Chapter 1
Life carries many uncertainties. No mortal being can see into their future.. not that Yasuo believes in the idea of fate. The ever-wandering blademaster has always believed that one can change their future; nothing is set in stone. Yasuo understood these concepts well, and had made his conclusion about life. There are three certainties: honor, death, and hangovers. Especially the hangovers, as one would surely follow this night of drinking.
Yasuo sat alone in a tavern located in a small village between Navori and Ionia. A marketplace surrounds the small tavern. While busy during the day, activity had died down, as most of the sellers were closed for the night. The tavern is one of the few things open this late, though it is never that busy. Most Ionians have little interest in casual drinking, especially without some sort of celebration. Most who come during this time are soldiers, travelers, or drunks. The blademaster orders his drink, hiding much of his face with the cloak that sits on his collar, as his identity is one that cannot be revealed so openly. As the bartender serves his drink, Yasuo overhears a pair of gentlemen talking at a table not too far from him.
"Did you hear the rumors? About the Noxians?" One of the men asks. By the looks of it, he is one of the militia men. He is young, a face that lacks wrinkles and facial hair. His eyes are bright and full of color. The young man wears civilian clothes with leather armor over it. A steel-headed spear leans upon his chair.
The poor soul has probably never seen combat, Yasuo thinks to himself.
"Yeah, but, do you really think they have the manpower to march towards Ionia?" Responds the other man. He too is a militia soldier, but unlike his companion, his face is worn. Wrinkles and scruffy facial hair decorate his face. His eyes are slanted and dark, hiding whatever emotions may be present. He wears only pants, and lacks any clothing on his upper body, other than a pauldron that sits on his left arm. A broadsword is strapped across his chair.
"Well," the younger soldier starts, "it's just a rumor, like I said, but scouts claim to have spotted ships with Noxian soldiers filled to the brim. They also claim that the Noxians are moving into a fortress in Fae'lor."
"The Fae'lor fortress? Huh, it is quite a distance from here. I doubt they'll be able to force their ways inland."
"Do you think the Kinkou will stop them? Or maybe the Order of Shadows?"
"Well, I suppose if the Noxians head further inland, the Kinkuo might react to protect 'the balance,' but, the Order of Shadows would take a stronger offensive, I would think."
Yasuo begins to think to himself upon hearing the discussion. Although Yasuo has only heard rumors of the Order of Shadows' capability, disgust fills him as he imagines the horrors that the organization can achieve. Legends of their leader Zed and his young apprentice Kayn are infamous legends to all of Runeterra.
"You know," the older soldier hesitates to make his sentence, "it might be beneficial to Ionia if the Noxians did show up, it would keep the Order of Shad-"
"Excuse me!"
The two men and Yasuo turn their head around to the voice. It's the bartender. Sweat trickles down his worried face.
"Er," he awkwardly starts, "I would prefer you discuss these matters in another location."
"Oh, erm, yes, my apologies," both soldiers stand up, pick up their weapons, bow towards the bartender, place their pay on the table, and exit the tavern.
Yasuo took the final swig of his drink. He understood the bartender's worry. Discussion of the Order of Shadows was a rather sensitive topic. While small militias and organizations formed after the first Noxian invasion of Navoria, Ionia has never had a standing army. But the Order of Shadows pushes for it, and they have taken the responsibility of protecting Ionia themselves. Ironically enough, they have caused much harm to-
"NOXIANS!"
The sound of piercing flesh immediately follows the outcry. Yasuo looks through the window. Though all was quiet throughout the village only a few moments ago, it all looks like a battlefield. The marketplace was set to fire, and it quickly spread throughout the village. The fire crept towards the tavern. Yasuo stands up and grabs the bartender's arm.
"We need to leave, NOW!" Yasuo yells at him.
Before the bartender could respond, Yasuo drags him out of the building into the street. Chaos surrounds them. Women and children are screaming in terror as their village burns down. Men and young boys arming themselves to fend off the invaders. This is not the first time the blademaster has encountered the ambitious conquerors. Yasuo turns his head to the bartender. He isn't in any condition to fight.
"Gather as many people as you can and make a run as far as you can inland." Yasuo barks at the bartender.
"Y-y-yessir!" The bartender began to run towards the women, children, and elderly who were running in all directions, doing anything to avoid the bloodshed.
Yasuo drew his blade. Although he was an outcast to the eyes of many, he would not allow more Ionian blood to be shed upon their own land. He scans the area to pick his set of targets. Looking down the street, he sees four Noxian spearmen harassing a young boy, only armed with a black cleaver, far too heavy for his thin arms. The young boy is protecting a woman who cowers behind him.
