A/N: Things get fun here. Not much to say until later.

Chapter 9

Security

05.07.24CLE

Eyes blinked as the counselor and her escort of roughly ten summoners and descended the stairs into the lower Institute. Her heart thumped nervously in her chest over the click of her shoes against the stone. What she was about to do could accurately be described as incredibly stupid, suicidal, insane, and a number of other things needless to say she wasn't the only one that was worried. And as she ducked the doorway into the lower hall and spotted her Tour Guide.

"Welcome High Councilor." Thresh nodded at her, "Summoners." Vessaria gulped audibly, electing a chuckle. "Relax." his shoulder blades pressed against the stone wall as he regarded the approaching summoners excitedly.

"Shall we begin?" she asked.

"Councilor if I may speak freely." Church said, giving both Vessaria and Thresh pause. She glanced at the specter then to the woman next to him. She barely reached to his upper arm. "You're being.. for lack of a better word, retarded."

A scowl. "Noted."

"Please don't be stupid Vessaria." Church pleaded, Thresh crossed his arms as she attempted to ruin his fun.

"You have my word Councilor, I will return you in one piece." Thresh said, grinning.

"How much is your word really worth?" Churches arms crossed spectically.

Thresh practically burst into giggles, a sound much more unnerving then anyone expected it would be. "Well I suppose you could dispose of me if I didn't. I don't think harming her is worth the loss of my collection, wouldn't you agree?" he said soothingly.

"... So how does this work?" Vessaria tinitively askes. Thresh smiled down at her in a manner that makes the Counselor enormously uncomfortable.

"Simple, Just stand in the doorway. I'll do the rest." Vessaria nodded, biting her lip as she produced the rooms key with a glimmer and slid it into the lock that held back what could be the last thing she ever saw. The door swung open. The room beyond was nearly black, all but for a sickly green glow at its center. The room around it was alight with runes who's magical glimmer had no effect on the surrounding darkness, piercing but not illuminating, an odd effect unique to constraining enchantments. And as Thresh glanced at her unnervingly and strode inside, Click, click, She swallowed only to find her throat was dry.

Heads peaked inside the doorframes as he knelt down, his left hand sitting over the lantern. Suddenly the room exploded in light, wailing echoed endlessly throughout the stone chamber. Vessaria clapped her hands over her ears as it poured out into the hallway. "Shhh~" without lips it was impressive Thresh could even make such a sound though it was likely he talked through magical means anyways. Orbs of toxic green drifted nonsensically around the room all bound by a tiny strand of ghostly light leading back to the lantern. "Hmmm." he removed his hand, rubbing his chin before panning around with his head. The Counselor lowered her hands and the souls seemed to obey and fall nearly silent, whispers could be heard throughout the room. After a moment of looking Thresh reached out and pinched down on the stream of light connecting a soul to the lantern. The soul in question began to pulsate, shrieking. He ignored it. "Hmm no." he muttered and let it go turning to view the other side of the room. His eyeless sockets passed over the stunned summoners as he scanned. "Ahhhahaha~" chuckling he took a single step and snatched at the stream of light. The wailing resumed as he realed it into his hand as if the light were a rope, stepped backward and tapped the top of the lantern with his finger. The room became dark all at once as all but the soul in his hand were inhaled like noodles into the lantern.

Vessaria blinked. He raised the twisting orb of light in his hand to show her. "That one?" she finally asked.

"Yes. I don't care to remember his name. If one could really assign value to a soul his would be worth little. He was a coward and a dog. Heha~ A soul contains memories from life you see, by collecting them I collect all they were, I own that person. They're like books. Of course it varies, old men that live rich and meaningful lives are satisfying. I personally prefer children, kind of rare but there naivety and brightness always leave me in a good mood; once I introduce them to the cruelties of the real world that is. Excuse me I'm getting side tracked." he paused, marching ominously toward the High counselor; hand outstretched. "Touch it, relive his memories." he commanded playfully.

She stiffened her lip and stretched her hand outward. The room vanished, wailing filling her brain as Thresh watched her stiffen like a dead cat and stare into the orb in his hand. "Hold together men! Hold together we can win!" came from her left in Freljordian. How odd, Vessaria herself could not understand the guttural language but here it was clear as day. It clicked. She herself wasn't hearing it, he was. Focusing her resolve she pushed her hand into the soul, her fingers touching the cool metal of Thresh's gauntlet. The room was gone, a swirl of color taking its place, another heart pounded in her ears as the man next to her flash froze with a post modem shriek. Something lunged at her, only stopping against the shield that was raised as she was taken backward off her feet. A howl of pain like nothing she had ever heard echoed over her as an axe was swatted across her vision, swatting the creature away. Blood splattered over her face as she staggered to her feet. "ADVANCE!" echoed back to her as she stood paralyzed, coated in slick ruby liquid and sweat. Figures marched passed her in formation. Then her vision panned and she ran. A sharp pain erupted across her back, she howled in pain, her voice not her own before the feeling in her legs vanished and she was hurled backward by the rogue attacker that had gotten behind the advancing line. She was dizzy, every snowflake blurred as a coldness flooded over her body, then without so much as a whimper everything faded to black.

She gasped and withdrew her hand and stumbled backward from the room. Church caught her as she began to hyperventilate, sweat covering her face as she stared at Thresh with eyes as wide as plates. "I... I just died..."

"Ironic don't you think? That's how it feels on the Fields of Justice as well. You summoners captured it with remarkable realism. What you just saw were the last moments of a nameless Iceborn soldier. This soul is probably one of the oldest I possess, its a shame he's so... Pathetic." Thresh muttered.

