Alright, so this is part two of the last chapter. Something happens in this one...and it's not necessarily good.

Chapter VII

"I really appreciate you helping me," Sonja started as she and her three companions walked through the marketplace.

"It's not a problem, really," Janie smiled to the half-dragon. "It's not like we have much else to do, plus it would be kind of hard to plan for this all by yourself."

Dianne yawned, "I could be-"

"Sleep is for the weak," Janie snickered, causing Arthur to nudge her.

"Be nice."

"But sleepyhead death!" The chosen of the sun announced, as if it was the solution to any question.

"I guess that's something both our worlds have in common," Sonja chuckled, "Death is always sleepy,"

"I mean I have to run around everywhere, not to mention I am my Earth's first Chosen." Dianne huffed. "Anyways, what are we trying to get our hands on first?"

Wolf swirled around the girl before resting on her shoulder. He sniffed the air and let out a quiet whine. "Fooooood."

"It is around lunch time," came the Half Dragon's reply, "I don't see why we shouldn't get something to eat. Any place you feel like going in particular?"

Arthur shrugged. "We can head to a place you like. The four of us aren't too picky."

"Excuse you," Janie huffed.

"Ignore her," Dianne chirped.

"There's a nice little cafe that serves some food from Earth, Chosens like to frequent it because it's just like home," Sonja suggested.

"Sounds fine by me," Dianne smiled, looking to her companions. Janie looked away, but nodded.

"I'm fine with that as well," Arthur said in agreement.

"You ok, Janie?" Shyvana asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she announced before jabbing Dianne lightly with an elbow.

"They bicker a bit every once in a while," Arthur explained. "They'll be right as rain in a few minutes."

"Some things...never change," Shyvana chuckled, "Cira and Dianne do that too. It might be something with Leona and Kindred then,"

Arthur hesitated for a moment before replying. "It could be something with the Noble Family and Dianne," he offered a small laugh.

"That too, but don't let her hear you say that," came the grin, "Something tells me she's even fiercer than her sister,"

Janie smiled. "We could test that theory at some point."

"Cira might take you up on a spar," Shyvana stated, "After seeing Vi and Violet challenge everyone in the Institute to a fight after she became a Project and then watching as Cira laid her flat on her back...I'm not the one going to test that,"

She laughed. "I'm up to it still, even if it is a beatdown. I'm certain it will be fun."

"Oh I don't doubt that," Sonja deadpanned as she waved a waiter over, "There's five of us, may we have a seat?"

"Of course! Right this way," the waiter smiled, leading them to a table, "I'll get someone to take care of you right away,"

"Thank you," Sonja nodded.

The rest of the chosen nodded as well as Wolf curled up on Dianne's lap. "I want meat." He declared, causing his chosen to laugh.

"Fine, Fine." Dianne looked to Sonja. "So… is there anything you'd recommend?"

"They've got mostly fast food here," Sonja told her, "The hamburgers are really good...but I'm wanting something sweet. I'm going to get one of those sundaes,"

Arthur hummed. "Sounds good. Well, I think we might take you up on that recommendation."

"Mhm!" Janie agreed. "So, anyways Sonja." She gave huge grin. "Care to tell us about yourself and Jarvan?"

"Well, that's why we're shopping today," she admitted, a faint blush coloring her cheeks, "Zack and I, Shyv and Jarvan really, were going to get married a couple weeks ago. But, due to the war on Targon...we had to delay it. Since we're temporarily at peace, we decided to bring it back up to now. Problem is, I need to get a dress and a few more decorations. I kinda neglected to do that because of wartime. We're wanting to get it done soon...well...because there's a slight issue if we don't,"

"What do you mean?" Dianne asked with a tilt of her head.

Sonja's face turned red as she unconsciously put her hand on her abdomen, not looking at the three.

The three blinked, before Arthur laughed. "I see." The two girls whispered back and forth before smiling. "I see why you wanted that sundae now, perhaps?" Arthur asked, trying to confirm with the bride to be.

"Yeah," Sonja smiled sheepishly, "Normally I wouldn't but...I think someone has a sweet tooth,"

Dianne laughed. "I see." She looked around before leaning back in her chair, gently stroking Wolf's head. "So we'll eat, then head back out?"

"Sounds good to me," the Half Dragon smiled as the waiter came back.

"Are you all ready to order?" he asked.

"I am," Sonja nodded, "Are you all?"

"Yep," Janie chirped.

"I guess I'll go first," Sonja shrugged, "I'll take the hot fudge sundae...extra chocolate sounds pretty good to me,"

Dianne continued, "I'll have two burgers," she paused, "Can I get one of them without bread

"No problem, Lady Lamb," the waiter nodded, "And what for you all?"

"I'd like some of your stew," Janie smiled as she crossed her arms on the table.

"And I'd like a steak," Arthur finished.

"Stew, steak, two burgers one without the bun and a hot fudge sundae with extra chocolate," he beamed, "Any drinks?"

"Surprise me with anything sweet," Sonja grinned.

"We have a new drink, think of it like liquid chocolate ice cream...better than a shake,"

"You had me at chocolate,"

"And for you all?"

"Water," Dianne murmured. Then paused, twitching. "Actually… I want some of that chocolate drink."

"I want it too," Jamie chimed.

"Do… you have a drink like Mountain dew?" Arthur asked.

Sonja suddenly burst out laughing.

"What's so funny?" he questioned.

"I guess haha...I guess that no matter the universe things stay the same," Sonja chuckled, "They do have it...but among us, we call it Targon Water because our Arthur is that addicted to it,"

"So I take that's what you'd like sir?"

A nod. "Please."

"Alright, I'll be right back with your drinks!"

