A Boy and His Fox: Redux Ch. 25

AN: Wow, finally back to this series after so many years. It's like meeting an old friend again. Or reigniting an old flame. Or some other analogy that brings to mind nostalgia. For those who haven't been keeping up with my newest Moemon, I've recently gone through a break up. As such, I'm coming back to things that made me happy in the past, and thus here I am. That being said, if you guys would ever like to chat or hang out online, you can find me on Discord at Kiba Elunal#6122. I've recently started playing Wild Rift as well, so if you want to add me there, it's also KibaElunal. Hope you enjoy!

I was awoken the following morning with a sharp jab in my side. "Ahri, go back to sleep," I groaned, before another more painful thrust stirred me more. As my eyes opened, I found that Ahri was gone, and instead I was surrounded by Shurima guards, all with spears leveled at me.

I immediately went into a defensive stance but when I reached for my blade, it was gone. It rested in the hands of one of the guards. "Kal'Adamsul," one of them boomed. "You have been discovered utilizing one of the God King's concubines. You are hereby placed under arrest to await your execution."

I grit my teeth at the soldier, clenching my fist tight. "She is not his concubine!" I shot back. "What did you do with her? Where's Ahri?"

"In the company of the God King, where she belongs. Consider yourself lucky that he enjoys her company so greatly, or she may very well be discarded with you."

The way he talked about throwing Ahri away like garbage ignited a fury in me like never before. I leapt from the bed, lashing out with my fist and striking him hard in the jaw. However, my attack simply sailed through him.

Rough granules of sand formed around my arm, burning me with the desert heat and causing minor abrasions on my knuckles. The guard smashed outward with his shield, hitting me in the chest and driving me to the ground. Three spear points jabbed into my face, the warning crystal clear. Any further resistance would be moving up my execution date.

Master Yi's teachings began to trickle into me. Despite my anger and rage, I had to control myself. I wasn't getting anywhere this way. "Fine. I surrender," I murmured. "Just don't hurt her."

"She will not be harmed, so long as she holds the God-King's favor," the guard told me. With that, I was grabbed, dragged naked unarmed through the halls of the palace.

I closed my eyes, taking deep breaths and reaching out with my aura. I had to find Ahri. If I could just tell her where I was, then maybe the others could come to rescue me. Unfortunately, the distance between us was just too great. Without my orb or my sword, I couldn't connect to her.

This may very well be the end for me.

The next morning, I came out of my quarters to find Lux waiting for me with a panicked expression on her face. Typical. "What is it now?" I asked, striding to stand next to my charge. "Don't tell me you're thinking of Kal again. You've got to get past this whole thing. He's with Ahri, whether you like it or not."

The blonde puffed out her cheeks in irritation. "Mind your own business, Lucian. Besides, that's not what I'm worried about exactly."

"Then what's eating you?"

She took a deep breath before exhaling it slowly. "I saw Ahri come out with Azir this morning. She was naked, her ink was smeared, and the collar was gone. I think he may have had his way with her."

I scoffed in disbelief. "Seriously? You think Ahri would go so far as to have sex with the guy just to make Kal jealous?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe? She was all over him last night." Resting her cheek on her palm, she sighed. "Poor Kal. Did you see how hurt he was? He hasn't shown up for breakfast, either. Maybe I should go to his room to comfort him. Brighten up his day a little."

My gaze sharpened as I glared daggers at her. "Oh, I know exactly what your idea of 'comforting' him is. Just leave it alone, Luxanna."

"Lux! I hate it when you call me by my full name!"

"I know. That's why I do it. At any rate, you're right on one thing. It's strange that Kal hasn't come out for breakfast yet." Just as she opened her mouth to repeat her suggestion, I interrupted her. "I will go check on him. You get settled and keep an eye on Ahri, just in case we need to make a quick getaway."

Despite her wanting to argue more, she conceded to my plan. One small victory for me, I guess. As we parted ways, I began my trek through the polished stone corridors, ingrained with bronze disks and hieroglyphs.

This entire place set me on edge. I didn't tell anyone else this, but I kept having the awful feeling like this place wasn't meant to be here. It was the same sort of feeling I got on the Shadow Isles during a hunt. Something here should be dead, but it wasn't.

While Azir certainly didn't look undead, I couldn't help but feel that he was the key to this whole mystery. The others were clueless, of course. Hells, Ahri was practically throwing herself all over him last night.

