Disclaimer: I do not own League of Legends in any way, shape, or form.

I've wanted to write a League of Legends story for a while, and finally have gotten around to it! I'm super excited because there is just so much character and plot possibilities to work with in League of Legends! So, fellow Summoners, I present to you 'Team Ezreal: The Legends Rising!'

Although they do do battle on the Summoner's Rift that you're familiar with, there are a few differences because in this story it isn't just a computer game. I'll dedicate an entire chapter to list some key points after the prologue so that you don't get confused as to why certain things are able to happen the way they are. But for now, enjoy the prologue!


Prologue

The Institute of War, a system set up in ancient times by a group of magus to keep order in the world…

Long ago, in the world of Runeterra, a series of wars broke out between the countless city-states that resided within the supercontinent of Valoran. Being the sole supercontinent within Runeterra, whether due to the conquering of any other continents or through land formation, the warring city-states were forced to confront each other directly in bloody battles. However, the wars that took place in Valoran were no ordinary wars; they were full of magic.

With such deadly powers being exploited in the use of warfare, Runeterra began being affected in unprecedented ways. Magical disasters appeared throughout the world, earthquakes shook Valoran, the skies roared, full of storms with an authority of their own. The scale of the war appropriately gave it the name of the Rune War.

The many disturbances throughout Runeterra lead to many discoveries and creations throughout the world; magical discoveries and creations. Creatures never before seen awoke in the midst of the war, and the once civilized Valoran became the stage of a bloody and chaotic free for all. Raw amounts of magic were used during the war with no thought of consequence; victory and survival were the only things the city-states were concerned with. Ironically, the more magic that was used to survive, the more the world began to face demolition. The geography of the world was in complete turmoil, and thus, the war catapulted into scales so large that they are measured as a completely new war; the second Rune War.

By the time the second Rune War came around, the city-states of Valoran had lost all sense of justice, and bloodlust became the drive for war behind military leaders. It was clear that the only remaining sense of unity that binded the city-states of Valoran now was war and hatred...but the magus that advocated for peace during this time used this to their advantage. If war united the world, then war was the only route left.

This mindset gave birth to the Institute of War, an organization that used war to create peace. The magus of the institute founded the League of Legends, a massive battle system where representatives of the respective city-states, known as Champions, gathered to do battle in controlled, tournament style brawls. They combatted over political matters in arenas known as the Fields of Justice, where victory was decided by the destruction of the enemy nexus, a massive structure built of pure mana by the magus who ran the League of Legends. In this way, the destruction of the Rune Wars began to calm down, and Valoran could focus on rebuilding itself to the best of their ability, and although hostilities between the city-states continued to burn with a passion, these tensions could be settled in an observed environment.

The League of Legends was a large success, and more and more champions were inaugurated as city-states attempted to gain more representatives, and it got to the point where a city-state's strength was measured by the strength of their Champions. In this way, the League of Legends became the diamond of Valoran, with countless species dreaming to become Champions. Over time, the need for the League to settle political disorder faded into a need to prove not just the power of one's city-state, but the power of one's individual self, and the Champions who prided themselves upon the Fields of Justice became widely popular throughout the world.

The League of Legends showed just how far peace had come in Valoran, as teams made up of Champions from different city-states began to be formed. It became a sport for Champions to participate in and for others to watch and hope to one day participate in. It was simple enough: Fight to destroy your opponent's nexus. Furthermore, death was controlled in the Fields of Justice by the magus who watched over the League from the Institute of War. If you were killed while on the Fields of Justice, what was killed was really an embodiment of your soul, and the Champion's physical body would be respawned after a period of time. It was in this way that the League of Legends became known as the greatest discovery in Valoran.

However, the Rune Wars, although mostly just a bad memory in the present, had too many lasting effects to be written off as a catastrophe of the past. The scale of the wars had taken its permanent toll on Runeterra. There was no such thing as true peace in a world that was pretending that it wasn't as shaken as it was. Yes, pretending was all the residents of Runeterra could do. Pretend all is well; and look for the signs of a rising threat.


Footsteps sounded in a cave, the sound echoing and bouncing off all the walls. The figure stopped for a moment before continuing onwards in a much more quiet manner. They didn't have a very large build, but they were a man without a doubt. They had a pair of goggles on, allowing them to see traces of heat within the dark. Their breathing was slow, methodical, careful. Inching forward painfully slowly, the figure finally stopped in front of the wall of the cave, pushing the goggles onto the top of their head. Their face was shadowed as they grabbed a map out of their pockets.

"Can't believe I'm using a map…" The figure mumbled while pressing one hand against the stone wall while the other hand held the map. Their hand pressed around a bit before a purple energy emanated from the wall to their hand, and then-

"Ouch!" The figure fell backwards onto their butt, waving their hand in the air in pain. The wall was steaming, and a small, certain spot on the wall was still emitting an eerie purple energy.

"It...shocked me…" He muttered under his breath, standing again to observe the energy. "What...is it?" He flipped the goggles back over his eyes and immediately took a few steps back.

"I've never seen anything like this before...and I've seen everything this world has to offer!" He became aware that he was raising his voice too loud, as it bounced all around the cavern, and he suddenly felt very small. His attention focused back on the strange material in the cave's wall. After standing there looking at it for a while, he turned around, facing towards a light that must've been the entrance to the cave, ready to leave.

"I'll flag this area and come back another time." He began walking away from it. Had he stayed a little longer, he would've seen, would've heard a pulse from within that purple circle of 'energy' within the wall. A pulse; just like a heartbeat.


They may pretend. They will pretend, and will distract themselves with the sport that is The League of Legends. But most of all, they will pray hopelessly, uselessly, that their fragile peace can be withheld by the champions of this world.

A world that needs to die will not be saved.

Will not be spared.


As you can probably tell, this story is not just, 'Oh let's try and be the number 1 team in League of Legends!' There is a LOT more plot and conflict involved because there is just SO MUCH STORY POTENTIAL in League of Legends! So there is a LOT more going on than just battling on Summoner's Rift. A LOT more. So stay tuned! ^^

Good Luck and Have Fun on the Rift, fellow Summoners!