Noxian dogs…
Without hesitation, Yasuo immediately dashes into the fray. As the blademaster approaches the two spearmen in the backline, he prepares to swing his blade in a circular motion.
Without stopping his momentum, Yasuo spins in between both spearmen, his blade slitting their necks. By the time the other two spearmen turn their heads to see their fallen comrades, Yasuo is already prepared in his stance.
"Ton!"
With a swift strike of his blade, he pierces both Noxians, and they fall to their deaths. Yasuo turns his head to the boy. The boy drops the cleaver, turns around, and begins to cry into the woman's chest. Yasuo freezes for a split second, as he realizes that the woman is most likely the boy's mother.
"Go east from here, many of the villagers are fleeing into inner Ionia. You should be safe there." Yasuo informs them.
The woman nods, picks up her boy, and flees with the remaining civilians. Yasuo turns back to the battlefield. The Noxians' onslaught looks endless, and the militia's forces could not hold up against them. While Yasuo sees Noxians as merciless conquerors, they're military geniuses, and they are disciplined like dogs. The militia is short on weapons, training, and manpower. Anyone could see that this is a losing fight. Before Yasuo develops any sort of plan, he hears a voice shouting in the distance.
"Soldiers! Our primary objective is to allow the civilians to safely escape towards inner Ionia, and nothing else!"-
Probably the captain of this militia, Yasuo thinks to himself. Regardless of who it may be, he is right. Buying time for the fleeing civilians is the primary objective. Yasuo once again dashes into the fray, slashing down at each Noxian he encounters. The blademaster eventually ends up encountering the majority of the militia frontline, who are standing their ground in the middle of a field. They're all exhausted or wounded. Yasuo spots the two men he saw at the tavern. His eyes slant in anger. The older man now has a gash going from his forehead, through his left eye, and ending at the bottom of his left ear. He holds the younger man in his arms, who is now missing his right arm.
"I… I can still fight."
"Please, brother, run with the rest, you don't need to die here-"
"You'll die too-"
"INCOMING ENEMY BOMBARDMENT!"
Yasuo switches his focus towards an incoming hail of arrows. The heads of the arrows are lit, shining a bright light in the night sky. There is no time to run from the arrows. He runs in front of the militia and puts himself in a stance. The soldiers who notice him stare at him confusingly. The arrows are now only a few yards away.
Now.
"Choryon!"
Yasuo slashes his blade upwards, and a wall of wind arises blowing the arrows out of their intended targets. The Ionian militiamen stand shocked as the once deadly, flaming arrows are now scattered around them, broken and unlit. While the blademaster's intention was to save them from the bombardment, it caused a morale boost. The soldiers now take a more offensive positioning, as if they were ready to…
"Men! We die with honor! Make this final charge with the spirit of Ionia!"
Yasuo recognizes the voice as the man who has been making all of the previous commands and shouting the warnings. He wears a heavy set of steel armor and carries a crossbow. The man stands tall and proud; an intimidating figure. As the rest of his men run towards the Noxian forces, he quickly jogs towards Yasuo.
"Thank you for saving my men and I. I am Dominik," he says, sticking out his metal covered hand.
Yasuo takes his hand, giving a short and firm handshake. Before Yasuo replies, the captain turns back to the battlefield, and makes his charge as well. While Yasuo wants to participate in the combat, he decides to ensure the evacuation of the village. He has already once made the mistake of choosing to fight instead of ensuring the civilians' protection, and it cost him more than he could ever pay. As he runs off, the Ionian soldiers clash with the Noxians in the middle of the field. Swords, spears, and shields collide. Shouts and grunts on the soldiers mix with the clashing metal weapons. The Ionians hold against the Noxian lines. The tide of the battle starts to come to a standstill as the Ionians charge right in without any regards of their own lives'. Their suicidal tenacity was all they had left.
