The night has arrived and the activity in the city was dwindling, the weekend was about to start and while Sophie would've liked to stay in her home and resting under the warm and comfy sheets of her bed but a bigger duty came, it wasn't of a Star Guardian but of a social event. The eyes of the student went to the different houses that were on the neighborhood, the sound of the engine and the integrated heater in the car kept her ears buzzing and the radio playing the local news after the long talk shows her father enjoys listening to.
¨You surely made good friends ever since you joined the academy¨ The father who was driving stopped at a red light and looked at his daughter ¨I am still surprised that those… things that are shown in the newspapers and TV attacked that place¨
¨And yet you didn't pull me from there, why?¨ The logical explanation would be to actually put that person to safety, send the children to another school or institution but her parents never seemed to find that reason.
¨Well let's go with the basics: You have a scholarship there, the best education place in Valoran City that is not a university. Second while we didn't believe the rumors of monsters and such, Runeterra Academy offered the best security, sure there was an attack according to the media but you are safe¨
¨Well I barely saw any cops, military or anything¨ She chuckled ¨So much for security…¨
¨Third…¨ The adult sighed ¨I knew you are in a good place, you probably heard what the Star Guardians are, everyone talks about them, my coworkers said their kids want to be like those girls, protecting the city and everyone¨ He grinned and looked forward, stepping on the accelerator as the light turned green ¨I am glad your future doesn't involve becoming one of those girls, don't get me wrong they are doing a good job and protecting the city and your academy, but if those girls want to become something in the future then they should think not only about saving lives but also what are they going to do when they become adults. Point is, I trust those girls to keep all the students safe¨
It was funny, on the one hand Sophie was actually a Star Guardian and while that duty seemed stressful at times she also had very high grades on most of the classes. On the other hand she was still uncertain about the future and her mind was mostly focused on the current problem with the other team; why would the future matter if Katarina and her people would consume her? In any case Soph just had to solve this problem and thinking about her career would come in due time.
¨Here we are¨ The big hands turned off the radio and his eyes looked at the young one. Sophie was wearing brown jacket with white fur on the inside, a long dark blue skirt along with small black boots, inside she had a green-turquoise blouse and around her neck a small pendant with a red rock; she also carried with her a bag with very few items, even though the only thing that occupied most of the space were the two familiars which were fighting inside for some space.
¨Sophie, help us¨ The sound of Shiro begging for help as it tried to get out of the bag just for the guardian to cover the exit with her hand.
¨Heard something?¨ He looked around, trying to find the source of the squeaking sound.
¨Heh, it was probably the seat¨ With a forced and nervous smile the guardian moved in the leather seat and tried to replicate the same noises her father heard ¨Anyway, thanks for bringing me here¨
¨Don't forget, call me when you are ready to come home and I'll pick you up. If any of your friends is going to bring you back home tell me as well, mom and I are worried, even if… you have a party at such a fancy place¨ The eyes from both of them went for the Crownguard's home, she's never been there but Lux always mentioned her family was wealthy and just by looking at the front of that place the two of them could imagine what the inside could be.
¨Don't worry dad, I'll keep you updated¨ Sophie gave a kiss to her dad on the cheek and left the car, as she walked on the snow-covered street the vehicle left.
The student approached the main door and pressed the button, making a loud bell to ring form inside of the house. Soph already heard some music and people talking on the inside but no one seemed to heal the bell; before she could press it again a voice came from the intercom.
¨Hello? Who is it?¨ The voice of Lux came from the device.
¨Uh.. it's me, Sophie¨
¨Oh, Soph. I'm coming!¨ A different noise came from the intercom as there was no one on the other side anymore.
After a few seconds the front door opened and it showed Lux wearing a white-golden blouse and a long skirt that shared the same color as the top.
¨I am glad you came, please get in, it's freezing outside¨ The newcomer got into the house and her reaction to the interior was similar to when she entered into Katarina's home.
Unlike the other `mansion´ this one had brighter colors and more spacious areas; the paintings and plants gave a breath of life to this home. To her right was the living room in which many of Garen's friends were occupying the sofas and the TV to watch the basketball game; to the left was the dining room in which the two adults were talking and preparing the table for all the visitors. The amount of plates, cups, napkins and cutlery was immense, as if they were serving an army. After Lux's parents finished placing the table they went to the entrance to greet the newest visitor.
