champions. The ground cracked under their feet and all of a sudden the earth opened into a dark chasm where they all fell.
NA: Hey guys. It's been a while, I know. I started writing this fiction a while ago, but never had the courage to publish it because I'm not sure how long I can keep it going. I have pretty solid storyline in mind. Reviews and comments are welcome.