Chapter 7

"Are you sure about this?" Ezreal asked for the umpteenth time.

"Pretty sure this is our best shot," Sivir replied. "Why are you so worried? You were all for crossing Xer'sai territory not that long ago."

"But that was before I realized that you practically have a whole tribe after your head!" Ezreal said.

Sivir sighed. "As I told you, if we cut through Xer'sai territory, bloodthirsty they may be, they Kthaon would not be willing to risk getting chasing us through here."

"Isn't that still pretty concerning then that we're crossing through it then!? If even the Kthaon is not willing to cross here, then maybe you were right about avoiding this area."

Though it was hard to tell, it looked to Lydia that Sivir had just rolled her eyes. "Now he trusts me," she grumbled. "Well, by going this way, we'll manage to take a shortcut with no issues. With the Kthaon forced to go around instead of cutting through like us, we'll be able to outrun them and, if what you said is true, not run into any Xer'sai."

"Ok," Ezreal said, looking unconvinced, but he had nothing else to say. He lapsed into silence, eyeing Lydia out the corner of his eyes.

Lydia had been unusually quiet for the past couple of days, despite Kaveh's ribbing. Even Shiskah had tried to make some small talk, but to no avail. She had just been trudging along silent, her mind clearly not focused on the travel, and the conversation would peter away.

Ezreal cleared his throat. "So, uh," he said awkwardly. "You don't suppose we'll get ambushed by the Kthaon or a voracious tunneling abomination, do you?"

It took a couple of seconds for Lydia to realize that Ezreal was talking to her. "Wait, what?" she said.

"The Xer'sai," Ezreal said, most likely thinking Lydia did not understand the reference. "You know, the ones believed to be from the Void?"

"Oh. I dunno," Lydia said, averting her eyes, not making eye contact with Ezreal. "I mean, we'll probably be fine, I guess? Sivir's group seems capable at least."

"Yeah, I guess that's true," Ezreal replied, scratching ahead.

The silence felt thick, as if it was coiling about their necks and making it difficult to breathe, let alone speak.

"That was your first battle, wasn't it?" Ezreal said suddenly. "I mean, from what you told me, you didn't really have any fights like this before, right?"

Lydia flinched at that, as Ezreal had touched upon what was weighing on her mind these past days. She gulped slightly.

"It all felt like a dream," she said softly. "I mean, I knew it wasn't, but ending up in a completely different place, with magic, going on adventure to find a way back, it didn't – it didn't seem real. I guess I must have unconsciously thought that I wouldn't die or something. But when that battle happened, it all just sunk in. I may be the only person here who knows of Earth, and I may never be able to go back. Never able to see my parents, my little brother-" her voice broke slightly as she tried to hold back her tears.

Ezreal awkwardly reached out and patted her on the back. "It must be rough," he said, his face serious. "I won't say I understand your situation, but even I understand how confusing getting into an actual fight for your life is like. It's even scarier when your by yourself, certain you're going to die and no one will know. But I promise, we'll stick things through. No matter what, whether we have to go the ends of the world, we'll find a way to get you back." He gave a thumbs up.

Lydia gave a shaky smile. "Quite confident in yourself, aren't you, Mr. Prodigal Explorer?" she said.

Ezreal winked. "I am a prodigy after all," he said, flipping his hair. Lydia laughed.

"I'm sorry for siding with Sivir over you," Lydia said.

Ezreal shook his head. "Don't be," he said. "Even after that Kthaon mishap, Sivir still had the right idea. It was just hard for me to accept that. I'm sorry I took it too personally. Next time I start getting a big head like that, do me a favor and smack me on the side of the head or something?"

"With pleasure," Lydia said, a wicked gleam in her eyes, making Ezreal wish he hadn't said that. Hurriedly, he changed the subject. "So did you see how I managed to dominate in that skirmish?"

"Oh, that?" Lydia snorted. "I did notice how you tried to slide and shoot at that Khtaon but missed entirely?"

"Th-that was a warning shot!"

Amidst Lydia's laughter, Kaveh grinned and began talking about his battle, nudging Shiskah, who begrudgingly also began to discuss with them.

Sivir moved to the front to scout ahead, but almost imperceptibly, a hint of a smile danced across her face.

It was the fourth day traveling when danger struck. The caravan was moving along in their usual pattern, Ezreal telling of his adventures to Lydia as she scoffed at the reliability of his tales when suddenly, the ground near them erupted.

Lydia barely had time to register what had happened before she saw a flash of purple lunging toward a camel, a shrieking cry emitting out as it did so. The camel, startled, tried to move, but was weighed down by the luggage. Even without the luggage, Lydia highly doubted that the camel would have been able to escape anyways. The camel fell down, blood spraying out from its neck, braying loudly.

Sivir's group of mercenaries were quick to react. Already a few had sprung off of their camels, pinning down the monster against the camel, some mercilessly stabbing their swords though the monster and the camel. A few were in the back muttering spells, and a barrier covered the monster, snaring it. The monster made a terrible clacking sound as it tried to break free, but was unable to. Shiskah and a few others approached it with spears in hands.

