Act 1

Do you dare to dream?

Our story begins in the deep depths of Runeterra, in a small town hidden from the rest if the world by the name of Bandle City. This isn't just any town however; it's the place where yordles are born and raised. Fuzzy little creatures with their heads too big for their bodies, and their ears like those of elves, they live their lives to spread their happiness and joy to others. Many even venture outside the city to meet face to face with the astonishing lands that lay around them. And if they're lucky, you'll hear chatter about the tales of their greatness.

"Teemo, the fearless assassin. Such a daring and respectable title!"

"Poppy, the wielder of the magic hammer. A role model for little yordle girls everywhere!"

But then, every once in a long while, you'll get a stray; a different kind of yordle. Somebody who hears the name of a hero and scoffs. Somebody… Evil. This was the embodiment of Veigar. Born exceptionally short, even for yordles, Veigar was this "stray." Except he wasn't evil; well, not yet anyway. He wasn't interested in any of these titles or inspirations. He only wished to follow his own path. He wanted to be an explorer.

You'd never hear of a yordle explorer, and that's what made Veigar so unreasonably different to the other yordles. And so he was alone. Alone in studies, and alone in play. But Veigar was okay with being on his own. Not even the insults or hurtful remarks got to him. He was his own person inside and out. If some other measly yordle could be famous for one thing, why couldn't he be famous for another? So in place of friends, he had books; history books to be more specific. Tales of famous explorers, leaders, and sorcerers danced around his mind every time he picked up a book..

"Emperor Azir! General Swain! Garen the great!"

Now these, these were real names. To Veigar, these were the guys who deserved their fame. Not the lame yordles who did nothing but get jobs that any other human could do. That's Selling yourself short. Quite literally at that. And the little yordle knew that he was destined for more. He knew that he would become one of the names in that very book. Veigar would go down as the greatest yordle explorer, no, the greatest explorer in history!

There were many places in which Veigar enjoyed his books. Rooftops of buildings, high branches of trees, or pretty much anywhere quiet and peaceful. On a warm evening however. the yordle was feeling especially cozy, and sat down in a forest. He was planning to settle in a nearby alleyway, but passing by this forest, it seemed almost as though it was drawing him in; awaiting his entrance. So he looked upon it, and gave in to the soothing aura that the trees embodied. He didn't go too deep, as it would only strengthen his trance as he went along. So Veigar plopped down onto the grass, feeling each bristle ticking against him. As he picked up his book to read though, a faint noise was heard in the distance. It was an almost cliche rustle in a bush, to signal that an enemy was nearby. However, he ignored it so that there would be no need for a pause in the book he was so engrossed in. And so the rustling only grew louder, but Veigar only grew more ignorant of his surroundings. It was like a legendary face off between the two. And well, Veigar won.

From out of the bushes appeared a little yordle girl. Seeing her out of the corner of his eye, Veigar caught a quick glimpse of this annoying girl to his near left. The decision was regret instantly. Not only did she notice his quick flick of the eyes, but he happened to notice hers to. They were crazy eyes; that much wasn't hard to justify. He could just get a single look at her and tell that she was an annoying one. And when she started skipping over to him, Veigar legitimately started to think that his life was in danger. With all these thoughts going through his head, there was no way he would get back into his book for the moment at least.

"Hi!"

Veigar's face grew grim.

"What do you want?"

"My name's Lulu! What's yours?"

Her voice was girly and high pitched. Even higher pitched than Teemo, the yordle that Veigar despised the most. Everybody seemed to just love him for no reason other than he was cute and fluffy. But they didn't know what Veigar knew. They didn't know that the he would do away with anyone and anything with the snap of his finger, no matter who it was. Even his closest friend. Veigar knew that much. His mind was suddenly stuck in the abyss for a moment, thinking about that wicked demon child. It took the girl's obnoxious voice to snap him out of it.

"You have weird fur."

"Weird.. What? And why is that?"

"Well I don't think I've ever seen a yordle with black fur before."

She then looked up in thought, as if flipping through her memories like pages to see if she could find anything on black fur.

"Nope, never."

"And why should I care?"

"Because I think it's cute!"

Veigar blushed. The situation started becoming a textbook teen romance novel, and the thought gave the little yordle boy a very grim, dead face.

"Would you like to play?"

"Nope."

"Bzzzt, Wrong answer. We're going to go play hopscotch!"

