With the seeds of their largest objective yet finally planted, it becomes even more critical that the Guardians convince Jinx to return. However, that may prove difficult as Jinx is doing just about everything possible to avoid anyone talking to her. Meanwhile, Malzahar prepares for an attack that will bank the necessary energy for the fight over the nexus of void energy. Will the Guardians convince Jinx to come back?
Chapter 31 – The Spark of Hope
Janna looked across the hallway and the blue hair was something that always caught her eye. Jinx was still refusing to talk to her, or anyone else. Given that she had no friends, Janna could see she was depressed with no one to talk to, but that still wasn't enough. A small white ball of fur on her shoulder caught Janna's eye and she smiled as she could see Shiro trying to turn Jinx's head. Jinx was of course refusing but it was apparently difficult as someone moved and Janna caught Kuro trying to do the same thing. Janna kept her face straight just in case Jinx looked over, which she did after she finally gave up resisting the two.
Janna gave her a smile, but Jinx did nothing. Turning away, Janna saw that her pigtails were still looped up into a bun on her head. Janna sighed and decided to try something after school, but deciding not to tell Lux about it.
Lux, Poppy, and Lulu were a little too busy to worry about it at the moment. Ms. Teller was working them all hard as End of the Year Tests approached. For the three, advancing into the next grade meant moving schools, which would put them all in the same school. All three were studying, or really Lux and Poppy were studying, while Lulu seemed to be off doing her own thing. Still they were all doing well enough so they had nothing to worry about. Well at least school wise.
As Ms. Teller called a break, Lux looked out the window to see Dorcha in a tree. Clearly she and Solas had switched places as they were helping Janna keep an eye on Jinx. Dorcha still looked sad and Lux knew what that meant, Jinx had once again refused to talk to Janna. Lux looked down at her shoes and looked back at Dorcha. She was looking back expectantly, and Lux just nodded. Dorcha nodded back and hopped off. Lux gave her permission for Janna to take whatever measures she felt were necessary short of forcing her. Whether or not it was a good decision, only time would tell.
Lux was still looking out the window when Amy poked her in the shoulder, making her jump. Amy pointed towards the clock and Lux had been starring out the window for almost a half hour and missed the lunch bell. "Come on Lux. Seems like you need a distraction." Lux just nodded and followed Amy outside. They sat under one of the many trees nearby and ate while their classmates did mostly the same. Many were just looking exhausted as the practice tests and assignments piled on them.
"Come on Lux, what's the problem?" Amy, somehow, someway, still seemed to be her usual self. Happy and optimistic.
"Just tired. It's been a few busy days." Lux again was telling the truth, just not all of it.
"I know hasn't it? I hope all of this preparation is worth it. How much longer can they possibly drill us on all of this stuff?" Amy sounded stressed but Lux knew that she could top anything that she said but saying would destroy the secrecy that they try and work.
"Who knows. I mean sooner or later they have to give it up. They can't keep us running like this forever. They know we will burn out eventually. You can see it in the class. Everyone is getting stressed out. Well we do have that 4-day weekend coming up. I guess that's our relief. Hopefully nothing will go crazy in the meantime." Lux let that last one slip and quickly looked at Amy, who had a worried expression on her face.
"Good point. Remind me to stay away from you. You always seem to attract these things lately." Amy kept her face neutral but after Lux's face cracked, they both had a laugh. Lux needed one and Amy always somehow found a way to make her laugh, something that she really needed in the current climate. Many people were still on edge with the recent attacks, but none more so than the four remaining Guardians. Lux did at least notice Jinx didn't do anything to hurt them, but she also wasn't helping.
"Come on. Let's get back to class." Lux looked at her watch and Amy followed her back inside. Lux did see Solas in a nearby tree, who nodded at Lux as she reentered school. Lux knew that action was in place, and she knew that her actions would be judged by time.
As the school day came to an end, Janna took a deep breath as she moved through the hallways and towards Jinx's locker. She was busy putting things into her bag as Janna approached. Knowing that this would either backfire or bring Jinx back, Janna waited until Jinx closed her locker in order to speak. Jinx tried to walk away but before Janna could even more, Shiro and Kuro hopped off Jinx's backpack and stood in her way.
"Fine." Jinx said as she turned to Janna. "I know what you want by my…"
"Just listen. I don't care what you say but listen." Jinx just put a look on her face that clearly said annoyed but at least didn't walk away. "We need you to come back. For reference, none of us knew what we were signing up for. Me especially. You think Lux, who was the first one to start doing this, knew what she was in for?" Janna paused for a moment to let that sink in.
"All she had heard was stories and old tales. She had zero idea what she was doing and yet she is still here. All of us are still here. Just think about that. That's all we want. You know where to find us." Janna turned and stared to walk away. She knew that the odds Jinx would return based on that conversation was slim, but as she rounded the corner, Janna did get a look where Jinx was leaning up against the lockers and Shiro and Kuro looking at her. Janna decided to head to the tower to at least tell the others.
Jinx indeed was leaning up against the lockers, and exactly for the reasons that Janna was thinking. While she was mad at Shiro and Kuro for stopping her, what Janna said did indeed hit home. She actually had to think about Lux, and everything she's been through. It was amazing that she was still there, after everything she has seen, she was still fighting. Maybe she was right, and that there was more than just them, but either way, she wasn't going back today.
"Ok I get it. I'll think about it. You two sometimes." Jinx looked at her two poros and realized that turning into a minigun and a rocket launcher was probably pretty cool. But there was something still nagging at her. What was the point? Why keep fighting? She wasn't looking to make anything from it, but there was no reason she saw to keep fighting.
Jinx scooped up Shiro and Kuro and decided that she couldn't think here, so she decided to go home, and really think about everything.
Janna arrived at the tower and while it was clear that Jinx wasn't going to be coming, Janna didn't seem put out.
"So what happened?" Poppy asked. Her voice showing her skepticism.
"Well I talked to her at her locker. She started to walk away before Shiro and Kuro jumped in front of her. Jinx listened and as I was walking away, she didn't want to talk, I saw her leaning up against the lockers. Maybe something I said got through, but she clearly still needs to think about it for a bit. Maybe she'll come around, and hopefully soon." Janna put some optimism into her voice, trying to convince herself at the same time. As she sat down, Janna took a look at Lux, who was deeply in thought. Poppy however was the first to speak.
"I don't even know why we bother. We should figure out how to transfer the powers so we don't have to bother with her anymore. She is unreliable. I said it from the beginning and I was proven right. The fact she isn't sitting here is an example of that." Poppy sounded confident and looked around. Lux and Janna just shot her looks but were at a loss for words. Lulu however, wasn't.
