Chapter 7 - A Championship to Remember
"But mom. I already paid for the tickets and I'm not going alone anymore. Please?!" Lux threw in the poro eyes for good measure as she stared at her mother. Lux knew that she would get her way, but the fact she now had a friend to go with was only helping her case.
"Oh very well. You will be home as soon as it is over. Provided there isn't another scare."
"Thank you. Thank you. Thank you." Lux hugged her mother before sprinting back upstairs. Grabbing her headset, she saw that Janna was still not back. So Lux jumped into a match while waiting for her.
"Dad. Mom. Please. I know we just met but we have a shared interest in this."
"I'm still hesitant honey. But if it means you are making friends, fine. You have been alone for so long, we worry about it."
"Dear just let her go. You aren't going to stop her unless you keep an eye on her at all times."
"Oh very well." Janna hugged her parents and sprinted back upstairs. Seeing Lux was in a match she waited for it to be over. "So what did they say?"
"Yes. After using the poro eye trick." Janna just laughed.
"Yeah same. Hopefully it will be fun and we could use a break."
"Just be careful you two. You never know when…"
"We know." Solas jumped back as Lux and Janna through Lux's headset said it. Dorcha just laughed behind him.
"Just be careful." Solas hopped down and resumed eating. Dorcha couldn't because she was still laughing.
"So we should meet there early since they have a few good music acts that are preceding the tournament finals. Hopefully we can get a good show at least."
"Yep. See you tomorrow then at the tower?"
"Yes. And I'd better get off before I get yelled at again. See you then." Lux put down her headset and turned off her TV before crawling into bed. Solas still had this aura of annoyance, while Dorcha had finally stopped laughing. "Come on, you had it coming."
Solas just returned the annoyed look before he finally jumped onto the bed and settled down. Lux just shook her head while turning out the window and quickly fell asleep.
Janna stayed up for a while, before turning off her gear. She turned to the moon and staring at it, brought a tear to her eyes. Zephyr jumped up onto the bed to see and just settled down next to Janna allowing her to rub him. Not that he minded, a nice back scratch was good.
"Someday soon, I will get you back or at least, get my revenge." Zephyr let out a yelp as Janna accidently dug her nails into his back. Swiping at her hand, Janna quickly pulled her hand off her companion. "Sorry."
"Janna if you keep letting this bother you, it will consume you and you will never get over it. You can't keep doing this."
"And you are saying I don't have a right to these feelings?"
"No, but you let them consume you, you will never forgive yourself once they leave or you get what you want. It also isn't what he would have wanted." Janna sighed and bowed her head. While she knew Zephyr was right, she didn't show it. Pulling her covers over her, Janna settled into another night of uneasy sleep.
School the next day was agonizing for the two of them. Having finals of one of the biggest video games in their city tomorrow just made the day go by slowly. Lux knew that at her school, she was one of the few girls who played games, well in her grade at least, but she did better than most of the boys. Janna was among friends as many in her grade played them.
However, both of them were annoyed that the only talk was the attack on the stadium the previous weekend. Lux and Janna were so frustrated with the everlasting conversations, that it was unclear who was more annoyed, them or their teachers. A slap on a desk brought Lux out of her trance and made the rest of her class shut up.
"Enough about it. It happened. It was chaos. But if you all don't stop talking about it, how will you pass your tests. I have one of you spacing out because she's heard enough, so why don't the rest of you pay attention. Now back to math." Lux smiled and returned to class while the rest of the class seemed put out. Lux knew they had to talk about it, but to this extent? She just shook her head while taking notes.
Janna was not so lucky as many of her teachers had given up for the moment and while she just looked out the window, her teacher just handed her the notes and the work from the class, nodding. Janna responded and just began working. It was hard to talk about the attack when you were a part of it, and couldn't tell anyone.
"Oh come on Lux get over yourself. You were there weren't you?" Amy's voice cut into her thoughts and knocked Lux out of another trance.
"Yes I was but I don't want to talk about it. I was in a closet most of the time just hearing those things was enough. I'm glad everything worked out well, sort of, but I just don't want to talk about it." Lux said, trying to convey her reluctance to talk about it.
"Ok. Jeez. You need to relax girl." Amy seemed put off, but she still backed off.
