A/N Welcome, welcome, welcome! I'd like to say sorry to the FanFiction readers about not being able to get your working strawpoll links cause of how wonky the site it about links. You can look at my Strawpoll profile named TheStripeyBag to get access to the Favorite Hooded and Favorite Sleipnir polls, which I've changed to public, plus the one for Chapter Select still works in my FanFiction profile. Also sorry no new champs are really introduced in this chapter, wanted to give the shipping a little focus after the last chapter plus Sona's lore got updated and I wanted to do something with that. Don't play Ranked on NA if you can let alone late at night if you want even a shred of hope for humanity to survive. Request Private Messages, Direct Messages, Reviews, Comments, Follows, Follows, Subscriptions, and Kudos are all appreciated. Hope you all enjoy the chapter and keep surviving.
Starring: Riven, Caleb, Levia, Cathy, Aki, Sona, PsyOps Sona, Koblinoid Squadron, Nidalee, DAHN, Metto and Layka, PysOps Yi, PsyOps Ezreal, PsyOps Shen, Operator Null Caleb, Battle Boss Samira, and Rival Boss Quinn.
On the fields of the Konte farmstead, Riven and Caleb are in the middle of fierce negotiations. While they've been discussing what they are to each other, Shava and Asa have been watching for the past fifteen minutes. Once C helped Monte with his gift, Calen decided to head out and check on each of his love interests. After tracking Nidalee north of the manor and asking her to accept his offer, the young Hooded was surprised by how easily she accepted. The Huntress noted that they already live together and protect the pack as one so it was an easy choice. When he pressed about potentially sharing him, she simply waves it off as a matter of pragmatism and that she wasn't raised around societal constructs. Pressing a bit more, Nidalee confesses that as long as she isn't forgotten and he doesn't get out of hand with numbers or abuses them she'll be fine. Which leads to Caleb and the noxian exile discussing their terms and conditions.
"Okay Caleb, I'll give it a chance but the other girls involved have to be alright with this." Riven firmly states in the form of an ultimatum to the Hooded. Ignoring Shava's call for grandchildren, Caleb agrees before teleporting back to his house.
"YES! Nidalee is on board and Riven is willing too. Not gonna lie, I thought I'd vomit all over that poor ox Levia." Caleb confesses before taking a seat in his study. Projecting herself out of his Hood, the ancient being curls up on his desk.
"Kind of funny that those two were so willing, I didn't expect your bonds to be this strong with them. Hell if anything I figured Sona would be the strongest, maybe not this time." Levia notes with a hint of curiosity. When Caleb asks her what she means her response is, "I mean that while you've saved Lestara, you have no personal connection to her in this timeline."
"Bull shit Levia! She was one of the first people I met after getting out of the ocean. Not to mention I brought her to my birthday party." Caleb responds back in a fit of annoyance. Thinking she is just playing a bad joke, the Hooded's paranoia only increases as the Hood itself agrees with Levia.
Angered by the entities collusion, C storms out of his study to the Sleipnir's lounge where he hopes to settle things. "Hey guys, when Sona was at my party one of you talked to her right?" C asks his friends before they unanimously agree that none of them saw her. Hearing this shatters the last of Caleb's denial, it also makes his head snap back and forth. "Oh so I was wrong and that is blood." The Hooded notes after pulling his hand away from his face, he then vomits and collapses.
"Oh shit! Metto call Gwen! Aki teleport to her! DAHN flip him so doesn't choke and help me move him!" Cathy orders amidst the chaos as the boss starts to seize. Carrying him to his room, the pair move past a now terrified Nidalee.
A week later, Caleb wakes up in his bed with an IV attached to him and Annabelle watching over him. After the ghost yordle gathers the other exhausted residents of the house, Gwen checks on Caleb and lets the Squad's questions begin.
"C what the hell happened to you? You started talking about Sona and then had an aneurysm." The sleep deprived Aki inquires of their leader. Cathy then approaches the Hooded and scans him again with her pulsefire core before coming to a conclusion.
"It looks like C is most likely experiencing something called memory bleed, I'm pretty sure the other Sleipnirs have experienced it as well. Basically he's experiencing a mix of memories from the past timeline that are transitioning to now. Sometimes filling in the blanks and overflowing others." The gynoid explains after putting her core away. She then adds that he will probably have headaches for a while but otherwise should be fine.
With the mystery solved, everyone leaves to go about their day or get some rest except Nidalee. Nidalee instead turns into cougar form and lays down next to Caleb. As she nuzzles into him, the Hooded brushes her coat before kissing her forehead.