"Unreliable or not, she's still a member of our team Poppy. Maybe it's because of who she is." Lulu spoke in a very unnaturally harsh tone. Everyone turned to her. Lulu, normally so soft spoken seemed to be a bit nervous but stood her ground. "I mean look at the rest of us. We all have family, she doesn't. She spends a lot of time in that house alone. Her parents are never around. We go home to our parents each night. Who does she have? Shiro and Kuro. I'm sure they are helpful, but they can never replace a family."
Lulu sank back into her seat. Poppy just stared at her, completely dumbfounded. Lux and Janna were just looking like someone had just hit them in the face and they were trying to process it. Poppy eventually hopped down from the bar stool and took a seat at the table, her head low and she was making every effort to avoid eye contact with everyone. Lulu had called her out on the carpet, and Poppy knew that she was right. Eventually everyone came back to their senses and Lux looked around at the team.
"Well I guess that said everything that needed to be said. Now we know that they will need energy, and quickly. The attack the other day shows that they are desperate. They will probably try another energy grab soon. With our 4-day weekend coming up, rest up because on that last day, we will need it. For now however, we need to be prepared for an attack, and it will probably be a big one. So what do we want to do with the rest of the day?" Lux looked around as she finished and it was clear that probably not training would be a good option.
"I would suggest that you all go home and enjoy your evenings." Vel'Koz had apparently come in at some point, unnoticed, and everyone turned to him. "After that, there is some tension and I've learned that it is better in this instance that spending some time apart is probably a good thing." He turned and left. It was clear he was coming to say something else, but after what he overheard, it was probably best not to mention it. At least right now.
The team seemed to agree as they all got up and headed home as a group, parting when they couldn't continue with the group anymore. Lux was the last one to get home and she immediately went to her room and laid down on her bed. Dorcha and Solas hopped up to join her.
"Thinking?" Solas asked as he looked at Lux, who was just staring at the ceiling.
"Yes. I'm worried. If Jinx doesn't come back, is there any way we can transfer her powers with what we have access to?" Lux turned to the two and they looked at each other nervously.
"No. We need contact with the First Star in order to do it. While Guardians are capable of doing it themselves, as to recruit new members as they are needed, we can't do it as we might mess something up." Dorcha looked confused. So did Lux and Solas.
"Ok that made no sense. Let me try that again." Dorcha took a deep breath. "Basically we need to be in contact with the First Star. There are certain things that have to be performed in order for it to be done. The First Star sends someone, usually another Guardian to help with the transfer. If a Guardian is sent alone to a planet, they have the ability to recruit new members as needed, but they can't transfer powers without someone else. Ok that made more sense. Although I'm sure we could probably figure it out, but I'd rather not try." Dorcha finished and Lux and Solas looked better.
"I'm guessing that if we tried something bad could happen?" Lux already knew the answer but decided to ask anyway.
"Probably. My guess is that we'd lose the powers and they would be trapped like before. However, we'd have no idea what would happen if that were to happen. It took decades for the powers to come into the 5 of you. We have no idea how long the powers would take to remanifest." Dorcha said as she paced back and forth on the bed. Lux and Solas just looked at her.
"Ok then. We'll not try it. We'll just have to convince Jinx to come back. Though that will probably be just as hard." Lux fell back onto her pillows as she finished. She knew that the options before them were not good, but either one was going to be a lot of work. Deciding that it might be easier to think tomorrow when they were off, Lux got up and decided to play some games. After a few games, she and Janna liked up, followed by Poppy, then Lulu. They were all just enjoying not thinking for a bit, well at least nothing serious.
Finally, after they had played a few games, the group disbanded and Lux crawled into bed.
On the moon, Malzahar and everyone else were looking over the plans for the upcoming attack. While only Kha'Zix, Rek'Sai, and Kog'Maw would actually go to the planet, they had almost all of their remaining Zzs ready.
"This attack will take place in 6 separate areas. This is for two reasons. First, we hopefully spread the Guardians thin and maybe get away with a decent amount of energy." Malzahar started as he looked over the plan.
"Why not more locations?" Kog'Maw asked, knowing that there would be 6 people opposing them.
"Because we can't create more portals." Malzahar replied. His voice wasn't angry, rather understanding. Making sure they found as many bugs as possible right now was more important than his pride. At least for the moment. "If we had more energy, we could open more, but this also gives us another reason. Because there will be 6 separate engagements, we might have the opportunity to take down the guardians one-by-one.
Everyone looked around and they all smiled. This might be their chance to destroy the guardians before that nexus was fully formed. This meant that Vel'Koz would have to resort to local support to defend their nexus, and that would be to their disadvantage. The guardians were much more powerful than anyone else that Vel'Koz would possibly get. Well except for himself and possibly that large creature he usually brought with him. Still, the fight tomorrow would be brutal and costly, but if they played everything right, then they might get away with enough.
Malzahar looked over the plans again and then again, and found nothing they missed. Everything else, they would have to adapt to on the fly. That however, is where their plans usually fall apart. The guardians were usually quicker to adapt and quicker to move around.
"Now everyone get some rest, we won't execute for a day, but it never hurts to be prepared." Malzahar shooed everyone out of the room and then he left for his quarters.
The morning dawned and the lack of any cold at all told the team that today would probably not be a day for an attack. Still, that meant that Malzahar was probably going to be attacking tomorrow, which was also a day when most people had off. Most places billed it as a "city wide day of relaxation", but that meant that the team was going to be even more hard pressed to prevent them from getting any energy whatsoever. If the past held true, then they would probably split up and cause as much chaos as possible.
Everyone woke up late the following day. First because there was no school and second, because no one had any interest in doing anything related to being a Star Guardian. After some indecision Janna sent around a text asking if anyone just wanted to enjoy lunch and a movie. No one wanted object so they all quickly settled on a movie but with lunch first. As they all met up, they all quickly realized that not thinking about anything to do with what their responsibilities were, was actually enjoyable.
"So who wants to place a bet?" Poppy asked as they all were eating.
"Bet on what?" Janna said as she paused to look at Poppy seriously.
"How bad this is going to be." Janna just groaned as Lux and Lulu laughed. They had deliberately chosen a movie that while they all wanted to see it, they all also knew it was going to either be good or bad.
"I'm betting bad. They can't get anything right lately. Also the trailers were horrible." Lux said, as she caught her breath.
"I'm going with good. I think they were hiding something with all of the jumping around." Poppy replied turning to Lulu.
"Good as well. It looked interesting." Everyone turned to Janna who quickly shoved another bite into her mouth so she could think.
"I'm going to be a bit optimistic here and go with good as well." It was now Lux's turn to groan. Janna, Poppy, and Lulu laughed a bit as Lux then put her head on the table.