WHOMP!

The entire restaurant jumped a foot into the air.

"Waiter!" Helios called, grinning. "The menu, if you would!"

He, Ahri, Rakan, Xayah, Riya and Afi all sat upon a gigantic sack of loot, which rivaled the size of the restaurant. The god had dropped it next to the building, flattening the top so that it could be used as a makeshift table.

Dianne blinked. "It's Helios…"

Arthur raised an eyebrow before nodding. "Who else would make an entrance like that?"

"Rakan would be a close guess," Shyvana stated, "but yes, no one makes an entrance like Helios,"

"Guilty as charged!" Helios cheerily replied, flicking through the menu as the waiter handed it to him. "It's one of the many perks of being m-"

He paused.

His pupils dilated.

In a flash, he vanished, as if he'd never been there in the first place.

"Wait! Helios where'd you go?!" Ahri cried.

"Why'd he go?" Janie questioned.

Ahri's ears twitched, alerting her to the slightest movement on the other side of the bag. She scooted over and looked down at the source. Helios had his back plastered to the fabric, hidden from view. He was sweating up a storm, a pallid expression on his face.

He looked up at her, pressing a finger to his lips.

"What are you doing?" she asked him in a forced whisper.

"Panicking." He replied. "Nobody told me that she was going to be here!"

"What do you mean her?"

He made an inconspicuous gesture towards Shyvana.

"Do you have something against her?" Ahri asked, confused.

He opened his mouth.

He paused.

"Not necessarily." He said. "It's complicated."

One of her ears twitched. "Okay… but you can't stay there, it's not like she actually knows you… I think. Just play it cool and you should be fine."

Helios sucked in a deep breath, then nodded. "Alright. Game face."

"Sorry, my bad!" He said with a smile, climbing over the edge to sit back down. "Just slipped, is all!"

"Glad to see you're not hurt," Sonja started, "So, looks like you all had the eventful day,"

"Indeed we did!" Helios replied. Ahri could see his hesitation, but he was trying his best. "We've probably got half the entire market's stock in this bag. We're gonna put it to good use later, once we've got the other half."

"You give Amber a run for her money," came the chuckle from Shyvana, "And Kaitlyn. Though, I suppose Kaitlyn misses being able to shop for shoes,"

"Yeah, but she exchanged it for fun perks." He said. "Like venom. And being able to swallow things whole."

"I think she still misses the shoes,"

He shrugged. "Probably."

"Oooh, speaking of shoes, we should totally try that Demacian place after lunch." He told Ahri. "I saw some heels on display that'd look really good on you."

"Sounds good," she grinned, curling a tail around her waist. "I think we gotta keep some chicks in check though," she wrapped another tail around Afi and Riya.

"Or we could turn them into minions." He replied.

"Wha's he talkin' about, Mama?" Riya asked, tugging on her mother's cloak.

"I don't know, but I have the worst suspicion that it's not good," Kristen stated, narrowing her blue eyes at Helios.

"That depends on perspective." His eyes gleamed.

"My instincts are telling me it's not a good thing...but then again, they said much the same thing when I met Rakan," Xayah admitted, "So it could be a bad thing and it could not,"

"Are you saying that my intentions might not be pure?" Helios asked, pretending to look aghast. "You insult me."

"Are they though?"

"...Not entirely, no."

She shook her head and rolled her eyes as Riya pointed at the menu.

"Mama! I want that!"

"Real food first,"

"But...but...chocolate!"

Kristen turned to her husband.

"Yep, your daughter," she deadpanned.

"You say that like it's a bad thing!" Fabien protested.

Helios casually pulled a chocolate cake out from the bag.

"If you behave, you get the whole thing as a reward." He told Riya.

She gasped, blue eyes wide before sitting up comically straight...almost so that she nearly fell over.

"Lesson one of parenting: bribery and discipline go hand in hand." He smirked.

"And time and patience," Xayah smirked, "like sabotage without the feather daggers,"

"I'm just glad that you quit with the whole 'rebellion' thing." He replied. "To be honest, I was about ready to slap both of you upside the head. No offense."

"I'm still a rebel...just more tolerant to humans. You have Kristen and Fabien to thank for that," Xayah clarified, "Zed is who I'm mostly after. Though nowadays, it seems more of Kayn being an issue. Zed had mellowed out after Aiko was born,"

"'Tis the curse of being an edgelord." Helios replied. "You become a pain in the ass."

Xayah barked out a laugh.

"Ready to order?" The waiter asked, coming up to the bag. He appeared to be a little perturbed by the unusual arrangement, but his professionalism prevented him from saying anything.

"I believe so," Xayah said, "I'll take the hamburger,'

"Same," her husband agreed.

"Can I have the chicken?" Riya chirped, "It looks good!"

"Chicken for the cute little-"

"I'm not cute!" Riya screeched, her feathers fluffing.

"Riya…" her mother warned.

"I'm fabulous!" Riya corrected, preening as her father nearly lost it, burying his face in his hands as he cackled, what skin that was visible was bright scarlet.

"YES!" Helios yelled. "FINALLY, SOMEBODY GETS IT!"

Riya beamed, smoothing her already glossy feathers as her mother facepalmed.

"Can I have some mashed potatoes or berries for Afi…" Xayah finally started.

The waiter valiantly fought down his smile, but nodded.

"No problem,' he told her before turning to Helios and Ahri, "And for this lovely couple?"

"...What."

Ahri stared at the man, one ear twitching. But then she took it in stride. Or… Ariel did. "Spaghetti."Both of them were red in the face. If Helios let his imagination run amok, he could hear Krista's maniacal laughter, taunting the both of them.

