The longest journey Chapter 1, a league of legends fanfic

Hello fellow reader! i've been a fan of league of legends since pretty much the end of season two and as much as i like the MOBA format of the game itself what has actually made me stick to it so hard is the lore behind it all (even if Riot is kind of ambiguous with it) and in this story i'd like to explore the world in the best way posible along with the champions of the game.

The sand shifted as two metallic boots tried to make their way up the colossal dune leaving behind a trail of footsteps that lost themselves in the horizon, the wearer of the boots a tall figure shrouded in a dark tattered cloak struggled with each step under the relentless run. The Traveler let out a sigh of frustration mixed with tiredness when he finally reached the top of the dune, he'd hoped to find a settlement or signs of life other than his but all he saw was sand, he fully scanned the horizon to no avail all while the infinite dessert seemed to glow brighter under the cloudless high noon sun.

The figure stood atop of the dune pondering on what his next move should be when a sudden breeze sent sand towards the traveler's hooded face, he instinctively tried to block it with an armored hand only for it to grace a hard and smooth surface where his face was suppose to be.

"A mask? Why am I wearing a mask?"

That was just another question for the pile along with: ¿why was he in this desert? ¿why was he wearing armor? And… who was he? All of them were questions he had no answer to. All he could remember was waking up in the in the night in the middle of the infinite desert with no recollection whatsoever of himself, he knew he was a human he knew he was male and young but there was nothing else, no exact age no name he couldn't even picture his own face. He shook his masked head, he had to put his worries aside from now and focus on the matter at hand if he didn't find a way out of the desert amnesia would be the last of his problems.

The masked traveler slid down the massive dune he had to move on even if he really didn't know where to head he had to at least try after all dying in the desert would never give him the answer to his questions. His trek through the deep sand was uneventful until a strong current of wind forced him to look up from the ground to find the horizon had drastically changed now it seemed as if an impossibly large wall was moving towards his location.

"No, not a wall…. it's a storm"

The Traveler stood his ground as best as he could when the front of the sandstorm hit him, the force of the wind and sand was so great it almost knocked him off his feet. The cloudless sky was swallowed by the moving sand along with everything around him, each step he took required an even greater effort as the wind tried to constantly force him back sure he could just go along with the wind but that would only send him back to the part of the desert he'd come from, he had to press on.

Normally sand traveling at such high speeds would have torn any exposed flesh off a man's limbs but he didn't need to worry about that, all the sand bounced off the plate armor he wore beneath the tattered cloak, luckily the thing wasn't very heavy the many metal plates it was composed of were thin and light but placed in a way they would cover most of his body and limbs even the breast plate which was the largest piece barely weighted him down, he would have said it was a fancy work of armor but the rusty and withered state it was in didn't help his opinion, he might not know where the armor of him came from but he was thankful he had it now.

Time passed and the sand storm didn't seem to be dying down but as hard as the wind was the traveler actually preferred its breeze to the scorching heat of the sun, it gave him enough strength to keep him on his feet. The sand kept bouncing off the mask as he looked forward, if he hadn't felt it he would have never guessed he had thing on as it didn't obstruct his vision in anyway something quite handy for his current situation as he would have never been able to see where he was going otherwise. The wind picked up even more speed as he went on slowing his advance to a crawl and making his cloak flap violently in the wind, that's when he heard a loud *SNAP* and felt as if a previously unnoticed weight was thrown into wind.

He looked behind himself only to see a long and thin looking object fly off his back and ram itself in the sand, the wind had snapped something off his back. He slowly headed back to inspect the object which seemed to struggle against the wind too, like a flag post on a windy day. His armored hand grasped the end of the object before the storm could take hold of it once again. A sword, the object was a blade that had been strapped to his back! At first sight it seemed like it was quite the master piece just like the armor, for what he could see it had many ornaments that decorated the hilt some even going up snaking across the blade decorating it with dark outlines and a crystal adorned the hilt and separated it from the blade, it must have been beautiful in its prime but now rust covered most of its withered surface and many of the fine ornaments broken or bent and the crystal had blackened by the elements. He traced the edge of the blade with the withered leather of his gauntlets; it was as dull as it looked the tip barely able to pierce through the leather of his hands.

"Useless" he muttered as the thought of discarding the sword crossed his mind.

"But then again…" he played with sword a little slicing through the strong air currents, the feeling of its weight in his hand gave him a sense of strength and familiarity… he couldn't discard it.

He held on to the sword with his left hand as he kept his hood on with his right as he braved the storm, the feeling of the weapons weight gave him more confidence of his journey even if he didn't know here he was really going or what he was supposed to do.

Finally the storm died down and the sand in the air began to settle back into the desert once again until it seemed as if the huge storm had never actually happened, the Traveler looked up at the sky it was already getting dark more than half of the sun had already settled in the horizon and there was still no sign of civilization.

"Tough luck, I need to find a place to rest for the night at least. Tomorrow I'll continue my journey hopefully I'll find other people… otherwise…" he didn't want to think of that possibility, he had no food or water at hand and his throat already felt as dry as the sand itself, he wouldn't last much longer in this place "supplies must haven't been my specialty I guess… whoever I was"

He was going to settle at the base of a dune when he noticed something odd in the distance a large form seemed to break the even horizon of sand way in the distance. He couldn't see what it actually was but if he could see it from so far away it had to be incredibly big. He hesitated to move, his body pleading him to rest as his skin ached due to the sun and his muscles throbbed painfully it was a long shot but he had nothing to lose as far he was concerned.

His body waddled tiredly through the sand as he made his way towards the thing in the horizon he couldn't quite see what it was yet but he could now be certain that it actually existed as it became more defined and colossal as time passed, night had finally settled and the air had become as cool as the blue light of the full moon that now illuminated the desert.

The traveler's eyes squinted behind the mask, trying to make out what the formation was until the image finally became discernible, it was a large rocky column or mountain of sorts that rose out of the sands and towards the sky. His hopes came crashing down inside him, he had hoped it was a city or a settlement at least a place where there were more people.