Luckily, they hadn't taken my weapons. If I needed to blast us out of here, I'd at least have the opportunity. As I rounded the corner of the next hall, I had to prevent myself from cursing out loud. Two guards were dragging Kal away, with one leading the pack and another lagging behind with his weapon.

Damn it, I hope he didn't do something stupid like try to attack Azir on his own. From what I'd remembered when we fought Thresh, the guy seemed like a loose cannon. I felt something stretch out from him, tickling my mind.

I grunted, trying to push the awkward sensation away. The sound of static filled my head before Kal's voice echoed out. It was faint, but there were only two words. "Save. Ahri." Double damn it, Lux was right! She was in trouble.

Maybe I could help Kal break free. But If I attacked the guards, Azir would probably call his army against us. Not to mention that he still had Ahri and Lux in his possession. No, my best bet was to get them out of here, and trust Kal to escape on his own.

I nodded to him to show I understood, before ducking back down the corridor and proceeding to the dining hall. This whole powder keg was about to blow, and it looked like I was going to be outrunning the blast again.

It wasn't long before the guards had reached their dungeon and hurled me into a cage. I grunted, sore from their treatment as well as the rough lovemaking I'd had with Ahri. One by one, they all marched out, leaving me stranded in my cell, with my blade and orb resting against the far wall.

Damn it, this was awful. How in the world could I possibly get out of here? Thankfully, Lucian managed to spot the trouble I was in, so if nothing else, at least he, Lux, and Ahri could escape.

I sunk to the cold, dark tile with a sigh of frustration.

"What are you in for?" a voice asked, with a gentle hiss. Turning to look, I was stunned to see a face I hadn't seen in almost a decade.

"You! You're that monster from the Institute of War! What in the world are you doing here?!"

As the snake-woman appeared from the shadows, she glared at me. "I'm not a monster, you jerk! And wait, I know you! You're that summoner! The one that was bound to my sister!"

I looked at her in bewilderment. "Maybe we're not on the same page. What are you talking about? I've never been bound to a snake champion."

"That's because I wasn't born like this, moron. I was cursed to look like this!" She threw up her clawed hands in exasperation, slithering back and forth in a frustrated pace. "I can't believe this. I tried to be nice, and the only other prisoner I've seen ends up being this prick. Great."

"I'm still lost. So what, you were Ashe's sister and something turned you into this?"

"Well, you're at least half right," she sighed.

"Look, I'm sorry I called you a monster, okay? Then and now. It was all because I was told…" My words trailed off as the realization came to me all at once. "Wait. Your sister...is she Katarina?"

"Ding, ding, ding. We have a winner."

I snarled at her, my hand igniting in flames as I reached through the bars towards her. She let out a yelp of surprise, quickly dashing back away from me. "So this was your fault!" I snarled. "This must have been your plan all along! You get me trapped here like this, and then your master swoops in and kidnaps Ahri! Is that it?!"

"I don't know what you're talking about," she hissed at me. "In case you didn't notice, I'm locked up in here, too!"

"I'm talking about Magnus! I know you and Katarina are working for him, admit it!"

"Woah, back up! First off, I hate Katarina. She abandoned me in this hell hole! And for what? To go run off and get her brains screwed out by some asshole? No, screw her and screw that guy!"

The flames extinguished from my fist. The look of fear in her eyes wasn't what I'd expected to find. Not to mention, the way she spat out her sister's name. There was real anger there. "I'm sorry for jumping to conclusions...again."

When she'd finally calmed down enough, she slid over to the side of the cage closest to me. "What do you mean, again?"

"The only reason I called you a monster is because Katarina told me you were an escaped experiment of the League. She told me you'd turn me to stone if I so much as looked at you. I guess that was all just a lie, though."

Suddenly a clawed hand stretched through the bars of my cage. Turning to look at her again, she gave me an attempt at a smile, revealing her fangs. "Cassiopea," she introduced. "Though, you can call me Cass if you like. It's much easier."

"Kal'Adamsul. Most just refer to me as Kal." I took her hand and shook it.

"Well, I forgive you, Kal. My sister is an expert at manipulating people. Always has been. Let's start over. What brings you down to this little desert paradise?"

"I'm looking for a little girl who disappeared on the way home from Demacia. Annie Hastur. You know of her?"

Cass shook her head. "Sorry, but no. Then again, I've been stuck here for nearly a month."

"A month?! For what?"