"That's it men! Hold the-"
Dominik's words are cut short as an axe slashes through his comrades and bashes the side of his helmet. The hit to his head causes him to fall, and he looks up to the man who dealt the blow. Dominik's eyes widen in fear. Staring down at him is the Hand of Noxus, Darius. Infamous legends have spread across Runeterra of the brutal executioner. He stands before him clad in classic Noxian armor, scratched from blades and stained with blood. Before Darius can make any move, Dominik sweeps at the Noxian's feet, causing him to stumble. Dominik uses this time to get back on his feet. Darius regains his balance, and scowls at the opposing Ionian commander. Dominik pulls a dagger out of his belt, and puts his hands in front of his face, as if to challenge the Noxian General to a fight. A smile rises to Darius's face as he rolls his shoulders. Both commanders stare each other down, as the rest of battle fades in the background. Both men clench their weapons in their right hands. Without any hesitation, Dominik lunges with his dagger, aiming at Darius's face. Darius grabs the lunging hand with his left hand, allowing no contact to be made with the dagger and his body, and swings his axe at Dominik's face. While outmatched in combat experience, the Ionian's reflexes are keen, as he lifts his left arm to take the axe's blow. The axe manages to penetrate the armor, barely stopping at his flesh. As the Noxian General yanks his axe out to prepare another blow, Dominik takes it as an opening, using his left to land a punch at Darius's jaw. Darius stumbles back, releasing Dominik's right hand in the process. Regaining his balance, Darius stands defensively, staring at his opponent, who also prepares himself for another engagement. The two circle each other, tracking every moment, like a pair of dogs. This time, Darius takes the lead, swinging his axe far out in front of him. Rather than stepping back, Dominik attempts to surprise the Noxian General by stepping forward, and lunging at him with his dagger.
"Heh…"
Dominik tenses in fear when he feels a pushing force shoving him closer to Darius. He recognizes the force to be the Noxian General's axe, and is slammed into his chestplate. The blow causes Dominik to stumble back. He feels blood dripping down his nose. He feels light headed. He feels the intensity of the Noxian General before him. Before Dominik can react, he feels a sharp pain on his left side. His watering eyes look down to see the axe cleaved into his side, penetrating the armor and cutting into his flesh. He drops the dagger in his hand, attempting to remove the axe from his side with both hands. He groans in pain as the axe wiggles around in place, opening the wound. Dominik loses more and more focus trying to remove the axe. He begins to fall out of consciousness, until he is suddenly kicked to the ground. Upon impact, Dominik lets out a coughing fit, blood spurting out with his saliva. As he lays on the ground, his awareness of his surroundings come back to him. He can hear the shouts of soldiers and the clashing of metals. He can see the looks on the Ionian's faces, enraged and painted in blood. He can smell the burning of the forest, burning flesh of the dead, and the metallic scent of blood. Mustering up the last of his strength, Dominik unclips the large crossbow on his back, loading an arrow onto it. Before he can aim the bolt at his enemy's head, the axe is swung straight onto his chest. The trigger is pulled too early, and the bolt launches straight into the pauldron covering Darius's left shoulder, piercing right through, and sticking out the back. Darius shouts in pain as the arrow sits in his shoulder. Darius turns his head towards the Ionian commander. While life seems to be draining from his body, Dominik gives him a small smirk.
"Send- send my regards to No-Noxus," Dominik manages to gasp out in sarcastic manner.
"I should be telling that to you for your own country, Ionian," Darius responds in a monotone voice.
Darius proceeds to rip the axe out of Dominiks chest. Dominik lets out a final gasp to the pain, before passing away. Darius swaps his axe from his right hand to his left, using his now free right hand to tear out the arrow that is still stuck in his left shoulder. With one clean pull, the arrow comes out. Darius clenches his jaw and groans as the arrow's removal tears through his flesh a second time. Once removed, Darius tosses the arrow to the side. He looks around the battlefield, and to his pleasure, he sees a wasteland. His soldiers gather the remaining Ionians in the area, throwing them in wagons.
"Send the prisoners to the boats and have them sent to Fae'lor, where they will be questioned and be sent to Inner Noxus after interrogations," Darius barks.
The Noxian soldiers nod, and follow his commands. They line the Ionians in a single file, loading them into the wagons that will be shipped back to Noxian territories. The prisoners make their slow march onto the boats, looking back on their fallen comrades and homeland. Some are angry, some are regretful, but most are filled with grief. Once again was blood spilled on their homeland by the foreign invaders, and they were powerless against them. Once all the prisoners were aboard the ships, they set sail towards the conquered Ionian fortress.
Yasuo made his way towards the place where the battle occurred. Hours have passed since the skirmish started. Yasuo spent the time making sure no civilian was left in the area, not wanting them to be close to the fight. He wasn't aware of the aftermath, though he felt it wasn't going to be a good one. As he made his way back, he could pick up the smell of burnt flesh, metal, and scorched earth. Once he got to the outskirts of the village, he felt his blood boil. A sight all too familiar. Ionian corpses scattered across the field. Another merciless slaughter. He let out a sigh.
Someone else can take care of the corpses, I'll look for those Noxians myself.