"At least it the only thing besides sand I've seen all day" he kept walking towards the rock formation even if it was uninhabited it was a good shelter for him to spend the night in.

The traveler suddenly stopped in his tracks having caught a glimpse of something atop of the pillar, he used his hands to focus his vision on the top of the rocky formation until he saw it again a light! A faint red and orangey hue seemed to radiate from the top of the mountain!

His slow advance turned into a jog as his body refilled with new found energy which only grew as the light atop of the rocky pillar became brighter. Fire, he was almost certain that was the source of the light.

"…And where there is fire there is people, there HAS to be"

Too focused on his objective the traveler never noticed the moving lump of sand that had been stalking him for a while now, it was as if something was swimming beneath the sand rippling its surface and creating an artificial dune that moved a few meters behind the traveler as it followed his footsteps, becoming higher and higher as the creature beneath became more aware of the movements of its prey.

The traveler ears picked the sound of shifting sands to his right and his gaze turned right to the source of the sound giving him barely enough time to avoid the wall of sand that was rushing towards him. He jumped as far as his tired feet could carry him and dove face first into the sand feeling as his feet barely graced the attacking dune, he quickly stood up adrenaline rushing thought his body because of the sudden attack. He saw as the artificial dune head various meters away until its march halted, he could not see what lay below the sand but he felt a deep sense of dread.

"I may have amnesia but I'm sure that dunes don't do that on their own"

He grabbed the handle of the old sword with both hands and pointed it at the thing hoping the threat would scare it away whatever it was, there was along moment of silence in which the traveler felt ridiculous for pointing a dull blade to a dune. He was about to lower his guard when the sand started to fall off the dune as it rose higher revealing what truly laid beneath to the now panicking traveler.

A fin like appendage covered in a thick purple chitine armor made itself visible, energy seemed to pulse though its dark violet hide and suddenly it charged at him, the traveler didn't hesitate and used the rush of adrenaline to power his feet through the sand as fast as he could making a mad dash for the base of the colossal rock column which laid ahead. He was covering large amounts of ground by the second but the 'thing' for a lack of a better word seemed to be gaining on him no matter what.

Just a few meters away from his objective the traveler saw an opportunity, the ground around the pillar formation seemed to be made of rock if he could get there the thing would surely be unable to follow him beyond the sand. Air rushed in and out of his lungs as he pressed his aching legs to go faster than what he thought possible, from the side of his vision he could see the thing occasionally catching up to him and beginning to approach him from his left it was about to touch him forcing him to run even more out of desperation until his feet finally hit the rocky platform which surrounded his objective.

"Safe…" he though as he looked at where he thought the creature had stopped, only to find the thing still rushing thought the sand.

"WHAT THE HELL IS IT DOING!? ITS GONNA CRASH"

But just as the appendage was a few meters away from the rocky base it submerge into the sands completely seemingly disappearing, but the traveler's respite was not long lived as the sand at the edge of the rocky base suddenly exploded as the creature beneath dove out like a sea monster jumping out of the water.

"FUCK" that was all that crossed the traveler's mind as he resumed his mad sprint, he reached the base of the pillar which seemed to be made of gigantic boulders which surrounded the large rock column. Without a second though he began to climb the boulders as fast as he could, the higher he was the safer he'd be from the beast.

*RHAAAAAAGHIII*

The unworldly roar pierced through the traveler, he didn't want to look back he knew he shouldn't but he still did. Monstrous was the only word that could describe the thing, bigger than a house the monster stood probably eight meters tall its bulk eclipsing the moon behind it, the chimerical creature seemed to be a mix of animal and insect resembling the former the most as large plates of chitine armor covered its enormous body and arms. The Traveler could see large claws at the end of each of its three fingers strong enough to rip even a building apart, the monsters legs were almost like a centipede six relatively small insect like legs three on each side stood along its elongated abdomen which ended in a large armored tail but the worst part was its face if you could call it that, a split lowered jaw filled with razor sharp fangs that dripped with death topped by an eyeless chitine covered head made the thing seemed as if it was looking at nowhere and everywhere at the same time.

"HELP!"

The words rushed out from the traveler's mouth, it was a scream of pure and instinctive fear that resonated through the entire night air as the traveler kept trying to climb towards the top of the pillar but the boulders were out sizing him too much and even if he made it to the pillar there was no visible way for him to climb to the plateau. He looked back at the creature and his body froze it had already crawled to the base of the boulders and was now trying to reach him, one of its gigantic arms swooped just past him as it attempted to grab him.

"Is this it? Dying like an amnesiac…" he whispered to himself just as the creatures arm rose in front of him, it was going to smash him carve his corpse into the rock.

The arm slammed down with all the force the creature could muster sending rubble up into the air and cracking the boulders into pieces but not before its prey dove out of the way missing the fatal blow by milliseconds but the force of the impact was too high and his body was hurled into the air as if hit by a blast wave.

He landed on his side and skittered though the rocky ground a few meters his cloak tearing and ripping but his body was protected from the friction by the plated armor.

*RHAAAAAAGHIIIGHHH*

The monstrosity let out another piercing scream, this one tainted with frustration and rage her prey had played her around too much and now she was going to give it a gruesome death… when it could pinpoint its location again.

He began to stand up, the adrenaline in his body covering up most of the tiredness and pain.

"There is no way I can escape this thing! It's hopeless" the though resonated in the traveler's head, he had no mastery with the sword so fighting was out of the question on top of that his only weapon was not even apt or cutting bread! The creature was going to get him and kill him, he looked up at the mesa atop of the pillar it was his only hope and it was so painfully close yet so far, it's then he saw them they were too high above to distinguish them correctly but they had to be people there were people at the top of the rock column! many of them holding what seemed to be torches the Traveler could even hear shouts and voices coming from atop.

He grasped his sword which he had held on to for dear life and stood battle ready, if he was going to go down he would do so with a struggle not shaming himself in front of these people.

The blind beast sniffed the air pinpointing the scent of her prey but there was something else…. it smelled fire and more food, but they were too far unlike her little prize at the moment, her head snapped into the direction her prey stood in and she rushed towards it.

