Disclaimer: I do not own anything in this story but for my own ideas. All rights and reserve goes to Riot Games because they are awesome. :)
Right before we go into the chapter, some reviews have been placed and as my job and pride as a writer. I MUST RESPOND.
Neo: Oh they will ;D
Tiderider: Thanks and my writing is nothing special but I appreciate it. Also, your vote for Ahri and Sona has been added.
Guardian-v: You that one vote bro XD and yes adding Diana into this would be a bit confusing to the readers.
Guest: Another one for team Katarina and Ashe down. That little section that I had for Jayce and Heimer was a little something that I just randomly thought of XD.
Without further ado, let's read shall we?
-X-
"Don't move or we'll shoot!" The men in suits ordered as they formed a tighter circle around Q with their guns ready to fire, "This is your final warning sir!"
Q didn't answer or comply as he merely willed his ki into his hands before slamming them into the ground and yelled, "Earth Form: Subterranean Shock!"
The ground shook violently as his energy surged into the earth and shook it. Pebbles danced on top of rocks and leaves fell down from the trees as they shook with their home. The chirping of birds intensified as a flock of them escaped from the trees as well as scurrying squirrels running away from their holes.
The men's knees wobbled as they tried to adapt to the phenomenon that was happening and Q took it as an opening before knocking out two on each of his side with a ki empowered punch to the solar plexus that left them out of breath as they flew back a few feet and fell to the ground unconscious.
He took one step forward as the gunman took aim at his temple and let loosed a single round that barely grazed him before hitting the dirt. The Ionian brushed aside the weapon with his right hand fluidly before moving in with his left and gave a precise chop to the neck that instantly cause the man's posture to relax and fall to the ground.
Q heard the shifting of grass behind him before doing a huge backflip that landed him on the shoulders of one of the men in suits. The man stayed struggled to keep the balance as Q stood on his shoulders with his hands behind his back while identifying all the enemies.
"4 left." Q said to himself before looking over to Ezreal who was standing in front of three more, "Plus them."
Sensing a suddening incoming presence, Q chopped the man he was standing on with the back of his bare heel that he was for certain cracked the guy's nose judging from the sound before hopping off to dodge a Mystical Shot from Ezreal.
The four remaining men around him instantly surrounded him as they tried to secure him again. Q didn't let that happen as he yanked the rifle from the man that got near him first before batting him in the head with the butt of the gun. He tried to do the same with the guy on his other side but the man held on. Q merely shifted himself toward the man before sending an elbow into his face that left the suited man a bloody mess on his face. Another one down as the last two came at him with battle cries with the butt of their weapons before they swung at him as the ends hit. A small triumphant grin came onto their faces before it was replaced by a pained expression.
Q had thrust a fist deep into both of their guts, knocking the air out of them before they rolled off him and onto the ground in a semi conscious state.
"Well Mr. Q," Ezreal said with his gauntlet still aimed at the Ionian, "Looks like they weren't kidding when they said you were a monster."
"Call me what you want." Q said as he turned around and started towards Ezreal and his men, "But know that you are not leaving here with that statue."
The last three men in suits already had their guns raised and shot a few warning rounds at Q's feet but he was already ahead of them as he tapped into his ki.
"Wind Form: Cloud Explosion!"
A thick cloud of white vapor appeared around Q as the spell finished and enveloped him in cover before it started towards the group.
"Don't fire!" Ezreal shouted as he pushed the aiming barrels to ground, " We need him alive!"
The cloud of engulfed the group completely as the men in suits could barely see in front of them. One of them started to verbally panic before he was slapped above the head by one of his colleagues.
"Can it Simmons!" The leader ordered, "Jack what's your take on this?"
No answer.
"Jack! Where are you?!" The leader said as he raised his gun to the scopes, "Simmons report."
No answer at all.
"Simmons? I swear to god if you're fucking with me." The leader said into the cloud, "Just wait till I- hurk!"
An arm wrapped around his throat as his lungs choked from lack of air before a few seconds passed as he went under in a heavy thud.
Ezreal had long made his way out of the mist with an Arcane Shift and watched the cloud intently for any form of movement. He heard sounds of rustling grass from the mist as the explorer held his ground and waited.
Barely a few seconds passed as the mist dissipated as fast as it appeared to reveal the last of his men on the ground, not moving at all. However, that wasn't the thing that worried him, it was where Q had gone.
Ezreal quickly turned around with his gauntlet charged up and ready to fire to find nothing. He did a complete 360 degree turn but he didn't see the Ionian anywhere.
"Up!" The sudden realization came over him as he looked up while pulling back on the gauntlet and released the charge up into the air.
The projectile hit nothing but open air as it eventually disappeared into the sky.
"Not there then-"
Ezreal was promptly sent flying through the air by a foot to his face. He banged against the metal frame of the helicopter with a loud ding before shaking his head to regain his bearings and looked at Q.
"Leave this place." He said with a solemn look, "And never return."
Ezreal growled at him before looking around and weighing his options. He could actually try to fight him but with all his men down with only the pilot still standing made his chances of beating Q a hell lot lower. He looked around and set his eyes on Noona's statue for a moment before and idea came over to him.
Ezreal started to charge up a bolt of energy as the familiar blue energy bow formed on his gauntlet. Q saw the scene before forming his own projectiles in his hand.
"Mystic Shot!"
"Ki Form: Daggers of Regret!"
The Explorer quickly unloaded an entire clip of energy bolts at Q and the general area around him. Black ki daggers were launched right back at Ezreal with deadly precision as each knife sliced through a Mystical Shot, cutting it in half before it hit the area around him as the ground, trees, and rocks were riddled with burns.