"Who's we?"

"You and I of course! Hey, what's your name anyway?"

"It's Veigar…"

Seeing as it was a lost cause, he gave in to the yordle girl Lulu's attempt to ask him to play with her. She was probably just bored or lost. It didn't seem uncommon for a girl like her.

So Veigar finally decided to look towards Lulu, and get a good glance of what she looked like. A thin layer of shallow purple fur was laid across her face, which was more uncommon color for female yordles. Usually they were more blueish. Her eyes were a deep natural green with rings chasing each other around her iris. They were almost covered by the large hat that she wore, that was clearly meant for a much bigger head. Even then it would be considered large. The plain silk gown she was wearing was a whitish color, with a faint tint of purple, while her hair was a vibrant shade of violet. It was so long that it seemed to drag across the ground. It didn't seem like she was planning on washing it any time soon though. Veigar went ahead and decided that he would stay with her for now, and maybe try and find a chance to escape her sight later.

"None shall escape my playtime Veigar! Not even you, hehehehe."

"I'm sorry, what?"

"I could hear your thoughts just then! Crazy, right?"

"You're kidding.."

Veigar placed his fingers on the roof of his nose as if trying to rub away his pathetic curiosity of this girl. The two young yordles spent the day playing hopscotch by the playground that housed all of Veigar's peers. Murmurs in the distance echoed the words, "Hey, it's crazy and shortie," and, "they're perfect for each other,"along with other cheap insults. It was to Veigar's surprise that Lulu only smiled at the scoffs of others. He always had to shut them out or take the insults in and let them beat around at his insides until they were used up. Lulu though, she didn't seem to care.

They ended the day at a nearby river. The two yordles were lying down in the grass looking up at the starry night. The sky was silent, and left the two yordle children to stargaze in peace.

"Hey Veigar, didn't you have so much fun today?"

"I would much rather have been reading.." He almost tripped over his own words. "But, I guess... it was just a little bit fun."

Talking turned to mumbling as Veigar tried to hide the defeat in his voice.

"When people make fun of you, how do you… Cope with it?"

Veigar's sudden question seemed to have been pulled from thin air, even though it's actually been the one thing he's been waiting to ask all day. His voice had dropped the superior act somewhere nearby, and couldn't seem to find it again.

"Well they try to make me sad because they don't like me. But I sure like me a lot! So it doesn't really matter what others say."

Lulu's tone didn't change one bit, unlike Veigar. She was just as excited and happy as ever. The little yordle boy had a lot to learn, and Lulu had taught him this.

"Could we… do this again sometime?"

"Sure!" Lulu's face lit up somehow even more than it already was. "Does that make us friends?"

The word 'friends' triggered a little alarm inside of Veigar's head, alerting him of a stage 5 catastrophe.

"Friends?! I have no friends! You're my… companion. Yes, my companion!"

"Okay, sounds fun!"

"No! That's not supposed to be- ugh, nevermind."

"Yay! Lets meet here tomorrow then?"

"Fine."

For the first time, things actually started to seem like they were taking a positive turn for him. It may have just been his excitement, but he even crossed the thought that she could be his first real friend. And when he left Bandle City to travel all of Runeterra, what if she came became something of a travel buddy? However, this stream of thoughts had been quickly dammed up, for Veigar knew that becoming friends with her would weaken himself as a person. And he couldn't become great if he was weak. Weak and small, like everybody thought he was.

Act 2

A Tale of Two Yordles

Since that day, the bond between Lulu and Veigar had become ever so strong. As crazy as Lulu was, and as much of an outsider Veigar was, it sort of made them perfect companions, in a sense. They were two misfits, and that was what brought them together. Though Lulu wasn't exactly one who particularly enjoyed reading, or could really read well for that matter, she would take interests in the atlas' and history books that Veigar always seemed to have on him. She thought it was interesting how there was so much beyond their little bubble that was Bandle City. Although, she couldn't really leave so easily, to Veigar's disappointment. He talked with her about his dream of leaving the city and travel the world. He was sure that he was destined for greater things. Lulu wasn't quite as fond if the idea herself however. She liked the way things were in her life. She lived in the forest with the animals, and just suddenly leaving like that felt… Wrong. The forest spoke to her; it called to her. So she supported Veigar from the outside, and though he wouldn't quite ever understand her fondness and attachment to the forest, he respected her wishes, and put his dream aside to be with her.