He was going to need a lot of food.

"Five of everything. Including drinks." He said.

"What th-" he stopped, shaking his head once before regaining his composure, "A-All right, Sir,"

"Believe me, I'm good for it." Helios reached into his pocket.

He placed a diamond the size of his fist on the table.

"Straight from the mountain." He said. "Consider it payment in advance."

The poor waiter's eyes were about the size of said diamond, but he nodded, took the drink orders and headed off to the kitchen to put the order in.

Helios turned to see everyone staring at him.

"Don't judge me."

"You're going to give Kog'Maw, Graham, Cho'Gath, Kharn, Tahm and Agus runs for their money aren't you," Kristen stated.

"As if." Helios cracked his knuckles. "I'm going to make them cry."

"We might have someone to finally end the debate on who the better cook is…" Fabien pointed out, "Cira, Nick, Agus or Panth,"

"I dunno, I don't particularly trust Cira to cook for me at the moment." He replied. "I mean, the onion wasn't that bad, but still."

"An… onion?" Ahri asked, one eye still twitching due to her chosen.

"She disguised one as a candy apple."

"Oh you think that was bad…" Kristen shuddered, "What she did to Krista was...ugh. Krista's sworn off trying to prank Cira again,"

"Basically...Krista thought she was getting a strawberry cake with yellow buttercream icing…" Fabien grimaced, "it wasn't strawberry or buttercream…"

"If that's the best she can do, she'd better step up her game." He replied. "I fully plan on retaliating once this is done."

"Cira likes the food-based pranks because she gets to be creative. If we weren't here...she could do a lot more and be more vicious. But then again, Cira doesn't start prank wars. She only retaliates,"

"Oh, I'll show her creative." His eyes narrowed. "Trust me when I say that she's got no idea what's coming."

Neither said anything. Whatever was about to come...it was not going to be good.

"Besides, what've I got to lose?" Helios asked. "It's not like anyone's going to get hurt or anything."


It would be so easy to pull the trigger.

His superiors had been pursuing Chosens for years. Despite failing to secure a single kill on any single one of them, they'd been stubbornly persistent. Eventually, they'd concluded that killing them wasn't going to happen. So they tried a new approach - isolating them from Earth. A few pulled strings, some smooth sweet-talking, and everything had fallen into place.

They'd seen to it that the Barrier was impregnable. Vigorous testing ensured that not even the dragon would be able to get it down. With their task finished, they'd mostly gone off the radar. Even they had lives to get back to, though they still made routine checkups to be sure. They had plenty of people embedded into Runeterra's nooks and crannies. If anything came up, they were the first to know. As a result, when they got wind of a plan to bring the Barrier down, they'd gotten right back into the thick of things

A message needed to be sent, of course. They had to be reminded why they could never go back. The emperor of Shurima was tempting, but bullets wouldn't do much against an Ascended. The queen of the Freljord was considered for a while, but her realm wasn't exactly a place that screamed "conspicuous." It had to be a place with a reputation, and a solid one. By the time they'd finished going through the list of possible targets, there was really only one viable candidate.

The halfling's guard was down. Her fiancé was back at the Institute. The rounds he'd equipped could put down an elephant from twenty clicks. And from his nest, perched on the roof of a Piltovan shopping mall across the market, he could see everything, while his target could see nothing.

It would only take a pull of the trigger.

And yet, he hesitated.

Because of him.

At first, they'd thought it was some kind of joke. When they received intel on a man who'd personally ended the war between Targon and Demacia, and discovered that the culprit was a god, they had been expecting someone more...sophisticated. What they got instead was a grade A clown. The reports said his name was Helios. Incredibly strong, blindingly fast and equipped with enough firepower to level entire cities, and yet he apparently lacked any sort of self-discipline. He was going to be a problem.

And he was sitting right across from his target.

If he took the shot now, it would most likely be intercepted. And then his cover would be blown.

He grit his teeth from under his mask.

Damn him.

There was also the matter of Leona and her Chosen. However, his superiors had anticipated her arrival. He had more than enough firepower and training to deal with her. He'd been given permission to carry out the job however he saw fit, too. But as long as Helios was in the vicinity, his chances were slim at best.

He would have to wait.

And so he did.


"I'm pretty sure some prides will get hurt," Sonja chuckled.

"Not that they haven't been already." Helios replied. "The only reason she's going through with this is because I completely trashed her reputation."

"True," Sonja nodded as the waiter came back with her, Arthur, Dianne and Janie's orders, "Yes!"

"Here you are," he said, placing their food down, "we'll be back with the rest in a minute." He sweatdropped. "I'm afraid Lord Helios's order is taking a bit longer than anticipated."

"Lord now huh?" Sonja asked.

"One of the perks of being me." Helios reclined against the bag, grinning. His face was a little red, but he was performing admirably so far. "Don't get me wrong, I don't have a massive ego or anything, but it is nice to have that kind of privilege."

He grinned down his nose at her. "I think you know what I'm talking about, Your Highness."

"Not yet," she told him, "soon but I'm just still a royal guardian,"

"Your future subjects don't really seem to care either way." He reminded her. "They've already started rolling out the red carpet for you and everything."

"It's just a spark of happiness they've latched onto since the war," Shyvana stated, "In wartime, people tend to latch onto any hope they can find,"

"Well, here's hoping that your coronation turns out to be just as well-received." The waiter handed him a can of cherry soda (though it was only one of many to come), which he raised up to her in a toast. "Here's to you, Your Highness."

Sonja gave a blushing smile as she raised her chocolate drink in return before taking a sip elegantly...only to start drinking more enthusiastically after the first sip.