Ezreal got hit by a few daggers on his thighs, side, and shoulder before falling to the ground in pain. It wasn't only the physical pain that sent him to his knees but a sudden foreboding thought appeared that weakened the knees.
Q quickly looked back to see that Noona's statue was unharmed fortunately.
A large amount of energy gathering caught the Ionians attention as he quickly turned to see a bright light gathering in the middle of Ezreal's gauntlet before he looked at the way it was to see the the trail of shot.
Q's eyes followed the path as he was confused as it missed him by quite a bit before he found its target and the sense of cold dread came over him.
"No!" He yelled as the Ionian quickly ran in front of the statue before placing his right palm on the ground, "Earth Form: Stone Guard!"
The ground shifted for a bit and a block of rock rises up halfway before abruptly returning into the mountain.
Q collapsed onto his face as he let out several ragged breaths before trying to push himself up but failed. The fact that he managed to still stand after having no food and little to no water at all these past few days was already crazy enough. But throw in getting shot, stabbed, and sliced? At this point, people would've thought of him as a fucking maniac that wouldn't die or that he wasn't human.
Ezreal managed to get up before taking aim at Q while looking through his gauntlet to aim. If he could take out one of Q's leg then the Explorer could bring him before transporting everything back to Piltover.
He pulled back on the blue energy bow before taking aim at Q's leg. If he hit the statue then he could just blame it on the Ionian and he wouldn't be charged anything.
Suddenly, a small and repetitive clink sound filled the air as Ezreal had a sinking feeling deep inside his gut, as if it was telling that he heard this sound from somewhere before. Shaking away the doubt, blaming it on the weird knives that Q hit him with before aiming at the Ionians leg and arms, his move fully charged.
"True Shot Barra-"
Ezreal almost finished his call before something sharp hooked onto his right side and made him jerk his aim sideways.
The True Shot Barrage went flying up towards the sky and sliced through a few trees, leaving behind a burned cross section of the trunk while the top fell down towards the ground with the leaves scraping the sides of other trees.
Ezreal's hand went to his side before feeling for what had grabbed him and miss the shot. He touched the object while keeping his gaze on the downed Ionian, feeling a bony sort of frame, before his eyes widened at the familiar sight as he looked down. A sickly green glowing bone sickle had latched onto him attached to a similar looking chain. There was only one person that used a hook like this and the Explorer had both the pleasure and displeasure meeting on several occasions.
A bony hand grabbed his neck before slamming Ezreal against the frame so hard that it made a dent in the metal.
"Ack!" Ezreal hacked out as his windpipe was being squeezed by the skeletal hand.
"Let me go Thresh!" Ezreal rasped out while trying to remove death grip on his throat, his legs flailing wildly, "The League has rules for this!"
"I do not care for rules when there is a grave at danger." Thresh said in his spectral voice with his green ghostly flames engulfing his skull, giving him the appearance of a reaper, "Even if the league did come down on me. Do you really think that I'm that much of a fool to let that happen?"
"Hurk!" Ezreal choked out as his face slowly started to turn purple from the lack of oxygen reach his body.
"Hmph." Thresh scoffed before reaching into the Explorer's pouch and retrieved a single health potion. He examined it for a few moments before nodding in satisfaction and released his death grip onto Ezreal's neck.
The Prodigal Explorer landed on his feet before rubbing his slowly swelling neck with his free hand while glaring at the Warden.
"Remember this and remember it well Ezreal: I do not care for those living and my souls do not count." Thresh said with his flaming eyes set onto the blonde, "However, I have taken an interest in this monument and you shouldn't. This monument belongs to this man here, regardless of what a piece of paper says."
Ezreal said nothing as he reached into his pouch and took out another health potion to help with his injuries and strength.
Thresh walked over to where Q laid before looking down at the Ionian with his flaming spectral face.
"So you're the one she calls Q." Thresh stated rather than asking while bending down to his knees for a better look, "You look like your average human but you aren't."
"You know what they say." Q said while pushing himself up before managing to properly sit on his rear with a big sigh, "Looks can be deceiving."
Thresh looked the man up and down, taking note on the amount of injuries that he sustained but was still standing despite all odds.
"I'm sure that you know who I am Q." Thresh asked while casually swinging his hook in his right hand.
"Of course, You're Thresh the Chain Warden from the Shadow Isles." Q said with a raised eyebrow, unsure where the conversation was going.
"So you must know what I do for a living then?" Thresh said while holding up his lantern of souls, giving it a small shake causing the inhabitants to wail out, "What do you think of me now hmm?"
"Honestly, I'd say that you are one sick son of a bitch making those souls suffer for so long." Q said while looking straight into the Warden's eyeless eye.
"Now don't you think that wouldn't be such a good thing to say to your savior?" The Warden said while throwing the health potion up and down in his left hand, "Especially since I have the only thing that can help you right now?"
"I know that but I also know that it's better to accept the ugly truth than a good lie." Q said while cracking his neck, sighing in relief at the several audible pops before beginning to work on his back, "But I do respect you a great deal as well."
"Oh, how so?" Thresh questioned while crossing his arms over where his chest would be.
"To be able to deal with thousands of screaming souls while fending off outsiders on your territory is a lot of work." Q said honestly while nodding towards the Warden, "Plus, to stand by your principles is enough for me already."
The Chain Warden's face almost split open with how big the grin he had on was before letting out a haunting laugh that lowered the temperature around them by a few degrees.
"I like you kid." Thresh said before tossing Q the health potion, "Now I got a message from your girlfriend to you personally."
"What is it?" He said while chugging the health potion, the burns and cuts healing themselves instantly.