She blushed slightly, scratching her cheek. "Well, I'd heard a rumor that there may be a cure here for...this." She gestured to her whole body. "I found a guide named Sivir to help me, but as it turns out, she was just a desert bandit. Looking to get her hands on some ancient treasure. Imagine my surprise when she pricked her finger and all of this just burst forth from the sand."

"Where's Sivir now?"

Cass shrugged her shoulders. "Gone, I guess. Not before making off with half of the treasure in the store room. Now, the emperor is revived, and he thinks I am the one who tried to steal from him."

"Then it sounds to me like we've got a common enemy."

"You still haven't answered my question. Why are you locked up down here?"

My cheeks burned pink. "Well...my girlfriend and I may have had a little quarrel outside of the city. So when we got here, she tried to flirt with the Emperor to make him jealous, and became his concubine. Apparently, touching his concubine is a major faux pas."

The serpentine woman frowned. "I doubt she'll be mounting a rescue then, would she?"

"I don't even know where he's keeping her. But I have some friends out there too. They know I'm here."

Hope shined in her eyes. "So they'll be coming to break us out?"

My grim expression made her sink. "Not so much. I told them to find Ahri and get her out of here with or without me."

"Oh, you're one of those types." Cass sighed, resting her head against the bars before the sand managed to tickle her throat, causing her to let out a hacking cough. As she did flecks of purple miasma spewed out onto the ground with a hiss.

I pointed to the sand that sizzled momentarily. "What was that just now?"

"Ugh...don't even get me started," she groaned. "Part of this whole transformation is that my stomach acid became more powerful. Sometimes when I cough or sneeze, it comes out. It's completely disgusting."

"We can use that to escape!"

Cass smirked. "Nice try. But not really. These bars may look like metal, but they're actually made of incredibly densely packed sand. I think Azir is the one who made them with his magic. My acid won't burn through it."

Now it was my turn to sigh in defeat. Then an idea came to me. "Wait...did you say these were made of sand?"

As I stood beside Azir's throne, I couldn't help but run my hand along my exposed midriff. His servants had scrubbed me clean from head to toe, but I could still feel Kal's seed deep inside of me. For that reason alone, I still wore a half-smile on my face.

"I'm glad you're so understanding of all this."

My gaze went to the Emperor of the Sands who sat perched on his seat, overlooking the entire dining hall. My smile faded, something that didn't escape his notice. "I told you, it doesn't matter how much you shower me with gifts or praise...I'll never be yours." My golden eyes flashed with light. "I'm only doing this for Kal's sake. He will come back to me."

"Doubtful," Azir hummed, with little emotion in his voice. "He is currently awaiting execution. Such is the crime for attempting to steal from the God-King."

I took a sharp breath. Could it really be true? I was devastated when Azir's goons grabbed me in the dead of night. I didn't even have the chance to call out to Kal for help. "You told me he would be safe as long as I didn't cause trouble. And I haven't. Does the God-King truly go back on his word so easily?" I challenged.

"Silence, jezebel," he stated flatly. "My word is more valuable than gold, but I would not cast such pearls before swine. Not even a sow as attractive as yourself. I said what I had to to keep you quiet. Nothing more. Unless you wish to join him, you will stand there and do as you are commanded."

I was tempted to take him up on that offer, but before I could speak, Lucian and Lux appeared before me. Despite the smiles on their faces, it wasn't hard to see that Lucian already had an idea of what had happened. "Your grace," he began. "Sorry for arriving so late to breakfast. The quarters you provided were so comfortable, we couldn't help but sleep in."

"What?" Lux started. "I didn't sleep a wink."

"Because she was so excited," Lucian chimed in, before elbowing her in the side.

"Right," she surrendered.

Azir pondered their statements for a moment. "And what of your companion, Kal? Did he enjoy his accommodations as well?"

"Must have," Lucian said. "I haven't seen him at all since he left dinner last night."

Azir shifted his grip on his spear, but continued anyway. "Such is only natural for guests of the Emperor. Besides, you brought this lovely concubine to me. It was a fitting offering in exchange for my hospitality."

I scoffed at the notion, causing him to slam the butt of his spear firmly against the ground to silence me. Lux stared up at me, a look of mixed concerns on her face. "C'mon, Lux. Don't be stupid. Of course I didn't agree to this," I thought.

"Well, whatever the case may be it's always nice to have something of a distraction," Lucian replied. "We've been needing to have something of an escape."