Helios chuckled. Sonja and Shyvana shared more than a few similarities, an addiction to chocolate among them. Shyvana had picked up the habit while she was on the run with her father, swiping samples from any market they came across.

The memory sparked a painful twinge in his chest, but he didn't show it. "I can pay for seconds, if you're interested." He said. "Hell, I can pay for thirds, fourths and fifths. That diamond was five times the value of my order."

"So how are you getting change?" Sonja asked, taking another drink, "But yes, I'll take another,"

"Don't need change." He replied. "That's another perk of being a god. You can fling money at whatever you want, and there'll never be any consequences."

"True," Sonja nodded, "What do you two think, Janie, Dianne? You think it's good? Oh...and Arthur...how's yours?"

Dianne had already downed her first glass of chocolate and was working on her second. Her mask had been adjusted so only her mouth was visible. She was far too preoccupied with her drink to respond. Janie was clearly holding back laughter as she slowly drank her own.

"What is this stuff!" Arthur yelled after tasting the Targon water. He ended up downing his drink almost as quickly as Dianne.

"Annnnd we've lost him to the addiction," Sonja chuckled, "He really is Arthur Jonson,"

"Yep," Janie grinned. She leaned closer to Sonja, then whispered, "and Dianne has a chocolate moustache."

"Doesn't surprise me,"

Janie shrugged and smiled before continuing to sip at her drink.

"So, Fayes are always crazy about chocolate, Jonsons are crazy about Mountain Dew, and Nobles are very reserved," came the grin, "Guess some things are always the same,"

"We'll always be ourselves," she agreed.

"Well...unless someone puts charm magic in someone's food," Kristen said.

Janie coughed before looking over at Helios, but she spoke to Sonja. "Even word of that got to us, and we aren't even Chosen of this Runeterra."

"The more people mention it, the less I feel guilty about it." He grinned.

"I kinda feel sorry for her," Sonja stated, "First she's cursed and unable to be near her husband without her Champion going crazy, she gets him back and immediately gets pranked...and now you two are waging a prank war. Something I have a bad feeling she's going to lose. But she's not going to take it sitting down so it's only going to get worse,"

"Sometimes you have to keep the acolytes entertained." He shrugged. "She'd get cranky if I didn't."

"Cranky? Cira?" Kristen blinked, "I've only seen her mad and irritated because of those hunters and being pulled in every direction, never cranky. I'm afraid of what that looks like,"

"Ask Arthur about what she was like when she was pregnant." He said. "That should provide a sufficient answer."

"What woman isn't when she's carrying a child," Fabien deadpanned, only to get whapped upside the head with a feather cloak, "Ow!"

"You deserved it," Kristen replied.

WHAP!

"Ow! Riya!" Fabien sputtered as Riya giggled.

"Mama did it!" she shrugged, "I can do it too! See!"

She whapped her father with her little cloak and Kristen started snorting into her hand.

"Ah, there's my order!" Helios said.

A mountain of food blocked out the sun in front of them. The waiter stood besides it alongside several other staff members. All of them looked absolutely exhausted.

"Here you are," he panted, "five of everything on the menu. Enjoy."

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to pass out." He fell flat on his face.

"...I'm giving this poor guy a tip," Sonja said, "The diamond's a big one...but he deserves a lot more too. Poor guy,"

"I doubt anyone will miss a few coins from the Demacian treasury anyways." Helios agreed.

"I suppose it's time to dig in?" Kristen asked as Riya squealed and started snacking on her chicken.

"So...I take it you guys are the more carnivorous birds," Sonja asked.

"It depends," Kristen shrugged, "Just what we feel like eating,"

"In my case, I feel like eating everything." Helios said.

...The mountain of food was gone.

"To hell with you, physics." He sighed, patting his stomach.

"Cooooool!" Riya breathed.

"Join my army and I'll teach you how to do that." His eyes lit up as the opportunity presented itself. "You also get special perks. Like a lack of accountability. And free soda."

"Nope," Kristen said, "She's staying away. Not giving her sugar again...I thought Rakan was bad…"

"She only destroyed the house once!" her husband protested.

"Three times over. And it took a whole day for her to calm down,"

"Come to the Meme Side, Riya. We have cookies."

"...They better not have raisins…"

"Chocolate chunk. With frosting as a side bonus."

"Again, nope," Kristen growled, "I'm not dealing with sugar crazed chicks,"

"I mean...he's pretty much got the Aspect kids…" Fabien told her, "Riya might just…"

"Finish that, and you're sleeping outside," Kristen threatened.

"You know you want to, Riya. Join me, and unlimited snacks will be yours."

"Riya, you join him and you're grounded. No music or performing," Xayah told her daughter.

"NO!" Riya shrieked, feathers fluffing, "Noooooo Maaaamaaaaa! Don't take it!"

"You suck, Xayah."

"It's called parenting,"

Something in Helios recoiled for a fraction of a second. He donned his smiling mask immediately thereafter, but Xayah took note of it regardless. She'd touched a nerve somehow. Curious.

A portal opened, and Zoe's head popped out again.

"Ahem!" Vesper started, tapping her fingers against her arms, "I'm waiting for payment for helping?"

"Yes, yes, I've got you covered." He whistled, and a slice of mooncake appeared on his plate, courtesy of whatever god ran that particular business. "Voila. Satisfied?"

Vesper closed an eye and held up two fingers.

He rolled his eyes.

Two more slices fell onto the plate.

"Happy now?"

"Thank you," Vesper smirked, grabbing the pieces and going back through the portal.

"She's going to be a handful for her mother in a few years…" Sonja mused.