"How is it you have that anyways? If the stories are true you're probably about four hundred?" Church asked, pushing Vessaria to her feet where she wobbled but remained without much protest.

"Stories are just stories, summoner~." he teased. "Souls can linger in this world without my help, those of the troubled and guilty will often stick around near the body to be scooped up by things like myself or just fade away. When I found this it had been there for sometime and was rotten, halfway between worlds. What you saw was a blur because of this and sadly I don't possess any others with the information you require."

"Not exactly what I was hoping for but I suppose..." Vessaria trailed off.

"Would you like to see another? I have some good ones in here. I have a king that was assassinated, a few rape victims. Maybe one of mine? I have the wife of a monster hunter." He sighed. "It's like staring in your own theater." Thresh teased, he crumpled the soul up in his hands like a ruined drawing. It stretched in protest before he lazily flicked it over his shoulder as if discarding paper only for the lantern to suck it up.

"I think I've learned what I need to thank you." Vessaria said. Church eyed her carefully, she looked as if she may throw up, her face was pale and she gripped at her stomach dangerously.

"Boring." he shrugged and strolled from the room, towering over the summoners who all seemed to slink backwards a step. He snapped the door shut behind him, the lock clicking into place loudly. "Its been a pleasure, its been a long time sense I've gotten to share my work with anybody. Its kind of a solitary endeavor."

"I have paperwork I need to do." Vessaria said and while this wasn't a lie she had never been happier to be bogged down in forms. She motioned and the summoners hurried from the chamber, leaving Thresh alone. The tapping of the summoner's shoes echoed down the stares to him as an uncontrollable grin lit up his face. He exploded in laughter, doubling over and practically screaming hysteria after them.

" I suppose not everyone is who they say, 'High Councilor Vessaria...' "

- - - 11.07.24CLE

The morning wind whipped the air around the encampment, pulling snow from its home into the sky; but not without whipping what felt like every single flack over his thick eyebrows. Trolls of course were accustomed to this. In fact this troll and never known much else. He stood rigidly at his post, weapon in hand, watching the eastern plain for movement. Rumors of Winter's Claw movements had spread north and their king had ordered a continual look out. The barbarian tribe was a rather constant enemy. Territory between the Trolls and Winter's Claw was always being traded one way or the other, the southern most five miles being the most contested, sometimes switching ownership more then once in a day.

This rumor was odd, as they had a pattern. The Winter's Claw would push a raid, torching a village or catching a convoy from either the Avarosian, the Frostguard or the trolls, loot it for supplies and recruits then leave and sit in there encampment until supplies ran low before doing it again. The southern guard post had been hit less then a month before. A tough fight to say the least. A flat meaty hand was raised to rub a forehead. Thork struggled to remember that fight all together. From what he was told he caught Sejauni's flail with his face and was out cold until they left, all he remembered was the ice blue eyes and a heavy thunk.

Odd they would choose to move again so soon. Trundle had thought this as well and sent out patrols to scour the lands. Sejauni had no preservable reason to mobilize. It was then that Thork was ripped from his pondering by a scent. He sniffed, mucus shifting audibly in front of his flat heavy set face as he licked his lips, running his tongue over the broken tusk that distinguished him from the others. "Ey!" he called.

"Wat!" Gorkg called back to him, a smaller troll with curled tusks and a thin brow of red hair over his eyes. His head was shaved bald, the cost of losing a bet. he spun.

"I smell somethin!" he sniffed again. Gorkg leaned in, his interest peaked.

"Watcha smell!" he called back, he was nasally compared to Thork with a lisp from the size of his tusks. Thork grunted, sniffing again.

"Human for sure, I know that muskyness anywhere." another sniff, "And flowers? Perfume maybe, I don't know."

"The 'ell? Perfume? We're farther from anywhere with perfume then 'ell itself you fat head." he replayed, smirking and setting his fists on his hips.

"My head aint fat you runt, come erh and smell it yourself!"

"You's lying, you just want the attentio- wait."

"See?" Thork glared, slapping his face against hand.

"Yeeh. We better get the boss." Gorkg said, a smile keeping onto his face. Humans meant hunting and hunting meant meat. His stomach growled. From Thork's expression he was thinking the same thing. They smirked at each other and spun, taking off in a run toward the center of the encampment.


Vayne groaned. "What the hell is Anivia doing?! This weather doesn't look clear to me."

"Sense when do you complain about ANYTHING Vayne." Lux shot back. Vayne wrinkled her nose. "Its just wind, relax. If we press on we can be at the dig site by tonight!"

"Im worried about defending ourselves, I knew that I can't hit anything in this. It will just blow all my bolts away." Vayne snapped.

Quinn frowned, her fingers finding her lips to whistle code. "What do you see up there?"

Nothing! A frustrated caw echoed back to her. "We're blind and deaf..." Quinn called to her party. "And this looks like it may be a blizzard coming our way."

"Then we hurry." Riven said, her march quickened to a jog. Her hand shielded her eyes as the weather responded with a gust of freezing wind. She pulled her cloak about herself and pushed onward.

Valor wobbled in the air, the wind caught in his wings in a way he didn't expect. Below him the blurred shapes of the party sat inside a whirlwind of snow. The front extended for a few miles ahead of them, vanishing oddly at there tail. He didn't like it, yellow eyes narrowed. Weather didn't form in straight lines, lines are a creation of man not nature. it didn't fit. And as another gust blew him off to the south he struggled against the air a to reacquire his troop. Below him there was nothing but white. He blinked, cawing down to no reply. He coo'd worriedly, briefly debating diving into the blizzard to find them. Valor decided better of it, he knew Quinn's pace and began to circle toward were he thought they would be.