"One word." Thresh said while holding up a skeletal finger, "-"
"Save it." Q interrupted the Chain Warden before wiping away the red elixir on his lips with his arm and stood up , "I already know the message."
"Oh really?" Thresh said with grin while watching the Ionian retrieve several rations from the helicopters compartment before devouring them in the matter of seconds, "Now what that be?"
"Simple." Q said as he let out a loud burp after wiping his mouth clean with his arm of an entire crew's emergency meals that would've lasted them several days, "Even though me and Noona were only together for about a year, I knew what she always wanted."
"Whatever." Ezreal said with a shrug, still bitter from losing to the Ionian despite outnumbering him, "Since Thresh's vouching for you, I won't take the statue."
"Thanks but you owe me a favor and I'm cashing it in now." Q said as he rubbed his belly in content before sitting up straight and looked at the Explorer with a serious gaze.
"Shoot. Least I can do for you." Ezreal said as he hopped into the copilot's seat, swinging his legs outside the cockpit.
"What's going on in Piltover?" Q asked blatantly while looking up at the blonde, "Like details man. I know that a couple of days passed but what's been really, really going on."
"Well it's been about 3 to 4 days since you pulled that stunt in the stadium. You know, with your giant black wolf." Ezreal said while making spreading out his arms trying to make a reference, "Half the city is on a manhunt for you and more than that are just outright scared of you."
"Can't blame them." Q said, nodding in agreement, "For them to believe someone like me can make such a monster before starting to fight the other Champions. I would be surprised if they weren't scared of me after that."
"Yeah, scared enough to call in a few Champions from the Institute of War to help with the search." Ezreal said messing with his gauntlet, "Me included."
"Obviously." Q deadpanned, "Anything else? Is it true that Vi's getting married?"
"Well yeah that's the only thing that's the whole city's been talking about other than you. The wedding is today and it's a big one located at Fred's estate." Ezreal said while leaning back on the copilot's seat with a smug grin, "However, only the most prestigious people were invited and of course I was one of them."
"You a prestigious person?" Q said with a raised eyebrow small smirk, "More like errand boy if you ask me."
"Anyway." Ezreal said while directing a small glare towards the Ionian, "I was surprised to hear that Vi was actually getting married to that twerp. That guy is more trouble than he's worth."
"How so?"
"He has a long record of crimes such as pickpocketing, gang-related, fights, and much more were filed against him but none of them really stuck being that he's the son of one of the government officials. Hell he wouldn't have made it into the police academy if his daddy didn't make a phone call to the police commissioner's office." Ezreal said with annoyance, "He comes into my museum exhibits with his buddies and trashes the place every now and then when they're drunk."
"Well you know what they say: they always want the bad boys." He said with a sad smile before he heard what Ezreal said and his head snapped up comedically, "Wait, they trash the museum exhibits? Why?"
"The hell if I know." Ezreal said while taking out his notebook, "They were lucky that the only thing that was missing was a energy stone or else that donation his father made wouldn't have made a difference."
"What was the stone?"
"It was something that one of my employees excavated from an old temple. It was locked in a chest as well so he thought it was important and brought it to me to inspect of course." Ezreal said while flipping through the pages, "I cracked open the box and it was just there, laying inside with a tightly wound up piece of paper with some old runes on it."
"What did the runes say?" Q asked while walking over to the Explorer and accepted the journal before looking over the runes.
"Something about it being an energy source that was used back in the day during the rune wars." Ezreal said while leaning back in his chair again, "Sure enough, when I tested it, it conducted magic like it was supposed to but it wasn't much and we already had hundreds more that could've transferred much more magic. That's why I wasn't too angry when it went missing."
Q flipped over the pages of the old and packed journal before landing on the page that described the stone with a small sketch of it and the box included. The stone, according to the notes, was no bigger than an average man's pinky and was an unearthly green color. Shaped like an oval and glowed whenever magic was near it, it was eventually placed as an energy stone and put up for display.
"What about the box?" He asked while looking up at the blonde, "You said that it came with a box right?"
"Next page."
He turned the page and looked at the description under a small illustration of the chest. It was a sturdy chest about the size of a small watermelon made with a cast iron shell that was tarnished due to the constant exposure of the elements over the years. An iron lock secured the chest with handles on each side for easy transportation. There was nothing special about the container other than a chain-like emblem on the very top.
"So there was nothing too weird about the box?" Q asked while rubbing his chin.
"Nothing anymore different from the one's I've seen in all of my time exploring." Ezreal said with a light shrug, enjoying the small breeze coming by, "I figured that the chains on it were like a family marking from back in the old days so I just you know, brushed it aside."
Q furrowed his eyebrows as he looked at the box closer. It does just look like an ordinary box that one would store objects of value and such. Now an ordinary person would dismiss this and then move on, but the thing with Q was that, he wasn't normal at all. He knew that all things in life happen for a purpose and whatever purpose led to the stone to be missing troubled him.
"Hey Thresh!"
The Chain Warden walked over to the Ionian before looking down at him with as his looming height casted a shadow over Q and he asked, "Yes?"
"Have you seen this kind of stone or box anywhere?" Q said, unfazed by the tall soul keeper, "It must be important if Fred if he went through the trouble of stealing it from a museum. Especially one that belonged to a Champion of the city while asking his daddy to pay for damages and reparations.
Thresh looked down and his flaming eyes glazed over the texts before landing on a description of the two items. He said nothing while his mind dug up memories of the items that were brought into his vault until he remembered the symbol of chains before laughing ominously into the sky.
Ezreal's hand subconsciously reached towards his gauntlet at the sight of the laughing spectral while Q merely raised his eyebrows at Thresh.