"She's becoming a more prank-filled version of her mother," Kristen shuddered, "we're all going to be in trouble in a few years,"

"Just wait until I get a hold of Vasher." Said Helios. "Then you'll really be in trouble."

"...those hunters might as well have killed us then," Sonja shuddered, "Vasher is bad enough...I don't want to see what she does after you corrupt her even further. I see a lot of glitching in Torin's future…"

"That's right, huh? Vasher basically sees getting Torin to glitch as a sport, huh?" Ariel murmured.

"Any Project child but Torin mostly,"

Ahri nodded before leaning back. "You enjoy your food Helios?"

"Good gods, yes." He replied. "It should hold me until dinner. I'm not all that full, but it'll do for now."

The fox blinked several times before sighing. "Well, you are a god so I suppose it makes sense…"

"It does," Sonja agreed, "what about our travelers? Your food ok?"

"Yep," Dianne grinned, finally speaking after downing her third glass. Wolf was munching on a burger himself, as his chosen poked at her own.

She seemed to speak for the other two as well, as they had also gotten a good way through their own meals. "How's your sundae?" Arthur asked between bites.

"It's good. Might have to take Zack here sometime soon,"

Ariel poked at her spaghetti with a fork, seemingly disappointed by... something. Ahri seemed a bit flustered herself, but ate some of the pasta.

"Something wrong?" Helios asked, concerned. "You look like you're on edge about something."

"Well, someone," the girl stared at herself, "was trying to get the two of us to reenact a scene from a movie." Her eyes changed to a bright blue and Ariel smirked.

"As tempting as it would be to make out with you, I'll have to pass for now." He replied, matching her expression. "I just ate. At least let me brush my teeth first." He shrugged. "Then, you know, if you're still interested, I wouldn't mind giving it a go."

Ahri uncharacteristically blushed. Ariel watched him for a moment before huffing, the blush still on her face. "You're seriously that fine with that?"

"That depends on how you feel about it." His grin widened. "I'd hate to force myself on a lady."

He was only teasing her, but that didn't cool the heat in Ahri's cheeks. If anything, it only burned hotter. The girls huffed, one eye gold, one blue and they turned their head away.

"Aww how cute," Sonja grinned.

"Ewwww," Afi whined, "No kiss!"

"What? No! I- I was only-" Helios cut himself off, flushing. "You know…"

"Oh if Krista saw you…" Fabien chuckled, "She's a bit of a matchmaker troll. You'd never hear the end of it,"

"She'd be disappointed. I was only teasing, so HA!" Helios shot back, somewhat unconvincingly.

"Uh huh, suuuure," Kristen grinned, "I'm very sure that somewhere there is a Krista cackling…"

"Aaaaaaaand that's our cue to leave." Helios stood from his chair, Ahri with him. He opened the sack, rummaging through its contents and pulling out a gigantic pile of loot. "Rakan, Xayah, Riya, Afi, I believe these are yours. Thanks for tagging along."

"Thanks for letting us," Xayah smiled as she fluffed Afi's feathers.

"No problem. I had fun." He replied. "Rakan, Fabien, we need to have a chat later. I'll see you guys around, alright?"

"See ya around!" Fabien waved.

"Byyyyeeeee!" Riya chirped.

The others waved goodbye as the two of them left the restaurant. Helios called for Zoe to take care of the bag (naturally promising to compensate her with mooncake), and the two resumed their tour of the markets.

Helios sighed with relief. "Gods, I'm glad that's over with. I thought I was going to pass out."

"From embarrassment, or…?" Her tails curled in curiosity. "Personally, I am slightly worried that Krista will take all of that the wrong way," Ahri admitted.

"So am I." He said. "But, knowing her, there's not much we can do about it." He scratched his neck, looking away. "Sorry about...y'know. I was messing around. I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable."

She laughed. "Its fine. Someone else was already trying to cause mischief. Embarrassment is something I can handle."

"Glad to hear it." He smiled. "Between Ariel and Krista, that's going to come in handy."

"Yep…"

"So, about that place selling boots…" she started, eyes bright with excitement.

"I did mention that, didn't I?" He replied. "Well, I've never been one to go back on a promise. Your wish is my command, milady."

He frowned at the crowd ahead of them. "The only problem is that the store's on the other side of the market, and I'm not really in the mood for wading through that."

Helios pondered his options for a moment.

"Got it." He looked at her. "Quick question: vertigo or vomiting?"

"No…- Wait are you going to throw me again?!" she cried.

"Vertigo it is!" He suddenly swept her off her feet, carrying her in his arms.

Ahri blinked, trying to process what exactly was going on. Then she decided not to and threw poor Ariel in control. "WHAT?!"

"Hold on tight!" He squatted down.

Having nothing better to do, the chosen hugged him as tight as she could, in a comical fashion at that.

"AND HERE - WE - GOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Helios yelled, launching off the ground. The pair took off with the force of a rocket, soaring above the throngs of people at a dizzying speed.

"AHRI!" Ariel screeched. "I'M SOOOORRRRRYYYYYY!"

The vastaya elected to remain silent.

Ariel was lucky that she and Ahri had picked a jacket for the day. Despite it being late in the spring, the air was still brisk above the rooftops. The heels and thigh-high shorts didn't do much else to help, unfortunately. Her ears folded in response to the wind, which tore at her clothes and fur. Helios was, naturally, unaffected.

They were going too fast. At this rate, she was going to throw up. And Helios had made it sound like there would only be one option.

Please slow down please slow down please slow down PLEASE SLOW DOWN! They both thought frantically.

And, remarkably, he did.

The wind slowed as their trajectory smoothened. Helios was using his power over gravity to ease their descent. They returned to the ground gently, so much so that Ahri wouldn't have noticed, if she hadn't been paying attention. He had conveniently placed them in front of the shoe store.