Riven squinted through the snow. What the hell?! The blizzard just sprung from nowhere in a matter of moments. She was hardly trained to travel through the snow but what she did know is that you could as least feel one coming. It didn't just sprout around you. "STOP!" Wukong yelled, extending his arm, green eyes narrowed as his other hand closed around his staff.

"What is it?" Werhan shouted over the whirling of the wind.

"I smell something." the summoners looked at each other, huddled in there robes that did little to keep out the snow. Riven tightened her fingers on her sword and peered into the vial in front of her.

"What do you smell?" Quinn asked, she copied her party. The bowgun on her hip was raised; Vayne did the same as the group instinctively formed a ring to watch all possible points. There was a pause.

"I'm not sure, it stinks though. Body odor and unwashed clothing." Wukong said calmly, his eyes flicked behind him. The whole group was watching him, he was their eyes now. The only guidance they had. He smiles softly at the responsibility and motioned with his hand. "It could be blown by the wind but I'll try and lead us away from it."

"If that's the case it likely already has our scent." Vayne muttered.

"It doesn't matter, any trolls in this are just as blind as us, we're stumbling around trying to interact with one another." Riven said cooly. Wukong began to walk, slowly. He tucked down into his pink scarf and checked behind himself to make she no one had gotten split off and lost. Everyone was present.

"With any luck we can do this stealthily and avoid anything. Its probably trolls." Quinn said. Riven nodded as did Vayne and the moved on, slowly.

"This way, its fainter here." Wukong called.

"Good job, follow him, we can regain our barings later once Valor can see again." Quinn yelled over a gust that buffeted her roughly. Her arm came up to shield her eyes as they pressed on. Riven turned her eyes worriedly from the scout, only having a split second to register how lucky she was.

"RAAHHHHHHHHHH!" without thinking she ducked the wooden club that nearly took off her head. A troll nine feet in height with a shaven head, red mono brow and curled tusks recovered from his swing and lunged. The party had only just shifted to stance by the time Riven curled around the blow. Her sword bared itself in her hand then with a meaty thunk and howl of pain its blade slammed into the trolls hip. He stumbled, roared and swung at her with his other hand. Riven dove forward over his wrist, between his legs as he made a grasp for her midsection, releasing her sword which sat embedded in his side. He stamped attempting to step on her as she ducked behind him, keeping out of his line of sight. He screamed and whirled around, her sword dislodging from him as he spun to face her. The club was raised over his head, more of a small tree then a weapon. Riven narrowed her eyes, thinking on her feet. She would dive left, scoop up her sword, lunge and ki burst then go for the kill she thought. But just as her plan was about to be put into play the troll caught the combined firepower of two crossbows, a magic gauntlet and four mages square in his back.

He looked over his shoulder, staggering forward as Riven dove for her weapon. He saw her, snatching at the Noxian with his hand which withdrew as Ezreal neatly removed one of his fat fingers with a well placed mystic shot. He winced and lunged after her. Cords of yellow light bit into his lower legs, not immobilizing him but slowing him enough for Riven to avoid the wild swing from his club and snatch up her weapon. She turned on her heel and bravely charged the creature nearly twice her size as he recovered, and swung the weapon back at her. Riven glared, meeting the club with her sword. With a yell from the woman the wooden weapon exploded in his hand as a pulse of green energy blew the snow from the ground in a good five foot circle around her. She straightened the weapon, cocking her shoulder and planted the broken blade in the trolls stomach with a sprinting thrust. He doubled over as she twisted the blade savagely and ripped it loose. He stumbled backward and hit the ground with a crash, the exile standing over his still body with a poisonous look on her face.

"Well done!" was shouted over the blizzard. The voice rung a bell, remarkably clear over the wind. Riven raised her now bloody weapon to guard as did everyone else. There was a thunk of a weapon striking the ground. The blizzard vanished all at once, snow falling to the ground in sudden relaxation. The effect on the expedition was hardly similar as Lux squeaked. Around them sat a ring of trolls all of which bigger then the one it took the full party to bring down. At the head of the ring stood one troll in perticular, his icy club dimming from the blinding glow it had been emiting.

"True ice is pretty neat huh." he teased, stepping from formation Trundle rested the club on his shoulder and eyed Riven whom tensed. "Now then, what the hell are you doing in my land? The League has no business here." he narrowed his eyes, eyeing the summoners and champions, all of which he recognized.

"We're an expedition sent to establish nexuses over the howling abyss to seal away some ancient beings. The High Counselor surely contacted you about our coming." Vayne said.

"She didn't say nothin to me. Probably cause she knew it would just tell me when you're comin. She's not stupid." Trundle said, his blue eyes flicked to his troop, which advanced a step. Riven lowered her weapon to her side and glared at him. He grinned and pointed. "See! She had the right idea, killed a warrior and has a brain, I like you. Put you weapons on the ground humans." Trundle commanded. Vayne and Quinn looked at each other. The night hunter looked as if she was about to explode. She glared so hard at Trundle's smirking form Quinn swore he would melt like a candle. Quinn turned her eyes upward, spotting Valor circling faster then normal. She shook her head at him to discourage any rash action. As much as she hated to admit it they were very heavily out matched and a fight would likely result in all of them dying. But as always Valor would be the answer. Quinn was no stranger to capture and didn't even need to say anything as Valor took off south for help. She smiled at Trundle, earning a raised eyebrow from Lux as she tossed the bowgun in her hand at his feet.

Lux understood, tossing her baton next to it. The two weapons clinked against each other as the rod rolled along the snow. Vayne snarled audibly drawing the crossbow from her back before calming herself with a deep breath and hurling it in front of trundle. She then spent the next thirty seconds struggling to unmount the weapon on her wrist. once that was done a pair of boot knives found their way loose and she clapped her hands before refusing to make another move. Ezreal groaned and tossed the amulet normally mounted in his gauntlet into the expending pile. Riven followed, advancing on the pile and jamming her sword into the earth before backing away. Wukong tossed his staff onto the pile and there was a silence.