"I hate you all. You know that right?" Lux said into the table, but that just made the others laugh even harder. When everyone finally got control of themselves, Lux finally picked her head up. "Well we'll just see then." Lux kept her voice cocky and the others just rolled their eyes. They finished lunch and headed over to the theater. As they left, Lux was still not happy. The movie was actually good and Poppy especially wasn't going to let her forget it.
"Oh come on, you didn't actually think they spoil any of that in the trailers?" Poppy was barely containing herself as Lux kept just far enough ahead so Poppy couldn't see her face.
"No but they've messed up everything else."
"True. But surprises always happen." Lulu's bubbly voice was enough to get Lux to finally smile. Well she was smiling during the movie, but now she was really smiling.
"Ok fine you three win. What do we do now?" Lux turned as she pulled out her phone to check the time.
"How about we go and blow something up?" Janna said. Poppy just lost it, Lux rolled her eyes, and Lulu was barely containing her laughter. "Oh come on, we all could use a good workout." Janna immediately regretted that as the laughter continued, and she even started laughing as well. They all headed to the tower and found a crowd outside the library. Janna, being the tallest, stood on her toes to get a look around.
"Apparently someone is deciding to be stupid. Come on." Janna's voice went from happy to annoyed as the team carefully maneuvered their way through the crowd. Poppy and Lulu had a bit of an easier time of it than Lux and Janna, but eventually they managed to get a good view. "Ok maybe not stupid." Janna corrected herself as they could finally see the cause of the commotion. Apparently the stupid bit was someone trying to lift someone else to get a better view.
In front of the library was a carefully controlled line as Lisna and Reah were apparently showing off a new clothing line that they managed to come up with and considering it was apparently school themed, and targeted towards teens, a library seemed appropriate. Or at least it was a good enough cover story. The team could tell Vel'Koz was doing his best to seem annoyed and when he managed to catch sight of them, he reached out.
'Well at least the crowd isn't going crazy. I hear nothing from these two for a few weeks, and then they do this. Well at least it is helping take the focus off me.' Lux nodded as they looked around and they all managed to get to one of the main library entrances past the crowd. Making their way past Nasus, who seemed to be enjoying himself, somehow, and made their way to the tower.
On the table was a note explaining what was going on, from Vel'Koz, and a second from Nasus explaining why he was in a good mood. Apparently Vel'Koz decided to handle the preparations for it, so his job was just managing the library. Vel'Koz was apparently regretting his decision. The team got a good laugh before transforming and heading up to the second floor to let off some steam. However, they could all barely focus and after half an hour, they came back down, where they found Nasus waiting for them.
"Couldn't focus?" He asked, even though the answer seemed obvious.
"Not really. Too much to think about right now." Lux said as the team took seats around the first floor.
"Understandable. There are plenty of things to think about, especially with what is coming up in a few days. Hopefully there will be some action on that but also hopefully Jinx will come back. Now, Vel'Koz asked me to see if you all wanted to talk, but he said he can discuss it tomorrow if you wanted to wait." Nasus let that hang as the team looked around.
"Tomorrow would probably be better. He won't get out of that for some time, and well, I think everyone wants to get home right now." Nasus nodded as Janna trailed off as she looked around the room. The rest of the team nodded and they all powered down, and headed home, with Lux being the last to leave.
"Don't worry, she'll come around. I'm sorry I shouldn't have brought it up." Nasus said as Lux was just about out the door.
"It's ok. Maybe she will, but hopefully soon, or we will have to force her to come back." Lux shuddered a bit at the thought and decided it would be best to wait until tomorrow to approach that topic again.
"The final pieces are in place Great Prophet. We are ready." Kog'Maw said as Malzahar looked over the plan once more. Malzahar was pleased with the plan, but saw one thing he could add.
"What about Baron? Is he healed enough yet?" Malzahar turned to Cho'Gath who nodded.
"He says he is ready, but I would suggest not unleashing him as the attack starts. Save him for when things get ugly." Cho'Gath's voice warned caution, and Malzahar turned away and thought for a few moments.
"Very well then. Just remember that you must adapt as you go. We have let the guardians make a big step. Now we must counter that step with one of our own. Be prepared for tomorrow for it will be a glorious day, or it will be a disaster." Malzahar let that last phrase hang as he left the room. Everyone turned to look at each other.
"He's right. Adapt or die. That has been a failing on all of our parts." Cho'Gath huffed as he too left. Kha'Zix, Rek'Sai, and Kog'Maw looked at each other and knew that tomorrow was going to be a very long day.
As the sun rose again over the horizon, the team slowly dragged themselves out of bed. The temperate was a bit chiller than the previous day, but nothing that would alarm them. Either Malzahar wasn't doing any prepping, or he was already done, and the attack would be swift and sudden. Lux looked out her bedroom window as she saw the city getting ready for a relaxing day off, and knew that if Malzahar was going to attack, today would be the day. It was just when, not if. Poking Dorcha and Solas awake, Lux waited for them to fully wake up before she started talking.
"I need you two to be around the city today, and be prepared should anything happen. We will do our best to respond, but we know that an attack is not, when, but if, and if there is going to be an attack, it probably will be today." Lux kept her voice down as she could hear not only her parents, but Garen in the hallway.
"We'll keep an eye out, but breakfast first." Solas used the poro eyes on Lux, who relented.
"Fine." She said as she picked the two up and headed downstairs. Garen had already made plans to meet his friends, and tried to get Janna to come along, bug failed. Her father was on duty and so was her mother as they also seemed to know something would happen today.
"Lux. Luxanna!" Her mother's voice knocked Lux out of her thoughts. "Can you at least respond?"
"Sorry mom." Lux kept her voice low as Dorcha and Solas were eating.
"If anything happens today, then try and get somewhere safe. And let us know." Lux turned to look at her mom, and she was completely serious.
"Ok mom I will." 'Or it will be Dorcha and Solas texting you.' "You think something is going to happen today?" Lux kept her voice neutral, trying to seem worried, which she was but a different type of worried.
"Yes. I just have a feeling. I'd prefer you stay here, but I know you already have plans. And I probably couldn't keep you home unless I stayed myself." Lux noticed her father and Garen quickly sneak out the door. "Or your father…oh he's already left hasn't he?" The sound of a car starting and then quickly pulling away seemed to confirm that answer. Lux was trying not to laugh. "I guess that settles that. Just be careful." Lux gave her mother a hug before she left.
"Well that could have gone better." Lux said, once she was sure that her mother was out of the house.
"She's just worried, and you are too I might add." Dorcha said as she jumped onto the table.