For its massiveness the monster moved too fast, two cyclopean arms crashed just where the he had been standing a few seconds ago cracking the rock and making the whole ground shake but he had to control himself fear would only get him killed now, the traveler raised his sword and brought it down on of the creatures arm the first strike bounced off the chitine making his body tremble but he quickly recovered his composure and attempted a second strike but with the same results, by this time the beast had become aware of his futile attacks and it used its massive arm to sweep the ground where he was standing, the attack was unavoidable and even as he tried to defend himself with his sword the strike sent him flying into one of the boulders at the base of the pillar.

"Don't sleep don't sleep!" repeated the traveler to himself, his armor had taken a lot of the blow but not enough he felt as if his insides had been punched individually and put back inside him he didn't have the strength to get up any more or so he thought when he looked up and saw something that gave him enough will power to move again, the monstrosity's arms crashed where he had been sprawled on and his body was again sent skittering through the ground.

He groaned and huffed as he stood up once again but he was halted when his head bumped into something he looked up and realized just where he had ended up in. His eyes widened in surprise beneath the mask, he was just below the beast… it massive fame shrouded the sky from his view.

"This is it… this is my chance to kill this thing!..." he then remembered how his sword just bounced off the creature's body and felt rage and despair "no, I can't do this, it'll just anger it even more" his shoulders slumped all he could do was hope the thing would not find him or at least give him a quick death.

*RHEEEEEEIIIIIIHHH*

The creature's shrieks filled the night air once again, but he could sense these were different these were screams of pain.

*clunk*

An object hit the floor right beside him and rolled under the beast over to him he picked the thing up "a torch? How did it…"

*clunk*

More torches began to fall from the sky accompanied by a hail of arrows, the people up there they were helping him! The monster let out another shriek of toward her attackers.

"This is my chance!" inspired by the people's attack the traveler grasped his sword with both hands, the things armor wasn't perfect it was impartial it exposed some of its hide to allow mobility almost like his own armor, he just had to find one of those spots and preferably In a vital spot that was his only chance "there!" in the creature's belly a thick line ran across the plates that covered it, he wasted no time and using his whole body for impulse he jabbed the blade into the opening.

"¿what if the blade is too dull? ¿what if it just bounces off?" thoughts of failure filled his head for a split second.

"Then I'll just need more strength" he answered himself.

The blade struck the creature's hide and almost a meter of the metallic blade tore its way into the monster's insides until his hilt hit the monsters flesh, blood began to spray from the wound and stain his hands and robes in a dark purple.

"For a creature this big I will need more than that!" he brought the blade out a little and using it for leverage he began to carve his way up the creature's flesh in-between the chitine plates tearing and widening the wound making more blood spray out along with the foul moist stench from the creature's insides.

The monster finally reacted it howled in pain and swung one of its arms at its attacker, the traveler was still holding on to the sword when the massive fist hit him. Everything went in slow motion as he saw the fist connect with his right side, he felt the force of the impact travel his body and heard the snapping of bones inside him as he was then sent flying various meters away from the creature, he fell on his back the blade still clutched by his left arm.

His vision turned blurry and red as the pain began to grow inside his body, he mustered the strength to raise himself using the sword as leverage, but the pain became overwhelming and he fell to his knees, the monster roared at him and threatened to haul its self towards him but as it took a step towards him it too staggered and fell. He only got a glimpse of the wound he had inflicted but it was enough to tell him he had managed to wound it badly, when he had been swatted away by the creature he had held on to the sword and that had cause the blade to tear out violently from the inside of the monster, widening the gash that he had made in what he thought as the behemoths 'abdomen'

The thing clutched its wound and let out a clicking sound along a low roar before turning away and diving back into the sand leaving a trail of purple blood as it did, he was victorious! He had seized the opportunity that luck had given him and he had defeated the monster… but at what price? The grip on his sword began to loosen itself as he took a glimpse of himself, his right arm had been turned into a pulpy mess and felt his rib bones displaced from the force of the attack… he was in a much worse state than the creature.

He fell backwards as his last strength gave away, his vision had begun to blur and darken because of the internal damage to his body and exhaustion. The last thing he saw before blissful unconsciousness took him was a platform of something descending from the mesa towards him.

He wished he would dream of something even if it was a nightmare but at least something to tell him from his past life but all that came to him where incoherent images of him in the desert, just memories of his journey that presented themselves in dream like fashion until a certain sequence caught his attention: he was looking at himself, tall cloaked and donning that rusted old armor but he was hoodless allowing him to see the mask on covering his face.

It was simple but gave off an unnerving sense of dread, the mask was smooth and flat for the most part except for two small holes positioned over the eyes which gave it a sense of hallowedness, the other remarkable features on the mask was a large carving that occupied most of the thing's surface, it began as a line from the middle top and passed in-between the 'eyes' seemingly splitting it in two before it split into three upside down V's which spread evenly over the where the mouth was supposed to be, The traveler did not recognize the symbol so it made the thing more ominous than it already was. Various small carvings were etched into the mask's surface but they had almost been wiped with the ages, he tried touching the mask but just as he was about to the world around him blacked out and he felt himself falling into an abyss.

He gasped as his eyes snapped open feeling the vertigo of the dream coursing through his just awakened body, he stayed laying wherever he was for a few minutes until he felt his body calming down again. He looked up and almost let out another gasp when he saw the mask looking down at him as it hung on the wall his bed was closest to ominously looking at him with its small and dark eye sockets.

"Looks just like in the dream"

He raised himself and looked around the room he was in. It was all empty save for the cot he was sleeping on and a bowl filled with water and a poorly made wooden door from which all the light in the room came in from. He pushed his feet off the cot only to find the floor was made of dirt but this didn't surprise him, what actually surprised him was to see his actual feet and not the metal boots of the armor, pale white feet with long bony fingers…actually his whole legs looked very thin and malnourished.

The nameless traveler stood up and took off the white robe which covered his body and screamed at the sight of his own body: pale, hollow and malnourished everywhere his arms thorax and feet. He looked more like a corpse than a man barely any muscle could be seen beneath the skin that tightly clung to his bones… he didn't like, it not at all.