"So do we die now?" Vayne asked poisonously. Trundle rubbed his chin.

"Nah, that would be a waste dontcha think?" he asked rhetorically before motioning behind himself. "you are trespassing though so I guess i could just kill and eat you."

"Or you could detain us while you think it over." Quinn said. Lux glanced at her.

"Maybe, lemme think about it." he flicked his eyes to the troll next to them. "Arrest 'em I guess. Throw 'em in the place you throw all the other arrested people." he turned to leave, slouching off, club over shoulder. The trolls in the ring looked at each other, there was some grunting and motion, a few exchanged what looked to be coins. Bets Quinn thought, before a few stepped close.

"Come with uz." Grunted one of the trolls. Riven groaned, slapping her hand against her forehead as one troll with a large sac less then carefully scooped up their weapons as if making a snowball and placed them inside before slinging it over his shoulder. She felt rather naked without her sword and though it was admittedly releaving to not have to carry it around she was still very nervous about being defenseless. The body was left in the snow and ignored as the expedition was herded toward the west.


"So we have a problem." cracked over Vessaria's thoughts.

"God dammit. What happened." the councilor verbally swore, turning heads in the restraint she was currently sitting in.

"Welllll, we're currently being marched through the bowels of a troll prison under Trundle's rule. Its empty but basically we've been captured." Parrash said.

Vessaria practically ignited the table under her fingers. "She'd like the duck." Jarvan said flatly. The waiter glanced at her, bowed and hurried off. He naturally gazed over the white table cloth as a stream of cursing drubbled from her mouth before she slapped her forehead on the tabletop. The restraint around the two was more silent then it had been already. As if The exemplar of Demacia and the High Counselor of League of Legends wasn't enough. Jarvan frowned, their waiter must have been fearing for his life. And though he did a good job he seemed unsure how to react once the counsel began talking to herself.

"So what happened?" he finally asked when she stopped tremblingly.

"Well the expedition has been taken hostage and now Trundle is attempting to extort me." she sighed, laying her face in her hands. Jarvan frowned, noting with a touch of joy that he wasnt bogged down by his armor as he leaned forward.

"I know how that feels, prisoner exchanges in general are just annoying." he comforted; or attempted to. She glared passed her fingers at him, giving pause for thought. "...So should we do this another time?"

"No. im the High Counselor and it still took me a million fucking years to get these reservations. But you're not a champion." she mimiced childishly, causing Jarvan to cock and eyebrow.

"Well what did you tell Trundle?"

"That if he does anything to them he will no longer be male and that I will consider his demands but I need time to set things up." she said.

"And that worked? Did you word it like that?" Jarvan asked, leaning his head on his hand. She gave him a look that could only mean yes and he nodded.

"So what will you do?"

She said nothing, setting her head on her hands thoughtfully. "Im still working on that..." she admitted. Her eyes shifted up. "Give me some ideas." Jarvan smirked at her and glanced out the window to there right.

"Alright."


CLANK! Riven sighed loudly, pressing her back into the stone wall. It was cold, like everything else. And while the freezing temperature was being held at bay by cramming seven people and a large monkey into maybe a four person cell it did little to improve her sour mood. She felt powerless and in reality she really was. They had few options outside of waiting for Valor to get help or for politics to free them or maybe even just dying. She slide into a sitting position, setting her chin on her knees as the troll that had escorted them in grunted and eyed them all. "No escaping you hear? Or I'll eat all your legs."

Quinn cocked an eyebrow. "That's oddly specific ." she said snarkily, equally annoyed at being trapped. He blinked at her before motioning with his thumb over his shoulder at a sign behind him. No escaping or the jailor will eat your legs was scribbed on it in large black letters with a very sad looking face drawn under it.

"Company policy." he grunted, turning to leave. Quinn couldn't help but snort. She put her hands on her hips, looking around at the expedition. Riven sat with a depressed expression in the corner. Vayne paced past the bars like a tiger in a cage and though it was clear she was deep in thought it made her look no less aggressive. Wukong was messing with his scarf. The summoners sat chatting amongst themselves in a rather unworried manner. Lux was surprisingly stoic while Ezreal looked to be rather upset. A silence followed as the terms of there situation came into view.

"GOD FUCKING DAMMIT!" Gideon practically shrieked. "I can't believe this shit! I cant go a fucking week without getting locked in some hell hole." he glared at nothing.

"Shut up." Vayne said flatly.

Gideon whirled around, eyes flashing. "What the fuck!? Look at us!" He motioned into the cell.

She pushed her glasses up on her nose, rubbing her hand over the roundness of her chin. "Yes we appear to be in a bind, I agree with you there." she glanced over the top of her glasses like an irritated librarian. "But you screaming as if you just stepped on a bear trap is not only breaking my concentration but giving me a headache." Vayne said with remarkable flatness. Normally her explosiveness was rather clear to see but in this case she seemed calm and calculating; much the same way she was in a fight.

Gideon glared at her. The expression was returned with double the intensity from Vayne and nearly triple from Riven whom's cool collective was under fire. "So then Nighthunter" he made quotes with his fingers. "What do you plan to do? You clearly have some answer you aren't telling us." Gideon said. Ezreal looked up at her, rubbing the back of his neck.

"For the moment, nothing. Valor surely saw us when Trundle let the blizzard die however so he's going for help I would guess." Vayne said curtly. He crossed her arms, leaning against the bars.