"See? You're fine." Helios smiled down at her. "Air Helios takes pride in keeping its passengers safe."

The sun shone down from above him. It painted his face in a brilliant golden light, creating a halo around his features. In that moment, he was every bit as radiant as his status expected him to be. Warmth seemed to radiate from every inch of him.

Ahri's breath hitched.

"You're staring." He said. His smile seemed to glow all the brighter.

The woman sputtered and turned away, a single tail curling around her waist.

"Come on." He said, setting her down. "Let's get inside."

Ahri was grateful that he'd changed the subject. She was feeling a little weak in the knees, and didn't know how much more she could take. What was going on with her?

"Feel free to take anything you like." Helios said, reaching for the doorknob. "I've got more than enough to pay-"

The crack of a rifle punctured his sentence.


"Well, I think I'm done," Sonja smiled, putting her napkin back on the table and folding it neatly, "That was probably one of the best sundaes I've had. I'm definitely bringing Zack here,"

She got to her feet…

CRACK!

Hot fire rifled through her thigh and she went down with a screech of pain, clamping her hand to the wound as a feral rumble made its way from her chest.

"They can't be here...we've done nothing wrong…" she hissed, "They sealed us here!"

Dianne suddenly jumped in front of the woman, extending an arm. "Who are you? Reveal yourself!" Janie and Arthur also took offensive positions, surrounding Sonja, hoping to protect her.

Another shot served as a reply, taking the incarnation of Death through the shoulder.

She hissed, but refused to fall, looking around for the source of her newly blossoming wound.

"Over there," Janie declared, pointing straight at the man.

The armor he was wearing immediately labeled him as a Chosen hunter. A military uniform with dark grey camo, black combat boots and a mask with a tactical visor. He carried a black sniper rifle in his hands, the barrel smoking. He emerged from his perch, strafing along the mall's roof as he unloaded shot after shot. Most were intended for Shyvana and Sonja, but occasionally he would take a potshot at Janie. The rounds were strong enough to put dents in her shield.

The crowd had gone into uproar the second the first shot went off, spiraling downwards into mass panic. People ran, hid and screamed, vacating the courtyard around the restaurant as quickly as possible. Soon, it was only the champions, Chosens and their attacker.

Riya and Afi screamed, hiding behind their parents, Sonja dragged herself under the table, using her food leg to kick it over as a makeshift shield. There hadn't been an incident in years. Not since they had been exiled to Runeterra.

Janie looked to her friends and the two children before rushing out towards the man, holding herself behind her shield. He wasn't going to hurt anyone else on her watch.

The sniper, however, had other plans. Janie's shield could only protect her from the front. From the back, she was completely vulnerable.

She automatically raised her shield when he fired again, but the shot never made contact. Instead, it ricocheted off a lamppost next to her, biting deep into her ankle. She cried out, her leg buckling from under her.

"Janie!" Sonja yelled, attempting to stand but hissing as her wound said otherwise.

"Don't worry about me, Sonja," the chosen called out. Arthur glanced between the two of them before sighing and beginning his own advance.

"You don't know how to deal with this!" Sonja snapped, "What would your sister say if she saw you doing this?"

Janie froze up, slowly turning to Sonja, but paused halfway. "She… wouldn't say anything."

Sonja growled under her breath.

"Nobles being so...noble…" she grumbled, "think of yourselves for once in your lives…"

"She wouldn't say anything, Sonja, because her sister is dead," Dianne murmured.

"If she were alive what would she say, tell me that," Sonja demanded, "I know my Cira wouldn't handle her sibling being put in danger. You three don't know these people. They've hunted us for years, we've learned to adapt. Janie doesn't have the armor that our Cira does. Caleb and Jake spent years improving the Projects so that they couldn't easily hurt them. You see those bullets are making dents in her shield. What do you think it's going to do to her! I don't want anyone to die under my watch!"

She looked up at the sky.

"Where is that Solari when you need her? C'mon Cira, get here already!"

Rakan had thrown a shield around his children, while Xayah plucked a handful of feathers from her cloak. She let them fly, the blades singing a bloodthirsty whistle. Her accuracy was impeccable, but her range was limited, and as a result only one found its mark, stabbing the sniper at the hip. He staggered, but his armor was thick, and he pulled it out with relative ease.

He raised his gun, and unloaded three consecutive shots. Rakan and Fabien were there in an instant, shielding her with their magic.

That had only been a distraction.

Rakan's shield on Riya and Afi had dissipated.

The sniper aimed at them, and his rifle cracked twice.

Rakan only had time to use his own body as a shield, rather than magic. The rounds pierced his collarbone and waist, felling him.

"NO!" Kristen and Xayah both shrieked, eyes blazing blue and amber as she ran to her husband.

The children wailed, unable to do much else but watch as their father fell.

Dianne looked to the woman behind her before, as quickly as she could, moving to Rakan. Upon reaching him, she murmured something under her breath, causing the area to glow with the light of Lamb's Respite.

As soon as the glow faded, a concussive round struck her in the back of her skull. She collapsed in a heap at Riya's feet before her form disappeared, leaving only a small mask in her place.

"Miss Lamb!" She screeched.

"She'll be fine!" Janie called out. She used her shield as a brace, using it to push herself up. She tested her ankle, wincing before slowly moving backwards.

The kids whimpered.

Their mother, meanwhile, was keeping the sniper busy. She slowly led his shots away from the others, keeping his focus entirely on her. Janie pulled Shyvana to her feet while he was distracted. The two of them braced against each other for support, hobbling away from the skirmish.