"I know. Let's get to the tower and be prepared for anything. Forget what I said earlier. Advanced warning would have already come if Malzahar wasn't going to be surprising all of us." Lux headed back upstairs, changed, grabbed her bag, and after making sure Dorcha and Solas were safe inside it, headed out, reaching the tower last as she found the others already there.
"Hopefully we will get at least some warning." Janna said to Lux as she entered.
"If we haven't gotten it by now, then we won't be." Lux said as she put her bag down, pulled out her phone and put it with the others. Dorcha and Solas hopped out and waited for the time. Lux looked at Lulu who was carefully drawing something, and using a bright red color. Taking a closer look, Lux recognized the color, or at least one close enough. It was the same as Jinx's hair when she transformed. Maybe it was a sign.
"I have no idea." Lulu mentioned as she looked up to see Lux watching her. "It just came to me this morning."
"Hopefully it's good news. Or at least that's what I took it as." Janna said as Lux looked around. The team fell into the usual routine of waiting as they knew an attack was going to happen. Nasus even stopped by to get them lunch early as a just in case. It wasn't that the lunch Nasus picked up for them wasn't bad, it was great, but the tension in the air kind of spoiled the mood as everyone was on edge. As they finished and they saw the city going to lunch, they knew it was probably close enough. Malzahar was probably not expecting the day itself, but attacking around lunch hour put a lot of people in small spaces.
"Let's not wait for it to start." Lux said as she got to her feet. The rest of the team joined her.
"Star Guardian Power Up!" The team transformed and waited, not knowing where the attack would happen. Vel'Koz floated in, apparently trying to help relieve the tension, but no sooner did he get next to the team, did they all feel it, and the map went crazy.
"Well we knew it was going to happen." Lux said, as she recovered from the cold wave. They all looked at the map and saw six separate attacks. "Well this isn't want we need. It seems like they are trying to get as much as possible, as fast as possible. They are hitting the mall, Central Park, the East Common, The Market Square, The Shops, and the Downtown Restaurant District. We'll have to deal with them all and as quickly as possible to reduce the damage.
"Poppy, head to the mall. Confined spaces are where you fight best." Poppy smiled and nodded her head. "Janna head for the East Common. It's pretty open and close to The Shops. Debonair will probably find you so send him there." Janna rolled her eyes as Lux finished. Zephyr took a second to get in a laugh before Janna silenced him with a look. Lux then turned to Lulu. "Head to the Restaurant District. There are plenty of places where you can get good angles with everything." Lulu nodded and tightened her grip on her staff, while Pix looked serious. "I'll try and deal with Central Park. Since Market Square is located close to the rest of the sites, whoever finishes first, head there. Go!" Lux quickly looked at Dorcha who had send a message to Jinx, and she just shook her head.
"Sorry. Nothing."
"Hopefully something will happen." Lux said as the team sprinted out the door.
"I agree." Dorcha said as she turned to the phones. The team had told their parents they would be at the library and then would head to the Market for lunch so the texts did come in, but they took their time in answering, hoping it would keep their families aware, but more concerned with everything else.
The scene at the Mall was absolute chaos. Suffering its second attack in just a few days, people were flying out of it. Poppy had to fight though the crowed of understandably frightened people in order to get inside. Just getting over the threshold, it didn't look good. Whatever had happened, it happened quickly as there were a lot of people on the ground. Poppy checked a few of them, and after feeling that they were just knocked out, she moved to try and get a better view. However, no sooner did she round the corner, did she get hit with several Zzs.
Poppy swung her hammer and quickly fought them off just long enough to get a good view of what was going on. There wasn't anyone leading them, just a horde of Zzs throwing orbs through a portal and gathering more from all around. Poppy swung her hammer again and charged as she tried to get to the portal, but the Zzs kept getting in her way and blocking her. In some cases, they actually knocked her into a few stores to delay her as long as possible. Getting frustrated Poppy swung her hammer several times to get some breathing room and noticed the horde was thinning.
Getting a better look, she saw that they were retreating through the portal with the orbs. "So a simple smash and grab, well not on my watch." Poppy charged again, vaporizing Zzs as she again attempted to make her way to the portal, but even though there were fewer Zzs, they had less area to cover and they still made a formidable defense. Poppy then charged up her hammer and brought it down with a massive slam, putting cracks in the floor, but also clearing a path, or at least somewhat of a path.
Not wasting her opportunity, Poppy once again charged straight, trying to get close enough, but Zzs stopped her again by physically colliding with her to slow her down. Poppy was forced to use her hammer like she was in a video game to even get breathing room, but she did notice something out of the corner of her eye. Zzs were abandoning orbs in favor of getting through the portal. Poppy charged again, only to get knocked to the side again. Getting to her feet, Poppy tried to move around to try and get a better angle, but nothing worked.
"Well this isn't going as planned."
As Janna reached the East Common, there was a sight that she didn't want to see. Rek'Sai was directing a small amount of Zzs, who were collecting orbs and throwing them through the portal while collecting more. Janna quickly wound up a twister and let it fly. Rek'Sai clearly had not been anticipating a quick response, so she was caught off guard. As soon as she saw Janna, Rek'Sai charged right at her, only to get slowed down by Zephyr, while Janna let loose with a few bolts from her staff while getting out of the way.
Rek'Sai quickly burrowed under the ground while Janna kept on the move to avoid being attack. Rek'Sai unburrowed and tried to catch Janna off guard, only to get another twister in her face. Slamming back down to the ground hard, Rek'Sai quickly shook off the stun while Janna did manage to get a few Zzs and orbs. Rek'Sai knew she was working with a smaller group than the others, so any she lost, were going to be a problem.
Janna was keeping an eye on Rek'Sai while she moved around to avoid the Zzs as well, but they were a thin line to keep her distracted while the rest tried to get more orbs through. Janna managed to get a twister and Rek'Sai jumped to protect the orbs, only to get hit by the twister, which Janna correctly predicted where she would be. Rek'Sai roared and charged again, only to get hit with a pulse to the face. Janna turned to see Debonair running to join her, but Janna raced towards him.
"We need you to get to the shops and stop the attack there." Janna turned to see Rek'Sai charging again, and expertly moved out of the way, slowed Rek'Sai, then sent her into the air again. "I'll be fine. Go!"
"Ok. I hope to see you there." Debonair sent a few pulses into Rek'Sai for good measure before he took off towards the Shops nearby. Janna was thankful he didn't put up a fight, but she was still a bit out of her element. Still, this was her specialty, controlling a fight.
"Ok Rek'Sai, let's dance." Janna charged up another twister, while sending more bolts towards the orbs. Rek'Sai just watched as a few more exploded and then roared again.