Quinn nodded. "He did, me and him have had this happen before; best to just wait it out." she smiled, glancing around as if inspecting a home. "This actually isnt bad as far as cells go."

Vayne actually smirked at her. Wukong blinked, the idea that Celene had stealthily taken her over somehow crossed his mind and he snickered. The world must be ending. "Really?" the Nighthunter asked.

Quinn smiled, closing her eyes and nodding. "Yeah. This Isn't bad, you should see some of the Noxian ones." she spun, marching to see what could be spotted from the cells tiny bared window. It seemed the prison itself was slightly sunken into the earth, the snow leaked in through the window onto the floor and was well within reach.

Riven looked up, blinked then said. "You spent time in Noxian prisons?" she asked. Her curiosity getting the better of her. Perhaps Celene's nosiness was rubbing off. She smiled grimly to herself.

Quinn shook her head. "No, but I've had to brake people out of prisons in Noxus before. Its easier then you might think. Some of the older cells doors just lift right off. But this is rather Luxarous." she pointed to the window. "We have accessible water." her arm shifted to the corner. "and a bucket. While traveling you normally have neither." Riven nodded in understanding. She had a good point and as the Demacian scout stepped backward into a seating position next to Riven she sighed. "I want my journal though." Riven sighed as well, missing plunty.

"Quinn does this door lift off its hinges like the Noxian ones?" Lux asked from the other side of the room.

"No." Quinn shook her head. "The hindges are angled inward not up, you would need a pry of some kind to get it loose. Come to think of it cant the summoners just teleport us out?"

Parrish snorted. "No, that's some pretty advanced stuff, only Councilors and prodigies can do that kind of shit. I did contact Vessaria already however. She can't really pin point were we are exactly, teleportation magic requires a mental image to be formed so teleporting someone from somewhere else to you without somehow seeing them is very dangerous." the summoner sighed. "She doesn't want to risk our lives and according to her Trundle has made a ransom of some kind and shes working on it." Parrish looked up. "She would prefer us to just escape however."

"Well that's a obvious goal, but I like having legs so lets do it without getting caught shall we?" Lux said brightly. "If one of us could get out maybe we can get the key that the warden had." she smiled at Ezreal.

The explorer sighed loudly. "I can't do anything... without that amulet I'm just a normal guy... I don't actually know any magic myself." he muttered. Gideon wrinkled his nose at the blond.

"You guys are so useless... there are nine of us in here and no one can do anything?" he snapped. Vayne snuck a look at him, cocked eyebrows filled the cell.

"Well the point of prisons is to keep people from escaping them." Wales spoke up.

"THERE ARE FOUR MAGES IN HERE!" he glared. "None of you can melt us out!? Or cook the warden next time he shows up and take his key? Im just throwing ideas here." the summoners looked at each other.

"The question isn't whether of not we can, its is it smart to that in a guarded prison in the middle of a militaristic encampment when we have no weapons or supplies." Lux said rather aggressively. "I'm a spy, what you're suggesting is silly. Yes, we could get out. They would just kill us." Lux glared bright blue at the painter.

"You're joking..." he eyed her stunned before turning to look at each member of the party in particular.

"Oi!" was called from the other room. "Shut you food holes." the warden sauntered into view. "I hear you first off." He slurred. "You." he pointed to Gideon with a finger as thick as Riven's upper thigh. "Idea man, boss wants to talk to you. I don't know why but you come with me. Or I'll eat your legs." Gideon crossed his arms and glared.

"Fine.." he spat. The lock clicked. The warden eyed the mages as he reached into the cell as if it were a hamster cage and pulled Gideon out by his arm with remarkable ease before slamming the door again. He snuffled, whipping his nose with his finger before dragging Gideon from the room.

"Hmm." The ponderous sound left Vayne as she began to pace once again. "That complicates things a little bit."


Gideon tugged at the hand that encased his arm like a meaty cuff as he was dragged along through the encampment. The camp itself was nothing special, mostly wood with hide roofing and abnormally large structures to house its large populace. Where the warden was taking him he did not know. But they passed some familiar land marks. The long hall being the most notible and as the warden pushed the doors open Gideon eyed it to find it empty, all but for two people.

"I dont understand what it is you need him for Lissandra." Trundle grunted. He was hardly complaining about the frostguard leader and secret envoy of the watcher releaving him of an annoying human but the Troll King also did not like secrets in his presence. She knew this and despite her status she was on his side after all; or more accurately he was on hers. This admittedly made the Witch a bit more respectful of his situation, he was an ally after all and she needed allies as did he.

"I'm just taking a few precautions. The last thing I want right now is a surprise." she smiled. Lissandra in a more recognizable form sported the same braided white hair. Her face was angled with sharp eyes, a warm looking fur sat across her shoulders to sheild her from the elements. "Good timing. Leave us." she ordered. The warden recognized her, bowed before lazily tossing Gideon several feet and sauntering from the room.

"Precautions? For what?" she smirked at Trundle, advancing across the room on Gideon. He shrugged and followed her, just encase the prisoner tried anything funny. Gideon glared, pulling himself to his feet with the assistance of the table.

"Whats this all about? I know you. You're the Frostguard Queen, what are you doing consorting with the likes of him?" Gideon pointed to Trundle as Lissandra closed. She ignored the question.

"The unknown, Trundle." her hand raised, frost creeping up her digits. Gideon took a step backward as a deep blue crystal formed at her fingertips. Trundle watched closely as she closed, eyes flicked over the young man in front of her. "Thank you for alerting me to this little envoy into my business." she called across the room. Trundle nodded.

"I figured you might have a better idea about what to do with them."