Xayah buried a trio of feathers in the sniper's leg. The feathers had struck the armor's weakest points, drawing blood. A fourth feather struck him right between the eyes. His mask prevented it from being a lethal blow. He didn't even bother to tear it out, resuming his exchange with the vastaya.

His gaze shifted. He'd seen Janie and Shyvana.

His rifle set its crosshairs on the dragoness's heart.

Xayah's eyes widened. She and her Chosen started towards them, calling out a warning.

She'd fallen for his ruse.

A splotch of red blossomed across her stomach. Her feathers fell from her hands, and she toppled to the ground.

Fabien darted forwards, his magic flaring around his wife in a golden aurora as he hurled a single golden feather at the sniper, it connected and came back to Fabien, glowing with faint green as he placed his bigger hands over his wife's wound.

"Please…" he whispered, "c'mon love, please wake up…"

His hands exploded with crimson. He fell forward against his wife, a bullet hole in each palm.

"Please." The sniper finally said, through a voice modulator. "How stupid do you think I am?" The distortion made his statement audible even from the roof.

"Lucky for you, I couldn't care less if you live or die." He continued. "I've only got one target."

He loaded his last round into the magazine. Shyvana's back was turned. She looked over her shoulder to stare him down, eyes widening with panic.

His trigger finger flexed.

"Well, hi." A voice growled from behind him.

He spun around, but the rifle was already gone from his hands. A blow to the chest knocked him off the roof. He rolled with the impact, but he'd likely broken a few ribs in the process.

Helios jumped off the edge. The ground shattered where he landed, sending debris flying in all directions. Liquid flame dripped from his hands, melting right through the ground where it made contact.

His eyes...the look in his eyes was nothing short of demonic. Even Janie felt a chill crawl up her spine.

The sniper pulled himself to his feet, drawing a handgun from a holster on his waist. He fired, hitting him right next to his heart. He staggered, his shirt stained red.

"Helios!" Shyvana yelled.

But to everyone's shock and amazement, he didn't seem to be bothered by the wound at all. He simply dug into his skin and pulled out the bullet, crushing it between his fingers.

The sniper fired until the magazine was empty. Wounds burst open all over Helios's body, but once again, they failed to faze him. He just advanced, leaving smoldering footsteps in the pavement.

The sniper tossed his gun away, pulling out a knife. When Helios was in range, he lunged, swiping at his neck. Helios stopped his arm with his wrist, delivering a punch to the gut in response. The sniper coughed up blood through his mask.

Helios, surprisingly, appeared to be proficient in hand-to-hand combat. He parried each strike with ease, then replied with a series of sharp jabs and punches. The crack of bone followed each one.

He grabbed the sniper's face, shoving it into his knee. The mask's visor shattered, glass shards slicing into the skin of his face. He took a blind swing, but Helios spun under it, grabbing the knife and plunging it into his hip. He then delivered a kick to the hilt, burying it deeper as the sniper flew across the courtyard, smashing against the restaurant's wall.

"You know, I generally consider myself to be pretty gracious when it comes to forgiving people," Helios said, walking towards him, "but I'm going to have to call today an off day."

He crouched down to meet him at eye-level, resting his arms on his knees. "I can't even begin to describe what I'm feeling right now," he continued, livid. "You've crossed a line nobody's ever had the gall to cross."

"And you know what?" Helios asked. "You crawling out of your hole to send a message wasn't what set me off. Nor was it that you attacked Janie and Dianne, who are both technically on my payroll." He jerked a thumb at both of them, and the numerous injuries they'd sustained.

"Hell, it wasn't even the fact that you did it in front of kids." Riya and Afi were both mortified. They'd been scarred by what they'd seen. It would haunt them for the rest of their lives. "Though, believe me, it came pretty close."

"No, you see, the real reason why I'm going to kill you, you dumbass," Helios placed a hand on the sniper's shoulder, "is because you tried to kill my granddaughter."

His face drained of color.

"Fair warning - this isn't going to be quick."

Helios's hand burst into flames. The sniper immediately swatted at it, but his grip remained firm, digging his fingers into the fabric of his uniform. The material blackened, trailing smoke.

Then he started screaming.

The uniform came off to reveal the blistered skin underneath. It was already a crusty shade of red, shriveling at the god's touch. The sniper thrashed and wailed, but there was no escaping. Helios had given his sentence.

The skin deteriorated into a charred black, and the screaming momentarily stopped. He could no longer feel anything in his arm. But Helios was only getting started. The screams of pain turned to horror as the tissue started melting, bubbling on the surface like tar. It softened until it could no longer remain attached to the socket, and with a sharp tug, Helios pried the arm free.

"Oh, quit whining," Helios sneered, in response to his shrieking. "I've only just begun, so you might as well get used to it."

He grabbed the knife by the blade, still lodged in the sniper's waist. It began to glow red, the wound hissing. "Hurts, doesn't it?" Helios asked, watching him writhe. "Good."

He twisted the blade. The sniper spasmed.

Janie felt like she was going to vomit.

Helios dragged the knife down, widening the cut. The wound sizzled and softened, all the way down to the leg. He grabbed ahold of the thigh, and yanked the sniper's leg off.

He was barely conscious. His throat had gone hoarse.

Helios sighed. "I suppose I'll have to cut this short, then."

He placed both hands on either side of the sniper's head. He rammed them together, and his skull collapsed, turning into a pile of charred mush in between.

Helios let the corpse drop, standing up. He exhaled, wiping the gunk off his pants.

Ahri and Ariel finally caught up to Helios, both in control. "Heli- oh…" the two stared in shock at the remains of the sniper, fearful. The Champion's tails bristled as she slowly looked up at him and realized the amount of damage that had been dealt to him as well. "What…?"

