Hello guys! I know I havent been posting as much lately but the story is ending and I want to be extra careful. That's why I posted two at once (read chapter 53 if you haven't already) Again thank you to everyone for the support!
He opened his eyes with an unsettling feeling in his heart. The blonde boy took a quick look around his dorm room. Kayn's bed was empty. His sheets were a mess.
Lazily, he lifted his chin and glanced out the window. It was still dark outside. Where is that dumbass? He pondered as he stood up.
He opened the door without bothering to dress up. His feet were bare but he wasn't cold. The corridor outside was bleak. His footsteps echoed around the place as he let out a paradoxically loud yawn. It was too quiet.
Without notice, he was back in class. Listening to Professor Graves rumbling about why you should never trust the government or something. Whatever.. He searched the room for Lux's smiling face but she wasn't there. All of a sudden, he was alone in an empty classroom.
What is this thing even made of? Ezreal wondered as he hit the target dummy with multiple mystic shots. Professor Zed was nearby probably lecturing Yasuo on why patience is really important and you can't just "hasagi" your way our of every situation. He huffed a laugh.
"Booya!", he exclaimed when he had finally succeeded in making the mannequin's head explode. But no one was there to cheer him on. Or even tell him to shut up cause he was an annoying prick. A feeling of terror resonated within him.
"Zoe!", he called out the girl's name. He could see the back of her head at the door from where he stood. Her long floating hair almost touched her feet. He rushed over to her and reached out with his hands to grab nothing but air. She was gone.
The bookcases were filled with old, hardcover books. Most of them looked pretty heavy. The walls were ornated with beautiful ancient artifacts. Bright crystals, weapons, even clothing from god-knows what periods.
And there it was. A shining, sapphire crystal on the center of a scarlet gauntlet. He couldn't help but grin at the sight. Eagerly, he put his hands all over the glass case leaving a trail of blurry fingerprints.
He held it with both hands in awe. Surprisingly, it wasn't as light as he initially thought it would be. He wanted to wear it so badly. He put it on his left hand. It was like it fit him perfectly. Like it was originally created with him in mind.
A loud bang coming from the other side of the school library broke his chain of thoughts. He raised his hand. Ready to attack. But the gauntlet was no longer there. And his hand.. it was bare and bloody.
He finally woke up.
His heart was still beating fast. It was just a dream..
He looked over to his left hand but the gauntlet was missing. Only then did he remember that he had given it up. He took a deep breath as he sat up in his bed. Well.. It wasn't exactly HIS bed but it was still good enough.
He rubbed his eyelids feeling even more exhausted than before he'd slept. Ezreal dragged his feet over to the bathroom. He opened the faucet and let the water run aimlessly for a few seconds before he washed his face.
He looked over to his own reflection in the mirror. Honestly, he looked like crap. Blonde roots had started to grow and the black dye job was starting to fade. The dark circles under his blue eyes weren't doing him any favors and neither was the constant frown he just couldn't shake off.
He sighed at what he'd become before he stopped the running water and went back to the tiny room. Cans of beer and all sorts of leftover food were scattered around the floor. The smell was even worse but at this point, he couldn't care less.
He'd been closed up in here for what seemed like an eternity already.
Jayce was the last person he'd expected to help him find a hide out but let's be real for a second: it was the last thing this asshole could do to somewhat redeem himself.
And the place was in -you guessed it- Piltover. He was like a cat among pigeons. Who would have ever guessed that someone wanted in Piltover and Zaun would still be there?
Brilliant planning Jayce. Really.
But that was all he had. And hell, he was going to take everything he could get his hands on.
His fingers looked weird to him. He had gotten so used to seeing that gauntlet on him that it felt peculiar not to have it on at this point. But how could he? He didn't need it. He couldn't save Kayn. He couldn't save Lux. And he hadn't heard from Zoe in what seemed like ages. It was useless. It was a good thing he had exchanged it for his stay here.
Apparently, Singed wasn't the only scientist Jayce had been running errands for.
Cecil B. Heimerdinger was also one of them. What the Class President had failed to mention was that he was apparently also a yordle. Ezreal had only seen one in Doran's academy before. Let alone a highly intelligent being with a lab of his own. Quirky little fellow.
Why would this guy not turn a fugitive in and decide to harbor him you ask? Let's just say that his desire to experiment with various (hextech or not) crystals, including the gauntlet's, exceeded his desire to be a lawful citizen.
He was sleeping in a yordle's basement but he couldn't complain. Heimerdinger didn't bother him and vice versa. It was an unspoken common treaty. And he was completely fine with that.
Jayce would come in and tell him a bit of what was going on outside. Both academies were currently closed. Good, Ezreal thought. Let something good come out of this situation. The students were still missing. Including Lux. There was a sense of heaviness in his heart every time he got the same answer from his classmate.
Maybe I should just stop asking.. And Kayn.. He was still MIA. Just like Zoe. Right now, Ezreal was simply hoping that he wouldn't have to worry about her as well. It was just too much for him.
There was a knock on the wooden, old door.
"Come in", he said but his voice sounded hoarse.
The boy with the black hair lingered at the entrance for a moment.
"Please. Come in. Don't be shy. I'm ready for my conjugal visit", Ezreal said sarcastically.
Jayce scoffed as he paced around the room before finally sitting down. He looked at his hand disgusted when he realized he had unwittingly touched something that used to be edible.
"Someone's here to see you", Jayce said as Katarina DuCuteau's face emerged from the still open door.
