"What just happened?", Zoe fidgeted nervously.
Kayn had vanished right in front of their eyes in an unearthly glow.
"I- I don't know..", Ezreal said as he kept looking around the room as if his friend would just magically reappear. "Take us to him!", he ordered her.
Zoe took him by the hand at once. He awaited for the dizziness that always came when he traveled through the girl's portals but nothing was happening.
He heard her trying to stifle a stubborn whine.
"What's wrong?", he asked anxiously.
"Ezreal.. I can't find him!", her eyes were starting to well up with tears. "I can't find him"!
"Calm down. We'll figure this out", he sighed as he was pretending to be the rational one for once. Zoe nodded as she bit her bottom lip.
"Take us back to the Academy. I need to talk to someone".
Zoe and Ezreal were standing in front of Professor Graves' office. The boy was about to reach for the metallic door handle when he felt someone squeezing his hand hesitantly.
"Aren't you coming in?", he asked the Aspect.
"I need to go", she replied quizically. Ezreal rested his palms on her shoulders.
"We will find him. I promise", he lied to her and himself in the process. He had to become this beacon of hope today. He couldn't be the weak one anymore. "We are going to fix him".
"That's why I have to go", a feint smile graced her lips. "Good luck with that", she said gesturing at Graves' door.
"Than-", Ezreal began to say when he realized the Aspect had already jumped into a purple portal leaving him alone in the hallway.
Whatever.. He thought as he opened the door without bothering to knock. He had played by the rules so far. And it hadn't worked.
He barged into the small office beaming with cockiness. It didn't matter. It all quickly evaporated. He swallowed hard when he realized that his professor wasn't alone in his study. He made out his familiar face despite the dim lighting.
Jayce turned to face the boy who was still at the door. He could have sworn there was a hint of surprise in his eyes when he recognized him.
Graves seemed to freeze when he spotted him. His thick cigar was stuck between his teeth. Ashes falling directly onto his desk.
"What's he doing here?", Ezreal asked.
He hadn't even tried to conceal the anger in his tone. Last time he'd seen his classmate was when he took them to Singed's laboratory with Ekko. The Battle Club member shook his head lightly, trying to suppress the memory.
Professor Graves jolted up from his seat and made his way towards him. The man with the glasses hurriedly shut the door Ezreal had completely forgotten to.
"What are YOU doing here Lymere?", Graves asked. There was madness in his eyes. "Where are the others?", he shook the boy violently.
For the second there, Ezreal thought he was about to get hit, when he felt a spark within him.
"Just answer my question!", he shouted. "What is HE doing here?", he spat out the word 'he' as if he was referring to a lesser being. His reaction made the Professor slowly back away with unease but he quickly snapped out of it.
"Careful with your words. You don't get to boss me around, son". He sat back at his desk then took a long drag of his cigar.
"Oh I'm not your son! So don't ever call me that", Ezreal said without even taking the time to think where all of this was coming from. "My friend is here dying and you hid it from me! And now he's gone! Me and Zoe saw him disappear right in front of us! I can't believe you sold me out! After all I've done for you"!
Ezreal knew.. Deep in his heart he knew that he sounded like a child throwing a tantrum over a lost toy. But no. He had to find out. He had to find out why he had ever allowed himself to be played like this.
But Malcolm Graves looked.. indifferent as he let out clouds of thin smoke through his nostrils. His red beard was starting to turn yellow below his nose.
He doesn't even care. Ezreal clenched his fists mad. The boy opened his mouth, prepared spill any kind of thought that popped into his troubled mind when the Professor finally broke his silence.
"Luxanna Crownguard, Katarina DuCuteau and another student from Doran's Academy are missing".
Ezreal's eyes grew wide open. They looked as if they were made of glass. He couldn't hide his emotions.
Graves was eyeing him suspiciously like he was checking to see if his reaction was genuine. Ezreal sat down on a chair next to Jayce's with slow movements.
"Just thought you should know", Graves carried on after a while but he was still narrowing his eyes. Gauging the boy's true intentions. He put his feet up on the desk. His leather boots were covered in dirt. Just like the rest of his office. The place looked like it hadn't been cleaned since his detention with Kayn.
"What happened?", he asked in a low voice. He was afraid that it might crack if he spoke in a higher pitch.
"You kidnapped them", Malcolm Graves explained calmly.
"What?", Ezreal shot up. His feet landed on the floor with a loud thud.
"Well.. You clearly didn't. Since you're here", he finally put out his cigar in a heavy looking ashtray. "But still. You gotta admit boy: You're the perfect scapegoat".
"This is bullshit! I didn't do anything wrong!", he threw a punch on the desk making Graves sit back normally but he still looked calm as water.
"Oh really?", he asked quizzically.
Ezreal furrowed his eyebrows at the question. No. This isn't happening.
"Did you not shoot and kill a man named Singed in Zaun using that gauntlet of yours?", Graves knitted his fingers together as he waited for the boy's response.
His mouth felt so dry. Goosebumps covered his skin. For the first time since he got it, he wanted to hide the gauntlet behind his back. Never to see it again.
He shot Jayce with an accusing look but the black haired boy turned to face the other way.
"Is that why you're here? Did you give me up too?", he huffed a sarcastic laugh. Jayce looked at him with cleched teeth.
"Don't you dare... For all I know it was your friend Ekko who told them".
"So it IS true..", Graves looked up at Ezreal's innocent looking face in what seemed like disbelief. No. It was something worse. Disappointment.