He quickly reached for the bowl of water and brought it up to his face level, as the water surface cleared his features became more defined, short brown hair accompanied by thick eyebrows and deep eyes of the same color along with a well-defined nose composed his young face but his skin like the rest of his body was unnaturally pale and gaunt. He then noticed a final thing, his right arm it was whole! What's more HE was whole!… his right arm was untouched last time he'd seen it had been crippled into a bloody pulp and now his entire body seemed as if nothing had happened.

"Healed… but how? And by who?"

He was too concentrated to hear the door opening only realizing someone was in the doorway when they dropped a wooden tray on the floor and ran off giving off feminine shrieks, the traveler looked at himself …yeah he would have probably done the same if he saw a tall naked man hunched over a bowl of water.

He gulped down most of the water put on the white robes once again and headed for the door, he was momentarily blinded by the sun which shone brightly in the sky but his vison became adjusted to the light and he could finally see where he was, the ground was made of rocks and soft brown dirt and seemed to be spread around in various directions before ending in a cliff, the traveler paid closer attention to this detail.

"No way…" he mused when he saw the infinite desert far below at the bottom of the cliff, he was actually atop of the rocky pillar! The pillar he had seen the other night! The sight was just breath taking seeing desert and sky spread in all directions from the top of the mesa was something mesmerizing and new to him.

His sightseeing was interrupted by the sound of voices in the distance, a few meters away from the hut he had woken up in rose a village of white buildings with curved walls and roofs. The traveler took one last glance at the desert below and headed towards the village. It wasn't a big place by any means, made from about fifteen or so houses which were arranged in a cross shaped fashion all the building made of the same thick clay walls that were painted in white, it was a pretty looking place but it was small too small. He arrived at the center of the village the cross section of the only two streets where a large and well adorned well sat painted white like the other houses but also decorated with carvings of animals and crops.

"Probably the only water source in miles"

His walk finally came to an end when he realized people were actually looking at him, men and women in robes of various colors and decoration began to leave their houses and surrounded him as they whispered to themselves in a language he could not comprehend.

He hadn't really thought this through, these people didn't seem to speak his language… whatever it was he spoke, and so far his first impression hadn't been the most appropriate. He waited a few seconds until the murmurs died down a little and he could actually make himself be heard.

"EHEM!" everybody went silent as he loudly cleared in throat to gain their attention, he then raise a hand and waved at them slowly

"Ehm… hello! im sorry for the inconvenience I've caused you, I was lost in the desert when I found your village I know you must have many questions for me but trust me I have many more"

There was silence, the traveler scanned the crowd for any visible response but there was none "well this is awkward" he realized he was the only young man in the large crowd of people that had gathered around, the ages here varied from thirty to eighty or something only a few kids made up the populace.

He was going to give it another shot when a booming voice spoke from within the crowd in the strange language and seconds later an old man made his way out of the crowd, the man was completely bald except for a the long and thin white beard that almost reached the ground his toasted skin full of wrinkles and two green eyes that showed great vitality.

The man grabbed the traveler's hands with his own and spoke.

"Welcome young man, welcome. We do not find you visit an inconvenience no no no, it's actually the other way around" the man's words were all comprehensible although he spoke with some with difficulty trying to hold back his strange accent and to pronounce the words correctly it was clear this wasn't his native language but none the less the traveler was shocked and happy to find there was someone he could communicate with.

"Come come as relieved as we are that you've woken up we have many questions to ask you" the traveler did not protest as the old man guided him to one of the buildings in the village and away from the dispersing crowd of people.

"My home is your home" said the old man as he motioned him to enter on of the large clay houses, to the traveler's delight the interior was cool and damp compared to the outside heat unlike the hut this place actually looked alive, a small clay chimney sat at the corner of the room which was littered with various cushions and pillows that scattered atop a great rug which bore many designs and symbols and covered most of the floor.

The old man passed him an old cushion and motioned him to sit down as he struggled to lower his elderly body, the traveler sat down and watched as the man grabbed a kettle that sat on the rustic stove and poured a green liquid into two clay cups.

"Here have a drink, this will invigorate you"

"uhm… I'm ok thank you" said the traveler as he waved the offer away.

"heheh I insist" said the old man "it's not poison if that's what you are thinking it's just politeness"

The traveler caved in and took the warm cup, he swirled the liquid around for a bit before taking a long sip and downing the whole thing in one go.

*Ahhh* the traveler let out a sight of refreshment, as the minty and bittersweet flavor of the drink settled in him.

"What is this beverage?" asked the traveler his voice filled with genuine curiosity.

"It's a mixed herb tea, brought straight from the Kumungu jungle or at least that's what I was told I just bought it from a caravan"

"Kumungu jungle…" said the traveler out loud, there was a location he didn't recognize probably something he should get used to until he could remember something if he ever did.

"So tell me… what is your name?" asked the old man as he served themselves more of the bittersweet drink.

The traveler's head quickly rose in surprise, there it was the question he had asked himself since he had recollection of, what was his name? He had tried to remember but nothing came to his mind something he did not like, being a man without a name was not a good feeling it was just shameful.

"I… I don't have one, or I did but… it's not there" the old man raised an eyebrow at him, skepticism written in his entire face he would need to explain himself better.

"It's as strange as it sounds, if I had a name in the past I can't recall it now…actually I can't recall anything I just…. I just know that I woke up in a desert"

"No recollection? You mean no memories?… and wandering so far into the Sai, you should explain yourself a little better"

The traveler nodded, it was a crazy story he didn't hate the old man for not believing him he barely did himself.

"The first thing I remember is finding myself walking through the desert wearing an armor I did not recognize and wielding that dull blade, from then I just walked aimlessly through endless dunes until I finally got here and then…" images of the fight with the creature rushed through his head.

"…and then you were attacked" finished the old man for him "and by a Xer'sai of all creatures"

The traveler simply nodded even though he didn't know what a xer'sai was, except for a hulking mass of teeth and rage.

The old man stroke his beard, pondering at the situation presented to him.