Without even realizing what he was doing, Ezreal had picked up a ridiculously blunt knife and rushed over to the girl with the pink hair. The most he could probably do with it was to potentially scratch her throat but it didn't matter. He held the dull blade against her her slick neck.
"Put that thing away or you might hurt yourself", Katarina looked at him straight in his eyes.
Her expression seemed calm yet somehow a bit agitated.
"Oh you're in no position to make threats darling", Ezreal chuckled without backing away. "Now tell me what you did to Lux", he demanded with one hand on her shoulder.
"She's here to help!", Jayce intervened but he didn't bother to stand up from where he sat.
"More than she already has?!", Ezreal's voice cracked but he kept holding onto to that knife with all of his strength.
"Jayce is telling the truth", Katarina DuCuteau carried on.
"How come you two became best buds all of a sudden, huh? Didn't he betray you once? What are you doing here following him?", he gestured over to Jayce with his head.
It was true. What Jayce had told him and Professor Graves that day. Marcus' DuCuteau disappearance was no secret in Durrandal's Academy after all. He was the former principal. The one that had started it all. What wasn't known was that Jayce had witnessed the whole thing when he was running errands for his now-deceased mentor, Singed.
He had been abducted. Yet Jayce didn't testify to cover for his illegal deeds. And nothing remains a secret for too long. Nothing remains a secret when Katarina DuCuteau is seeking the truth.
"I assume you already know", the girl said looking down.
"Damn right I do", Ezreal responded more irritated than before.
"They have my father", she said. Her gaze looked sincere.
"And who exactly is 'they'"?
"Noxus. And the Black Rose", she retorted in all seriousness.
"The Black Rose?", Ezreal wondered baffled.
He had heard stories about this mythical organisation. Dark magic. Mystical rituals. Brainwashing. But they were just that. The Black Rose was nothing but a myth.
"I need your help", Katarina said. Ezreal took a step back surprised.
"You? You need MY help? And why should I ever agree to that?" he raised an eyebrow. Cockiness crept into his tone.
"Because you want to save Luxanna. Or don't you?", Katarina finally walked into the room and shut the door behind her. "Your white knight syndrome is blantantly obvious".
He unwillingly let out a small grunt at her comment. "And I know you want to save Shieda", she concluded.
Ezreal looked over to Jayce who was now standing next to the girl. His look seemed steady and decisive. The boy nodded affirmatively.
"They have Kayn too?", he asked mostly to himself and the girl gave him a nod of affirmation.
"You're the only one responsible for this mess", Ezreal pointed his finger to the girl. "All of this..", he gestured around the room "all of this is YOUR fault".
"I know", the girl said. Ezreal was taken aback. That was the last thing he expected to hear. "And that's why I'm keen on fixing it". She stretched out her arm. "Are you willing to do that with me"?
Ezreal rubbed his forehead then ran his fingers through his hair. A breath was stuck in his throat. But he didn't give it much thought. "Let's do this", Ezreal shook Katarina DuCuteau's hand.
"Alright.. Who's breaking this to Heimerdinger?", Jayce chimed in. They both looked at him with blank stares. "What?", the boy raised his shoulders. "And dude.. you GOTTA fix that hair. I mean for real", Jayce clicked his tongue.
"That's your priority?!", Ezreal raised his eyebrows.
"Don't we need a plan first?", Katarina asked but the boys paid her no attention. They just kept on bickering about Ezreal's hair. "Ugh.. I'm gonna tell Heimerdinger you're leaving", she started to walk up the stairs. It didn't take long before the boys followed.
"So you're basically telling me you're planning to charge into the Noxian palace kamikaze style?", Heimerdinger was eyeing the three of them suspiciously.
"Pretty much", Jayce replied indifferently.
"Have you people lost your minds?!", the yordle spun around indignant. "Not that you had much of a brain to begin with but I was somewhat hopeful".
Ezreal sniggered at the scientist's sarcastic jab.
"This is no laughing matter you dirty ape!", Heimerdinger scolded the teenager.
"I'm gonna need that gauntlet back Heimy", Ezreal responded with a cheeky smile.
"Heim-", the yordle let out a soft sigh before he eventually gave up on trying to correct him. "Alright.. I'll give it back".
Ezreal saw his short frame disappear in a back room then come back with a golden gauntlet. He would have assumed it was a completely different one hadn't it been for the bright crystal.
"What did you do to my baby?", Ezreal exclaimed as he took it into his hands and held it.. well.. like an actual baby.
"Well that hot red was fairly conspicuous", Heimerdinger said disgusted.
"And you thought that GOLD was the most discreet option", Ezreal blinked.
"It clearly is an upgrade", he mumbled. "Anyway! My point is.. you three can't even save yourselves. Let alone invade Noxus"!
"If you have any better ideas we'll hear you out", Jayce shrugged.
"Gather up as many as possible. I'd calculate as many as fourty-two people are enough for this sort of operation".
Jayce blinked at his mentor.
"Enough with the fourty-two thing".
"Why? It's the answer to everything"!
"No offence but leave the planning to us, Mr Scientist guy", Katarina quipped. "The Blood Moon is coming up soon".
"If only we had more time", Ezreal sighed as he run a hand through his hair.
Jayce huffed a laugh.
"Don't worry. I know a guy", he winked at his classmate.
Anyway I hope you guys like these new chapters! Let me know what you think! Any predictions on what's to come next?
Also did you see that new cinematic? Ughh.. Is it too much to ask for Ezreal and Lux in the same scene? xD Well, I'm just hoping that Jarro Lightfeather will appear in the Lux comics at some point!
Thank you all for your patience I'm just letting you know I'm working really hard on these next chapters. See you all in the next one!