"I'm guessing that you've seen this before Thresh?" Q deadpanned as he looked up at Thresh.
"It's been a very long time since I've seen this insignia but yes I know what it is that you're looking at." Thresh said as he crossed his arms, "It was back when I was still a human and I suppose you could say a guard for a deep underground vault filled with forbidden items that would've changed the very course of history if it were to reach the outside world."
Ezreal immediately bolted to attention at such items and opened his mouth before Thresh cut him off with a skeletal hand raised.
"And no I do not remember where the location of the vault is and even if I did." Thresh said before striding over to Ezreal and leaned over to where their noses almost touched, "I would not give it to a puny human like you who takes sacred artifacts without a single care in the world and not care about the consequences of such."
"Hey! I am the Prodigal Explorer who does things that people older than me couldn't even dream of! They teach classes about me! Books! Movies!" Ezreal shouted and was about to continue on his rant until Q forcibly calmed him down by separating the two Champions and urged Thresh to continue.
"As I was saying." Thresh said while making space between himself and the Explorer, "I do not remember where the items were kept but I do remember most of them. One of the more fleeting ones is this one."
The spectral pointed towards the symbol of the box with a lone finger before continuing, "I actually remember this one quite fondly because it showed up right after I had, how do you say, "examined" a certain being that had been placed into my care by my supervisors."
Ezreal merely glared at the Warden's actions while Q said, "And?"
"The insignia belongs to a noble family back then called the Albis family." Thresh said as he looked between Q and Ezreal, "They were a rich and very influential family back when the Rune Wars was going on thanks to their specialty."
"Which was?" Q asked with his eyebrow raised.
"They were notorious for one thing and one thing only," Thresh said while pausing for dramatic effect, "Slavery."
"Slavery?" Q said as his body tensed, "Are you sure?"
"I'm not just sure but I am certain." Thresh said, "There were numerous items that I had received from the surface and most of them had that emblem on it."
"What were the items?" Ezreal asked.
"Common things that one would use to enslave their victims." Thresh said with a shrug, "Whips, collars, branding irons, you name it."
"So what about the stone that Ezreal found in the box?" Q asked while jamming a finger towards the sketch, "What's so good about this stone that would make Fred break into a museum and steal it?"
"The stones that I received were alway locked inside a chest and those stones, after being placed on a person, would be able to control their every action with just a single word." Thresh said while holding up a finger, "You could change the very way that they live and go about their life if you say the right words."
"What about the paper that it said that it was an energy stone?" Ezreal asked.
"Most likely it was put inside the box to cover the true identity of the stone." Thresh answered, "Remember, these stones would be able to control a person's actions when used so I wouldn't be surprised that they would try to hide it."
Q tensed up and dread started to fill him as he remembered what Caitlyn had told him about Vi. If what Thresh said was true, she could be very well be in danger.
"Thresh!"
"Yes?" The Warden responded.
"Are you for sure that the stone that Fred has is a slavery stone?" Q said while looking at Thresh in the eye.
"I would bet my lantern on it Q." Thresh said seriously before looking at Ezreal, "I take pride in my knowledge at least instead of stealing them."
Ezreal leaped to his feet and started going off on Thresh with insults that Q never thought he would hear in his lifetime before shaking his head at the blonde's pride. He had to save Vi but it couldn't hurt him to change into more decent clothing before going.
He walked over to Noona's pedestal before kneeling and said a silent prayer with his hands clasped in the middle. A few minutes passed as he said his prayer and Thresh stood respectfully by while Ezreal started hauling the unconscious bodies of his men back onto the helicopter.
He washed his body lightly, courtesy of a rag from Ezreal and several canteens of water from the helicopter before dressing into the new uniform that Noona bought for him that fateful day. Finally, Q stood up tall and proud before looking down at himself and burned his old clothes with a fire provided by Thresh. The ashes floated upwards before being blown away by light breeze and into the morning.
"Looking like a living man Q." Thresh joked as he watched the Ionian clean himself up before making his way towards the helicopter, "So what are you gonna do now?"
"I'm pretty sure that it's obvious what I'm going to do." He said as he hopped into the helicopter passenger bay, careful to not step on any of the unconscious guys, "Also, her word was really simple and even a child could've guessed it. Go."
Thresh grinned at Q's answer before nodding and stepped back a few feet to watch the helicopter to take off with it's rotors making an almost mesmerizing beat to the wind. Despite having lived hundreds of years, the Chain Warden couldn't help but appreciate the advancements of man with it's technology based on the past. It made him happy to know that man could live on and for him to have an endless supply of souls to reap to his enjoyment.
He watched as the helicopter flew over to the edge before beginning its descent towards the city of Piltover. Thresh walked over to the edge and looked down to see Q look back up at him before giving the Warden an ecstatic wave before the helicopter disappeared from his view.
That man Q was something else. Despite being beat down after living in the forest for so long without food or water, he still managed to beat off the odds of being outnumbered and while fighting, he considered the safety of the one thing of Noona he had left over his own. Thresh knew that Q was prepared to die to defend that statue and he had no doubt about it. Even when he was at his mercy, Q still stood strong and that alone gained his full respect. Q was to say the least an interesting man indeed and the Chain Warden was rubbing his chin with two of his bony fingers in wonder.
"I hope you're not thinking of enslaving my boyfriend Thresh."
He quickly turned around to face Noona, who was still dressed in the same outfit the day she was killed with the blood stains easily identifiable on the white material, who was tapping her foot on the ground with a stern face.
"Of course not ma'am!" Thresh said while rubbing the back of his head of flames sheepishly and looked up towards the sky, "I was merely thinking about how he would save those- ow, ow, ow!"