After taking the next couple of days to recover, Caleb returns to Ionia but not to visit Riven this time. Instead he is following up on some clues that might lead him to Sona's current whereabouts. Gaining passage on a boat, the Hooded heads to the island of Galrin just south of mainland Ionia. Steering clear of Pallas, for fear of having a permanent hissing face for the trip, and crossing the Ghetu Sea desert, Caleb eventually arrives near a mountain monastery. Catechu and bael trees line the dirt path leading to the main building, typical of Ionian architecture it too looks as though it was grown.
'Look I'm just saying, if you're constantly told that something doesn't do something and you try to use it for that thing, you kind of deserve to get assimilated by a demon god.' Levia comments as Caleb stretches a bit outside. Hearing the sounds of strumming, the Hooded makes his way towards the source of the sound. He eventually finds himself inside of one of the gardens, in this place housing various fruit growing trees Caleb finds Sona giving a concert to the children.
"As amazing as I remember, okay Levia got any advice? Wait, you can see her too right?" Caleb nervously asks Leviathan especially considering his previous false encounter. When the dark entity confirms his sighting, the Hooded decides to wait for Sona to finish performing for the local orphans. Sitting down underneath an apple tree, C looks up to check if any are ripe when he sees movement.
"Who are you? Are you a new monk? Your clothes are weird, are you from the west?" Are first of many questions a young boy asks while hanging upside from a branch above the Hooded. After the stranger tells the youth to be careful, the child introduces himself as Bumi and asks Caleb what he's doing.
"Most people call me C, also didn't the monks teach you to be careful around strangers? I'm not going to hurt you or anything but watch yourself." Caleb warns Bumi while keeping an eye on his branch. "C's not a real name." Is all the kid can say before his perch breaks and he's caught midair. "True, but it works for me when I need to be thanked." C states while smiling at the ionian boy and gently putting him down.
Caleb's attention is quickly brought away from the boy by the nearby sound of clapping and grass being floated over draws. Standing there with her etwahl floating in front of her is Sona, who starts to hastily sign at Bumi. After she scolds the youngster for talking with strangers, the musician hugs the child before turning him away to play with the others. When she turns to the Hooded he simply tells her that he wishes to talk to her in private. Deciding to take this out of the monastery, the two demacians get out of sight before they start talking.
(We can use sign language, you can write in Ionian if you'd like, or even use telepathy if you can?) Caleb informs the now shocked mute musician. While she agrees to use sign language, Sona can't help but be a bit nervous, and sad.
(My family invented this language so I could feel at home. They only taught it to those we trusted and I'm sorry but I can't say that we've met before.) The bluenette quickly signs in a way that tells Caleb she's almost in tears. During his investigation, Caleb visited the Buvelle estate and this time found a depressed Lestara. Following the death of her husband and the enlistment of her biological daughter, the matriarch had Sona return to Ionia to live in peace. It takes all he has in that moment to resist the urge to hug Sona and tell her she'll be okay, let alone before telling her who he is.
"Well Sona, my name is Caleb and what I'm going to tell you is really crazy sounding. So you see recently I learned we've never met in this timeline. But in the previous one we were umm close friends. Yeah, we were friends in the past." The demacian boy nervously sputters out as he changes his confession half way. This leaves the musician confused for a bit before she starts to sign again.
(Sir, I'm sorry but I don't remember you. Also you've just dropped a lot on me and it's going to take a bit to process. But, I'm sure that as long as you don't hurt anyone then you can come back and visit. After all you helped Bumi from falling so you must not be all bad. Plus we can try being friends though if that's okay with you?) Sona tells the Hooded with a bit of a smile at the end. Putting her hand out, Lady Buvelle shakes hands with the stranger before they part ways. Making her way back to the path, she misses when the Hooded stranger teleports away and his last message, (I still love you.).
A couple weeks pass and Caleb has fallen into such a slump that he has barely left the house. Taking the rarely good advice of Levia, he then tries to cheer up by going into the Multiversal Mirror Room. This plan quickly goes south as he starts to gaze into other worlds and sees other Calebs with their respective Sonas. Needing to fix the Hooded, Levia starts to brainstorm up a new idea. She quickly suggests that maybe Caleb could, 'Maybe find another version of you with a similar problem? After all, doesn't High Noon deal with something similar?'
"Yeah but he's also really evil. I mean he's no Abel but he's pretty damn close to one. After all, the only thing that separates him from one is he ate Aatrox instead of combining with him. Not to mention he also ate Vilemaw, Galio, Nasus, Elise, Vel'koz, and Nocturne from that multiverse. But yeah, I don't see the harm in looking there." Classic Caleb says before looking for his High Noon self amongst the various reflections. In his search for the infernal cowboy however he finds himself stuck near the OPS timelines. As he tries to figure out what is happening, a familiar figure manifests next to him on the ground.