Lux turned to Amy who was visibly hurt. "I'm sorry. It's just everyone has talked about it for days and while I'm happy to have more things to forward on my personal things. I just don't like talking about those sorts of things. You know me Amy. Oh you."
Amy's face was cracking up as she pulled it again on her best friend. "Fooled you. But seriously if you want to talk you know how to reach me."
"Thanks I'll remember that." Lux went back to her notes with peace. After flicking an eraser at Amy.
When the final bells rang, Lux and Janna practically ran for the tower and to get some practice in before the tournament this weekend. To say they had nerves to work off was an understatement. Both went at it hard, perfecting their combinations, especially their barriers. Lux was the one dealing most of the damage, while Janna focused on controlling the fight. Using their abilities together, they found it easy to find ways to not only avoid damage, but dish it out as well.
"Ok we'd better stop before we lose it." Both powered down and headed downstairs to see Vel'Koz floating in the room.
"Ah both of you are here good. I was hoping to talk to you both before the weekend since I won't get the opportunity. Hope that championship goes well for your team. Hopefully it won't be a blowout. Kidding." He added quickly after seeing the angry faces of the two. "Anyway, I haven't detected anything, as I'm sure you haven't. which means two things. One, Kha'Zix is already here and ran the barrier earlier in the week. Or two, he will be running it tonight. All I can say is that the attacks here have sparked more interest among some powerful summoners. They are working on ways to reinforce the barrier. While we all agreed the holes would remain, it will be harder for the void to attack." Vel'Koz finally finished and turned to the Guardians.
"Good. That will hopefully help us until we get all 5 team members awake and we really can start kicking butt." Janna said as she sat down.
"Wait why can't we do that now? It seems to be working." Lux now looked from Vel'Koz to Janna with a very curious look on her face.
"You didn't tell her?" Janna asked.
"It didn't come up and your arrival is still pretty recent. It didn't seem relevant at the time." Vel'Koz clearly was trying to avoid the question.
Janna signed and let her head fall. "Ok there is a reason that Guardians work in teams. The more of us there are, the stronger we are as a result. We are better as a team. Our powers hit harder, our defenses are stronger, and our reflexes become faster."
"Are there ever more than teams of 5?" Lux asked, now very curious.
"Rarely but yes. Only if the treat is dire. Which this just might be. But we know the powers of my remaining teammates were trapped on this world and have passed onto others. Somehow I kept mine, but that is a story we will have to figure out later. If we could reach out to the First Star and their companions, we might be able to get help, but that isn't an option right now. We are on our own." Janna said as another twinge of guilt rocked her.
"Ok this is going to sound stupid but how will I know when I feel…" Lux trailed off as she struggled to find the right words.
"A connection? You just know. It isn't something I can describe. It's more of a feeling." Janna said and Lux just nodded. Somehow the fact Janna kept bringing up the past is more of an indication that she wants to talk about it, but also wants to find out what happened.
"Be careful, with that many people there, it is no doubt a target. If Kha'Zix doesn't attack, I will be surprised." Vel'Koz warned as they moved to leave.
Both nodded. "So are we going to cosplay or just go as ourselves?" Janna asked.
"Well our tickets don't have our names on them, and they have skins that were based off the Guardians, so I don't see why we just can't go in transformed. Or is that a bad thing?" Lux added quickly after she saw Janna's confused face, and Vel'Koz's panic.
"Well, it is different than long ago. This day is much more accepting so is there a problem with it? I don't see one." Vel'Koz turned to Janna who still had a confused look on her face. Lux had a separate outfit at home she was planning on wearing, but the thought just popped into her head. She could also see the gears working behind Janna's eyes. Eventually Janna shook her head and shrugged.
"I don't see why not. The Guardian skins are popular and it isn't like anyone will recognize us. One of our directives is to blend in and since they are popular, they will be featured. I'm not sure if First Star would approve, but it is rather interesting and a somewhat ingenious solution. I'll just have to make sure Zephyr doesn't overact." She said turning to her cat.
"Why would I…oh wait. Nevermind. I'll be a good elemental." Zephyr just sighed.
"Still don't trust you." Zephyr looked angrily over at his companion and Lux just lost it. Laughing like crazy she barely managed to pick herself up off the floor to see Janna shaking her head with a smile on her face and Vel'Koz quickly floating towards the door.
"You really need to control that laugh." Vel'Koz said as he left.
"I can't help it. I've always laughed like that. So noon tomorrow then?" Lux asked Janna turning to her.