A hand shot out, cutting off Gideon's access to oxygen. She was incredibly strong for her size. Her skin was cold as ice water. With a simple motion Gideon was easily pushed to his knees, his hands clutching her wrist in an attempt to free himself. Choking filled the hall as she answered. "Well I can't deal with them here or the League will respond, I need to wait. I say this because you will play a role in this as well." the pressed the crystal against Gideon's forehead. With what little air was left in his lung he shrieked in pain, scrambling to escape. She pushed her assault, not letting him go.

"What about him?"

"Well, he'll be keeping an eye on them for me and probably join my cause once there is no more need of him." the crystal had melted against his skin. Lissandra let him go, clapping her hands together and spinning on her heel. "Ruff him up a bit so it looks like we interrogated him." she said as Gideon staggered to his feet with the help of the table next to him. His head was pounding but other then that he felt no different.

"What stops him from just telling his companions?" Trundle asked as he marched across the room with long steps.

Lissandra smirked devilishly, her eyes flicked left to the troll then forward to the man in front of her. "He wont remember a thing, don't worry about that." she snapped her fingers. Gideon felt, briefly, as if his head would split open and toppled to the ground, unconscious.

- - - 12.07.24CLE

the door opened with a clang and Gideon was lazily tossed into the cell. His body limp and his face bloody as he rolled to a stop along the floor. Lux gasped as the Warden shrugged, grunted and closed the door before turning to leave. Parrash was on her feet before he left the hall, her hands resting on Gideon's cheeks. The familiar buzz and green glow of healing magic filled the cell as she began to work away at the cuts and bruises that now covered his face as well as any brain damage that might be there.

"So it appears they'll just interrogate us one by one." Vayne said calmly. "Nobody say a word, no matter what they do."

"Whats to say he didn't already tell them everything?" Lux spoke up. "If that's the case what do we do should they try to confirm anything. We aren't here on any hostile business. This shouldn't be happening."

"He may have just gotten beaten up because he was being a dumbass again." Wales remarked snidely.

Vayne spun, regarding Lux calmly. "But it is. The world I full of injustice and all we can do is cope with it." she muttered. A keen eye could see that the Nighthunter was hardly calm, in fact she was rather the opposite. She shook from anger rather then fear, the same emotion that drove her to do what she did. Maybe if the people capable of things like this didn't exist no one would suffer; an overwhelming task she was currently unequipped to preform. admittedly it was frustrating but Vayne also doubted that as much as she wanted to just go on a killing spree it wasn't a good idea for a number of reasons.

"Tether up the high councilor." Riven ordered from the other side of the room. Wales nodded. The Exile sighed, she felt trapped with no way out. No guilty comforts that though she didn't want to admit it she had grown accustom to one person's presence. Without her weapon she felt weak and unsafe and without her friend, if she could call her that at this point, she felt uneasy. The world suddenly seemed much more... real. Riven smirked. Celene was a catalyst for the fake? Or the time with her was the first in which Riven had felt truly safe? She didn't know and honestly if she did Riven doubted her ability to express anything properly. Celene had been the leader and she the follower.

"Riven are you okay?" Quinn asked, worried.

NOO! "Hughh, yes im fine." Im being a child. She thought to herself. A memory sprung forth. The Ionian in question sat cross legged in front of her door. She had seen her the day before but not thought much of it, maybe she was a mage under Irelia's command. Maybe she was a rogue of some kind Riven was unable to deduce. But with the woman patiently waiting for her to leave her room so she could speak to her she had told herself that SAME thing. The amount of attachment to her was staggering. Was how she felt right now really how she had felt her whole life? Am I spoiled? Am I enlightened? Riven shook her head, this was not the time for such introspective thought. She should be focusing on other things like freeing herself and her party.

"Oi! The 'ell you doin here!" was called from the other room. Riven looked up, jared from her wardens deep voice echoed down the hall into the cell before a high pitched voice, also belonging to a troll.

"Kings orders boss. Trundle wants the next prisoner for interrogation." the second, unknown troll called back. He sounded smaller then the warden, his voice nasualy and grating unlike the deep thunderousness of Trundle or the lisp of the warden making him sound like a drunken lower city Noxian.

"The 'ell? He had me get the last one, I've only been here a few minutes." The warden protested.

"I got promoted, he said something about maybe one of 'em tryin somethin funny and wanting you to keep an eye on 'em." The second responded.

There was a ponderous silence. "Well fine then, come on. Lemme open 'da box up for you." the thump of a heavy footstep. A few more and the warden sank into veiw. Behind him was a smaller troll, dirtyied black hair topped his head with a thick black scar running over his brow to his chin across the left side of his face. The scar had been peiced, lined with silver rings. His right tusk was snapped loose at the jaw, giving his face a lopsided but intimidating look. Blue eyes topped it off. They flicked to each member in the cell, starting with Quinn. His eyes lingered on Riven for a moment longer then the others before he finished his scan, smirking fiendishly as the Warden fumbled with his keyring.

"Which one?" the warden grumbled. Oddly the other troll seemed to take a moment to think before smirking and pointing to Riven.

"That one, the woman with the white hair." Luckily enough for Riven she was in the cells very far back corner and though her heart quickened by several paces as the lock clicked and the door swung open she proved an issue. The warden attempted to reach her from the door, his long arm falling short but a few feet as he grabbed for her right arm. Riven instinctively pressed her back against the stone, half looking at the rest of her party for help. She felt like a mouse in a cage. The warden grumbled under his breath and leaned his head inside the cell to give him the reach he needed.

What happened next was the last thing Riven; or anyone for that matter was expecting. The second troll, gripped the cell door and with a grunt slammed it as hard as he could on the Warden's head. There was an echoing clank throughout the whole prison as the door meet bone and wobbled on its hindges.