'Where… where am I? My head hurts so much.' Are the words Caleb hears in his mind, and they came from the pale haired woman. After helping her up, the Hooded can't help but wonder if Eccentric or the other Hooded had something to do with this.
"This has never happened before. I've never gazed into the mirror and had another person manifest here. Amazing." Caleb notes before he notices a gash in the back of PsyOps Sona's head. Before he can inspect the wound further, the psychic attempts to fling him back but fails.
'What?! My powers aren't working, what did you do to me and who are you?!' The enraged voice of the psionic goddess echoes in Caleb's head. Revealing his face though immediately causes the alternate mute to be taken aback, 'Caleb, how can this be?'
"I am Caleb but I'm not your version of him. If we look for your world I'm sure we can see what happened. Ah here we go." The Hooded says before the room is overtaken by the world of PsyOps. At the base of a freezing chasm, a Caleb in dark fatigues is trying his best to wrap Sona's head so she doesn't bleed out.
'I see. When the abyss opened up we fell inside, my conscious mind has vacated my body. I've known of multiverse theory and could sometimes imagine other versions of myself but I suppose this proves it. Speaking of where is the other me?' The PsyOps operative asks while looking for her alternate self. It doesn't take her long to realize no one else is there as well as Caleb's look of sadness.
"She isn't here with me. We aren't as close in this timeline." Is the Hooded's response before he takes a seat on a fake snow mound. He then explains everything that has happened lately while the psionic protege looks at her situation.
'Caleb, are you familiar with the concept of constants and variables in the multiverse? If so then tell me, how many timelines are you and me close?' The runaway songbird inquires of the Hooded. Giving it a deep thought, Caleb realizes how stupid he's been and gains a smile from the mute.
"You're right Sona, considering how many universes we are together I shouldn't let this shake me. It just means I'll have to work harder in this one." C firmly states before jumping to his feet. He joins the PsyOps member in watching the infiltrator soldier wrapping his large bandana around Sona's bleeding head.
'Good. Now then could you answer something else for me? What is the gate that the Black Rose Group keeps talking about?' The mental superweapon asks while worrying about her own timeline. Taking into consideration how long she's been in the mirror room, Sona knows she'll need to leave quickly.
"Hmm from what I recall, your timeline never had Void incursions so technology was able to progress. Considering the other dimensional beings I've heard mentioned in my glimpses there, the widespread use of psionics, and the location of the events happening there, if I had to guess the Watchers are trying to breach your world via the BRG. You must stop them because if you don't then your world will end and death is gonna seem downright pleasant if they escape." Caleb informs the alternate Sona in as matter of a factly of a voice as possible. The mute communicates her thanks, then in a moment new to her, puts her fist out for Caleb to bump. Seeing how she is struggling with human contact, the Hooded accepts her gesture before she disappears to her world. Feeling better with himself and his situation, C can't help but wonder how the Sleipnirs are doing on the volcanic island they deployed to.
During their time on said volcanic island off the coast of the Freljord, the Sleipnirs are engaged in a series of foreign relations missions. To earn the good will of the local ash trolls, the Squad is to ensure that the other inhabitants of the island, a race of diminutive dragonkin they call koblinoids, don't make any terrioritorial moves should they help C. Accepting the offer of the surprisingly intelligent giants, C's mixed bag of officers find themselves in a field of birds of paradise flowers near one of the volcano's bases. Ever since crossing the center of the island, the Sleipnirs have felt a presence watching them. Whenever they tried to investigate further however, the local koblinoids would instantly flee. Knowing they need to find some good news to cheer up C, the Sleipnir Squadron gets ready to continue searching when they feel a tremor. Suddenly in front of them, five pillars of lava erupt and make them assume combat positions. Inside of each pillar seems to be a silhouette of various sizes when looked at closely enough. Leaping from the infernal streams, a group of five koblinoids come together and form a team pose. In front of the other four is their presumed leader, he is covered from head to toe in spiky obsidian and charred plate armor with a height in the middle of the others.
"Introductions! Traeh!" The armored koblinoid shouts before the rest of his team follows his example.
"Tairon!" The largest and most muscular of the diminutive group yells in his leathery and rock studded gi.
"Yings!" A winged koblinoid in a catsuit calls out before quickly flying around the field and back to her spot.