And so they played. They frolicked about the town wearing the most genuine of smiles, playing pranks in the adult yordles, learning neat things about the city, and even had fun with some of the younger children. Life seemed to be at its peak. This was what happiness was like. This was as good as it got. However, through all this, neither Lulu nor Veigar realized that things around them were changing; and so were they. As the two friends aged, they neglected maturity and continued to do childish things. And the older they got, the more it seemed strange to others. When it finally hit them, it was too late. A parent saw her luring some of the children, including hers, being lured into the forest by Lulu. They grew suspicious of the intentions of the nearly adult yordle, and barely believed what they saw when witnessing her turning the younger ones into little animals! When word got out to other parents, they were highly furious. Their children were banned from talking with Lulu, interacting with her, or even being around her. Once she was notified this in the most harsh of manners, Lulu was heartbroken.

She met with Veigar the day after, but red flags soon arose when he couldn't seem to locate her usual smile, but instead only a sullen, teary eyed face.

"Lulu, what's wrong? Did you get hurt?"

Veigar had never really seen her sad, let alone heartbroken.

"Veigar, I'm going to be gone a while. I don't know when I'll be back, but I think I need to start thinking about being less of a child. Maybe… maybe you should too."

The sudden words hit him like boulders. This, this wasn't the happy-go-lucky careless girl that he talked to every day. No, this girl was truly saddened. She was depressed almost. And what was this about growing up; about becoming more mature? Did she really mean this? Did Veigar really need to change? He liked who he was now. In fact, he loved who he was.

Lulu quickly realized that her words upset her black furred friend. She quickly moved in for a hug, and Veigar didn't protest. They both needed it. However, that wasn't all. She gave him a light peck on the lips. Why she did it, she wasn't sure. But it seemed like it was the right thing to do. They separated from each other soon after, and it got kind of silent after that.

"See you around, Veigar."

They didn't make eye contact, but instead Lulu quickly turned around and headed into the forest, a place she would not soon return from. It was not long before her silhouette was gone from Veigar's sight. He was left not knowing what to feel. Flipping through his emotions, none really fit the occasion. A lot just happened. But the one thing he knew for sure is that he wanted to see Lulu again. He didn't fully believe that she was leaving. So he waited for her. Every morning, he would wait by the entrance to the forest, right where they parted for the last time. He usually sat by a tree and pulled out a book. Reading was never the same though; it seemed like being with a friend was a lot more fun, but he still passed the time. And he continued waiting. On weekend, he would camp out. In weekdays, he would be there all day. Veigar didn't even notice that he was starting to get skinny. As he waited day by day, Lulu was waiting on the other side, watching him. Sometimes for hours on end. She wanted to talk to him so bad, but she felt like she was holding him back. Didn't Veigar say he was destined to travel? With her by his side, he would never achieve that dream. He would be stuck in their own childish world. And one day, she saw something that made her cry of both relief and sorrow. She cried because Veigar wasn't there. He didn't come that morning, for the first time in months. And with that, she disappeared deep into the forest. A place so distant from the rest of the world, it was thought by many to never exist to begin with. Somewhere where the laws of physics didn't apply. Somewhere called The Glade.

After those first few months, Veigar gave up on his desire to see Lulu again. She had never left his mind however, and he often had dreams about her returning, but he could never wake up without severe disappointment and tears in his eyes. He was starting to recover though, little by little. He remembered his dream of traveling, and as old as he'd grown, Veigar thought that it was time to act on it. So he joined a band of traders who set their sights across all of Valoran. They brought many goods to and from many places such as Ionia, Demacia, Noxus, and even occasionally in Bandle City. The stops were short however, so there wasn't enough time to go back and check for Lulu. After years had passed, he wondered if she even remembered him.

It was in this particular month that a slightly shady group of people offered money to transport large bags deep into Noxus. It was highly unprofessional, but given the amount of money they offered, it was impossible to turn the offer down. The only condition was that they could never look at the containments of the luggage. Among other things was supposedly cursed artifacts that could cause serious issues if looked at fdirectly. So they traveled to Noxus, and brought the artifacts with them. Upon entry, they were being inspected by officers to prevent drugs or illegal trade from being passed through. While checking through bags, one man noticed a foul smell coming from a few of the bags. Upon further inspection, there were no valuable objects or dangerous artifacts. There were only corpses. Degraded and defiled, the luggage was full of them. It only took one quick glance for all inhabitants of the caravan to be quickly knocked out and brought to a court. Everything seemed like it was going down hill, but alas, they were proven innocent. Well, all except Veigar. In a last second attempt to escape life in Noxian prison, a rumored endless nightmare, the blame fell onto Veigar, their most recently befriended member.