Lulu was running into the Restaurant district and it was clear that someone was at work. Lulu sent a few glitterlances at the orbs the Zzs were gathering, shattering a few. That was all it took to get their attention and they immediately swarmed to protect the orbs as they threw more through the portal. Lulu was about to throw another lance, when Pix squeaked and Lulu quickly dodged out of the way. Where she just was, Kha'Zix had his blades imbedded into the pavement. Lulu turned and got to her feet.
"Well it seems that this will be easy. I get the one who…" Kha'Zix started to taunt Lulu, only for her to throw a glitterlance into his face, then throw a few bolts at the Zzs, but none got through to the orbs. Kha'Zix leaped towards Lulu, who again dodged out of the way and then shielded herself as Kha'Zix took a swipe at her. The barrier absorbed the damage and Lulu then morphed Kha'Zix and she used the time to send a few more bolts and lances at the Zzs, who's numbers were thinning, but she still couldn't hit the orbs.
"You miserable little thing. Either fight fair or just let me finish you." Kha'Zix roared as he jumped again and Lulu again dodged and shielded herself.
"Then how about you do the same. I mean, you don't even fight fair. You go invisible, and bring friends to a single fight." Lulu then shot a glittlerlance at Kha'Zix, who didn't dodge it as he paused thanks to Lulu's unusual comeback. Kha'Zix was knocked backwards several feet as he tried to regain his balance, only to have Lulu transfigure him again and take more shots at the orbs, a few of which did get through, but only hit a few empty, or near empty orbs.
Transforming back, Kha'Zix immediately jumped at Lulu, only to have her shield herself and speed up, and his blades connected with nothing but air. Lulu then noticed an opening and knowing she would pay for it, took the shot anyway. Kha'Zix, instead of leaping towards Lulu, jumped in front of the orbs, saving about half of the ones Lulu aimed at but losing the rest. Lulu, who had been prepared for Kha'Zix's strike, instead kept up the fire by making him dodge around while she threw attack after attack.
"Would you stop moving? It is only making this more difficult." Kha'Zix yelled after he had to dodge another attack and missed Lulu, who was keeping up moving and firing.
"Try and catch me then." Lulu taunted, only to have Kha'Zix roar and get turned into another creature as Lulu shot more bolts at the orbs, but the Zzs managed to absorb them. "This isn't going well." Lulu said to Pix as the two looked at Kha'Zix who had transformed back. "Well we'll just have to figure it out then."
Debonair ran into the Shops only to see Zzs everywhere. Turning, he quickly unloaded with is weapon, but missed all of the orbs he was aiming at. It was clear there was no one in real control, just a small horde of Zzs trying to get as many orbs through as possible. Looking around, Debonair now saw why the Guardian had sent him here. It was chaos as people tried to flee the area, only to get zapped by the energy collectors. The Zzs were moving orbs as fast as they could through the portal, but it wasn't fast enough as the pile kept growing faster than it could be depleted.
"Ok then. Let's try this." Debonair threw out his gate, and fired one massive shot, before quickly moving and aiming again. The large pulse was quickly absorbed by some Zzs, but what was next, they didn't expect. Using the hole he created, Debonair fired several pulses through and managed to get quite a few orbs. The Zzs responded in a manner however that he wasn't expecting. Instead of charging him, they instead formed a tighter circle. Knowing it probably wouldn't work again, at least not at the moment, Debonair decided to keep up the fire and thin the horde before taking another large shot.
Because they were so desperate to defend the orbs they collected, the Zzs were moving them through a lot more slowly, so the pile kept getting larger, until it was clear there was no one left to drain. Debonair, seeing this, tried the same play, but instead moved in a different direction and fired at a different area. He did hit more Zzs intercepting the shots, but a lot did make it through the thinner area, destroying more orbs.
"Come on you little voidspawn, either attack me, or run!" He yelled as he transformed his weapon. Thinking for just a second, he quickly changed it back and kept up the fire. Knowing that he did have time, as the more he kept firing, the slower they could move the orbs through the portal as they kept having to replace losses as he destroyed them.
"Ok then, if that is how we are going to do this, then that's how this is going to be then." Charging his weapon again, he fired another large pulse, and then several more small pulses, and kept up the pattern as more and more shots kept breaking through. The Zzs kept trying to form tighter and tighter circles to protect the orbs. "Well then, let's keep this up."
Lux sprinted through the crowds running out of Central Park, and it was clear Kog'Maw was causing the chaos. Lux took a shot at Kog'Maw and he was clearly unprepared as he took several bolts right in the face. Kog'Maw turned and fired off a few shots at Lux, trying to keep her out of range of her bindings and singularities. Lux seemed to understand this as she kept dodging but getting closer with every move. Eventually, Lux managed to get a binding to connect on Kog'Maw, who desperately shot as much as he could but Lux just shielded herself and took the few hits, but her singularity was the one that really did the damage as she managed to get into range and shattered a large amount of orbs.
"You annoying guardians. Always interfering. Always annoying. Always standing in our way. Now you won't."
"Just try it worm." Lux said, but couldn't finish as Kog'Maw opened up again and Lux had to dive to avoid his attack. Kog'Maw kept up the fire and he kept up on Lux's tail as she tried again to get in range, but his constant movement kept her from landing a binding. Watching her movements, Lux eventually managed to snag Kog'Maw and get off another singularity as Kog'Maw fired off his acid bombs to keep Lux away, but he missed every shot as Lux kept up her movements to avoid the splashes.
As the binding wore off, Lux again kept moving around while Kog'Maw kept up his pursuit, but now, he was lagging behind, allowing Lux to fire bolts from her baton and a few singularities to shatter orbs. Kog'Maw saw his Zz horde was finally moving back to preserve the orbs that remained, but they wouldn't stop Lux's singulariies, so Kog'Maw ordered them to attack her instead.
"Well this just got complicated." Lux said to herself as she again threw a singuarlity, this time around herself as she dived out of the way, catching not only Kog'Maw, but quite a few Zzs in the blast. She threw a binding behind her and while it failed to catch Kog'Maw, it did eliminate two of the Zzs following her. Lux kept throwing bolts from her baton at both the Zzs protecting the orbs and the ones purusing her, but their numbers, while thinning, still were enough to keep her from throwing a singularity to shatter more orbs as she kept using it to slow down her pursuers.
As Lux rounded yet another picnic on the ground, when she slipped and tumbled. Throwing her weight, Lux tried to roll out of it, but failed. She did however managed to shield herself and get up before she got overwhelmed. As she managed to get some distance, Lux turned to see Kog'Maw keeping himself between her and the orbs.
"Great. I need a new plan. This isn't going as fast as I want, and we still have that one attack area unchallenged." Lux looked off towards where Market Square was, and closed her eyes.