Noona reached up to the Chain Warden and grabbed his ear harshly before yanking it down to her eye level. The 7-foot spectre fell down to a 5 foot 8 barefoot female who was barely a third of Thresh's size but was still able to make him get down to his knees.
"How many times have I told you that I know when you lie!" Noona said with fire in her eyes as she glared at a kneeling Thresh while crossing her arms over generous chest, "Do I make myself clear!"
"Yes ma'am." Thresh muttered as he found the thought of kneeling to someone like Noona in his position was just plain humiliating. He thought that he was the one's that was supposed to control the ghosts of the dead, not the other way around. It was like having his own mother nag at him for all the things that he did wrong and it was just as bad.
Noona visibly calmed down as she let out a sigh before walking over to the edge and looked towards the direction that the helicopter went.
"He's grown up." Noona said with a sad smile as she placed a hand over her heart.
Thresh got up from his knees before joining Noona by the edge while following her gaze downwards.
"I still don't understand why you wouldn't move on with the rest of your life." Thresh said while shaking his head, "Like, I understand that Q is special and all but is it worth spending the rest of your eternal life in the mountains?"
"Thresh, from personal experience, how many serious relationships have been in?" Noona asked suddenly while turning towards the Warden.
"Let me see." Thresh said as he tapped his chin with a single finger several times, "Other than a few flings back when I was still flesh and bone, none really. I spent most of my time as a human in the archives guarding artifacts."
"Exactly." Noona said with finale and a smile while looking back down the ledge, "You don't know what the feeling of true love is and what it compels a person to do."
"Love is what gets a man killed." Thresh disagreed with another shake of his head, "Believe me Noona. I am one of few people who have lived past their lifeline and I am older than most cities today. The things that I've seen man do for "true love" as you call it are not for the light-hearted."
"But you've also seen the positive side of it haven't you?" Noona said while not looking towards him, "The things that it has achieved, the things that it has done, the families that were created, and the good things that happened because of it match the bad."
"I suppose." Thresh said as he nodded downwards, "How did he know what I was going to say? I know it was only one word but still."
"Well you know what they say." Noona said as she leaned against Thresh's large frame, "Love knows best."
Thresh looked down at Noona before slowly wrapping his cloak around her and brought the woman in for a friendly side hug.
"You know, when this is all over Noona." Thresh said while looking towards the city that was finally uncovered from the storm clouds, "I promise that I'll get you to move on and into heaven without any problems."
Noona was silent as she listened to Thresh's statement before going into a fit of giggles. The Chain Warden looked down with a confused face before being pulled down to her height as a pair of lips planted themselves on his cheek.
"You know." Noona said as she wrapped herself in Thresh's cloak more, "You're awfully sweet for a guy that torments souls for a living."
"What can I say?" Thresh asked while pulling Noona closer in a friendly manner before cackling loudly in the calm morning sky with the sun over him, "I have my moments."
-X-
"So where exactly are we going?!" Ezreal asked while looking back at Q.
"Where did Matthew want you to drop off my statue?!" He yelled over the wind, "He's probably holding Caitlyn there as well if I heard the transmission right!"
"What was the transmission?!" Ezreal asked.
"That the package had been picked up by reinforcements and that you guys were coming in to pick up the statue!"
"Now that you say that!" Ezreal said while pointing to the pilot their intended destination, "I did see another helicopter passing us by while we were heading up the mountain!"
"Well that explains it!" Q yelled as he stuck his head out the door and looked down on the city.
The sun was nearing its highest position so the Ionian figured that it was nearing noon time soon.
The city was a beautiful sight from several hundred feet in the air as the buildings slowly went by and the pedestrians were as small as ants. Gears extending from factories were the size of his pinky as he put the two between each other and compared the size. Steam lazily floated up to the sky from some buildings while pigeons flew by in a scattered formation, steering clear of the giant metal bird as they went on their way. A few skyscrapers decorated the city as a large circular area at the far end of the city was dedicated to government officials and served as city hall in times of emergency. The sea covered one side of the sea while the other where they were flying from was the range of mountains that he buried Noona in.
"Get ready Q!" Ezreal shouted, shaking the Ionian out of his thoughts, "We're nearing the drop off point!"
Q looked out the window again before seeing a medium sized skyscraper with glass windows covering almost the entirety of the building save for the bottom portion near the ground, presumably to help support the whole thing.
"There's a helipad at the top of the roof!" Ezreal said without looking back, "Only problem is that if anyone sees you then this whole mission is fucked!"
"Then I won't be seen."
"What did you say?!" The blonde asked while looking behind him to find the a bunch of unconscious bodies but no Ionian.
"Q?" Ezreal said in disbelief as he looked around to find him.
"Control this is Transport 820 requesting permission to land on helipad with the Prodigal Explorer and crew over." The pilot spoke clearly through his mouthpiece.
"This is control to Transport 820. You are cleared for landing over. Also, be advised an armed security squad will be present to check and escort the Prodigal Explorer to Mr. Langley, over." The staticky sound of the voice of the control sounded through Ezreal's headpiece as well.
"Roger that control, preparing to land." The pilot said as he slowly eased down towards the giant H written on a concrete landing pad.
Three men dressed in the same style suits were already standing by on the helipad when the helicopter landed, their suits holding their ground against the winds. They weren't holding any weapons but Ezreal knew that each one of them had a holstered pistol and a form of melee weapon tucked away somewhere.
"Sir! The boss wishes to speak with you!" The suit in the middle yelled over the helicopter blades, "We'll be your escorts for your time here!"