Act 3

The Rivers of Revenge Run Deep

And so he was sentenced to life in prison. And not just any prison; it was the Noxian Institution for Dangerous Criminals. A maximum security hellhole, where each cell was specially designed to torture the prisoner. Rumor told that every waking moment of your life in the prison, you'd rather be skinned alive. And it only took Veigar a few days to realize why. For his cell, it was easy to make his life hell. Just take away the one thing a yordle needed to survive. Social interaction. For any normal person, this would be traumatizing, but for a yordle, it was a fate worse than death. The little furry creatures required at least a minimum amount of socializing to keep living, and the consequences of removing this from your daily life would be dire. And so his prison life started. The cell Veigar stayed in was just a small room about 5 times his size, which would drive any claustrophobic to insanity within minutes. There were no windows, no bed, no toilet, and no lights. Occasionally a door would open every few days and Veigar would see the face of a prison guard scoff at him, followed by some mush thrown in to keep him alive. Other than that it was darkness, 24 hours a day. It didn't take long for this method of torture to start taking effect. In fact, it was highly effective. The cold, hard concrete was no friend to sleep, there was always a pile of his own feces in the corner that with the help of his body odor, caused a foul smell to always be lurking in the cell. It was constantly too hot, and Veigar was always sweating too much. He got real skinny and his mental state was always falling deeper into an endless abyss. The only thing that kept him alive was the hope of one day returning to Lulu and making everything right again. He didn't care about traveling anymore. He didn't care about caravans or companions. He only wanted his happy little yordle friend. But through all of this, she only slowed down the process of losing his mentality. But he never forgot her. He wouldn't let himself forget her.

One day, Veigar's cell opened. The light that he had not seen in so long had been shown to him again. And he hissed at it. He almost didn't know what it was. The intense light sizzled at his skin. It was a lantern held by a guard. He had a wide smirk on his face.

"You have a visitor"

"I.. Me.. Visitor…Visit.."

Words could not form in Veigar's mind, and even if they could, he couldn't speak them. His throat was dry like it was full of sand, and he hadn't spoken in so long that he almost forgot how. There was no smile on his face, and no expression either. He was emotionless; the little yordle could not speak his mind, nor even think for himself anymore. His black fur was sticking out on some parts, and flattened on other areas. His eyes were souless; empty. He could barely move, even when the guards kicked him forward. There were some harsh punishments in the NIDC, but word got out about some yordle who landed in there for false charges, and many agreed that his punishment was among the worse ones there. He was barely even functioning anymore. And his visitor? This was a being who pitied Veigar. He despised all yordles, with their disgustingly friendly behavior, and foul cuteness. Veigar was a special case to him though. He could mold this little yordle into whatever he wanted. And well, if he didn't, Noxus would likely make something even worse out of him. So his appearance wasn't exactly a bad thing for Veigar. At least he thought so. This devilish creature went by a common name of Tahm Kench.

Veigar was pushed into the direction of the visitor's room, but then stopped. A guard grabbed hold of some of the overgrown fur on the top of his head, and used it to lift him normal yordle would be in tears, but Veigar barely felt it. He barely felt anything.

"Now listen up you little bastard. This guy, whatever he is, paid heaps of money to come and see you. Be polite, and I might just give you an extra meal this week. And if you aren't?"

The man slammed his fist into the side of Veigar's head, sending him flying a few feet forward and sliding across the concrete. He stood up on his own, and gave a half-baked nod.

Tahm stood at the doorway, as his client was taking a bit long for his entry. Upon witnessing this, he waddled over to the Noxian and slapped him across the face with his rough, oversized hand.

"How dare you treat this here gentleman with such crude behavior. Don't you believe he's been through quite enough, given the circumstances? Get this poor yordle a soothin' shower and a nice meal, and I might just decide not to get you fired boy!"

"O-of course!"

The soldier, still recovering from the hand to his face, quickly rushed Veigar to a prison shower and used up most of the warm water and soap cleaning him. He was almost trembling, and he certainly left that high and mighty act back in Tahm's possession. The creature could be genuinely scary when need be. He was the river king, afterall. After a good long wash, veigar was dried off and taken back to Tahm in top notch condition.