'Please Jinx, if you are out there, we need your help.'
In Market Square, there was absolute chaos. However, Jinx was indeed there. Using her day off to think and enjoy herself. As soon as the attack began, she immediately ducked into an alley to avoid the chaos that was breaking out. However, while she was out of sight, she could still hear the screaming, the yells, and the panic that was nearby. Jinx put her hands over her ears to block out the noise, and for a few minutes it worked, but then everything was silent.
Putting her hands down, she crept up to the alley entrance, and looked around the corner. Everyone was on the ground and Jinx could see Zzs running around, collecting the orbs that were filled with energy. That is when it hit her. This is what Lux was talking about. It wasn't about anyone on the team, it was about everyone else. Jinx expected chaos, but it was the silence is what finally rammed it into her head. It was eerie, disturbing, and chilling all at the same time. Never used to thinking about others, Jinx now made herself think. Granted it was a bit difficult, but she still did it.
Jinx looked around carefully and it was really the silence, coupled with seeing everyone on the ground is what really hit her the most. The Zzs were of course making noises, and there were sounds from the distance, but nearby, it was all quiet, or relatively speaking. Jinx could feel tears in her eyes, and quickly wiped them away.
'This is what she meant. If we do nothing, how long before this happens to me?' Jinx asked herself the question that immediately had an answer. Reaching to her neck, Jinx found nothing. She then remembered what happened. How she got angry at everyone else; how she started to walk away; how Lux tried to stop her; then how she powered down and threw her pendant into the sand. Jinx knew she would do something, but without that pendant, she couldn't do anything. The realizations hit her all at once and unable to even to do anything, Jinx took a few shaky steps backward, collapsed against the wall of the alley, and tears started running down her cheeks.
For a few minutes Jinx just sat in the alley, unable to do anything, and unable to think. Something brushed against Jinx's cheek, but instead of looking up, she just brushed it away. When it happened again, Jinx looked up, her eyes noticeably red. Sitting on her arm was Shiro, on the ground was Kuro, and next to Kuro was her pendant.
"I don't deserve you two." Jinx said, her voice trembling but determined. She grabbed the pendant from the ground and unlike the last time, it felt warm in her hand. Jinx got to her feet, wiped the tears from her eyes, and looked at the two. "Ok then, let's do this." Shiro and Kuro just squeeked, and looked very serious. "Star Guardian Power Up!" Jinx transformed and again she felt warmth, not cold like she did previously. There was something else that briefly popped in her head. Something Lux said about how they all were more powerful together, when they fought together. She just needed to find her reason, and now that she had, there wasn't anything that was going to stop her.
"Ok you two, let's go." Shiro transformed into her minigun and Kuro squeaked. "Don't worry Kuro, your time is coming." Jinx took off out of the alley, carefully lined up a set of Zzs, and opened fire. The Zzs, clearly not expecting any resistance, were immediately destroyed. Jinx didn't waste time switching to Kuro, and fired off several rockets at the collection of orbs, shattering a huge amount of them. Turning to Jinx, the Zzs quickly started to form a defensive perimeter, but Jinx saw what they were doing.
"Oh no you don't." Jinx quickly switched back to Shiro and opened up on the forming perimeter. The Zzs quickly switched to trying to swarm Jinx while the rest tried to get orbs through. Jinx quickly ran to the side, still firing the whole time, and managed to get not only a small horde of Zzs, but she managed to get quite a few orbs as well. The Zzs again, tried to form a perimeter, but Jinx kept destroying anything they were trying to do. Jinx, remembering that a moving target was also harder to hit, kept moving around and working down the numbers of Zzs as they tried to get as many of the remaining orbs through the portal.
Kha'Zix again swiped at Poppy, only to miss and hit the air again. Knowing that her time was quickly running out, judging by the amount of orbs that were remaining, Poppy tried again to force her way through, only to have to dodge out of the way again. Seeing an opportunity, Poppy took a swing at Kha'Zix and instead of it just connecting, the hit sent Kha'Zix flying across the area and into a nearby wall. Stunned, Poppy just stood there for a split second before refocusing on the orbs, and charging. She hit the Zzs, but they quickly broke after a few swings and Poppy managed to break through to the orbs.
Quickly charging up her hammer, Poppy brought it down and sent Zzs flying, and Kha'Zix, who had tried to jump Poppy again. Hitting yet another wall, Kha'Zix knew it was over. "This isn't over guardian" he spat as he opened another portal, and fled through it, with the Zzs that were left. Poppy looked around and wondered what happened as she looked around and saw there were still orbs left. Poppy quickly made short work of them and started running off towards Market Square to try and control the situation there.
Still, something was bugging her. Why did something change all of a sudden. Pushing it out of her mind for the moment, Poppy ran out of the mall and towards the Square.
Janna sent another twister towards Rek'Sai, only to have it miss as Rek'Sai dived below ground again. Moving quickly, Janna sent a few bolts towards the Zzs and orbs, which for some reason got through and did a lot of damage. Puzzled for a second, Janna stopped and it was almost a big mistake. Jumping quickly, Janna dodged out of the way as Rek'Sai erupted from below the surface flailing with her claws, only to hit nothing but air.
Janna turned quickly and after sending Zephyr to slow down Rek'Sai, sent yet another twister, which sent Rek'Sai high into the air and then slamming down, with a lot of force as she was sent higher than anything she had managed previously. Rek'Sai also seemed surprised as she was slow to get up. Janna, wasting no time, charged up another twister, and set Rek'Sai flying again. This time, she landed near the portal, and deciding she'd had enough, fled through it. The Zzs followed behind her and the portal closed while leaving a large amount of orbs behind.
Janna quickly shattered them with bolts from her staff and then remembering something, sprinted off to join Debonair at The Shops. When she got there, she found Debonair had mostly dealt with the situation and the Zzs were fleeing through the portal as quickly as he was shooting them. When the last one had gotten through, the portal closed and he shattered the orbs that remained. Turning, he saw Janna coming towards him.
"Tough fight?" He asked as Janna stopped next to him.
"You could say that. What about you?" Janna kept her voice neutral, but it was hard to keep the exhaustion out of her voice.
"Not really actually. They mostly tried to defend the orbs, so I just kept shooting them and eventually shots got through. Where to next?" Debonair clearly was ready for more, and Janna just rolled her eyes.
"Market Square. It was undefended."
"Let's go then." They both sprinted off towards the square, running into Poppy along the way.
Kha'Zix jumped again only to have his blades catch air. Lulu kept moving around and dodging his attacks, while she kept up firing glitterlances into his face. He had managed to get a few spikes to connect, wounding Lulu in the arm, but that wasn't stopping her, or slowing her down for that matter. Using Pix to jump between them, shielding Lulu and damaging Kha'Zix, Lulu kept up the attacks as she also kept throwing bolts from her staff, and a few glitterlances, at the Zzs circling around the orbs.