"Remember, the chinks!" Sivir called out, watching this scene fold coolly. Shiskah nodded slightly before striking down her spear.

The monster made a piercing cry, leaving a ringing in Lydia's ears, as it writhed about furiously, a green ooze spurting out of its body. But soon, it's body stopped moving and it fell, limp.

"And that, guys, was a Xer'sai," Sivir said, striding over to examine it. She pursed her lips slightly. "A baby. No wonder we weren't able to notice it until it had already gotten a camel."

Lydia also watched with interest at the Xer'sai, it's eyeless head agape with rows of serrated teeth, its exoskeleton glinting in the sunlight, the ooze seeping out between the plates of its exoskeleton.

"That's a baby?" she said, eyeing the Xer'sai, that looked as if it was at least ten feet long. "How big does an adult get?"

"Who knows?" Sivir said. "I hear they don't have a limit. Typical characteristic of Void creatures, they say. Voracious eaters, all of them. Xer'sai would even eat their own kind. This one probably got pushed back to this wasteland because of the competition. I bet it was barely managing when it sensed us."

Ezreal, who was busy sketching the Xer'sai in his journal, suddenly looked up, looking sheepish. "I guess I didn't consider that," he said. "My bad."

Sivir shook her head. "I had decided to switch paths, so it was not your fault. Besides, we have done remarkably well, all things considered. Consider it a boon that we only lost a camel."

"So what do we do?" Lydia asked. "Should we head out of the wasteland?"

Sivir stared at the Xer'sai for a bit, mulling over their options. "No," she decided. "Heading out would almost certainly delay us and allow the Kthaon to catch us. We only have about a couple day's journey at the most if we keep heading straight. We'll just have to hope that we do not encounter any more Xer'sai." She turned to her group. "Dispose of the camel and Xer'sai," she ordered. "Try to place it in the opposite direction we are going so as to lead off any other possible Xer'sai. As for the luggage, we'll have to distribute it amongst our remaining camels." The mercenaries nodded and picked up both the dead camel and Xer'sai, Ezreal and Lydia watching.

"Well," Ezreal said at last. "That was exhilarating. Good thing it didn't go for one of our camels, huh? I don't think I would have been able to react fast enough if it did."

Lydia nodded dumbly. "Are all creatures in Runeterra like this?" she asked.

"Ehhh…." Ezreal said. "I guess the majority of creatures happen to actually be quite boring, honestly. I think it's just an adventurer's luck that we end up with the scary hostile ones. Now come on, I want to see how they're going to use the dead animals as bait." And with that Ezreal was off, leaving Lydia with a queasy feeling in her stomach.

The mood among the mercenaries that night was merry. Despite most of them never actually ever encountering a Xer'sai, they had managed to take one down rather efficiently. Many were now relegating tales of how the Xer'sai had nearly bit their faces off, or how it claws nearly cut their arms off had their quick reflexes saved them from such a tragedy. Kaveh appeared to merely enjoy the boisterous, if exaggerated, stories as he laughed heartily at the tales. Shishkah, on the other hand, sullenly sat in Kaveh's shadow as she cleaned her arsenal of javelins and spears, not interested in the slightest about who bested who, even when it came to claims of whose spear landed the killing blow.

Lydia, meanwhile, was working on her sparring and magic training. That was twice now when she was unable to respond to the situation, and she wanted to be sure to be able to respond next time. Ezreal was back to mentoring her on magic, but, as Lydia expected, his tips were useless, and she ended up with several burnt out candles, an exasperated Ezreal, and an ill temper.

"There's no need to worry so much," Ezreal said. "You saw how well they handled that Xer'sai. And like Sivir said, we only have a couple day's journey at the most, then we'll be crossing and head on to Piltover! You'll love it there, I'm sure. At the very least, we don't have Xer'sai."

"I guess," Lydia said. "I don't know. I just feel pretty useless."

"Oh, come on, most normal people can't handle situations like that," Ezreal said. "The fact that you're being so level-headed is already a huge plus. I've met tougher-looking people than you that would already be blubbering."

"Does that include you?" Lydia said.

"Ha ha, very funny. No, most people actually do not think I'm tough looking, despite my obvious abilities. I think they're just jealous."

"Well, you do reek of pretty boy aura."

"I do not!"

"Yes, yes, Mr. Prodigal Explorer." Lydia stared up at the sky, admiring the stars. As a city girl, she never got to see so many stars at once. She wondered what kind of constellations people in Runeterra had.

"Hey Ez?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you really think we'll find anything in Piltover?"

"I'm almost sure of it. Those professors at the Academy may be dreary, but if there's one thing they're good at, it's remembering obscure information that usually never pertains to everyday life."

It was then Shiskah came over and nudged Ezreal. "Your turn for watch," she said simply. Ezreal got up.