"Yes that should be ok. We'll transform closer to the stadium however." Janna said as Lux just smiled and the two grabbed their bags and headed out. The night was painful as the day turned to night, Lux had just settled down when she felt a presence and grabbing the pen off her nightstand, she made a portal to the tower. Janna clearly had the same idea as she was already there.
"Felt it too?" Lux nodded. "Let's check the globe." Heading into the next room, they saw a small blip on it, that quickly turned into two blips. "He's coming. I guess going transformed tomorrow might not be a bad idea."
Both headed back to their rooms to prepare themselves for the upcoming fight. Lux felt she slept better since she know that the fight wasn't a possibility, it was a certainty. "I'll be ready" she said as she drifted off to sleep.
The following day, Lux made an effort to grab her bag and her ticket as she ran downstairs at 11 to meet up. "Lux it is 11 you can wait 20 minutes to meet up with your friend." Lux quickly sat back down and ate the lunch her mother provided. Remembering what food costs were at the stadium, she quickly enjoyed it.
"Thanks mom. I forgot how much food costs there." Lux said.
"I do know things honey. Just remember that." Lux rolled her eyes as her mother took a seat laughing. "You're not dressing up?"
Lux shook her head. "Not this time. In case there is another one of those attacks, I want to be ready to run. So sensible." Lux knew the smile on her mother's face was enough to get her off the hook.
"Just have fun."
"I will." Lux quickly got up and headed out. Janna was waiting at the point where they said they would meet and they both set off towards the stadium. Getting close they nodded at each other. Zephyr, Dorcha, and Solas took off really quickly to scout the area. Returning they nodded. Lux grabbed her locket, and Janna her pendent.
"Star Guardian Power Up." In an instant they were both transformed. Looking at each other, they both smiled.
"I still have misgivings about this you two, but there really isn't another plan right now." Lux said as she began to doubt her own plan.
"Oh you two are coming with us." Janna turned and grabbed Solas, while Lux grabbed Dorcha and they placed the two on their shoulders. Zephyr made himself even more invisible while settling on Janna's other shoulder.
"See, this makes it a little more convincing. Not to mention our outfits look a lot closer than I thought to two characters, so we should be fine. Pictures won't matter, as people might even think we are cosplaying as the two new guardians to push for more skins." Dorcha on Lux's shoulder couldn't really argue with this as it was an effective cover, and given that an attack might take place. "Not to mention I've already seen cosplay of both of us on the web." Dorcha just sighed and resigned herself to the situation. Solas still had misgivings but like his companion, also resigned himself.
Walking to the stadium, Janna saw how right Lux was. There were no less than 30 people cosplaying as Guardians, whether it be from her old team, as either Lux or Janna from now, or characters from the games. "Ok you were right. This wasn't a bad idea, but I'm still saying this isn't something I would have done…" Janna started but Lux cut her off.
"That was the past, this is now. Things are different." Lux reminded her.
"Indeed." Janna and Lux proceeded into the stadium where there were plenty of people taking pictures and plenty of people posing. They both just rolled their eyes.
"We only stop if we get asked. Otherwise we just continue. Let's see that DJ they have." Janna only nodded in reply. She was still nervous at Lux's plan, but so far it seemed to be working. And if Kha'Zix would attack, he would have a hard time picking them out with everything around them. Perhaps this wasn't a bad idea. Because if someone did get attacked, they wouldn't have time to transform in time to do anything.
Lux was also avoiding the attention of the camera, which while unnecessary, was still a relief. They both managed to make into the hall with the music while only being stopped twice for pictures. Not that they didn't make a show of it, but Lux sensed Janna's uneasiness with this whole thing and decided it would be better to avoid the spotlight. The only incident was when Janna was knocked by another girl with long blue pigtails. 'At least my hair normally is natural. That is just ugly. Wait she seems familiar.' Lux grabbed Janna's arm as she just stopped in the middle of the hallway. Janna quickly began moving again.
Meanwhile, in the rafters of the stadium, Kha'Zix and his minion Sarn waited. They could sense the Guardians here, but with all of the people dressed like them, they were impossible to stop. "The people of this world have the weirdest ideas of what is acceptable."
"Master, it is their way. If we try something, we will be spotted instantly. There is nothing that looks like us in that game, so we can't move. I know you are impatient, but we can't do anything until they are all seated or until afterwards."