"Iris!" Is the name that the smallest of the squad cheers while fixing her wizardry robes and hat.
"Tongu!" Roars the bone wearing cleric of the group before the cluster of dragonkin assume a new group pose.
"And together we are the Koblinoid Special Squad! Prepare to face the Dragonkins' Might interlopers!" They cry out together in a show of solidarity before all five unleash their Tambora Beam breath weapon on the Sleipnirs. Cathy then barely has time to say "Oh shit!" before a massive explosion consumes them and a mushroom cloud of ashes rises. Back with Caleb in the mirror room, the only thought he has on the Sleipnirs is, 'They're probably fine.'.
A month later, with the koblinoids helping in the Freljord against a Winter's Claw incursion and the Sleipnirs in Ionia due to seismic activity, Caleb is in his study with a rubik's cube. While struggling with two of the sides not matching, he receives a transmission from the Sleipnirs for backup. Arriving in Pallis, C barely avoids a chunk of building falling and crushing him. Looking up he sees what has given the Sleipnirs such trouble, a massive empyrean dragon has been infected with Varus' blight. Before Caleb can get close enough to engage it in combat, the wound and sore covered being is already leaving the portside village. Descending from the cloudy skies is Cathy and Metto. While they are retrieving C, Aki and DAHN are currently following the corrupted beast in the Roc. When asked about the civilian population, the squadmates inform the Hooded that Aki handled the evacuation with DAHN. With Cathy and Metto now each holding a Coercion line, the duo fly off with C to chase after their draconic prey. During the flight, Cathy also informs C that they've already managed to destroy a blight stack that was located on the dragon's back.
Unfortunately due to high wind speeds, it ends up taking the trio several hours to find their friends near the edge of the Ghetu Sea. In the air, DAHN is using the Roc's cannon to pepper the empyrean in rapid blaster fire. Meanwhile Aki is spotted on the ground and is using his shadow dragon's fist to fight the massive beast. Even as it's blight stacks give the dragon enhanced regeneration, the dragon still is shook when a massive shadow fist uppercuts it. This attack actually succeeds in completely dislocating the empyrean's jaw and revealing one of the blight stacks inside the creature's mouth. Before it is able to reform it's mouth, the Roc fires a charged blast from it's cannon and destroys the parasite. A consequence of this action though is massive rotten death then begins to rain from the DAHN is forced to make an emergency landing to avoid the creature's flailing, Aki is barely saved by C with Spectral Form when it's necrotic blood almost douses him. The infested empyrean's erratic and bone snapping movements then reveal to not just be a reaction to pain, but also a horrifyingly change in shape. Fully unhinging it's lower jaw, the most startling change comes through when the top half of it's head snaps in half to create another mouth. With the metamorphosis complete, the former dragon unleashes a torrent of dark ichor as a breath attack. Caleb is simply able to go spectral to avoid the attack, but it's too quick to help Aki again. This leaves a now breathless Shadow Wyrm unable to completely dodge the downpour of death and it sears his left arm.
"Ahhhh! Fuck! Wait, what the hell?! No no no no!" Is Aki's panicked reaction as the toxins on his arm reform into a new blight worm. Struggling to hold it from burrowing into him, he is only saved when C uses spectral form to grab the creature and pull it out.
Aki is left nearly in tears as he now can't feel anything but an intense burning sensation in his arm. In a small fit of rage, he unleashes a bolt of shadow fire on the writhing creature. Done turning the nearby area into a waste, the infested host turns and leaves over the nearby mountains. Stumbling out of the Roc, DAHN makes it's way over to Caleb and Aki before having to take a breather. It turns out that DAHN hasn't consumed anything today and is rapidly losing energy as a result. Making the call, C tells his two weakened Sleipnirs to retreat back to the manor despite some protesting from Aki. Stitching up the teen's arm as best he can with Coercion, the Hooded moves to pilot the Roc while Aki and DAHN teleport out.
While flying towards the twisted being, Caleb hears the Roc's side door open and Cathy steps in. After C notifies the Cyber Pilot of Aki and DAHN's conditions, she takes control and flies them close to the dragon's back. Leaping onto the beast, Caleb uses his Coercion lines to anchor himself to the infected creature. As he starts to hack at the empyrean's scales, the Hooded leaps off when his ride crashes into something. Layka manages to fly by and catch him which gives C a chance to see what exactly happened. It would seem that the corpse of a dragon slammed into a local cloud drinker, a large flying fish like creature. Hearing loud moans of agony from the peaceful creature only confirms their worst case scenario, the creatures are fusing. As the new horror finishes forming, it expunges a massive pile of liquified insides onto the nearby mountainside. This decaying flood ends up triggering a landslide that begins to descend towards a village in one of the nearby valleys. Desperately shouting for Cathy to stop the toxic mass, Caleb can only hope that she can help before Metto flies after the mutant.