Wait...what did he just say? Azir caught it himself. "An escape?" he repeated.

Lucian nodded. "From the daily grind. Surely even the God-King must enjoy taking a break out of his busy schedule, yes?"

"Right," he answered, taking a moment to settle back in his throne. "I suppose that is true."

He said it again. Distraction, escape, break out. I had to resist cheering for joy. He was telling me Kal had a plan! I needed to provide a distraction from them. But what on earth could I possibly do?

"So tell me, my lord," Lux chimed in. "Do you have entertainment planned for us this morning to accompany our breakfast?"

There! "I could do it." Azir looked at me in surprise.

"You?"

"I'm not just a pretty face," I smiled. "I'm also quite talented, if you'd allow me to demonstrate, my lord."

"Talented in what way?"

"Why, I'm an excellent singer and dancer," I told him. "If you don't mind releasing my chain, I'll even show you. I won't even leave the stage, honest."

Azir considered it for a moment before snapping his fingers. Two guards appeared on either side of the stage. "See to it that you don't," he agreed, releasing my chain. Excellent. This would be what I needed. Don't worry Kal, I'll buy you as much time as possible.

Lucian and Lux took their seats, eyes on me as they slowly drew their weapons under the table and waited patiently.

Taking a deep breath, I stepped forward and began my song. "When I feel your sweet embrace, again…You take me to that special place, again."

As I sang, my charm began to flow around me, captivating Azir and the guards. This wasn't the first time I'd performed like this, but for Kal's sake, I intended to make it the best I'd ever given.

My hands wrapped around the bars of my cell. Above us, I could hear music floating through the air. A heavenly voice, one I'd recognize anywhere, drifted into our prison. "That's...Ahri!"

"Up high, floating on cloud nine with you. Heaven is when I'm with you. You are mine, you are mine…"

Was...was that song for me? My heart raced at the thought. If that's truly how she felt, then I knew I truly did have to escape now. My magic poured through my grip into the bars, super heating them. As I did, the sand began to ooze and melt together, turning into hard and brittle glass.

With a powerful strike, they shattered, allowing me to step out and collect my sword and clothes. "Hold tight, Cass. I'll get you out of here. Be ready to run."

"Don't have to tell me twice."

My blade ignited into emerald flames as I slashed this way and that, slicing the bars into small pieces of glass that fell to the ground. With an opening cut for her, I took her hand and pulled her free with a smile.

"Is that your girlfriend singing?" Cass asked. "It's beautiful."

"Yeah, I think so. She's pretty incredible. Let's get out of here."

"I'm yours, say you'll never leave me. Hold on, don't ever let me go…"

I kicked open the door to the dungeon, causing one of the guards stationed there to stumble back. Taking advantage of the opening, I slashed through him, causing the sand to fall into a useless heap. "Go!"

Cass burst forth, rounding the corner and hurling a large cloud of acidic gas between us and an approaching horde of guards. Together we turned and ran in the direction of Ahri's song.

"Your gaze, I will never lose it. No way, you'll ever be alone. Heaven is when I'm with you, you are mine. You are mine."

I'm coming, Ahri!

"When I feel your sweet embrace again, it takes me to that special place again...Up high floating on cloud nine with you. Heaven is when I'm with you, you are mine. You are mine."

Azir was entranced by my song and my movements. Little did he know, this song wasn't for him. Not by a long shot. This song was to Kal, and I knew in my heart that he'd feel it too.

Sure enough, just as I anticipated, the door burst open revealing Kal with a snake-like woman. As the guards at the door began to advance, he lanced one through the chest, using his fire to ignite him in a blaze of fire.

"It was a trick!" Azir boomed, standing from his throne quickly. Before he could move closer however, Lucian whipped out his light-slingers and took aim. Azir only barely managed to get his wall of sand up in time to block the incoming barrage. "Guards, seize them! Seize them all!"

I rushed to the stage and leapt from it. Kal rushed forward, catching me safely in his arms. "I knew you'd come back to me," I whispered to him.

"Always." We shared a kiss.

"Still fighting!" Lucian shouted at us, keeping up his attack before dodging a flying spear from one of the guards. "Can we share this tender moment later?!"

When Kal set me down, we smiled knowingly. His sigil bloomed into life on my hand, and mine on his. "Okay, Ahri. Let's show this prick why he shouldn't get between us."

