Hi, just wanted to start a Sion story.
I don't own this franchise
The room was dark, dimly lit by a few yellow candles mounted on onyx candelabras. The flickering wicks cast dancing shadows across the walls of the study. Atop a nearby perch, a jet-black raven pruned its feathers, quietly observing with its glowing eyes. If one were to take a closer look at its features, the most striking of them all would have been the six eyes adorned on its face. A dark, blood-red carpet stained the floor, and at the end of it sat a figure in an obsidian casket-like chair, cloaked in midnight leather. Locks of long white hair, smooth and combed, cascaded down to his shoulders - not a strand out of place. On his face was a rigid, stoic expression with dark eyes that glinted like malicious iron. All this was a stark contrast to his brooding attire which melded into the chair on which he sat. The pressure that this figure exuded was immense, and even in the prideful, power-filled empire of Noxus, very few men would be able to meet his steely gaze There could only be one man in the entire region who was able to command this sense of fear and respect, and his name was Jericho Swain.
As the Grand General, Swain shared the absolute highest position within Noxus, and all who dared oppose him would join him eventually, in this life or the next. Yet despite the vast amount of power he possessed, it wasn't enough. And He felt it.
It had not been long since he had overthrown the mad General Darkwill, and he knew that a fair portion of Noxus still had their questions about him. He had to consolidate his nation, or else it would fall to the dark clouds Swain had seen in his visions.
"Soon," Swain murmured under his breath as his thoughts drifted back to reality.
His normally cold and calculating visage was twisted with puzzlement, and odd expression for him to say the least. The messenger he had sent should have come back by now. It had been hours since he had tasked the quivering man with simple reconnaissance, and he was growing impatient.
"It's not that far away from here," he wondered, brows furrowing. "By my estimate he should have been here two hours ago."
"Is something troubling you, sir?" a gruff growl asked from the shadows behind Swain.
"Not particularly, Darius, but you know I prefer people to be somewhat punctual," came Swain's silky, yet slightly miffed reply.
Darius grunted in acknowledgement, detached his large frame from the grasp of the shadows, and strode into the moonlight. He was wearing typical Noxian garb, a stark contrast to his usual full-plated ensemble: spiked steel body armor, gauntlets, plate leggings, and metal boots. Despite this, he still wore his signature red scarf, which added a splash of color to his otherwise dull clothing, enhanced when stained with enemy blood, and seemed to give off a wrathful glow in the dim candlelight. As he continued forward, the heavy footsteps from his boots stopped just short of where Swain was sitting, his gaze straight, his posture rigid. The faint light now illuminating more of the imposing general, one could see the innumerable battle scars that decorated his rough skin. Darius' expression was calm, yet anyone could feel the strength behind his eyes. The battle-forged warrior and his unruly brother were Swain's most trusted after the Grand General initiated his coup, and he was vital in securing the white-haired tactician's position as the ruler of Noxus. Darius' virtues aligned with Swain's vision, and the two made a terrifying pair within the Trifarix, even extending to outside the walls of Noxus.
"When he comes back, a lesson is likely in order," Darius growled. "No soldier of Noxus keeps his immediate superiors waiting."
"It's quite alright, Darius," Swain replied, "As long as he delivers, it is of no consequence."
A mere grunt was his reply.
As if on cue, the dark cedar doors of the study burst open, and a haggard, heavily-breathing man ran in and promptly collapsed to his knees. He briefly caught his breath for a moment before immediately springing up to a salute. Darius' ire was palpable witnessing this pathetic man in front of him. However, as if to silence the unsaid reprimanding, Swain stood up in response and made his way towards the messenger. The raven nestling on its perch let out a loud 'CAW' and flew up towards the bannisters at the sudden motion. The Grand General strode towards the messenger, his black billowy coat flowing behind him, and stopped just a few paces in front of the saluting soldier. Faltering at Swain's intimidating presence, the man shrunk down as if trying to hide from the Grand General's gaze.
"Status report," came Swain's curt command.
"O-o-of course, s-sir," the man stammered. "Regarding the death magic y-you wanted me to l-look into… there seems to be n-nothing in the Noxian archives. N-No records at all."
Swain's face grew dark, and he clenched his fist under his cloak. Since taking Noxus from the yellow-bellied Boram Darkwill, he desired to find ways to restore Noxus to its full potential. The Trifarix was a system that kept the ruling parties in check. He, Darius, and the Faceless ruled as the embodiments of vision, might, and guile. However, not everyone had accepted this new system of ruling, especially the nobles that had served under the previous Grand General as it jeopardized their political position.