"All right then!" Ezreal said while climbing out of the cockpit as the pilot turned off the rotors, "Grab your guys out of the passenger bay."
One of the men threw open the passenger door and revealed several of the men in suits still unconscious and on the floor. Ezreal released the breath that he was holding as he saw that Q was nowhere to be found.
"What happened to them?" One of the suits asked, "Looks like these guys were beaten pretty badly."
"Yeah we ran into some... trouble if you would say." Ezreal said while walking past the guards briskly, "Now come on! I want to have a word with your boss."
The guard nodded before pointing towards the helicopter and said, "Edward, you help Jake with getting our guys to the infirmary while I get Mister Ezreal to the boss."
The two men nodded before attempting to wake some of the men in suits to save them the trouble of carrying all of them.
"Mister Ezreal if you would please." The guard said respectfully while bowing and gestured towards the roof door, "He is expecting you."
Ezreal, feeling the respect despite his true mission, walked with his back straight and hands behind his back towards the door before the guard followed.
Edward slapped a few of his colleagues in the face in hopes of waking them but failed.
"Man someone gave these guys one hell of a beating." Edward said as he turned them around while looking at the injures, "I see bruises, broken bones, and such. Look, even the squad leader got took down pretty quick with that bruise around his neck."
"So squad leader got choked into submission?" Jake said while adjusting the leaders head a bit so he could see the neck, "I see bruising all around the neck so you're probably right. Surprised that it didn't kill him."
A man in a suit and sunglasses stirred in the corner of their vision as he slowly rose up while rubbing his head.
"Bro are you okay?" Edwards asked as he gave the waking man a hand out of the helicopter, "What the hell happen to you?"
"Ugh, that dude had a mean jab." The man said as he rubbed his jaw, "Holy shit."
"Man I'm glad I didn't sign up for the retrieval mission." Jake said while nudging Edward with a grin, "Now let's get these guys to the infirmary."
"Wait a minute Jake." Edwards said as he looked at the just waking up man, "Since when did we have an Ionian as a guard? Like, I thought all the ones that the boss hired were on janitor or cooking duty?"
"Now that you say that." Jake said while rubbing his chin, "The only Ionian that I know works here as a guard was Zu but he's supposed to be on holiday today."
Edwards turned around while asking, "Hey what's your name ag-"
The last thing that he saw was something shiny and his world quickly turned black and painful.
Hearing the nose, Jake also turned around while asking, "What hap-"
A sudden force to his neck caught Jake's breath in his throat before a lightness came over the guard and slumped down unconscious.
The man fixed his cuffs before taking off his sunglasses to look at the two unconscious guards.
"Well that was easy." Q said as he squinted a bit to admire his handiwork before bringing a hand up and rubbed his eye in annoyance, "Damn I need to get new glasses."
Granted he didn't need glasses to see but being short sighted is never fun while trying to see what's coming at you from afar. His old one broke back at the stadium a few days ago in that one incident.
He held up his right hand to look at the cover that he made for Fiora's sword a few days ago before unsheathing it partially to admire the craftsmanship.
It was an impressive piece of work as Q slid his finger along the blade and turned it a bit to reflect a bit of the sunlight from the sun above him. It even partly reflected his face as he gazed into the metal to signify that the metal had been very well treated. The guard itself was a nice brass color while the handle had been wrapped in a white kind of cloth, maybe linen, to help with the grip.
The sword itself was perfect for Fiora's style: light, durable, and formidable.
As he sheathed the sword, Q couldn't help but let his mind wander to the Grand Duelist. The tearful face that she had on almost broke his heart just by looking at it. He had to apologize no matter what.
Q pulled the two unconscious guards onto the helicopter before putting a finger to his lips while looking at the pilot, who in return nodded with a smile before zipping an imaginary zipper across his face.
The Ionian gave a grin before retrieving a key card from Edward and fedora before putting the hat and sunglasses back on to complete his disguise. He gave the pilot one last nod before making his way down the flight of stairs.
The dress shoes that he borrowed from one of the men in suits clacked on the white floor with every step that he took. Paintings adorned almost every wall that he walked past while some of the walls were see through to reveal the room inside. Often it was some form of entertainment room with a pool table, bar, and etc.
As Q made his way down the hall and passing by multiple guards, who paid him no mind besides a few greetings as he kept his sunglasses pushed all the way up and fedora down, before stopping in front of an elevator and waited for one to come to his floor.
A ding ringed through the halls as the elevator reached his floor before sliding open to reveal a chef pushing a cart of food.
Q squeezed into a corner before giving the cook a big smile, who returned a nervous one before selecting his floor number and the metal doors closed before descending.
Elevator music slowly passed the time as the cook started playing with his cuffs.
"Say." Q said suddenly, jolting the cook out of his habit, "Easy there bud I just got a question. Who you taking all this food to?"
The cook relaxed visibly before letting out a breath and said with a proud smile, "It's all for Mister Langley and his guest the famous Prodigal Explorer, Ezreal!"
"Wow. Nicely done." Q said with while nodding his head with a fake smile on his face, "Must be an honor to serve both of them right?"
"Yes it is sir." He said with a slight nod before smiling brightly while adjusting his attire, "I must look my best for this. How do I look?"
"You look fine man just remember to smile." Q said with a dry smile before asking, "You know which floor is the one that is the guard center sort of? I need to report in to command but I'm a bit new to the building."
"Umm, I think it's on floor number 21 or you could ask the receptionist below for more ." The chef said as the elevator dinged and it's door slid open and he pushed his cart through, "Well nice talking to you sir and wish me luck!"