"With pleasure," I sent back.

The two of us split paths. My fox fire formed into my hand as I sent it crashing through his guards, melting them into nothing. As Kal rounded the other side of the stage, he ducked beneath one guard's lunge before redirecting the other one's spear into the side of his ally.

I'd never seen him fight like this before, save on Miss Fortune's ship when escaping those pirates. It was like an elegant dance, and I could truly get caught up in its beauty if not that I had my own problems to deal with.

Suddenly, the sand wall in front of Azir erupted outward, slamming Lucian and Lux back while guards swarmed around them and the new girl. "Pathetic insects! You dare to challenge a God?!"

Raising his hand, the sand on the ground swirled about creating even more of an army. As they all cascaded towards our friends, I didn't have any choice but to draw his attention. I charged up my charm and hurled it towards him.

As the large blast of pheromones caused him to turn towards me, I watched as it faded all too quickly. "Whore. You dare to try to manipulate me? You are nothing to me! Little more than a pathetic vermin!"

Just as he prepared to lunge at me with his spear, I saw Kal now above him, with his flaming sword angled downward. In a split moment, the blade pierced through the God-King's back, lancing through his heart.

Kal leaned forward with a growl. "You're the vermin. Go back to the Hells where you belong, you monster." With a flourish of his arm, Azir was sundered in twain, his upper half sliding from his lower one.

Behind his golden mask, I could see shock and horror on his face. The guards collapsed into helpless piles of sand as Azir began to fade away. The entire palace began to rumble loudly. "I may be returning to the afterlife," he wheezed. "But I'll take every last one of you with me."

Sure enough, the ornate brick and metal began to fall apart, splintering the tables and sending food scattering everywhere. "Kal, we've got to go!" I shouted to him.

He nodded and gave the signal for everyone to retreat. We all poured out of the crumbling palace, until we were safely in the desert, and only then did we turn back.

From where we stood high on the hill, we watched as the entire kingdom slowly began to collapse. The people we'd seen that we thought were alive attempted to flee, but as soon as they'd get within sight of us, they'd just explode in a burst of sand.

It was horrifying and terrible. Despite that we didn't have a choice, I couldn't help but feel like we had done something horrible. Kal's hand reached out and found mine. Our fingers intertwined, and the fear melted away.

We watched as the Shurima Kingdom collapsed, until soon, all that was left were the dunes that seemed to consume every last inch of this massive desert of death. "It's over," he whispered.

"Yeah…" I murmured.

"Not by a long shot, I'm afraid," Lux commented. "We still have the other half of the desert to traverse."

Kal nodded, turning back towards our group before frowning. "Wait a minute...where's Cass?"

As we all looked around, the snake girl that had been with Kal had disappeared. Tracks led off into the desert, but before we could even consider following them, a great breeze concealed them from us.

"I guess she didn't want to stick around," Lucian commented.

Kal sighed. "Perhaps it is for the best. Whatever the case, I hope she finds what she is looking for."

As I continued to slither up the far side of the dune, away from the man who helped me to escape, it wasn't long before I could sense the presence I'd known was there for a while. "What do you want, sister?" I hissed, turning to look at her emerald green eyes.

"Don't be like that, Cass," she sighed. "You did good work, you know? We couldn't have Ahri stuck in that horrible place. Magnus would have been livid."

"I don't care," I shot back. "Magnus can get bent. I didn't do any of this for him."

Katarina came up to me and wrapped her arms around me in an embrace. Was this what I'd been missing all this time? It felt so right and wonderful. Despite my attempts to be strong, tears formed and ran down my cheeks, landing onto my dry green scales.

I hugged her back, shuddering in her arms. "I missed you," I told her. "I missed you so much, Kat. How could you just abandon me like that? First Dad, and then you? I needed you, and you just left me for some guy?"

I felt her hands run along my exposed back, trying to bring me some form of comfort. "It's okay, Cass. I'm here. I won't ever abandon you again. If you keep helping us, we can finally be a family again."

I nuzzled closer to my sister. "Now what happens?" I whispered.

Katarina pulled away from me, giving me a knowing and loving smile. "Now, your job ends and mine begins. You're needed in Kalamanda. And remember, this stays between us. No need to tell Swain what we're up to."

I nodded to show that I understood before heading towards my next destination. Turning back, I looked at my sister one last time. I didn't know what her plan was, but I desperately hoped that Kal would be okay.

To be continued...