"You know I was tasked to question you by my people…" began the old man "They wanted to know who you were where you hailed from and most importantly… if you were a threat to us and if we should expel you from our home…" fear filled the traveler at the words of the old man he was being analyzed and so far his story wasn't very convincing, if they forced him back into the desert he might not be as lucky as he had been last time.

"But!" the old man's voice dragged the traveler out from his worried thoughts "If you really don't know remember anything then all my questions would be meaningless as you could not answer any of them… by me you can stay as long as you don't threaten us"

The traveler let out a sigh of relief feeling as worries partially dissipated.

"Thank you, thank you so much I know my story isn't credible in the least and I wish I could prove it to you somehow but there is nothing I can do"

The old man nodded as he handed him a cup of the warm tea "I know I know, that's why I won't ask" they both drank silently.

"Hey, I don't know my name but can I have yours at least?"

"Oh where are my manners" said the old man "Of course you can! My name is Abraham Karim but most people here just call me Karim, a pleasure to meet you… oh"

The traveler dismissed the last part and kept asking.

"Well you see, I know this is probably asking for a lot but could you tell me who am i?"

"My My, I don't think I can answer such an existential question" replied the old man jokingly.

The traveler chuckled too but pressed on.

"Not in that sense, I know that I have no name but tell me what kind of man do I seem to be?"

"ahh I see" the old man shifted his body and got closer to him, analyzing him from head to toe "well by your face and body I'd say you are at least twenty years old maybe even more but…" the old man grabbed one of his bony arms "look at this boy how can you be so skinny!? What kind of eating habits did you have?! You look like a corpse! But… beyond that you look like a good man"

The answer pleased the young man, he didn't know what kind of person he'd seem to others but hearing him being called a 'good man' was the best possible outcome he had imagined.

"You truly don't know anything eh?" said the old man as he served them the last of the tea that remained in the kettle "not even about the world?"

"Like I said nothing rings a bell, not even that Kumungu jungle was it?"

Karim stroke his beard thoughtfully once more, if this man knew nothing of the world he could be the one to tell him about Valoran it would be almost like when he'd tell stories to his children back in the day "ramble like people of my age"

"Say… wouldn't you like me to fill you in about the world?"

Interest and surprise sparked in the traveler's brown eyes.

"YES!...ehm I mean of course"

The Karim grinned at the travel's excitement, it was just like his children when they him to tell them stories. He passed the young man a second cushion.

"You better make yourself comfortable there is a lot to tell"

Karim spoke for several hours explaining everything in the most detailed way he could as most old men liked to do and the traveler listened to everything with his full attention trying to take in all the important things the man could tell him about this world that seemed so new and alien to him. Karim spoke of his land Shurima the country they were currently in, he explained how most of it was ruled by the relentless desert sands and cities and settlements were scattered through the region with some people even resorting to nomadic life, he himself had once been a traveling merchant but he had settled in the town once he got married.

"But if the desert is so cruel to your people why do you stay here? Why no find other places?"

"Shurima wasn't always like this we… we were great once a true empire whose cities rose up in the sand conquered the desert or so say the tales, I think we stay because we feel we can rebuild Shurima to be great once again" the old man spoke with a tone of pride and longing.

The traveler nodded and allowed the old man to continue his depiction of the world, explaining how Valoran their continent was divided in various city states that ruled most of the land, from Noxus the dark and prideful bastion of strength and their counterpart the righteous Demacia which seemed to be always at the verge of war, from the advanced and twisted Zaun to the inventive Piltover and from the frozen wastes of the Freljord to the Mystical Ionia. He also explained the magical forces that existed on the world and how many were able to use them to heal fight or create. Images of an immense world coursed through the traveler's mind he who knew nothing could only imagine seeing those incredible lands the old man spoke of: frozen mountains, endless valleys of trees and rocks, lush jungles and towering mountains… they all seemed so unreal.

Hours passed and the day became night, the traveler sat in front of Karim looking at the reddish sky through a small window behind him picturing the world that lay beyond, he let out a long sigh "Runeterra… where do you hold my answers?"

Karim looked in the direction of the window too and noticed the how late it had become who knew how long they had been to talking for. The old man's doubts about the traveler diminished, he had sat through the long explanation of the world and had paid genuine attention to everything he said something that should have been hard to fake for so long even he had become exhausted by his own ramblings.

*Ehem* Karim cleared his throat to gain the youth's attention.

"I think that is all I can tell you, you have exhausted my knowledge about the world I'm sorry"

"Ohh don't worry you have told me a great deal already" despite the traveler's words Karim saw a faint flash of disappointment on his pale face, he understood if he too was in his situation he would also like to gain as much knowledge as possible from the world.

The old man slowly stood up as his bones popped from being in the same position for too long.

"It's late already, we will keep talking tomorrow but for now I welcome you to Ahash my home and also yours at least for the time being"

The traveler stood up and shook hands with the man, he too was feeling tired.

"Ahh before I forget!" the old man said as he signaled the young man to wait as he reached for what seemed like a pile of clothes and grabbed two grey sacks one much larger than the other.

"I believe this belongs to you" Karim handed him the large sac which the traveler opened immediately, it was his armor! Albeit it was completely disarmed its various metal plates clunk in the bag as puzzle pieces.

Karim saw the traveler's face of surprise and joy turn into one of disappointment and horror.

"Apologies, it was taken off in a rush and no one knew how to put it back together but I suppose you can place it together in time… I hope"

But the traveler wasn't listening to him instead he was more focused on the handle that stood out of all the rusty plates, it was his sword. He placed the bag on the floor and withdrew the blade that had saved his life, it was the same dull useless sword.

"How in the world did this thing actually cut the monster's hide?"

The old man passed him the second bag which was filled with bread and dried fruits.

"Your armor is quite the thing, finely crafted and deceptively light don't let the rust discourage you it can still be sold for quite the sum wish I could say the same for the sword" said the old man.

"What?! Are you crazy? These are the only things that can help me find who I am! I can't just let them go for some coin"

The old man just laughed at his response.

"It was a joke you don't have to take me seriously"

The traveler grabbed both bags as he shook his head and headed off outside but stopped at the doorway.

