Chapter 12: Winds of the Hurricane

Something woke Yasuo. For several moments, he lay in bed, blinking away the sleep that clung to him. His mind was foggy, and dimly, he wondered what had awakened him. He looked around with his eyes from where he lay prone. The room was still dark, and the open window squeaked quietly in the night breeze.

He froze. I didn't open the window.

It was as if a lightning bolt had struck him; all traces of drowsiness vanished like the wind, and his senses were instantly on high alert. Keeping his breathing as level as he could, Yasuo looked motionlessly around the room for any intruders. And then he saw what had awoken him.

It was a dark shape, more a shadow than anything, which stood over his bed. As far as he could tell, the figure had its back to him and was looking quietly around the room. Yasuo's hand tightened at his side, wrapping around the handle of his blade, which he had fallen asleep holding. The figure continued to look around the room, squatting down while it inspected the room.

The figure seemed horribly misshapen, with a back that was large and malformed. As silently as he could, Yasuo swung his legs over the bed, drawing his sword.

At the sound of the sliding steel, the figure turned. But it was not fast enough. Yasuo swung, the blade singing through the air towards the figure's face. With an almost preternatural reaction, it threw itself to one side, narrowly avoiding the sharp edge of the sword. Yasuo lost no time in standing, planting his foot on the fallen figures side and leveling his blade at its face.

"Don't move," he growled. Keeping his blade firmly at the figures throat, he lit the bedside lamp with one hand. A dim light filled the room as the candle sputtered to life. By the pale light of the candle, Yasuo looked at the intruder.

A fearful face looked up at him, thin and gaunt, with a trace of dirty stubble. He seemed to be somewhat young, but in the dim light, Yasuo could not tell. He had a dark band of cloth wrapped around his face, completely obscuring his right eye. His dark blond hair was dirty, and pulled into a ponytail that looked like a snake, coiled and ready to strike. In the back of his mind, Yasuo registered him as the one who had watched him as he left the Bent Knife Inn.

"Don't hurt me!" he said, raising his right hand in pleading. He tried to sit up, but Yasuo pressed his blade to his neck.

"I said, don't move."

The young man swallowed, watching the sword apprehensively.

"Who the hell are you and why do you want to kill me?"

"My name- my name is Lizard, and-," he began quickly.

"'Lizard'?" said Yasuo, cutting him off, "What kind of a name is that? Is that the one you were given, or one you gave yourself?"

"It's- it's the name I go by now."

Yasuo snorted. Lizard, indeed. Using his sword to prompt Lizard, he forced him into a sitting position, his back firmly against the wall.

"So. Now I know your name. Tell me: why did you want to kill me?"

"I didn't want to kill you! I mean, I still don't!"

"Then what are you doing?"

"I was looking for you. I've been looking all yesterday and now I've found you. Listen, we don't have much tim-," he spoke quickly and urgently.

"Wait, wait, hold on. You were looking for me? Why?"

"I'm a bounty hunter, but-,"

"So you were trying to kill me."

"No! Will you listen? Yes, I'm a bounty hunter, but I'm not hunting you! I've been on the trail of that group of bounty hunters that you ran into yesterday."

"A bounty hunter who kills bounty hunters? Sounds suspicious."

"Well, bounty hunters aren't exactly the best of people. Most, if not all of them, are just as bad as the people they hunt down. But that's not the point. What's important is that you listen to me."

Yasuo remained silent for a moment, contemplating. Although he had no reason to trust this man, he had no reason to distrust him. Other than the fact that he had tried to kill him, of course. Besides, he had his sword tightly trained on the man. If he tried to attack him, Yasuo would have the immediate advantage.

"Fine. I'll listen to you. But if you try anything funny, I will end you."

The man's face flooded with relief. "Don't worry, I won't. Like I said, we don't have much time. That group of bounty hunters you ran into yesterday, they mean trouble. Their leader, the guy with the tattoos, was a former Noxian commander who never got the gall to man up and go back to Noxus. His name's Bakh, and he's mean. I've been on his trail, since he's wanted for a whole lot more murders than those he's collected bounties on."

"So why does this matter?"

"He's going to kill him! The guy you were travelling with! He's going to find him and kill him!"

Yasuo felt as though someone had run ice water down his spine.

"What did you say?"

"Bakh means to find that man, and he means to kill him. That's what he does whenever someone crosses him! I was looking for you all yesterday because I wanted to warn you. I was asking around until someone told me that you looked for a room here."

"And how did you plan to find me? Wait until I woke up?"

Lizard cleared his throat. "Uh… No. That's why I broke in here. If I waited until morning… I don't think he'd have much of a chance."

"So your plan was to break into my room in the middle of night? And hope that I wouldn't try to kill you? What kind of a plan is that?"

Lizard looked at his knees, his expression meek. "In retrospect… not a very good one. But it was all I could think of. Listen, I know you might not trust me, but you have to believe me. I have my own reasons for wanting to hunt down Bakh. If I can save a life in the process, then all the better."

"Huh. A considerate bounty hunter. How do I know you're not with them, and are just using me to find out where he lives? How do I know you don't plan to kill me the moment I show you?"

"Please, you have to trust me."

Yasuo watched him for a moment more, debating with himself. I am willing to potentially place Toru's life in danger for this man? Can I trust him – or myself? What if he's telling the truth and something happens?

He wrestled with himself internally, gnashing his teeth. He would have to trust this man. He would rather risk having to fight this man than place his friend in danger. If the worst came, he would have to duel him. Decided at last, Yasuo knelt down, meeting the man's eyes levelly. When he spoke, his voice was low and dangerous. "If you're lying, know this: I don't care where you are, or how fast you run, I will find you."

Lizard nodded quickly. "No problem," he said nervously. Yasuo kept his gaze on him for several more moments before he stood. Sheathing his sword, he held out a hand to Lizard. The man took it, pulling himself to his feet.

"How long ago did you see them?" he asked curtly. If what this man said was true, he was not going to risk wasting any time. Every minute meant a greater risk of Toru being placed in danger. And if this man was lying, there would be no backlash in going to make sure Toru was alright.

Lizard stood, rolling his shoulders. Yasuo noticed that it was not his back that was deformed; he carried a large bag slung over his back – the one he had seen him with in the Bent Knife. Lizard's clothes were worn to say the least. He wore a faded vest held together with what looked like twine, and a pair of torn pants that scarcely reached down to his ankles. He had on a cloak that only served to cover the left side of his body, so that Yasuo could see neither his left arm nor the left side of his torso. He could, however, see the sword that hung from his right hip.

"Late last night. If I had to guess, about 3 or 4 hours ago. Maybe even 2, I don't know. I lost track of time."

"We had better get moving then. That's not enough time at all."