Kha'Zix hated being told the plan, but his frustration was leading him to make mistakes. He then had an idea. "Come." And they both disappeared into the shadows.
In the stadium itself, people were beginning to trickle in as the opening acts wound down. Janna and Lux found their seats and were asked for a few more pictures before the event began. Janna relaxed a little as people didn't see them as the true Guardians, but she was still worried. She couldn't sense Kha'Zix but knew he was close. This wasn't something he could ignore.
Lux was also worried but showed it more. She was also nervous that someone might figure it out, but so far, no one had. Taking their seats, the opening ceremonies began. For now, it seemed everyone was safe. Lux and Janna both relaxed as Lux elbowed Janna and pointed. Standing in the rafters was Caitlyn who was carefully watching the crowd and around her. In fact, now that she looked around, Janna noticed a lot of police, but many of them seemed to fight right in. Even Caitlyn did, dressing like a commando from the game.
As the opening ceremonies wound down, the teams for the finals walked out to overwhelming applause. Having narrowly defeated the Demacian Knights, it was the Protectors of Ionia vs. The Noxian Deathstalkers. The teams slugged it out for the first match having a nearly hour long game. Many times it seemed like Noxus would win, but Ionia kept holding on. Until the last teamfight that was where Noxus ambushed Ionia and sending it to victory.
Lux and Janna tensed up after the game as they felt sure that Kha'Zix would attack but nothing came. They both got up to walk around and get refreshments but for the most part were just keeping an eye out. Once the second match began it was clear that this would be going to best 5. With Ionia tying up the score at 1-1, Lux made an effort to walk the stadium fully during the next break. Janna remained at their seats. As Lux was walking around she noticed many people there, and also took note of Garen and Jayce.
"Your boyfriend is here." Lux said as she got back causing Janna to panic.
"What? Who?" She whispered.
"That meat sack also known as my brother." Janna rolled her eyes as she gave Lux a playful punch in the arm. Settling down for the third match of the night, it wasn't even clear who would win it as the hour mark approached, the two teams seemed intent on outmaneuvering the other, but having little success. The crowd however was going crazy and wouldn't let up. As the hour 15 minute approached, it seemed that Noxus had outmaneuvered Ionia and it led to the class base race. Noxus won, but barely.
Just as the match ended, Lux and Janna both sensed Kha'Zix making a move, but just as they grabbed their weapons, while making it look like they were just grabbing them to go get refreshments, the energy dissipated. Confused, they looked around, there was too much chaos to pick out anyone. "They want a first strike against us but they can't find us. We could use this. They will make a mistake and hopefully get hit in the process by one of these cops."
"Hopefully we will be able to stop them before they retaliate then." Lux added as Janna made to leave this time. Dorcha and Solas seemed to be enjoying themselves with the food that everyone keeps dropping, which they catch before it hits the ground. "Would you two stop being pigs?" They both just turned to Lux and went back to eating. Lux rolled her eyes as Janna came back shaking her head.
The fourth match compared to the previous three was fast. Lasting just over 30 minutes, Ionia ambushed Noxus early, and didn't let up. Forcing fights and taking objectives in rapid succession. Lux and Janna turned to each other as the match concluded, and knew this is when Kha'Zix would strike. A quick match would mean people would be getting up quickly to prepare for the final match. And they were proven right when a gun went off in the rafters. Everyone started running to the exits, but because everyone around them had gone to get refreshments, their section was relatively empty. Lux and Janna dove towards the stage and leaped onto the stadium floor where Kha'Zix's minion had appeared.
"Your energy is mine." It roared and began draining the energy from those around him. Lux however wasn't having it and quickly threw a singularity knocking the minion out of his phase. Roaring and turning to the two Guardians, he lashed out with what looked like a whip, which they dodged, and a second later Kha'Zix landed just where they had been standing.
Lux and Janna stood side by side and faced Kha'Zix and Sarn. "I am really getting sick and tired of these encounters. Now we order you to stop these immediately for we are the Star Guardians. Sworn to defend the universe against all those who would throw it into chaos. And that means you."
"You Guardians and your sayings. Yet they never seem to help do they?" Kha'Zix almost laughed as he faced the guardians.
"How many times have we beaten you already?" Lux said. That got them both into a rage, and Kha'Zix flew after Lux while Sarn tried to flank.