Q gave the man a small wave as the elevator door before frowning as he pressed the round 21 button and it lit up before the Ionian felt his body feel slightly lighter as the contraption descend.
If he could find the camera room, then maybe he could find where Caitlyn was located and rescue her. Only problem was that he had to find it while passing by several armed guards and employees while he was an enemy of the city. Not only that but everyone knew what he had looked like with the media spreading the news about the monster at the stadium.
The elevator dinged as he reached his floor and the doors opened to reveal three guards chatting happily as they brushed past Q, not paying him any mind. He exited the elevator in a semi quick stride while pushing his hat further down, hoping that no one would notice him while he passed by the guards.
As soon as he heard the elevator doors close, Q let loose the breath that he was holding in before looking around the floor.
It was like the upper floor that he was at but there were fewer glass windows probably to hide the main security force of the building and what not. A few guards walked around in a search pattern as they looked around for anything suspicious. There was the reception desk a couple of meters in front of him.
Q casually walked up and ringed the little bell that was placed on the counter to catch the receptionist's attention before asking, "Hello?"
A pretty brunette dressed in a business suit with her hair in a tight scrunchie looked up and flashed him a smile before asking, "Yes?"
"Hi I'm just looking for the camera room." Q said while pointing upwards with a slight smirk and lied, "Mr. Langley is having a "private" meeting upstairs with one of his clients and he sent me to make sure that it was "private" if you catch my drift."
The receptionist cocked her head to the side as she thought about his words until the sudden realization dawned onto her and her face went bright red hands covered each cheek in embarrassment.
"Yeah." Q said as a grin opened up from his smirk, "So if you would kindly point me to the surveillance room so I can get the guys to cut the tape for say an hour or so and we'll be up and running the instant an hour is done. Cool?"
"Umm, let me give him a quick call first to verify." The receptionist said as she tried to pick up the phone but Q's sudden capture of her wrist stopped her, which made her look up at him with wide eyes, "Sir?"
"While I do admire your alertness, in fact it makes me like you even more." He said with sincerity, which opted a a light blush from the receptionist, before smiling mischievously while letting go of her, "I'm warning you that if you call his office right now that all you're gonna get is a lot of... activity."
The receptionist's blush darkened as she pulled away from the phone and pointed him to her right.
"Walk that way and three doors to your left should be the the room that you're looking for." The receptionist said meekly.
"Thanks." Q said while trying something he saw from a movie but never had the chance to. He patted the woman's hand and winked while biting his bottom lip for good measure before turning left and walked on down the hallway.
"Oh my god that was so hot."
Q almost tripped over himself before quickening his pace toward the surveillance room. He had not expected the girl to say that in the slightest and for the move to work. He had expected her to say something about him looked familiar or question the metal sheath with a sword handle sticking out of it.
Q shook his head while he passed by a few guards on the way to the surveillance room, moving Fiora's rapier to his side closest to the wall to avoid as much attention as possible.
He reached a plain metal door with a sign,
Surveillance Room
Restricted Access
There was a card reader by the door with its red light glowing an ominous red at whoever was trying to gain entry into the room.
Q took out the id that he took from Edward up on the rooftop before sliding it across the scanner and was surprised that it actually clicked open. Maybe restricted access meant only certain guards carried the card that unlocked the camera room or it just meant every fucking guard in the damn building.
But hey, he got in though.
Q pushed the door open to reveal two guards with their jackets off and huddling around a small screen in the corner as the surveillance system was running on at least a dozen monitors, showing almost everything that was going on in the building.
The Ionian looked between the giant surveillance station and the two men that were watching whatever they found more important than their actual job but hey he wasn't complaining.
They just made his job a hell lot easier.
Q sneaked up behind them before grabbing each one of their heads, careful to not alert them to his presence, and smashed them together in a painful crack.
The two guards didn't even know what hit them as they both slumped down onto the floor in an instant. Their chairs rolled towards him as their owners abandoned them and he walked up to the surveillance system before scrolling through the cameras.
Most of the cameras showed the upper floors with a good number of them directed at the entrance and on the ground floor. Others showed what was in the various floors in the skyscraper like modeling studio, a giant steel safe, dressing room, and etc.
However, the one thing that caught his attention while he was searching through the cameras was one that showed of a GIANT statue.
Now when he said giant he meant that the thing was probably as tall as the highest skyscraper in Piltover or not taller. It looked like an old warrior statue with a single round disk as a chest plate, plated shoulder pads, pants with knee guards and a headband covered the statue's forehead. Another camera view showed Q the face and it resembled someone who had swallowed a lemon with the features all scrunched up.
Q moved the camera view a bit to show the surroundings of the statue and it was mostly like an archeological dig site with metal frames holding up the roof, people using brushes to clear away light debris from the statue, and drills digging away at the walls.
"Why would a guy like Matthew care so much about a statue that he placed cameras on it." Q thought as he adjusted the camera more onto the statue, "His father maybe?"
Finally realizing that he was off task, Q quickly started searching through the cameras for any sign of Caitlyn at all.
He selected the ground floor and after seeing teenagers smoking outside on the side of the building, coworkers having sex in offices, and other guards flirting with secretaries, he finally found her.
The Sheriff of Piltover was lying on her side with her hands, feet, and even mouth were bound. She had on a tank top with jeans, thankful that she was at least decently dressed. He could see X trying to wake Caitlyn by licking her repeatedly on her face. It looked like they were in a standard looking holding cell with a bed, sink, and toilet tucked away into a corner.
The scene enraged Q tremendously as his grip onto the metal table strengthened until he realized what he was doing before releasing his hand. He looked down to see the metal slightly deformed from his strong grip before shrugging it away.