Lulu moved around again and managed to fire off another glitterlance at the Zzs, and it just ripped through them. Both Lulu and Kha'Zix stopped for a second to stare because of the power that it had before Kha'Zix decided enough was enough. He knew that sooner or later, Lulu was going to get the upper hand. Instead of running though, he charged at Lulu again, to give the Zzs just a bit more time to get things through the portal. Lulu however, managed to dodge around everything and keep going. She kept Kha'Zix at bay with glitterlances and using Pix's shield to absorb damage while she kept up at the orbs.
Eventually, Kha'Zix realized he couldn't delay any longer and ran for the portal. Lulu, seeing this, quickly moved to stop him, but wasn't able to. Kha'Zix managed to get through the portal and was followed by the Zzs still left before the portal was closed. Lulu looked a bit disappointed, but did shatter the remaining orbs before she remembered about Market Square and quickly set off in that direction.
Kog'Maw was not making it easy for Lux as he kept moving around and kept denying Lux and opportunity to attack the orbs with her singularities. Instead, she had to keep using them to slow him down, and the Zzs that weren't involved with the chase. Keeping her eyes open, Lux kept moving and trying to get enough distance between her and Kog'Maw, but he kept up the chase. Saving her binding until he needed it, Lux eventually became frustrated and threw it behind her. What happened next was unexpected.
The binding did connect with one Zz, but the second target was Kog'Maw who was immeidatly in quite a lot of pain. Granted Lux's bindings were rather painful, but this one hit hard. Kog'Maw, in response, screamed and it caused the Zzs chasing Lux to pause and move towards him. Lux, hearing the scream knew she had only a few seconds and threw a singularity towards the orbs, managing to catch quite a few of them, before she turned to look at Kog'Maw. He was clearly in pain and Lux looked at her baton and questioning what happened.
Lux looked up just in time to see Kog'Maw get out of the binding, and clearly enraged, he charged towards Lux, only to have Lux shield all of the damage that he put out. Reacting quickly to this, Lux threw another binding, which connected before she threw another singularity and both exploded in Kog'Maw's face. He roared in anger, which caused the Zzs to run towards the portal. Lux, seeing her opportunity, quickly made use of it and proceeded to unleash bolts from her baton at the now absent Zz line and she made short work of the remaining orbs.
Kog'Maw, seeing this, quickly made for the portal and jumped through it, sealing it quickly just after the last of the Zzs made it through. There were still some orbs and Lux quickly shattered them. Lux took a deep breath before heading away from Central Park and towards Market Square to deal with the last attack location. However, Lux didn't even get a chance to get out of the park before a loud roar behind her told her that the next fight was going to be right on top of her.
"All 6 portals have collapsed Prophet. We must either deploy Baron, or save it."
"How much energy have we collected Cho'Gath?" Malzahar was clearly debating it.
"More than expected, but less than we hoped. We can recall Baron with excess energy and still have more than enough to prepare for the nexus fight to come. We might also be able to do damage to the guardians."
"Very well then. Arise Baron!"
As Janna, Poppy, and Debonair sprinted towards Market Square, they heard a loud roar echo through the city. They all quickly stopped and tried to determine where it was coming from.
"Where was that?" Poppy asked looking all around her.
"My guess is Central Park. It is the only way we could have heard it that loud based on where we are." Debonair said, and with little else to contradict him, they sprinted towards the park. It was clear he was right as they saw Lux there, looking at Baron, who seemed to enjoy making an entrance. Poppy immediately sprinted off to join Lux, but Janna turned and put a hand on Debonair's chest.
"Please, not this time. None of us will ignore what you have done for us, but please sit this one out. I have a feeling it won't be like last time. We got lucky there, I doubt we will get it a second time." Janna braced herself for an argument, but it didn't come.
"Ok then. Good luck, and stay safe." Debonair took off but Janna saw he didn't go far. He took position near one of the small groves of trees and waited there to watch the fight. While Janna had wished he went home, she was still touched by the gesture as she made her way to join Lux and Poppy.
Lulu was close behind Janna, having also changed direction when she heard the roar. They both quickly jumped into combat with Janna trying to shield everything, and Lulu moving from damage to support as needed.
Jinx watched the last of the Zzs retreat through the portal and it slammed shut behind them. Jinx transformed Kuro back to his regular form as they started moving away from the Square. "I'm going to have to go and explain now won't I?" Jinx aksed the two as she looked between them. Both of them just glared at her as if to say "yes". "Ok. Well now's a good time." No sooner had the words left Jinx's mouth did a loud roar echo through the city.
"Oh not again." Jinx half considered running, but then she remembered what Lux said. None of them knew what they had signed up for and they were all just trying their best. Shiro and Kuro were looking at Jinx, almost scared, but Jinx had no intentions of running this time. The fear and anger she had previously were gone, replaced by determination. Ok maybe a little fear, but that is what keeps you on your toes.
"Let's go!" Jinx sprinted out of the square and towards Central Park, somehow knowing that is where it was.
Poppy dived out of the way again as Baron shot out more spikes to try and hit her. Janna provided a barrier in case poppy missed, while Lux and Lulu took the opportunity to hit two of Baron's heads. Baron was clearly not enjoying this, but their spells weren't doing enough damage. Jinx was their power and in this situation, they were just being pests. But enough bug bites will kill anything eventually.
Lux turned for a brief second to look at Janna and Lulu, when Poppy suddenly tackled her out of the way of yet another acid volley. They tumbled down and managed to land on their feet. Well mostly. "Thanks. We have to at least force it to retreat." Lux said and Poppy immediately took off back into the fight. Lux kept up the damage, but again it just wasn't enough.
Baron, now clearly growing annoyed, lashed out with its body and managed to knock both Janna and Lulu out of position. Lux immediately threw up a barrier around herself and Poppy, and knew they would need some breathing room to regroup. Lux focused her powers and jumped into the air. "Final Spark!" The beam of light shot out and connected with all of Baron's heads. Lux had only been aiming for one, and it clearly did something.
Baron was reeling from the beam as it lashed out, but missed everything it tried to attack with. Lux and Poppy quickly made their way to Janna and Lulu, who were picking themselves up. Clearly they were both injured, but neither of them tried to show it.
"Ok we need a new plan." Poppy yelled as Baron continued to roar. "Because that isn't going to work again."