On the Cyber Pilot's end, she notices how the blighted blood destroys any plants in it's way. To counter this, she comes up with a plan to use the Roc's cannon on some nearby boulders to create a barrier. With this in mind, the gynoid quickly gets to work but her progress is proving too slow. As the dread of failure due to being only one person sets in, a roar snaps her to attention. From a shadow portal, a fully mutated DAHN emerges with the Koblinoids and a healed Aki on his back. After devouring a massive amount of meat and sugar, the zaunite bioweapon is now over ten feet tall, has grown an extra set of limbs, dozens of boney spikes on the top of half of it's back, and it's whole body, with the exception of it's bone spears and claws, is now muscular colored save a silver carapace covering the top half their head. Using said bone spears, DAHN deploys them with tendrils to rip out nearby trees to reinforce the rubble wall Cathy made. With their new height advantage, the Koblinoids unleash their Tambora Beams and create a trench in front of the new flood gate. Knowing his shadows can't be affected, Aki uses the shadow dragon's hands to slow down the flood of rotting meat. Finally, as DAHN secures the barrier with it's body, C's champions combine their Tambora Beams, Concussive Cannon, and Shadow Fireball abilities to erode the approaching mass. Their teamwork comes to fruition as the now smaller wave crashes into the makeshift barrier but it holds. It doesn't take long before the mitigated wave is absorbed via the ground and it starts to heavily rain. Boarding the Roc to help Metto and C, and avoid the massive downpour, both teams can only hope they can arrive in time. As they take off however a massive blue, white, and purple light flashes and blinds the combined parties. Knowing it's a massive burst of Pumpkin Energy, the Cyber Pilot speeds up to the source of the now large beam piercing the clouds.
After losing some unwanted weight, the horror appears as a massive skeletal whale covered in transparent pale skin, a missing stomach, and writhing hair like tendrils covering it's body. As the undulating creature flies away from the landslide it caused, Metto and C give chase. Taking into account his previous encounter with an infested, Caleb masks up before the Wind Shepherd drops him off on the horror's back. Using Pumpkin Slashes, the Hooded gets to work on destroying the beast left wing while Layka does the same to the right. Completing their objectives, they unfortunately learn that the outer shell is expendable when the creature's flight is undisturbed. Caleb also learns first hand that it's also completely malleable when it sucks him inside. Surrounded by squirming and grasping tendrils, Caleb escapes being quartered by going spectral. On his way out of the body, he does manage to locate the last blight stack which is acting as a heart. Back on the outside, the freljordian woman notices that the target is heading towards a nearby monastery. Using her superior speeds, Layka lands near the orphanage's entrance as it starts to rain heavily. When several monks start to ask the woman why she's there, the mother shouts for them to go back inside. They barely have time to ask why before heeding her order as the empyrean and cloud drinker hybrid approaches. Feeling a shift in the air pressure, Metto instinctively summons a bubble of controlled air around herself and the monastery. This pays off when the infested opens it's maw and starts to suck in everything in front of it. Using her mastery over the winds, Metto is able to keep those in her bubble from being inhaled. Driven on pure instinct at this point, the giant creature decides to simply crash into the sanctuary when it's original plan fails. In pure desperation, the Wind Shepherd tries to assault the monster with more wind slashes but this proves futile. With her attacks being foiled by regeneration, the two women decide to just focus on pushing it away and buying time. Even with her great powers however, Metto is in a losing battle but her efforts are rewarded when Caleb makes his way next to her.
"Sorry I'm late Metto. I can handle it from here but be ready in case I need you. Now as for you! It's past time you moved on from this world. Pumpkin Beam, fire." Caleb says before he pours his soul into shooting a beam of Pumpkin Energy from his cupped hands. As the beam of azurite is spiraled by purple and white slams into the abomination, it begins to disintegrate it's mutilated form.
A few seconds of this pass and the Hooded realizes his attack isn't working as planned. By shifting all of it's mass in front of the core, the infested has turned into a grotesque flying shield. Looking to his side, Caleb sees Layka trying to push the creature back but she's growing exhausted. Turning around, he notices the monks trying to sooth some of the younger children. From among the crowd quickly emerges Sona with her etwahl. Knowing she can help the pair, the musical prodigy begins to weave a soothing melody. Feeling themselves regaining energy, Metto actually manages to force the creature back while C stops firing to regroup.