Janna quickly threw Zephyr at Sarn to slow him down while she shielded Lux as she went after Kha'Zix. Throwing bolts from her baton as she threw a binding at the giant bug, Lux dodged out of the way of his spikes. Janna kept moving around Sarn to keep him off balance and to keep him from also going after Lux, but eventually Janna missed with her tornado and he pounced. Janna fell to the floor in anticipation of the blow but it never came. Janna opened her eyes to see Sarn across the floor and a figure with a hammer standing there.
"You really need to send invites to these parties. Seems mine keeps getting lost." Debonair said as he transformed his weapon back.
"We didn't think you would need one." Janna replied as Debonair helped her up. They both went after Sarn but he quickly recovered and dived out of the way.
Lux for her part was holding her own against Kha'Zix who kept trying to land attacks but only hit air. Becoming frustrated, he attempted to leap out of the stadium floor, but was hit with a shot from Caitlyn, who apparently had recovered from whatever started this melee enough to aim. Lux looked up and nodded to her. Caitlyn returned it, but only Lux would see the ever so slight inclination of her head. Lux threw another singularity at Kha'Zix, which only messed him up further. As he tried to land carefully, a tornado swept him up and caused him to land smack in the middle.
Janna threw another tornado at Sarn and while it did miss, Debonair with his hammer didn't, knocking the minion back into his master. Both of them on collision separated a bit, but not enough for Lux to miss with her binding. Quickly gathering her energy, she prepared for her spark, but the binding wore off faster than she could charge. Janna threw a tornado to keep them pinned but only caught Sarn, who was then caught in Lux's beam. Kha'Zix fled into a portal and Lux carefully stood in the middle.
There was a tapping, and Lux looked up to see Caitlyn motioning to them. Climbing to the top of the stadium, they met with her as spectators made their way back into the stadium. The teams were already practicing waiting for the final match. Finally reaching Caitlyn, Lux swallowed and put her mind to carefully selecting words.
"Was it just me or did that seem to easy?" Caitlyn asked, clearly knowing the answer already. Lux, caught off guard, turned to Janna and Debonair, who both nodded in agreement. "I thought so. I don't think that giant bug is done. I think the after party is what he will be after. But there are 5 of them and we can't figure out where he will be."
"Probably the one with the most people." Lux said.
"That would be in the main multipurpose room." Janna said, indicating the room towards the back of the area.
"Then that is where we will focus our efforts. In the meantime, I suggest we don't go anywhere. Instead we can watch the match. Seemed good so far." Caitlyn said, missing Janna's eye roll.
Watching the fifth match, even after all of that chaos was thrilling. After nearly 50 minutes, Ionia, caught in an ambush, turned the fight to win the championship. Lux and Janna did their best to keep their excitement under control as they kept looking around for Kha'Zix, who wasn't gone. They could tell that.
Even with the attack, spectators filed into the post championship celebrations. Lux, Janna, and Debonair took turns moving between the five after parties to keep an eye on things. Eventually Janna went into one of the more private ones, for the sponsors of the teams, to find everyone passed out. Janna quickly ran back to Lux and Debonair who checked the other ones to find two from the remaining three knocked out. Heading to the fourth, they found Kha'Zix in the process of draining the energy from those who paid huge amounts of money for tickets just for this.
There seemed to be an unspoken agreement to wait until he was done, when he would be most vulnerable to attack. "Excellent. Even though I lost my minion, I can still get energy from this." Kha'Zix quickly threw an energy orb through a void portal and turned only to see a binding land squarely in his face. The follow up bolts from Lux's Baton, the sting from Zephyr, and Debonair's energy pulse caught the Voidling off guard.
Kha'Zix roared and jumped through the window. Lux and Janna quickly followed while Debonair threw another energy pulse from the window itself. Kha'Zix landed on an hard roof, and clearly injured himself in the fall. Lux and Janna on the other hand, landed carefully and managed to catch themselves and prevent injury.
"Why can't you just stay out of my business? I am sick and tired of you two always interfering with my plans." He dodged out of the way as another energy pulse landed where he had been standing. "Fine you three. Happy you fool?" Debonair just sent another energy pulse as a response.