Noxus had been waning for the better half of a century. It used to be a glory-filled nation with strength at the forefront in the minds of all her citizens, but over time, greedy and weak-willed nobles who only sought after their own stability drained Noxus. The many conquered lands that Noxus had shed blood over during its Golden Age were liberated due to poor leadership and incompetence.
After his defeat at the Placidium of Navori, Swain was approached by an otherworldly entity that revealed all of Noxus' secrets to him. Known as Raum, the demon filled the crippled General's mind with visions and inner workings of much of Runeterra and offered to share more if Swain joined forces with him. However, the demon merely wanted a pawn to further his own end, expecting Swain to be easily corruptible after such a crushing defeat. The crippled General, while broken in body, was not so in mind, and managed to trick Raum and take his power as his own. Using his newfound power and knowledge, Swain decided to pursue something very interesting within the visions that Raum had shared. A secret literally buried deep under Noxus. While he knew that something down in the underbelly would help aid him, Swain was not quite sure on exactly what.
Upon perusing the late Darkwill's notes, he came upon something mentioning a dangerous death-blood magic, along with a hope from his predecessor of returning Noxus to its former glory.
However, as he continued, Swain noticed that Darkwill's writings became more and more erratic. Paranoid, even. He lost all sense of reason, and much of what he wrote was indecipherable refuse. But one thing was for certain. There was something that held the key to Darkwill's goal. Swain needed to find it.
The room bore a heavily pregnant pause as Swain continued to ponder. The Noxian messenger, still quaking, looked around uneasily for any kind of tension reprieve, but found none. Darius stood still, eyes trained on the messenger, but keeping any subtle changes in Swain's visage in his peripherals. The seconds grew longer and longer as Swain remained unmoving, the wind quietly yet viciously whistling outside. The messenger felt as if he was about to faint when all of a sudden -
"CAWW"
The perched raven shrieked as it spread its wings and glided down onto Swain's shoulder. This did the trick as Swain seemed to break free from his pensive trance and turned to face the messenger.
"Thank you for your efforts," the Grand General said, "you are dismissed."
Relief washed over the messenger as he struggled to form words in his mouth.
"Y-y-yes Sir!" He stammered as he all but tripped over his own feet on his way out as Darius' eyes narrowed, almost sneering.
Swain's eyes narrowed suddenly right as the man passed through the door frame. After the door closed behind the messenger, Swain waited a few seconds to ensure that the man was out of earshot.
Darius took notice of this. While the Grand General's behavior would seem eccentric to anyone, the Hand of Noxus understood that what was swirling in Swain's mind was of great importance and secrecy.
"Is everything alright, General Swain?" Darius spoke, breaking the silence.
"There are some further, personal, ventures I must undertake. It seems as though I am getting closer to completely uncovering what I am missing." Swain replied. "I'll be making my way to the Noxian catacombs later tonight."
Darius, though slightly concerned for the Grand General's safety, was not surprised in the least. The man before him was always thinking multiple steps ahead of all in Noxus. He would see his vision to the end, no matter the cost. However, the catacombs were well beyond the forbidden sections of the Immortal Bastion. Ever since Swain locked it down after his coup, not a soul had seen its depths, rather, not a soul dared to set foot in its depths.
"I'll accompany you, sir," Darius placidly said. "It is dangerous to go anywhere in those parts of Noxus, especially alone."
"Your concern is appreciated, Hand of Noxus. But I assure you I will be just fine," came Swain's reply.
"And," he paused, revealing his left arm, glowing angrily with red demonic energy, "I won't be alone."
Darius begrudgingly grunted as he made his way to the large cedar doors. On his way out, he stopped and turned back to the pale-haired General.
"What business do you have down in the pits of Noxus?" Darius asked almost rhetorically, as he knew he wasn't really entitled to an answer.
"I will be meeting an old 'friend.' Their knowledge expands beyond Darkwill's journals and diaries, but divulging that information from them depends on whether I am followed or not."
"Understood." Darius replied before turning away.
He closed the heavy wooden doors to the candlelit study, leaving Swain to his own devices.
The wind continued to whisper its ancient secrets over the sleeping Noxus well throughout the night.
Prob update 1ce a week or smth