'Okay Caleb, recall your core traits and how they relate to here. Ferocity is my worst but I really despise this blighted and want it gone from this world. Honor is supposedly my best and while I don't see it, I do know that I have to save these people. Lastly is my Valor, if I don't do this then everyone here is going to die. Metto, Sona, these kids who've already lost everything, the monks that make their lives less terrible, and before all that myself. But that only happens if I fail and I can only fail if I give up; so I won't! So come on little flame of mine and let's try this again!' "Dark Armor on! Pumpkin Beam, Fire!" Are the words Caleb gutturally shouts before firing another Pumpkin Beam. This time however it comes out even more powerful than before, as it always does when Caleb feels pushed to the edge.
As the ground shatters underneath his armored boots, the Hooded's beam slams into the former dragon. Burning away faster than it can regenerate, the creature is unable to stop the attack before it destroys it's core and kills it. By the time Caleb stops firing, all that remains of the monster is a floating ring of ash. Layka then uses her wind powers to clean away the remnants of the beast, before she and C fall down from exhaustion. Dispersing his armor, Caleb crawls through the muddy ground and fist bumps the Sleipnir. As the mute girl floats near the foreigners, she notices the Hooded give her a thumbs up before the monks bring them inside.
An hour later, after cleaning up the nearby area, the Sleipnirs and Koblinoids decide to leave while C stays behind for a bit. While working on something in the garden, Caleb is surrounded by awe inspired children asking his questions. Gently stepping away from one of the trees, the Hooded accidently trips over one of the smaller children. Before he squashes said four year old, Caleb quickly goes spectral and disappears into the ground. As the cluster of younglings panic from their guest disappearing, Sona rushes over to comfort them but ends up crashing into C when he emerges. A local volunteer then appears to gather the children for lunch. This leaves the disappointed group of orphans to say their goodbyes to the Hooded, while he and Sona get back up.
"Well I should get going soon too. If I don't then Dahn might empty my fridge, apparently getting rid of all that extra umm weight makes them hungry again." Caleb tells the mute before he gets ready to teleport out. He is stopped when she puts a hand on his shoulder and starts to sign.
(Thank you Caleb, you and the others. If not our home would've been destroyed by that monster. You all were very brave for helping people you didn't have to.) Sona tells the Hooded, while also avoiding his gaze. This only works for a bit before Caleb curves his body to look into her blue eyes and blushing face.
(Look Sona about what I said before, I was really nervous and let my mouth run wild. I would like to get to know you as more than just friends. However, if you'd prefer we can stay as just friends but maybe in time we can try to be more. Basically I have feelings for you Sona but no matter what we are I'm gonna do what I can to make it work.) Caleb nervously signs his confession to the bluenette. Sona then takes his hands and pulls her fellow demacian into a hug. From that single gesture, the Hooded knows that in this timeline they can make whatever this is work.
Spotlight Featuring: Koblinoid Squadron, The Dragonkins' Might
Passive: Koblinoid Tokusentai Assemble!- Captain Traeh takes up the level up points at Levels 1 and 18 while also serving as the main body. Upon finishing rank ups for an ability, it grants the Koblinoid Squadron a percent bonus to certain stats. At Level 18 these bonuses are multiplied by five and each Koblinoid unit gains these bonuses.
Bow to our posing!- Using the dance command brings all active Koblinoid Units near Captain Traeh, even if he's isolated.
Q: Lava Bomber!- Tairon smashes down from the sky in a fiery explosion that damages all units and turrets caught in it.
Summon Tairon- Tairon is a tanky unit that deals bonus damage to structures. His maxed out stat is Max Health.
W: Obsidian Blitz!- Yings swoops down to an enemy champion and begins to rapidly blink among all nearby enemy champions to hit them, this can hit the same one up to five times.
Summon Yings- Yings is a speedy unit that deals bonus damage to champions. Her maxed out stat is Movement Speed.
E: Diamond Shield!- Iris uses her magic to shield all nearby Koblinoids and minions.
Summon Iris- Iris is a supportive unit that attacks from a distance and grants sight of enemies hit. She grants Bonus Armor and Magic Resist when maxed out.
R: Tambora Beam!- All present Koblinoids fire a breath beam which converges with the others, if Bow to our Posing! used then all available beams are fired from Traeh.
Summon Tongu- Tongu is an artillery unit that lobs aoe autos from a distance and deals bonus damage to minions. His maxed out stat is Ability Power.