Lux and Janna just stood there facing down their opponent who was also being careful. Kha'Zix knew he was outnumbered and outgunned, but if he was careful, he might be able to remove someone from the fight. Janna carefully studied the way Kha'Zix was moving and without even a word to Lux, they both knew what was about to happen. Kha'Zix moved first, throwing a series of spikes at Lux and Janna, who quickly dodged and Lux threw her baton creating a barrier on the two which stopped most of the damage. A few cuts on the legs was the worst of it. Janna however, shielded Debonair, who also seemed to guess what was coming and had is weapon in hammer mode, and knocked Kha'Zix away from his perch in the broken window and back down onto the roof with Lux and Janna.
Janna quickly threw Zephyr at Kha'Zix slowing him, and allowing Lux to hit him with another binding. Throwing more bolts from her baton, Lux connected and Kha'Zix flew into a rage. He charged at Lux without thinking, only to be hit with a singularity, a tornado, and an energy pulse. Kha'Zix was throw across the roof in pain and as he attempted to get to his feet, he saw a void portal open next to him.
"Kha'Zix return at once. Before you embarrass yourself further. Today is yours Guardians. Don't get used to it."
Kha'Zix flew through the portal and it closed rapidly behind him. Lux turned to Janna, whose knuckles were white on her staff. Letting out grunt, she turned and headed back into the stadium. "Go. I'll talk to her." Debonair nodded and quickly left. Lux had to search before finding Janna on the roof. Lux didn't power down, because Janna hadn't, which considering the police presence below, probably wasn't a good idea.
Lux sat down next to Janna and noticed the tears in her eyes. "What's wrong? Who was that?"
"I said I don't want to talk about it. But I guess you deserve to know. That voice was Malzahar himself. Clearly our attacks have been getting on his nerves and today's was probably one of the last straws for Kha'Zix. He is running out of chances and I doubt that he will be given many more of them." Janna was fighting to keep her emotions under control.
Lux just nodded, but she knew that Janna wasn't telling the whole truth. But pressing her now was not only a bad idea, but the sight of two Guardians, who just appeared to be taking a few moments after a tough fight, fighting was a bad idea. Especially when she noticed Caitlyn looking up at them with a face of mixed frustration and thanks. Lux knew that the details would come out eventually, but not soon enough.
"Janna, you know that I am entitled to the truth." Lux turned to see Janna' eyes watering.
"I know and you're right, but not now. I will tell you when it affects the mission." Janna replied, clearly trying to end the conversation.
"It already is." Janna turned and Lux braced for her to be angry but the anger evaporated quickly.
"I know. Please just trust me I have reasons for keeping secrets. Once I know what happened to me then I can put the pieces together, but…" her voice trailed off as Janna dropped her head onto her chest. Lux just put an arm around her friend and gazed out onto the moon. Knowing that secrets were being kept from her was something Lux expected. She knew that Vel'Koz hadn't told her everything, and that Janna was keeping something about her last major battle secret wasn't helping with team unity.
'But she must have a good reason.' Lux thought to herself. 'It will come out in time. I just need to trust her. She hasn't given me any reason to doubt what she is saying. Yet.' Lux just kept her arm around Janna until she managed to regain control over herself.
"Come on. Let's go. I'm sure our parents are worried." Janna finally managed to get out.
"Good thinking but we need to find Dorcha and Solas first. They kind of got lost in the fighting."
They both jumped from the roof and after spending just a few minutes looking, found the two poros still in the stadium on a snack stand. The four looked at each other before laughing. "You two have no shame."
"It's good what do you want. We can't take it right?" Lux just shook her head. With slightly sad faces, the two poros jumped onto their shoulders as they left. They went about finding a spot to power down, and after doing so, they walked back home together, separating when they couldn't do so anymore. Lux walked into her house to her mother just staring.
"You could have at least texted. Where is your brother?"
"I thought he was out with friends?" The words just barely got off her lips when the door opened. Lux turned to see Garen with more than a few things from the Championship. The look on Garen's face was enough to send both Lux and their mother into fits of laughter.
"So Mr. I don't like video games. Enjoy them now?" Lux finally managed to say while bracing herself on the table. Their mother was already in a chair because she couldn't stand anymore.
"Yes." Garen said quietly and sprinted up to his room. This only caused another fit. As Lux finally managed to recover, a knock on the door pulled her back before going upstairs. Opening it, she saw Jayce.