¨Hello, you must be one of Lux's new friends¨ The man extended his hand. He was a person close to the 50's, a well-groomed beard and wearing a gray suit along with a red tie; his hair was black even though a few strands of gray were slightly visible ¨I am Pieter, Lux's father and the person who…¨ He turned to present the mother but she disappeared ¨…should be here is Aughata, my wife¨
¨Hi, I'm Sophie¨ She extended her hand as well and saluted the old man ¨I am in the same club as Lux¨
¨At a first glance you seem like a good girl, unlike… some other people…¨ Pieter eyed at his daughter who frowned at that ¨Anyway, I need to help the mom to finish everything for dinner, if you excuse me…¨ With a ceremonial bow the adult left.
¨What did he mean by other people?¨ Sophie looked back at Lux.
¨He already knows the rest of the club members so you can have a big idea on what he meant. Come on most of the team is upstairs¨ The blonde led the way and the other student followed from behind. As she passed behind Garen's friends she just raised her hand to greet them all and then continued to follow the leader.
The second floor was something worth dedicating time to look at, the staircase led to a third floor as well but in the second one was most of the bedrooms, another bathroom and even a balcony that ended up overlooking the backyard.
¨Come, this way¨ The hallway had many doors and from one of them there was some quiet music. Lux opened the door and inside were Janna, Poppy and Lulu.
¨Hey Soph!¨ The three guardians waved their hands at the black haired girl.
With the door closed the four students found their spot in the bedroom and looked at each other.
¨I want everyone to be here so I don't repeat everything twice¨ The others were confused when Lux said those words ¨I've been investigating more and more the book we got from that secret lab Katarina's father had and-¨
¨HELLO HELLO HELLO!¨ The door opened and a wild Jinx appeared, unlike the rest who were using very delicate and beautiful clothes, the marksman was using a pair of jeans, boots and a dark blue hoodie ¨You didn't tell me this was a formal party¨
¨Ok we are all here, Jinx please close the door¨ The cyan haired frowned and followed their orders ¨Ok… the book we got has a lot of interesting information, and it worries me of how far his investigation went¨
¨How worried?¨ Poppy asked.
¨Quite, the notes mention a big entity that created the universe, one that gave life to new worlds, one of them being ours¨
¨Is he mentioning the First Star?¨ Janna was surprised, this was the first time a mortal got closer to understand what something as important as the First Star was.
¨He certainly is, no name but what frightened me the most was that there was an opposite to that entity. One that looked to devour and destroy everything the other created¨
¨The Dark Star… do you think Kat and her people know everything?¨
¨Not everything, but Marcus had some knowledge… the sphere he got had the power of a creature from the Dark Star¨ The rest of the guardians widened their eyes at this discovery ¨The artifact he created has an actual being inside, the same being that gave the powers to the other team… the same being that switched Jinx and Sophie¨
¨So if we destroy that thing we should be back to normal?¨ Jinx was ready to go, no preparation or anything, the only thing she wanted was to get her powers back as well as Shiro and Kuro.
¨I… I don't know, it is also uncertain if the destruction of the sphere would remove the powers from the other girls... but I was thinking that… what if it does? I mean, the other team loses their powers… but what if you two lose your powers as well? After all the artifact affected you¨ The guardians looked at Sophie and Jinx who were sitting next to each other ¨We can't afford losing anyone, whether is in life or power-wise¨
¨There has to be a way… there's always one¨ Sophie was calm but she knew the gravity of the situation, what it truly meant. Showing fear would do nothing but to add more pressure to the rest of their team. However while Soph was calm, Jinx was ready to burst down the door and look for an immediate solution; if it wasn't for the fact that someone was knocking on the bedroom's door. Lux stood up from her bed and and put the book somewhere safe ¨Uh… come in¨
The door opened and it revealed someone none of the guardians wanted to see, at least that night; unfortunately Lux knew she might appear. Wearing a black leather jacket and a pair of very skinny black pants along with same colored boots, their sworn enemy was now in front of them.