Variables and Constants Short: PsyOps 1
On the snowy borders of the Freljord and Demacia, a helicopter dispatched by High Command is landing at a local ranch. Operatives Yi and Ezreal have been dispatched to the area to recruit a local with unique abilities. Making their way towards a cabin at the edge of a nearby forest of pines, the two notice someone chopping wood. They are a young, brunette man and despite having guests he continues his daily task.
"Excuse me sir but we are looking for someone. Do you by chance know a woman by the name of Nita?" Yi asks of the civilian who stops and turns to face the soldier. The young man then throws his ax at the pair and confirms that they are psionic when Ezreal stops it.
"If you're looking for Nita then I recommend going about a mile west of here and six feet in the ground. Now if you all are done following shitty intel, please kindly fuck off my property. Lucky my partners aren't out here because we don't take kindly to High Command. Especially after the shit you did to Riven, you broke that poor woman." Caleb informs the pair of pawns before pulling out a cigarette. Ezreal then uses his powers to toss back the ax but with less than successful results. Upon it getting within a few feet of the rude rancher, the tool flops to the ground.
"It would seem our intel wasn't entirely faulty since we came here for you Caleb Fleetfoot. High Command requires your expertise in stealth operations and abilities for a special mission, they are willing to bargain greatly for your aid." Yi adds as a means of luring the former operative into service once again. Ezreal, still curious about what happened early, tries to shoot his lucky dagger at the man. Just like the ax from earlier it loses force before flopping harmlessly near him.
"Yeah, no matter what you do pal it's not going to work. Apparently if it's psionic related then it won't work near me. But then again, if someone tosses something big or close enough it can still hurt like it was soft tossed at me. Anyways, can't you PsyOps guys handle this? Are you trying to tell me you fucks ruined Riven's mind for nothing?! She can only whisper to me and Nidalee and that's when she's not looking off into space!" The veteran yells at the two operatives. Before he gets ready to throw them off his property, Nidalee makes herself known from the house.
"Caleb lunch is almost down and it's starting to feel chilly so bring in some firewood. As for you two, you can wait right out here. Don't worry we'll have an answer for you soon but our house is kind of a safe space from lackeys." The co-owner of the property tells the operatives. Taking the blatant hint, Yi and Ezreal communicate to their ride to wait a bit longer than expected.
Meanwhile inside of the cabin, Nidalee and Caleb start to discuss what they should do. After watching Riven coddling one of their cats, the pair come up with their terms. Heading back outside, Caleb delivers his ultimatum to the PsyOps members.
"I want ten million dollars and for you all to stay the fuck away from our homestead forever. These aren't negotiable terms and remember you need me, I don't need you." The brunette informs the duo of soldiers, to which Yi agrees. After confirming the demands with High Command, Caleb agrees to be deployed in a week's time.
After a long week of training and strategizing, Operation Aphids begins several miles off the coast of the Freljord. It begins with a submarine moving in just outside of the motion sensors of a nearby military port. This formerly abandoned outpost was recently operated by the infamous terrorist faction known as the Black Rose Group. Eventually the High Command vessel leaves for deeper waters, but not before it deploys a special torpedo. When said torpedo is detected on the base's radar and motion sensors it comes off as nothing more than a seal. Making it's way into a submarine hangar, the torpedo then splits open and Caleb in a drysuit emerges. Sneaking his way behind some nearby crates, the operative starts to strip off his drysuit and reveals his gray combat uniform and black combat vest. As he rolls out a large bandana that once belonged to Nita, and puts it on, Caleb recalls his briefing.
"You are to infiltrate this base and locate a server. After finding one, you are to use a hacking device to copy the base's schematic and send them to use. We've also gotten word from a double agent that there is a secret weapon in development here. Apparently it's psionic based, hence why we're sending you. If you can; discover this secret weapon and destroy it. There are also rumors of powerful psionic users gathering in the area so watch out for unusual characters. We will have to be sent in via a Marai Deployment Torpedo so you'll be lightly equipped. You should be able to bring with you a hacking device, a combat knife, and a semi automatic pistol. Finally your codename for this mission will be Null. Dismissed." Are the words from Shen that echoes through operative Null's mind. Meanwhile in the center of the base, a lone woman notices from her cage that there is now a space her mind can't peer into.