"Say Karim… what was your first name?"

"Abraham, why?" replied the old man.

"Abraham…" the traveler let the sound of the name roll around in his head, he liked it.

"Then that will be my name too"

"Wait… are you saying you want to borrow my name?" asked the old man.

"Well I do need one and what would be more fitting than borrowing from the first person I've 'met'?"

The old man opened his mouth ready to dismiss the idea of a stranger using his name for himself but then thought better of it, What harm could it do?

"The hell with it… you've earned it after driving off the Xer'sai, Abraham"

Abraham smiled in return, finally a name it might not be his real one but… it was a start.

"Thank you Karim… oh and thank you for healing me too" said the Abraham raising his right arm.

The old man simply nodded waved him goodbye. As Abraham left Karim simply stood thinking as the room finally darkened as the night settled itself, three days only three days had passed since the day they brought him up into the village the stranger's wounds were suppose to be lethal and they didn't posses the magic or the knowledge necessary to save him, Karim himself had branded him a dead man… until his bones began to move themselves into place and the ragged sinew began to close itself. Had he actually done right?

"I can only hope and trust" he thought to himself as he headed to the second floor of his home.

Light poured into the hut through the poorly made wooden door that barely managed to stay closed revealing food crumbs and bits of dried fruits scattered through the floor and pieces of armor that laid against a wall, on the corner of the room was the only other thing in the room a decrepit cot in which held a sleeping figure that began to shift and move as soon as the rays of light touched it. Abraham forcefully opened his eyes dragging himself from the unpleasant slumber staring down at him like the other day was the mas that still hung on the wall.

He let out a silent curse as he remembered his previous night not only had he wasted time trying to piece the armor back together as he devoured and tasted the food inside the bag Karim had given him, and the small amount of sleep he did get was plagued with what could only be described as unsettling and surreal images and scenarios, almost like a fever dream, needless to say he hadn't really gotten to rest.

Abraham opened the door of the hut and was momentarily blinded by the sun's light, it was early dawn but the sun already shone brightly in the horizon lighting the landscape below and beginning to warm the cool morning air. Abraham headed towards the village which began a couple of dozen meters away from his hut, he could see other people exiting their homes and walking the two small streets. He had nothing to do with them for all he knew he could stay in the village until he figured out what to do but that was something he was unable to do, he had promised himself to help the villagers out in some way he had promised himself not to lay back and do nothing as that was all he could do right now, nothing.

People adult men and women noticed his presence as soon as he reached village and began whispering to each other like the day before Abraham simply waved at them as he searched for the old man's house.

*knock knock*

It took various minutes and various knocks on the door for Karim to finally open up, his barely opened eyes and his gruff and disorganized beard were signs he had clearly just woken up.

"Good morning Karim" saluted Abraham politely as he held back a laugh at the man's appearance.

"Oh uhm… Abraham" the name came out almost as a question but Abraham ignored it.

"What do you need at this time in the morning?" the tired Karim cut right to the chase.

"Well after yesterday's talk you welcomed me to your Ahash your village and if I'm a resident here shouldn't I be helping at a task or something, I won't accept no for an answer I may not have my memories but I can't stand back and let you people work"

Karim nodded as he scratched his beard, he had planned to give the young man a job later that day but if it was a job what he wanted then who was he to say otherwise? After all every working hand was a welcomed addition in Ahash.

The old man led them to the side of the village opposite to where Abraham's room was and where other people seemed to be heading to also. The boy's eyes widened in surprise when he saw not the dry rocky dirt that covered the top of the mesa of Ahash but green rows of plants that extended themselves until the border of the plateau.

" is this possible… a garden? In the middle of the desert!?"

"heheh you could call it that" laughed Karim "but thats far from it, we didn't take Ahash as our residence only because it was far above the ground and the dangers of the desert, we built Ahash here because of the small oasis that was up here"

People were starting to distribute tools around the pair and shouted things in the strange Shuriman dialect that Abraham did not understand.

"But, even if we have the water the ground here is far from being fertile rocks there is few dirt and many rocks that's why we must work the soil every day for anything to bear fruit here… it's a tiring task but a necessary one"

Abraham was silent he watched as women and men began to work the field, moving the dirt and carefully pouring water at the base of each plant while others picked the fruits of their hard labor.

"Very well, tell me what to do" the young man's face had turned into one of determination. Karim guided him to a group of four men who were gathered around a huge blade like instrument that was embedded in the dirt with two large horizontal handles stuck to it, the old man spoke in Shuriman to the other young men and signaled Abraham various times the men looked at him for a moment and chuckled between themselves.

Karim turned to Abraham once again.

"I've explained to them that you want to help, they are going to plow the field today, it's a hard task and we reserve it for the strong or the young"

"Plow?"

"Yes, it's that tool" said the old man pointing at the blade "you have to push it through the dirt so the blade can stir up the little soil there is in the ground and make a new field for us to plant on"

"Huh… they don't look too confident about me right?"

Karim laughed.

"i…hah… im sorry but no, you might be younger than them but you lack a lot in strength"

The old man wasn't lying Abraham's malnourished and pale body lost to even the smallest of the men who barely seemed to be his age.

"I can give you another task… if you wish" said the old man as he saw Abraham's face turn serious.

"Not necessary just tell them I'll help"

The old man spoke in Shuriman once again and the four young men signaled him to grab the end of one of the handles he did so and the others took position on the rest of the handles, there was an awkward moment of silence until the men began to speak to him in shuriman which he did not get.

"Hey karim?"

"Yes"

"What the hell do they want?"

"You are leading them today wherever you push they will do so too, just guide the blade so it can break up as much of the ground as possible, I'll be going now good luck!"

And with that the old man headed off back into the village leaving Abraham with little choice.

"OK! LET'S DO THIS, ONE… TWO AAAAND"

The sun hung in the middle of the cloudless sky, signaling the end of the morning and the star of the afternoon everybody in Ahash was already wrapping up their day's work and headed back to their homes all except one white robbed figure who laid under the handles of a plow that was stuck to the ground and surrounded by s great patch of dirt and rocks that had been stirred and upturned.