¨Well look who it is! You are quite good by showing up right here for your beating¨
¨Where is it?¨ Katarina asked while entering the room and looking angrily at the entire team of guardians.
¨Where's what?¨ Poppy was confused, she clearly didn't expect the red haired in the party ¨What are you looking for?¨
¨You know what I'm looking for, now give it to me or bad things will happen¨
¨Kat, we have no idea what you mean, could you at least explain?¨ Sophie acted as the voice of reason, even though more than one of the guardians wanted to kill the newcomer.
¨Somehow you got into my home and stole a book my father wrote¨ All of the girls looked at each other ¨There will be consequences, you know that… now you can make those consequences less painful or they will be even worse when they come…¨
¨Why do you even think it was us? Our objective is to fight the Dark Star, not you. The only reason we retaliate is because of human nature¨ Janna, being the wisest one left Katarina thinking ¨Why do you even fight against us? We look forward to the same thing, don't we? The Dark Star are the true problem out there¨
¨Are they? The time they attacked the academy many could've died, if it weren't for that flying thing you would've failed¨ Katarina pointed to Sophie ¨You are denying what is given to you, a power that can become better, those creatures are your test, you win you are stronger and must consume them; you fail… it's the other way around¨
¨What's your point?¨
¨Your time is over, you were given chances and every time you rejected your prize… we are just doing what you denied. I'm giving you this last chance… give up and give me the book, and we won't consume you¨ The redheaded assassin extended her hand, giving this opportunity for the guardians to surrender.
¨No…¨ Lux stood in front of Kat, imposing her presence and the ones from her team ¨What you are doing is wrong, you are nothing but monsters and do not even think just because you are more aggressive we will surrender. And no… we won't give you the book because we have no idea where it is¨
¨…¨ The silence in the bedroom made the entire thing even more tense, with the guardians ready to fight in case Katarina decided to pull their weapons and attack but in reality she would lose, without the rest of her people a 6v1 fight would mean Kat's demise ¨Very well…¨ The girl pulled her phone and sent a message as a smile was slowly drawing on her face ¨This is war¨
¨Kat? Where are you?¨ The voice of Garen snapped everyone back to reality.
¨Good luck, you're going to need it¨ She turned and her evil face transformed into a friendly one, something quite odd for the usual Kat ¨I'm coming!¨
The guardians stood there, stunned, they thought the war has started but now this seemed like the official declaration, what kind of war would come from now on? Whatever the case they needed to be prepared, they needed to train, if there was a way to eliminate their powers without forcing Soph and Jinx to lose theirs then they had to take that path, especially if this `war´ ends up with innocent people getting injured.
After some more talk the girls went down for the dinner; some were already seated while others were looking at the TV, the basketball match was over and instead it was the local news that were airing. Everything seemed normal for a bit until there was an important message on the TV.
The reporter was on the park and the camera was recording the members of the ASG destroying the place and attacking people, the adult who was behind the microphone mistook those girls by the actual Star Guardians and thus the headline appeared that the famous guardians that protected Valoran City from the monsters became evil.
Not only Soph but everyone there looked surprised at this, some were already talking how the guardians were not doing their job right and even how the other students were put in danger. This would turn the public opinion on the Star Guardians up to the point where people would just outright hate the team.
Soph and Lux were on the front, looking at the TV but form behind Katarina was looking not only at the flatscreen but also at these two girls, she then got closer to whisper something in their ears.
¨May the strongest team… survive¨
I waited to write this chapter, and boy do I like it. This is war then, the two teams will try to survive but for the sake of the guardians, they better hope the ASG don't pull any other dirty strat. From now on things will change for the guardians and clearly the investigation team will also be looking into this, but for now: chaos.
Thanks for reading the chapter, don't forget to review, fav, follow, send deathtreats. Vacations are over and next week I'm back to college so maybe updates won't be that fast (I mean, I could've written two chapters this week but I started to play World of Warcraft again) in any case I'll probably try to push towards the end of arc before continuing with Heroes & Legends, until then this was Tourvelix, don't forget to floss and as always:
See you in the next chapter ;)