Q looked back up at the camera and looked into the top right corner before finding the cell number.
"AHHHH!"
A loud clatter and swishing of water followed the cry of a feminine voice as Q turned around to see the receptionist at the door standing over a couple cups of spilled coffee, her hands covering her face while looking between the two downed guards and him holding the sheath with Fiora's sword handle in full view.
Okay now he just realized how bad the situation looked.
"Umm, it's not what you think?" He said uncertainly while trying to smile.
"Security!"
"Okay then."
Q bolted out of the door while clutching Fiora's sword in one hand and the other pushed the receptionist away as he made his way back to the main area.
"Hold it right there!"
The sound of boots flooded the area as several guards surrounded him with batons in hand while civilians panicked and ran towards the elevators or locking themselves inside offices.
"Criminal Q you are under arrest for murder, attempted murder of several Champions, and endangering the public's safety!" One of the guards said out loud while brandishing his baton, "Surrender or else we will use force!"
Q said nothing as he looked around and saw that he was indeed surrounded. He could easily take on all of these guys but when he saw the terrified faces of the civilians, some of them he used to serve on a daily basis, it made him rethink his plan.
Fight or flight?
"It's only 20 stories." He thought to himself before breaking into a run past two guards and threw the sheath at the glass window. The metal sheathe passed right through glass leaving behind a spiderweb pattern from its entry point before dropping down the building. The glass gave away as soon as Q slammed into it before dropping into a free fall.
Q felt the wind rushing past him as he fell down towards the ground. Catching sight of something shiny in the air, he dived forward with his body straight and hands parallel to his sides before eventually catching up to the sword and snatching it back quickly.
While he did get back the sheath, Q was still free falling from 20 or so stories high on an expressway to become a splattered off on the sidewalk if he didn't do something fast.
Gathering up as much ki as he could, Q didn't have time to cast a spell so he forced all of it towards his feet like a sort of cushion before he hit the ground with a loud boom.
The ground below him cracked as a crater formed around his feet and a cloud of dust erupted . The force of the impact shook the ground in a small radius around him, causing a few ruptures and the civilians around him to back away in fear.
Q fell to his knees in exhaustion as his ki was depleted and therefore no more stunts like that while he had the seal on him.
He looked up to see sparkling light in the distance falling towards him, probably excess glass from his sudden escape. Falling pieces of glass wouldn't bother anyone until a rather sizable chunk caught his eye despite not having his glasses. A sudden wail caught the Ionian's attention as he looked back down to see a wailing familiar little girl holding her doll close to her chest. Not only that but if he was right, all that glass was heading right towards her.
He quickly pushed himself up with his fist before bolting towards the girl in desperation.
The bystanders made a human wall in front of the girl in hopes of stopping him but they were blind to the fact that she was in danger. A few people moved forward and tried to hold him down but he brushed past them quickly before unsheathing Fiora's rapier.
The crowd faltered from the sight of the blade but stood their ground. Q looked between the crowd for a weak link and changed his course towards a scared business man who was practically shaking in his expensive suit, before charging right at him.
As expected, the man pushed others as he tried to get out of Q's way to avoid getting stabbed before ducking with his hand covering his head.
He grinned before quickly sheathing the weapon and used the man's back as a step to propel him towards the little girl.
Q quickly grabbed the girl in his right and brought her to his chest before making short work of three meters away from where she was standing.
The glass hit the ground not a moment too soon in a shower of sparkles and well, glass breaking obviously. The big chunk that he saw earlier shattered on impact with the hard surface as it broke into smaller pieces before scattering in a wide area.
The crowd was silent as they watch the so called "monster" rescue a little girl from certain death.
He pulled away from the girl before brushing away a lock of hair from her and recognized her as Lieutenant's Hardy's daughter, Daphne, "Daphne?"
"Mister chef!" She exclaimed out loud.
"What are you doing here?" Q asked while setting the child down, "Where's your father?"
"He was looking for you up in that building!" She said while pointing up at the building that he was just in.
"Oh." Q looked up at the building for a few seconds before looking back at Daphne with a forced smile, "I'm sure that I'll meet him later but I am very, very busy right now!"
"Oh okay!" Daphne said excitedly before waving him goodbye enthusiastically , "I'll tell him you said hi!"
Q nodded with a big smile before starting to get up after patting Daphne's head softly.
"Well, well, well." A very smug voice said as Q heard a faint click sound, "Look who decided to show himself where he doesn't belong?"
Q quickly stood up and whipped around to see the barrel of a pistol pointing right at his forehead, a very shiny and very familiar barrel. Combine that with an equally smug face and many more guns pointed at him, his day just got a whole lot worse.
"Shit."
-X-
A/N: THAT'S A WRAP WOOOO
That's another chapter done and done. I didn't make it as far as I thought I would make this chapter but hey, 10k words is my goal for each chapter so yeah.
Now onto a couple of things.
Yes Fiora will be added into this love triangle because there was really only one vote for her so I said why tf not? XD
Here are the polls for the next fanfic that I'm going to make after this:
Ahri x OC x Sona: 8
Katarina x OC x Ashe: 9
OC x Syndra: 7
Elise x OC x Diana: 1
There's not much that I really have to say other than the next chapter might be delayed a bit due to school and a side project that I'm working on.
Again, I want to thank you all for keeping with me on this story and I do quite appreciate all the support. Also, tell me what kind of mistakes I am making so I can improve or else I will keep on making the same mistakes. Make sure to review, favorite, and follow if you haven't already and I will see you all as soon as possible to see what happens next in the story.
Disclaimer: I do not own anything in this story but for my own ideas. All rights and reserve goes to Riot Games because they are awesome. :)