"Oi!" the warden exclaim. "the 'ell was that for?!" he barked, looking over his shoulder. The other troll blinked, gears turning briefly before he realized that somehow he still had the element of surprise. With another grunt the door was slammed again. This time he threw his weight into it. Riven practically exploded in joy. Blue threads burst from the second trolls back, entangling the wardens head and left shoulder. With a crack his head twisted at an odd angle and he slumped to the floor silently. The second stood, stoically over him before glancing up. His face parted into a familiar smirk.

"Holy fuck Celene!" Werhan yelled in excitement, running from Gideon's prone form to the bars. "I was not expecting that."

"Sneaky, I like it!" Wukong said loudly.

"Shhh!" a meaty finger covered her lips.

"I suppose that solves our freedom problem, what about the army of trolls surrounding us?" Vayne asked curtly.

"Well I wrote up a circle outside in the snow outside before showing up." she pulled the wardens body out of the way and pushed the now bent door open with her new hand. "I flew to the dig site with Anivia and met Ezreal's uncle." she sighed. "weird guy but very fun. That place is huge, big enough to house a whole mess of miners and such. He was nice enough to let me ditch all your weapons there. Walking around with big sac doesn't work for a disguise."

"I can understand that. Very impressive though, I had no idea it was you." Lux said. She looked around. "Lets get out of here before someone shows up?" everyone nodded in agreement. Celene reached into the cell and scooped up Gideon with ease. Everyone filed from the cell into the hall. Riven stood on her guard. Her friends new form was hardly something out the the realm of imagination but it still was a bit jaring.

"What about him?" Vayne asked, gesturing to Celene.

She thought for a moment as they marched stealthily from the hall into the open room with the wardens stool. "Well I pushed my body through the ring when after I took over this unlucky fellow. Maybe we can leave him in the dust with another lucient singularity trick? Can you cast that without your baton Lux?"

Lux smirked and put her hands on her hips. "Are you joking? Yes I can cast it without my baton you goof."

"Good" Celene poked her head out the door and peered around.

"Watcha doin in there looking all sneaky like." Quinn cursed under her breath but before she could do much else the troll was thrown over her head into the room with a crash. Celene then scooped Riven up by her backside and tossed her through the gateway that sat on the snow just outside the door. She then grabbed Quinn and did the same. A moment later Vayne's flailing form was picked up by her midsection and tossed through as well. Wales got the message and dove through on his own, as did the other two summoners and Ezreal. Gideon was tossed in, Celene silently hoped no one landed on their head. She stepped though, leaving Lux in the doorway alone.

Behind her the troll groaned and staggered to his feet. He looked up at Lux to see nothing. She smirked at him as she warped the light around herself. A skill she had to work on not using by mistake rather then perfecting. Invisibility was her key strength when it came to spying and though the summoners simply did not allow her to use it on the fields it proved useful as always on her own time. Marching around the institute invisible was rather amusing. She could act herself so long as no one heard her anyways.

"Waah?" the troll muttered, looking around for what had thrown him on his face. There was a yell behind the Demacian. The troll Celene had been inhabiting stumbled from the cycle. He looked around, very confused as Lux made a circular motion with her hand. Her fingers twisted themselves into an odd shape and she snapped before swinging her arm as if throwing a baseball. The twisting orb of light stuck to the ground at the trolls feet. Lux was now visible, standing in the doorway. And though both trolls had no idea what was going on they both knew she shouldn't be there.

"Eat her legs!" They both howled and charged her from there respective sides. Lux pushed off the doorframe, hopped, then dove for the circle. The trolls collided with each other with a meaty thunk as Lux vanished through the ring.

Her face slammed onto Wukongs furry back as she dove through. She tumbled to her left, ending up on her back, looking up at a wooden ceiling. "Smooth." Ezreal teased, extending his hand. Lux grinned and grasped it as he hauled her to her feet. Her nose now hurt but it was hardly the worst thing that could have happened. She looked around. They wooden hallway. Behind them an odd circular pattern was etched into the wood with some manner of knife.

"So how did you find us?" Quinn asked, getting to her feet. The hall was lined with doors, similar to the Institute though much smaller to her left was a sack full of what she guessed was there weapons. Vayne was hurriedly rummaging through it. As Celene spun on the scout in the form Quinn had groan accustom to. She grinned brightly. "Valor! He tracked me down after seeing you get captured. I guess he figured I'd think ahead and he just flew here and found me, I followed him back, landed and took that guy over, found your weapons then broke you out. He should be getting back here soon, I told him what I was going to do." Quinn nodded. She couldn't help but grin in relief. Feather head saves the day once again. She thought.

"Sorry if I scared you." Celene said emphatically to Riven whom was rummaging through the sack next to Vayne. Not that the weapon was hard to find amongst the others; it was just at the very bottom, buried.

The Exile smirked to herself. "I've grown accustomed to it." that statement earned her one of the most honest and flirtatious smiles she had ever seen. It was brief and quickly followed by a pensive expression, only existing long enough for Riven to catch. If that was intended she did not know. Stop staring. She's staring to. A smile snuck its way onto the Ionians face as thought played out mischievously behind her eyes. Celene blinked, losing the contest and turning away. With a smile she motioned Riven to follow.

"Gramps!" Ezreal called. A sound followed, a sound only an old man could make. A clang and a barrage of beeps echoed down the hall. Celene snorted as Riven and Quinn both made the same expression, eyebrows cocking questionly.