Variables and Constants Short: Arcade 2
On a platform in the middle of a starry void, two combatants arrive to settle a dispute in one versus one combat with no items. Arriving via her wolfen two, Battle Boss Samira flips out of the speeding ship and draws her duel blasters. On the other side of the arena, a thin blue line appears in the air before it tears open and a figure emerges; Rival Boss Quinn. In contrast to the mercenary's more extravagant and futuristic look, Quinn is wearing dark casual attire and her favorite dark blue long coat. As the one eyed woman fires several pot shots at the stoic twin, Quinn merely spins her katana in front of her and disperses the shots. Acknowledging that she isn't dealing with a noob, Samira pulls out her laser sword, which comes out as a serrated blade, and rushes her opponent. Before her Wild Rush can hit though, Quinn teleports and reappears above Samira. Now donning a pair of armored boots, the Rival Boss dive kicks down in a comet of light and somersaults off Samira's head. At the zenith of her maneuver, Quinn summons and launches three spectral swords at the mercenary. Spinning her lycan blade, the fighter pilot deflects the phantasmal blades. Samira then slams her foot into the ground before rocketing in a blaze of purple forward. The surprise burst of speed catches Quinn off guard and allows for Samira to slash her stomach. Taking a knee, Quinn's wound seals shut before her organs can come out as her regeneration heals almost instantly.
"Mmm not bad. I guess I can start trying a bit and go into phase two." Quinn confidently declares while she rolls her shoulders. Forming a ball of shadows in her hand, the elder twin then fires it at her opponent with a smirk.
While it's in mid flight, the ball starts to leave feathers behind it before transforming. It turns out to be Dark Valor, who upon slamming into Samira explodes into electricity before flying away. With a flick of her finger, Quinn sends a barrage of summoned swords at the mercenary. Reacting quickly, Samira begins dash dancing, rolling, and blocking as many of the ghostly blades as possible. Quickly retaliating after being on the defensive, Samira starts to rush Quinn while firing her blasters. As the Rival Boss is busy deflecting the shots, her Battle Boss foe tosses a grenade between them. Seeing Quinn raise her guard for the upcoming explosion, Samira opts to instead leap over the primed explosive. Using the blast to propel herself into the air, the one eyed woman then starts to rain blaster fire all around her. Not prepared for such an attack, Quinn is peppered in shots and takes another knee.
"Ha! When I heard from Veigar that you cut down Brand and went rogue I thought you'd be stronger, guess not. Then again you always lost to Cero in the end so he must be the stronger twin. Hell, take this gold and maybe you can hire him out to fight me instead." Samira taunts the older twin before flicking a coin at her. Growling, Quinn slices the currency in half mid flight and gets up. While Quinn is normally fine playing along with opponents that taunt; this time Samira hit the Cero button.
"Okay, now I'm motivated. As for you then CINO, I am not going to delete you; but only because I need a messenger for the so-called Final Boss. I am no one's puppet because might controls everything and I am everything. So just sit back, relax, and see why…" Quinn monologues to Samira before a dark ball of purple energy surrounds her. Feeling herself being pulled toward the sphere, Samira starts to fire at the Rival Boss but her bubble deflects the shots. "You're not worthy as my opponent." Is all the now guttural sounding voice of Quinn says before the shell shatters.
Standing there in her demonic glory, Quinn's body is now over a foot taller with her skin turning chitinous and covered in a scale like armor. Once serious amber eyes are now transformed into cold blue orbs of pure energy. On her back are now four demonic wings acting as her coat as well as a long barbed tail from the middle of her back. The two horns on her head, as well as her forearms, are channeling a steady stream of blue energy. Roaring, Quinn instantly closes the gap to Samira and grabs her by jaw before cutting open a portal with her blade. Going through it, the pair are taken to a pocket dimension where Quinn can recreate places from her memories. In this case, the two are transported near a Victorian era mansion where Quinn grew up as a child. Being ever the honorable and fair one, Quinn gives Samira a special house tour. First she takes her through the foyer, then the foundations, and finally to her old room on the third floor before going towards a lonely tree outside. "You're Behind Enemy Lines! Now prepare to die!" Is all the warning Quinn gives before she disappears. In her wake, she unleashes a flurry of imperceivable slashes around the pair while it rains summoned swords. This series of attacks is so destructive that it even shatters the pocket dimension. With shards of reality falling all around them, the two Bosses are returned to the Final Destination. While Samira is left severely damaged, Quinn returns to her human form and slowly sheathes her blade. When she finishes, a now unconscious Samira is sent flying off the edge in a burst of rainbow colored light. "GAME!"
"Come on Val, we've gotta go give Cero his memories back. This storm is approaching and I want to have a good fight. Plus I could go for a burger." Quinn says with a small smile before slicing open a portal to the lands of the Arcade. Arriving in a forest clearing, the pale haired woman looks and sees a nearby goblin encampment. It would see that the rookie team of RGB is taking the day to farm; and they're being watched over by their guardian, Cero.