"Oh hello. I was hoping Garen hadn't sprinted upstairs so fast. He dropped this." Jayce handed Lux a chain which was marked with the language from the game. Lux just rolled her eyes.
"Thank you Jayce. I'll get it to him." Lux replied, rolling her eyes again in the process.
"Go easy on him please. We can't afford to lose our forward." Jayce said, but he knew the answer before he even finished.
"I'm his sister. That isn't a word we know." Lux smiled as Jayce turned to leave. Lux was about to close the door when she noticed a hammer hanging from his belt that looked a lot like Debonair's hammer. But then it also looked like about 5 other ones but it still was something to look into. Lux walked up the stairs to Garen's bedroom and knocked.
"Yes?"
"Garen, Jayce said you dropped this?" Lux said as she opened the door. Garen turned and sighed.
"Thanks." Garen took the chain and then went back to his computer. While Lux was walking out, she did notice several games open, but also a regimen on working out. Lux crossed the hall into her own room before finally settling down. Dorcha and Solas had already gone to sleep and Lux decided that it was probably time to join them. Changing into her pajamas, she went into a restful night sleep.
When Janna walked in the door, her father was already sleep, with her mother still waiting up. "You had us worried, but then you always seem to get out of those situations. You could have called at least."
"Sorry mom." Janna walked over and hugged her.
"Just be careful, these attacks are becoming more frequent. It makes my job crazy. Things already go crazy if someone sneezes, but this just makes it worse."
"I'll try but I can't help it if I'm always where it happens. Bad luck." Janna said, knowing that she was usually running towards it.
"If that is your definition of bad luck, then what's disaster?" That made both of them laugh. "Good night." Janna carefully went to her room and after making sure the door was closed, opened a chest inside her closet. Inside was just a few pictures and a diary. Grabbing the pictures, she carefully looked them over and after picking up the diary, she had almost opened it when she put them all back and just collapsed onto her bed. Zephyr who was watching from the window curled up beside her.
While two of the day's combatants were getting some well deserved sleep, Kha'Zix was at the foot of Malzahar's throne, and wasn't in a good position to get any rest.
"Kha'Zix I'm disappointed. Today's battle would have ended my trust in you, but you managed to get some energy at least. I called you back before you did something stupid. You almost cost us more than you can imagine. I cannot afford to reanimate you now, but I also cannot afford many more mistakes. The energy you gave us will allow us to keep going for the moment, but your mistakes pile up and soon or later, we will have more Guardians to deal with. Remember that."
"What do you mean oh great prophet?"
"The powers of the Guardians we defeated, the other 4 I should say, didn't leave Runeterra, they stayed because of the summoner magics encircling the planet. They have manifested in new Guardians. And while only one of them has awakened at the present time, the rest only wait. And finding them might be the next best thing, but that will be harder than you think. Plan your attacks accordingly. You must use stealth for the next mission. Attacking another large target like you did will only lead to issues. So will replacing people.
"Take some time planning your next attack Kha'Zix, for if it ends in failure, you will be almost out of patience with me."
"Of course great prophet. Of course. I will prepare for my next mission immediately."
"Good. Now go, your presence tries my patience." Kha'Zix carefully left the hall and he knew his time was almost up. He had two maybe three chances to return a success before Malzahar did away with him.
"I will not fail this time. The Guardians will walk into my trap and then I will end them." Kha'Zix studied a list of events and saw the one he wanted to use was still a few weeks away. Struggling to remain calm, he decided to go with Malzahar's advice of a stealth option, but where. Glancing at the map of the city, he suddenly smiled and drove his blade through the heart of it. Laughing he went to find the perfect voidling.
Meanwhile back on Runeterra, Vel'Koz studied the projection of Runeterra and knew the next attack would be desperate. He also knew he was running out of time before Malzahar found him. Looking to Nasus who was with him, they both turned to another creature behind them. Renekton, Nasus' brother stood. "Ready?"
"Yes brother. I am."
"Good then. Take this and you will know."
"Searching for three in a massive city will be difficult."
"But it is something you are good at."
"True. I will do my best. But who will I be working with?"
"I have that covered." Renekton turned to see a blonde haired individual standing there with what looked like a glove. Renekton bowed and smiled as much as he could. Following the individual out, they both set off on their quest.
"Good luck you two." Vel'Koz said to them as they departed. "I hope they succeed."
"They will. Renekton doesn't know how to fail."