"BLAST IT! Confounded fuzzy balls of nightmarish white fffffflll-FUCK!" Lux blinked. Less then a second later what looked like a walking snowball the size of Celene's head came charging around the corner, it squeaked adorably in distress as an old man in a long brown coat with an assembly of lenses over his eyes brandishing a broom rounded the corner after the furry animal. He stamped his foot and hurled the broom at the little animal as it took cover behind the sack that at one point housed all the parties weapons. He blinked, squinted at each of them in turn. "the hell are you all doing here? Ezreal?! Why is there a giant monkey in my dig site?" he asked.

"Remember me?" Celene teased. "I said I was going to grab the rest of our party."

"...Kinda? Who are you?" he asked rubbing his forehead and peering at her as if looking through a keyhole.

Celene cracked a smirk and laughed. "Celene." she stated.

"Ohhh." he giggled to himself, "Excuse me young lady I don't see too well anymore, you just look like a smaller then advage blob of color." he grinned. She grinned in return. Young. "My name is Jeffrey Lyte, but just call me Grandpa or 'Gramps'. This tiny person explained everything to me. You can use the old crew quarters if you like. Hopefully you have your own bedding." he turned. "Now if you'll excuse me I need to scrounge up something to cook. Ezreal come help me will you?" Ezreal fitted the amulet back into his gauntlet, grinned and hopped to his feet.

"Gramps why do you need to find food? Don't you just have food?" Ezreal asked.

"Ahh well its hard to get out here believe it or not. I get by selling some of the neat stuff I find to anyone that shows up. Sometimes frostguard people or trolls come by and I just pass them some old junk weapons or whatever I happen to find in exchange for supplies. Doesnt help now that the shipments from Piltover stopped..." he grumbled. Ezreal frowned at him. "Say why dont you get a job, you could help me here!"

"Gramps I actually have a job, I work at the League." Ezreal smirked.

Lyte waved his hand dismissively at him. "Do they pay ye?" he asked annoyed.

"Yes actually, free food and housing also." Ezreal shot back.

"Bah!" Lyte then sighed. "Do any of your friends know how to cook? I cook like crap."

"So it runs in the family." Lux teased, jugging up to Ezreal's side.

"EZREAL!" Lyte whirled around, Ezreal flinched, shrinking somewhat as the old man towered over the two. "How dare you expose this nice young lady to our flawed genetics!" he scolded. Lux burst into annoying laughter, causing him to flinch in return and take a step backward.

"Luxanna Crownguard." Lux bowed in a very Demacian fashion, grinning brightly. She seemed to shimmer unnaturally in the late afternoon sun. "I actually was forced into some cooking classes before I joined the military. Wukong, wanna learn how to cook? Maybe I can teach you two dopes something as well." Ezreal and Lyte looked at each other in an identical manner. And as Wukong hurried after them, excited they turned the corner out of sight. The remaining party was left in silence.

"Celene, what the hell is that?" Werhan asked, poking his fingertip against the forehead of the fuzzy white animal that sat in her arms.

"Isn't it cute? Its a Poro. I think it looks like Riven personally." Werhan snorted as Riven leaned in rather confused. Celene turned the creature in her hands, holding it up next to Riven's head for the group to compare. It shared color with her hair to an unnerving level, its yellow eyes though a different shape were similar in color and disregarding the small horns and panting doglike tongue it was unnervingly similar in looks to the Exile. "See?" Celene squeaked and shook the animal excitedly. Riven smirked, seeing the comparison.

Wales eyed the comparison before exploding in laughter. "Holy shit!" he doubled over, causing Riven to scowl and scoop the creature up while Quinn forced her giggles away with help of her hand.

"We should go help them." Riven attempted to reset the focus of attention away from her. Quinn finally lost control and began to snicker, following the now migrating summoners to spare Riven any embarrassment. Vayne rolled her eyes at there childishness, looked out the window to her left to see the sun low in the sky and sighed.

"We will begin with our mission first thing tomorrow, then we can go back to the Institute." she marched a pace ahead of everyone else, following the trail of muddy bootprints left by Ezreal; leaving Celene and Riven alone.

The Ionian's expression curled as the footsteps became fainter. Turning to Riven she shot off an honest smile. "You okay?" she asked.

"Why are you worrying? I'm fine." Riven retorted, her tone was somewhat harsh but the smile on her face eased it somewhat allowing Celene to not be upset.

"I can see that. I'm just gauging how much you missed me." she shot back. There was a silence, broken only by the cat-like pouring the poro emitted from Riven's arms.

Stop staring. The voice in the back of Riven's brain piped up.

"No it's fine." Celene said, smirking. Riven blinked, her jaw slackening a little bit, earning a giggle. Celene then advanced a step. Riven matched her in reverse, taking a step backward away; doing the same once again when Celene advanced another. "You're eventually going to run out of hallway." Celene teased, her voice lower in volume then it normally was. Riven, blinked, smirked then shoved the poro into the Ionian's face. It squeaked in protest as she released it into Celene's hands.

"Lets go get something to eat, I haven't had anything to today because of the stupid trolls." Riven said, she was smiling. Somewhat rare of her. Her face naturally assumed more of a sad, pensive expression devoid of much in the way of emotion. This expression was warm and happy. Celene decided saying something might make it go away and instead nodded and began to follow as Riven turned to march after the party. Celene let out the breath she had been holding. The weight that had sat on her heart sense she was made away of the parties capture lifting slowly. She sighed, smiling. Anivia's right I guess. Celene thought to herself as Riven turned the corner, sneaking a look over her shoulder to see if she was still being followed; indeed she was and now she somehow felt more secure.

A/N: Poros and fluff. Just to warn everyone. The lemon is in the next chapter. I'll change the rating to M at that point. I hope everyone is as excited as I am. Its been about 130000 words in the making and took me some weeks to write it.