"We'll talk about this later," he said. "Either way, we'll figure something out, ok?" He gave a thumbs up before heading off.

It was in the afternoon when they spotted some of Sivir's mercenaries coming towards them. They had gone to check to see if any Xer'sai had gone after the dead camel and Xer'sai. As the caravan slowed down to let others join them, the mercenaries hurried forth, panting heavily.

"We must hurry," one of them said, looking back fearfully.

"What happened?" Sivir asked.

"The camel and Xer'sai are gone," another said. "And we spotted tunnels. This one is huge."

"But it should be slowed down, right?" Sivir said. "It took the bait. It may even be going the opposite direction as we speak."

"You don't understand," the first one said. "The tunnels were HUGE. And not just that…we could see the Xer'sai tunneling."

"So it's close?" Sivir said sharply.

"No, not necessarily. It's still a ways. But the size…with how huge it is, it may be able to catch up to us in a day, maybe even sooner."

Sivir turned to one of her mages. "You've been scouting ahead with your magic, right?" she said. "Any spots that might shelter us from a Xer'sai?"

"There is a cave that is about half a day journey away," the person replied. "It will be a tight fit, but it should hold all of us, and it's only a slight detour."

"Perfect," Sivir said. "We'll camp out there and wait for the Xer'sai to pass, then continue on with our journey. Now come on, let's hurry." And with that, the caravan began moving.

"Will a cave really help us against a Xer'sai?" Ezreal called out.

Sivir, without turning back, replied. "Xer'sai are sand-burrowing creatures, not rocks," she said. "From what I hear, most Xer'sai can't tunnel through rock. All we got to do is stay still. If the Xer'sai is as big and fast as they say, it'll be far away the next day, and we can continue." Her tone was light, but Lydia noticed Sivir's hand was gripping tightly to the reins, her knuckles almost turning white, and her brow was furrowed slightly. She was worried, Lydia was sure.

Lydia looked uneasily in the direction of the supposed Xer'sai, wondering if things would go as planned.

The sun was starting to set by the time they reached the cave, with Sivir hurriedly ushering them inside.

"In the center," she told Lydia and Ezreal. "Like I said before, if things go well, the Xer'sai should just pass us, but if things go wrong, be sure to move as little as possible until we find an opportunity to run."

The group huddled together, scared to even breathe. A camel brayed.

They heard the sound before they felt the rumbling. A guttural clicking sound resounded out through the landscape, followed with the ground rrumbling.

Nobody moved. The sound petered out, but resounded once again, louder this time. The rumbling was getting stronger too. Some of the canteens were starting to clank together because of the vibrations, muffled quickly as the group would stuff cloth in between them.

The clicking suddenly stopped, as did the rumbling. Everyone froze. The clicking sound came back, but oddly enough, there was no rumbling.

"Why did the rumbling stop?" Lydia whispered, barely moving her mouth.

"I think – I think it's close," Ezreal muttered back, poised and ready to shoot a blast from his gauntlet at any moment.

The clicking kept going on. One minute. Two minutes. Three minutes. The clicking continued, making Lydia almost wondering if the clicking was actually in her head. No one moved.

A camel suddenly brayed, startling Lydia. It appeared to have been shaken by the whole clicking, and broke free of the people holding it down, it began running towards the mouth of the cave.

A piercing shriek reverberated within the cave walls, and Lydia felt a massive jolt under the ground, knocking her down. She heard an odd screeching sound.

The camel was now out of the cave, and it brayed again. The screeching sound continued, apparently frightening the camel as it sped away.

Suddenly, near the edge of the cave, the ground exploded, bits of rocks flying towards them. The mages barely had time to erect a shield to block them from the shrapnel. Lydia, however, was less concerned about the shrapnel, instead looking in horror at the sight in front of her. Out of the explosion, she saw an enormous blur leap out, in the direction of the camel.

The camel was snapped up into the maw of the thing that had burrowed out. With barely a gulp, the camel went down the creature's throat. She wasn't even sure if the camel had realized it's death before it got gulped up.

Sivir wasn't kidding when she said the Xer'sai they encountered was just a baby. It was like comparing a kitten to a full-grown lion. The centipede-like legs were far more numerous than the baby, and it's front legs, claws jutting out them, were bigger than the camel it just ate. The Xer'sai turned back, facing the group, revealing its eyeless face, two long teeth jutting out from below. It made the clicking noise, moving its head slowly as it sniffed the air, the exoskeleton crackling with purple energy.

Lydia could feel the hairs on her arm rise. The Xer'sai shrieked, making its way to them. She saw some of the group nock their arrows, Sivir with her crossblade out, and Ezreal with his gauntlet raised. She too raised her dagger, though what good it would do she didn't know. It couldn't even qualify as a toothpick against this Xer'sai.

She somehow knew, despite the fact that nobody told her, that she had never seen this creature, exactly who it was.

It was Rek'sai.