He was beyond tired his hands, arms and feet hurt and ached more badly than the day he'd been wandering the desert but he as he smiled as he took each deep breath to calm his body down. The other men he'd been working with had congratulated him or at least he thought they did, they had slapped him on the back and spoken to him in Shuriman before leaving and before he crumpled to the ground exhausted.

"Seems like you may be tired" said a voice, Abraham turned to face the old man Karim who was looking down at him.

"Just *pant* an impression…" replied Abraham, sarcasm dripping from his tired voice.

Karim held his hand out; Abraham took it and lifted himself with the aid of the old man who then handed him a jug filled with water that he'd been carrying on the other hand Abraham drank avidly feeling as the life giving liquid refreshed his insides.

"So… how did I do?" finally asked Abraham as he was led by the old man towards the village.

"The others came to speak to me, they said you were… you know not very strong"

Abraham's face became sorrowful after hearing his efforts had not really impressed the others.

"But! They did praise your persistence, they said that with you lack of physical shape it was incredible you were able to lead them for the entire day of work 'quite the feat' were their words"

Abraham let out a sigh of relief at the last part and mentally dammed the old man for keeping that part of the information for last. They both stopped at the entrance of Karim's house as the old man knocked on the wooden door.

"Why did you bring me here?" asked Abraham as they both stood waiting for someone to open the door.

"Well you have been working hard all day and its afternoon so I thought it would be prudent to invite you to eat at my house" replied the old man calmly.

The mentioning of food triggered a reaction in the young man's gut which began to feel painfully empty and gave off a long and loud rumble… Abraham had no objections.

The door opened and a frail looking woman greeted them inside and directed them to sit on some cushions as she went to the clay stove where a large brass pot stood on the fire giving off a heavy yet alluring aroma which only helped to further increase the rumbling in Abraham's stomach.

"Is she your wife?" asked Abraham in an unnecessarily hushed tone.

Karim nodded.

"Fifty years of happy marriage"

The woman then handed them two wooden bowls, one part of them was filled with what seemed like a yellowy grain of sorts but it was damp and seemed to chunk together while the rest of the bowl was filled with a stew that had various large pieces of meat protruding from it, it all looked promising to the hungry Abraham who immediately grabbed a handful of the food and began to eat from it until he realized the old woman and Karim were looking at him at the which point he began to eat with a little more composure.

The spice on the meat and the neutral taste of the grain made a great combination which Abraham finished in a few minutes, the old woman then handed him a cloth to clean his hands with and a cup of water.

"Uhm …excuse my manners mam it's just that your cooking was too delicious and my hunger too great"

Karim immediately translated for him just as he too finished the remaining food in his bowl, the woman waved her smiled and waved her hand as she said something.

"Its fine she says, she knows how young men can be"

There was a long silence as the three people in the room rested their meal and karim and his wife exchanged a few words, Abraham wasn't sure but he knew there was something off in the atmosphere as if Karim was keeping something from him.

After a few minutes Abraham got up.

"Thank you, this meal has really revitalized me but I should go back to my place I don't want to bother you anymore"

"Wait! Before you go there is something I have to tell you"

Karim signaled him to sit once again and took a deep breath as if preparing to give a great speech.

"like I said yesterday you seem like a good man but still a man without memories of who he was or is and to be frank… you are not going to find those memories in Ahash" the old man's words were apologetic an almost sad.

Abraham raised an eyebrow at the statement but kept listening.

"Now now, I'm not telling you to leave the village as yesterday I said you were welcomed here and it's true, but if you really want to find out more about yourself it's not here that you'll be able to do it…"

"I understand what you are saying" cut in Abraham "and you are right, my chances of finding who I am only lie beyond the village outside in this great world but… how am I supposed to leave? The desert is not a place I alone can brave"

"That's what I wanted to get to you see in Ahash as much we try to be self-sufficient and autonomous we still need to keep ties with the rest of the world ¿how else would we get clothes tools and other things? That's why we have a deal with a caravan that passes by once every two months, they give us some of the things we need and we give them food and resources in return and very few times some of us leave Ahash with them… do you understand?"

The mentioning of the caravan and a possibility of leaving the village both surprised and exited the young man and as much as he wanted to maintain a neutral expression his rushed voice betrayed him.

"Wait wait wait… when is this caravan coming? W-will they take me with them?"

"Their arrival usually varies but they should be coming around some of these days"

Abraham seemed thoughtful.

"Thanks for the information Karim I ehm… I'll think about it" was his reply Abraham as he shook the old man's hand and got up

"I should go to my room to think about this now… thanks again for the meal"

The old couple smiled at him and watched as he left the house.

"He's leaving isn't he?" asked the old woman to karim

"Most likely, yes.." replied the old man solemnly.

The sun began to approach the horizon marking the passing of the day and the beginning of dusk turning the blue sky into a reddish pink, Abraham stared at the whole event seeing as the desert colors changed far below as he sat right at edge of the cliff that was only a couple of meter from the hut, his legs dangled in the air and his hands clutched the old sword as he felt the vertigo rocking his body.

He had been trying to sharpen the blade using the rocks at the edge of the cliff but he hadn't made much progress the metal of the blade seemed to resist the friction and the rocks were not solid enough for the task as the metal edges of the handle broke them or carved into them.

He'd said he would think about leaving the village with the caravan but the reality was that his mind had been made as soon as he heard of a way out, he felt sorry for Karim it seemed the old man had taking a liking to him as he sounded sad when spoke of the caravan but most of his persona felt that the best course of action was to leave.

"Splendid sight isn't it?" asked Karim's voice Abraham looked at the old man who stood right beside less than a step away from the edge.

"Yes I kind of envy your people, you must have this view all year long"

"Aye but at a great cost I'd say, the sai is not the safest part of the desert we face isolation and… well you saw it firsthand"

"Hah more like I survived it at first hand"

"By the looks of you your mind has already been made right?"

Abraham nodded.

"It was that obvious?"