"Oh. Yeah." Helios looked down at his wounds. "It hurts, but I'll be fine. I've had worse."

"What happened here?" she turned to Sonja, then looked at Helios again.

"Sniper. Chosen hunters." He replied. "I dealt with him."

"Why were they here?" she suddenly asked in a panic. "We didn't break any rules, did we?"

"They're getting scared." Helios said. "They don't want us bringing the Barrier down."

"And as you can see, they sent us a message." His expression became pained, as he looked over Rakan and Xayah's wounds. Summoners had finally arrived, and were tending to them with their magic. "I only wish that I'd been here sooner."

"Granddaughter ?" Shyvana started, "Helios...who is she?"

Helios froze.

For a long, tentative moment, he didn't reply. Ahri had a feeling that she already knew the answer.

His shoulders sagged as he exhaled. "When your father was still alive, he used to tell you stories by the fire, as you fled from your mother. How many of them do you remember?"

"Most of them,"

"Do you remember the one about the origin of dragons? Where they came from? How they were created?"

"Barely,"

"They were born of a flame that came directly from the sun, Shyvana." He turned, looking her straight in the eyes. "Directly from me."

She staggered back a step, stunned.

"I'm your granddaughter…" she whispered before fire came into her eyes, "then where were you? Where were you when we were on the run? When I...when I was alone…"

"Shyvana, I-"

A snarl cut him off. She pried herself away from Janie, her wounds already starting to heal. She stormed off, venting smoke from her head and shoulders.

Helios opened his mouth to call after her. No sound would come out. His throat felt dry.

He grit his teeth, hands clenched into fists. He turned around, flames enveloping his body.

"Helios, where are you-"

Ahri never got to finish. He'd already vanished.

"What. Happened," came another voice.

The assembled Chosens turned to face Cira, who was in a more casual dress than her usual armor.

"I come here to pick up a few things, next thing I see is smoke and…" she stopped as she caught sight of the carnage, particularly the body, "who was that…"

Janie winced before limping over to Dianne's mask. She carefully picked it up before responding to her 'sister.' "Sonja called him a chosen hunter."

Cira froze, shaking so hard that her armor, hidden by the projector, rattled. The look of terror and rage in her eyes was unmistakable. After about ten seconds, she seemed to pull herself together before looking at Janie.

"Are you all ok,"

"Dianne will be, I got shot in the ankle, but I have no idea where Arthur went," she replied.

"Sit," Cira ordered, coming to her sister and pointing at a chair, "I can do a quick patch, but you need to get to Jake and Caleb after so they can properly repair you,"

She looked around, scanning to see Arthur, but failing.

"I hope he's ok…"

"I'm sure he is," Janie murmured, clinging to the mask as she carefully sat down. She was quiet for a moment, "Which one is Caleb again?" she asked awkwardly.

"Caleb is Viktor, Jake is Jayce," Cira told her, "I almost bet I know how you got this...Janie, here, they had to modify their bullets so that they do more than just tickle me. I've had to have my armor increased in order to combat that. You could have been killed. I know you want to protect others...but unless you know about your opponent…just, don't do anything stupid, ok? I know I'm not your Cira...but if she were here, I think she'd tell you the exact same thing,"

Janie slowly nodded. "Sonja said the same. I just wanted to keep her safe though."

"I know," Cira said, finishing the patch, "but you're no use to anyone if you fall. Sonja and Shyvana both know that. That's why we don't just run into the middle of a war zone,"

Another nod. "Fine. I won't." She lightly pressed her ankle against the ground before leaning back against the chair. "I wish this didn't hurt so much."

"Little bit of a design flaw in the original model," Cira chuckled, "An Achilles heel if you will, haha,"

She straightened up and looked around.

"Where did Helios go? I could have sworn I caught a glimpse of him,"

"He left. Shyvana, his granddaughter, got mad at him for not being there for her and well… both ended up more than a bit upset." Janie sighed, "To be honest, it happened kinda quickly." She clutched the mask to her chest as she carefully stood up. "I wish I understood a bit better, but I don't want to cause any more tension there than there already is."

"Granddaughter," Cira blinked, "How…"

She shook her head.

"That explains the whole aversion to her," she mused almost to herself.

Cira got up, and scanned over Janie once more before giving a sigh.

"Here's hoping it gets sorted out and soon," Cira said, looping Janie's arm around her shoulders, "c'mon, off to Caleb and Jake you go,"

Cira couldn't shake the feeling that something had gone completely and terribly wrong.

So...that went over well. For what is going to happen in the next chapter? I don't really know. I just know that there might be some feels.

Chosens Used (We Are Warriors)
Leona- Cira Noble (Jonson)

Pantheon-Arthur Jonson

Fiora- Victoria Meraux

Zoe- Vesper Jonson

Xayah- Kristen L'Amour

Rakan-Fabien L'Amour

Kindred-Dianne Faye (Diamond)

Kalista-Krista Rhon

Ahri-Ariel Royal

Camille-Vivian Vauclain

LeBlanc-Ana Testarosa

Lee Sin- Chao Long

Shyvana-Sonja Chadayev

Viktor-Caleb Thompkins

Jayce- Jake Reagan

Chosens Used (We Are Chosen)

Kindred-Dianne Faye

Lucian-Arthur Jonson (Senna-Cira Noble)

Leona-Janie Noble

...And then there are Helios and Selene.

Anyway, hope you liked it. If you did, please let me know!

Qui vállë tóquetë, ván tecë (If no review comes from y'all; no story comes from me)

Máriessë ar mára tecië

Farewell and fair writing

Elhini Prime signing off.