"Ahh, that's more like it. Thank you boy. Now if you'll excuse me, I'd like a moment alone with my client."

Tahm's voice was polite, yet demanding, expressing his continued expressing his displacement with the guard's previous actions.

"Now now. I've been wanting to talk to you for a while now. Mister Veigar, I do say you've had quite the rough time in here, haven't you?"

Veigar gave a slight nod with his focus aimed at the floor, as if his head were too heavy to lift more than an inch.

"And for that I pity you. Now, I don't suppose you realize that your stay in this prison has caused quite the stir outside of these walls. In fact, you've received quite the punishment for doing absolutely nothin'. It's a pity that a good young yordle mind has gone to waste."

Tahm licked his lips at the thought of seared yordle meat. They were a fine delicacy, even though only a small snack.

"Now, I'm going to be honest with you son. I don't take kindly to most yordles. However, you're a special case. I've watched your struggles from afar. When I saw your dream of being an explorer crushed to bits after it only began to take flight, I truly felt that I needed to help. Now…" He leaned in close. "I'm prepared to get you out of here; to give you a new start. How does that sound?"

"I have… no money.."

Veigar's voice held a heavy croak, and it sounded as if he was only hanging on the final threads of his life.

"and no desires… either."

"You may not have realized it yet, but I think that through all this, you've developed quite the taste my friend. An appetite, you might say."

Tahm looked down at Veigar to see where he stood on Tahm's proposal. However, the little furball didn't seem like he was too interested. In fact, he didn't seem wound into the real world much at all. Tahm sighed.

"Look boy, just follow me. I'd like to show you somethin' that I think might give you a better idea of what I'm talking about."

He maneuvered through the thin hallways and staircases until they reached an open area with lots of prison cells, all quite unique. Guards stood at the entrances of each, all expressionless looks on their faces. They looked the same, and yet, Veigar remembered each and every face here. They were the only thing he didn't see other than pitch darkness. He wondered how long it had even been since those days where he traveled across Valoran with his band of friends… or so he thought they were.

"I reckon you remember at least some of these people, don't you, or do they all just blend together now?"

"I do.."

"And are any of them friendly faces?"

Friendly faces. The word friendly.. That word struck Veigar's mind like a spear to his chest. There was only one friendly person he knew. Though, she wasn't comparable to the people here. A deep anger sparked within Veigar's heart. Remembering the cell that he had suffered inside of through day after day, the thin slit that opened in the wall to shove food through. The eyes he saw, the laughter, and worst of all, when they spat on him, before shutting out the light. That was Veigar's time in this prison.

"Each and every one of them has spat in my face.. at least ten times."

And Tahm smiled; not towards Veigar's words, but straight at his face. For the slits in his eyes that had previously caught no light, now gleamed with a deep fire. His hunger had awakened.

"Now that you've seemed to wake up, it'd be my pleasure to give you a good meal."

And with the snap of his fat, rugged fingers, A loud buzzing noise invaded the open area briefly. What followed was the sharp screech of hundreds of cells simultaneously shifting open.

"This, is your hunger boy, and a quite admirable one at that. Revenge."

Prisoners, like rabid dogs, pounced onto the guards and started mauling them. Blood splattering left and right, screeches flooding the room; this was how the horrid situation unfolded.

But Veigar wasn't scared, or helpless, or even slightly ticked off. He actually seemed to… enjoy the show. These people who had treated him so terribly, being rightfully punished for his actions, it was almost like a dream. His face came alive with excitement, like a child on his birthday.

"How's it taste?"

"This feeling…"

Veigar let out a little laugh. Not a satisfied one however, but more of a worried laugh. The kind you get when you're just starting to feel yourself disappearing. The kind you engage in to make sure you're still there. Veigar was scared it may be his last. However, Tahm knew that it wasn't. It was his first.

"Hehe.. I'm- I'm going insane, aren't I?"

"Well, I'd be a liar if I said you weren't"

"I guess it makes me a little more like her, doesn't it?"

"Now that's a funny way of putting it, but sure. I reckon it does."

"Hehe.. Hehe… Mehehe.. MEHEHEHEHEH!"

His laugh echoed throughout the library of prison cells. The vibrations alone caused glass to crack and shackles to rustle. And that was the end, of the beginning.