Ezreal didn't know why he was after this man's approval so hard. This no-good, useless, probably worst teacher he ever had. A clearly broken man. Yet he did.
"I think I know what happened", Ezreal grunted ignoring his stupid thoughts. I have to find her. "I think it was Katarina, Professor. You HAVE to believe me! She admitted to me that she's the one who killed Principal Yuumi"! He didn't even hesitate to reveal all of this in front of Jayce. This had to be her threat. Tell anyone and I'll kill her.. How did I screw this up so fucking much?
"Katarina DuCuteau did what? There's no way!", Jayce said.
What the fuck?
"Why are you defending her? I thought you hated her anyway", he yelled back at him.
"Graves", the fact that Jayce had just casually addressed their teacher irked him for some reason. "Katarina DuCuteau is a lot of things but I don't think she would ever harm innocent people".
Ofcourse Graves will believe him.. It was always obvious that this guy was the teacher's pet. Jayce looked so determined he could even convince him of that. If it hadn't been for the fact that she had put a knife in his throat.
"You were a nutjob's apprentice! You don't get to have an opinion on this matter!", Ezreal grabbed him by his blue vest.
"And YOU do? A purse snatcher?", Jayce chuckled letting his eyes half close. "Oh please. You don't have any more credibility than I do 'Lightfeather'", he sniggered then Ezreal let him go irritated.
"Fine", he mumbled under his breath as he took his seat again.
"Why don't we start by you two SHITHEADS GETTING YOUR SHIT TOGETHER"?! Professor Graves' sudden outburst made the two boys droop their heads in shame.
"Ezreal", Graves called out his name. "You need to leave. They have people looking for you. Even if you didn't kidnap the girls you still killed that guy. Go away. Lie low. There's nothing you can do anymore".
"You can't shut me down!"
"ENOUGH. You've done enough already. I could have turned you in the moment you walked out that door. Think of it as me paying you back. Now. We need to track down miss DuCuteau ASAP", he said consumed in thoughts.
"But I'm telling you! She couldn't have done this!", Jayce insisted then the look in his eyes turned blank. "Unless..", he whispered.
"Unless what?", Graves asked visibly intrigued.
Jayce took a deep breath then shot the two others with a puzzled look.
"I guess there's no point in hiding this anymore"...
The girl with the colourful hair stepped out of her purple portal. The mountain was cold and definitely not hospitable. She straightened her skirt and placed her tiny hands around her shoulders as a freezing gust of wind blew through her. Her shoes were sinking in the wet ground. She could see the snow melting and crashing at the weight of her feet.
"Heyy!", she shouted with her hands around her mouth from the crest of the mountain. The only one that replied to her was the sound of her own high-pitched voice, as it echoed loudly.
She frowned then tried again.
"Hey ya! Where are you you stupid dragon"?
A large figure was hovering above her head, casting its huge shadow over her and putting the mountain side into darkness.
"The prodigal child has returned".
A deep voice said as Zoe lifted her chin to gaze up at the sky. The blue dragon was eyeing her furiously as if it was an angry parent, with his arms folded together. A swarm of shiny stars was circling around his body as the cosmic being was floating in the night air.
Zoe stuck out her tongue irritated.
"So how was school?", the dragon asked mockingly.
"Well. I've made like tons of friends and they're all awesome and I'm really good at class"! Zoe stopped talking when she realized she was babbling uncontrollably again. She cursed herself for being absent minded again. She shook her head.
"Aurelion Sol", she addressed the dragon then took a deep bow before him.
The huge beast raised an eyebrow.
"You must be truly desperate to actually show respect to me. I could get used to this", he chuckled menacingly.
"This isn't the time for jokes doggy!", she jumped into a portal and booped his nose. A second later she was back at the top of the mountain as the dragon stroked his face with his claws.
"Pfft.. What do you want Zoe?", he sighed clearly annoyed. The chain tied to his foot was glowing as it kept him enslaved to mount Targon and subsequently the will of men.
Zoe shifted her weight from one foot to the other as she was bitting her fingernail.
"I need advice. To help my.. friend", she admitted defeated.
"You mean your Darkin friend?", he cackled.
"You know about this?", she gasped surprised.
"The creator of the universe is all knowing after all", he ruffled the flames on his head as if it was actual hair.
"Space doggy!", she scolded him. "Don't be so full of yourself! You're not the center of the universe"!
"Well, technically..", he started to reply but stopped after being met with her angry pout. "Alright. What can I do for you?", the dragon finally complied.
"How do I get rid of the Darkin? People say the last Aspect of twilight got rid of them back then by sealing them into their weapons".. Her hands were behind her back. Her foot shaking nervously against the white snow.
"She did. I saw it".
Zoe's eyes lit up at his response.
"How did she do it? I can do it too"! A playful grin was painted on her face.
Aurelion Sol shook his head then looked up at the stars in the sky.
"Hey look at me!", Zoe yelled afraid of the thought that she was being ignored.
"You can't save your friend Zoe. You will have to seal him along with the Darkin. They have become one now". Aurelion Sol spoke in an absolute tone, freezing Zoe on her tracks in the process.
She opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out. "He- He's family Aurelion! I can't just leave him!", she pleaded. Her eyes stung but she had decided that this time she would blame it on the cold. She wouldn't tear up.
The dragon swirled in the air as if he was trying to shake the stars off of him.
"Well. In that case. There might be something", the space dragon scratched his chin.