"Kind of, it's just that I've seen that look of desperation and longing before, of a man who can't stand in one place for too long and wishes to see the world"

Abraham's thoughts clicked in and suddenly it all made sense, why the old man had been kind and helpful with him while the rest of the village only greeted him or whispered things about him in voices he could not comprehend, it wasn't only because they spoke the same language it was something more…

"A son… am i right?" Asked the young man.

"Pardon me?"

"The reason you've been kind to me and why you were hesitant to tell me of the caravan, it was because I reminded you of a son right?"

The old man let out a long sigh as if he had been busted about something.

"Yes, he too had my first name since birth he was very creative and cheerful a man who would grow tired of this isolated village as he grew older and by the age of thirty he parted ways promising us to return… that was twenty years ago"

Abraham did not inquire more on the subject, it was clear the old man felt sad talking about it.

"It was foolish and selfish for me to think that you'd stay here most of all after I have only know you for a day at most and I cannot stop you from trying to figure out who you are, I will not stand in your way if anything ill help you however I can"

Karims words touched the young man as he felt sad for the old man but also inspired by his words.

"Well in that case you could answer me a couple more questions I have about the world"

The old man sat down beside him.

"Ok go on"

"The people of Ahash speak Shuriman don't they? And that is a language I cannot comprehend but I can comprehend you so… what is the language we speak?"

"Huh well considering your case it's a pretty good question, the language we are speaking is commonly known as basic most of the people in the world speak it albeit…"

Karim extended his explanation like old men did and simple question like what the creature that attacked him was became ramblings of various minutes in which he spoke of how the Xer'sai were a plague in the sai region of Shurima, how some believed them to be out worldly thing because their appearance and how abnormally big was the specimen he'd encounter along with a few stories of how the old man had encountered the creatures in his youth .luckily for him Abraham wasn't annoyed by the man's long explanations instead he found them intriguing as they depicted more of the world he didn't remember or didn't know of.

The last of the sun's ray were beginning to hide behind the dunes in the distance when Karim finally cut his explanations and got up from the ground with the aided by Abraham.

"I'm sorry but old men like me can't stay awake for too long after dusk you can ask me more questions tomorrow but for now I recommend you get some rest you'll need it for tomorrow's work"

Abraham's shoulders slumped at hearing that there would be more jobs for him to accomplish.

"Well what are you feeling down for? YOU were the one who asked for work" said the old man as he held back his laughter.

"I… yes you are right…" Abraham's voice and face said the complete opposite thing, his limbs had begun to ache and throb at the mentioning of labor.

"don't worry thought plowing is something we won't have to do for a while, your new task will be a little bit more forgiving" Karim then shook his hands and headed towards the village where lights and fires had begun to be lit for the night.

Abraham entered hit room and almost tripped on a sac that had been placed on the doorway, he crouched and took a closer look at the object that had almost sent him face first towards the floor. It was made of brown worn out leather instead of cotton like the other bags and straps and metallic buckles covered one side of the thing.

"A bag? But from…" Abraham turned to see the silhouette of the old man as he entered the village.

"Thanks Karim" he whispered as he began to undo the leather straps to see what was inside the bag.

Spare clothes and under wear where the first thing he found as he skimmed through the contents of the duffle bag, the former of which he needed the most as having those parts only covered by the robe had stopped being pleasant. Dried meat and fruits wrapped in old cloths occupied the rest of the bag obviously packed for a long travel, Karim had kept his promise he was really helping him on his journey.

Abraham changed into a set of underwear and put on a new blue robe and then packed everything back onto the bag, assuming he'd searched all of its contents until his hands grasped a rough object deep within, he pulled the thing out revealing it to be a small whet stone barely the size of his palm. He placed the duffle bag under his cot and sat under the mask that hung on room wall, as night settled in sparks began to lit the room as the boy sharpened the blade back to life.

Abraham found himself in a dark void surrounded by a white light that seemed to emanate from far above, he looked at himself and found himself holding the handle of the sword but there was something off his hand it was clad in a plated gauntlet actually his whole body was clad in the old armor that was supposed to be lying in the floor of his room, he raised a hand to his face to confirm a suspicion, yes even his mask was back on… what kind of dream was this?

"Is this him!" shouted an enraged voice from within the darkness "this better not be a mistake!"

"no, this is no mistake he's the one" replied a calm feminine voice.

"She's right… just look at the beast's reaction" said a third voice.

"Beast?! What are these people talking about?"

Abraham opened his mouth to speak to the voices shrouded in the dark void but his words were pushed back in when a familiar roar filled the room.

*RHIIIEEEEEEEEGHHH*

His blood began cold as he recognized the beastly shriek… it was just like the one given by the Xer'sai that had attacked him and it was coming from right behind him, he slowly turned his head and saw the Monster rushing towards him through the dark its clawed hand reached out towards him.

Abraham threw himself to the floor trying to avoid the charge of the beast but just as the monster was about to reach him it vanished into the void along with its blood curling screams.

"You are right" replied the angry voice now with a more calm tone "but it even if its him we still need to find how suitable is he really is after all his first impression has left a lot to be des…"

"All in due time" cut in the feminine voice "for now we know who he is, how he wounded one of our champions is something we'll find out some other day I think he's had enough for today"

Abraham shakingly rose from the ground and pointed his trembling sword at the darkness before him.

"I demand an explanation… AND I DEMAND IT NOW!" he was scared beyond belief but also angered, whoever these voices were they were the ones to blame for the apparition of the beast.

"For now we are nothing to you … if you are deemed worthy that might change"

The ground beneath the young man began to rise closer and closer to the light above, before the light fully engulfed him Abraham glanced down a the void one last time and managed to make out what seemed like three cloaked figures holding some spherical object in their hands.

When Abraham's eyes opened again he found himself siting against the wall of his room as bits of light began to trickle in through the wooden door, his sword and whetstone discarded on top of the cot.

"What a weird dream" he thought, could it have something to do with his amnesia? He shook his head as he dismissed the thoughts as he prepared himself for another day of work in Ahash.

longer than i expected it to be but whatevs, thanks for reading and until next time.

oh and all feed back is welcomed.