"We have to either force it to retreat on its own, or get Malzahar to recall it. Either way, we just have to keep it up. Keep moving, and don't stop. Unless you have something better?" Lux turned to Poppy and she just shook her head. "Ok then, move!" The team quickly moved back into action and Baron was clearly not as focused as he used to be. It was missing attacks, and spikes as it tried to fend them off. Still, it wasn't enough. Finally Baron managed to fully shake off Lux's beam and it hit all four of them, knocking them to the ground.
Once they landed, Lux threw up a barrier around all of them to try and absorb some of the incoming acid barrage, but they all knew, it wasn't going to be enough.
Malzahar was watching with great interest. "Finally we will destroy at least four of those pesky guardians." Malzahar was laughing, as was Cho'Gath. The rest had gone to get healed after the fights. Malzahar looked back at the screen where Baron was priming an acid barrage, when the whole battle was suddenly obscured by smoke and fire.
"What just happened?!" Malzahar roared with rage but no one had an explanation. When the smoke cleared, it showed a red-headed guardian charging towards baron, firing the whole time.
"NO!"
Jinx arrived at the edge of Central Park only to see the rest of the team get knocked aside by Baron. Jinx didn't even get a chance to process that before Baron opened up its mouths and Jinx could see an acid barrage charging up. Shiro and Kuro squeaked and Jinx knew what she had to do. Jinx focused her powers and transformed Shiro and Kuro into their massive launcher.
"Three heads, and not one of them had a brain." Jinx lined up the shot and took one last deep breath. "Double Trouble!" Jinx fired the launcher and the rocket hit home, smack in the middle of Baron's center head. Immediately switching to Shiro, Jinx ran into the park, firing the minigun the entire time.
The team braced for the acid but before it could even fire, something exploded right in Baron's face, sending smoke and fire everywhere. The team was puzzled but then another sound echoed through the park, it was clearly the sound of a minigun. Lux turned to see Jinx running into the park, with Shiro transformed and firing at Baron. Lux jumped to her feet, quickly followed by everyone else and they all quickly threw spells at Baron, who was now not having a good time.
Lux took up position behind Jinx, who kept moving and firing, while Poppy kept up the melee damage and drawing Baron's attention away from Lux, Lulu, and Jinx. Janna kept Poppy well supplied with shields as she kept moving around. The combined effort was now starting to have an effect. Baron was becoming less and less effective at hitting anything as the damage continued to pour in. The combined effort of the two teams quickly made work of Baron as it continued to try and hit, and while some attacks connected, many of them didn't.
Lux turned to Jinx and she nodded behind her. Jinx fell back and Lux motioned to Lulu to move up, which she did. Lux and Jinx looked at each other and smiled. "Thanks for coming back." Lux said as she took a few deep breaths.
"Well something you said finally made sense." Jinx said as she looked towards baron. Lux nodded and Jinx pulled up the combined rocket launcher again, Lux focused her powers. Lux then looked up to the others.
"Get down!" Lux yelled as she leaped into the air. Janna, Poppy, and Lulu hit the deck. "Final Spark!"
"Better Together!" The combination of Lux's beam and Jinx's mega rocket finally had the effect they were looking for. Baron roared but instead of trying to attack it tried to move away. The team took off after it, but suddenly a massive portal opened and Baron fled through it. The team stopped and watched, as the portal hadn't closed yet, which was interesting. The answer was obvious as Malzahar flew out of the portal, which then shrank, but didn't close.
"You pesky guardians. You cannot defeat me. You cannot defeat the Void! We are endless and without number. Sooner or later, you will fail, and when you do, we will be there!" Malzahar started laughing as he looked down at the guardians.
"Really? Because it seems like your plan fell apart this time. I mean I'm sure you got some energy, but wasn't the goal to destroy us?" Lux taunted Malzahar, who had stopped laughing.
"You insolent girl. You have no idea what you are doing. You have gotten lucky this entire time. Lucky. That is all you are."
"Really? Because it seems like most of the battles we win. Sure you got in a few here and there, but most of the time, we are victorious." Lux looked out of the corner of her eyes and saw the team had caught on to what she was doing and were getting ready.
"Again lucky. You cannot win every battle. Sooner or later, you will mess up. I mean, five girls against the all-powerful void. You have no chance." Malzahar started laughing again and Lux jumped into the air, full well knowing that she was going to be exhausted. Before Malzahar knew what was happening he was hit with everything. Lux's spark, Janna's twister, Poppy's buckler and she charged, Lulu's Glittlerlance, and Jinx's Mega Rocket. Malzahar screamed in agony as the damage was real. When he finally opened his eyes, only the blunt end of Poppy's hammer was there. Poppy had swung and slammed Malzahar hard. He would have hit the ground, had he not opened another portal and fell through it.
"Well, he'll be back." Poppy said as she landed and turned to the rest of the team, who were laughing. That is when they first noticed the massive amount of Police and EMTs standing around, waiting. Lux, though fully exhausted was somehow still on her feet. Janna, noticing this, allowed Lux to lean up against her as Caitlyn and Vi approached.
"Well that was one hell of a fight wasn't it?" Vi mentioned as the two got within earshot. Lux just nodded as Janna dug her staff into the ground to make sure she didn't lose balance.
"You could say that. How bad is it?" Lux asked as the officers got close enough so they didn't have a chance of being overheard.
"It's bad. There will be a lot of people recovering, but the collateral damage is minimal. Except in the mall." Caitlyn looked at Poppy as she spoke. Poppy just tried to hide behind Jinx, who saw what was happening and kept stepping to the side. Jinx eventually stood still after Poppy elbowed her in the back of the knee. Caitlyn did let her serious face slip for just a moment to allow herself a laugh at that. "But the point is that all of you did well under extreme circumstances. Build on this and hopefully we can avoid further damage, or future attacks."
"That probably won't happen. If they were going to stop, they would have done so by now." Janna said as Caitlyn finished. Everyone turned to her and regretfully nodded. They all knew it was the truth, even if she was the only one brave enough to say it.
"True enough. So I would suggest being prepared. And getting some sleep." Caitlyn finished and walked off, followed by Vi. Lux turned to the rest of the team and waved them out. She looked around briefly and saw Debonair was long gone. They all sprinted out of town, as it was a bit too risky to head back to the Library at the moment. They all headed for a familiar hill and finally managed to breathe once on it. The overlook of the city was amazing and 4 of them looked around to see everyone just trying to do their best. Jinx held back for a moment then walked up. The rest of the team turned to her as she took up a spot next to Lux.
"So do you want to talk about it?" Lux asked as they looked down the hill.
"Not really. Let's just say that all of your talk finally sunk in. Also, well today was, a different experience." Jinx was fighting back tears and Lux saw them. "But this time, I'm not going anywhere. After all, if I did, how long would it be until it was my turn?"
"Probably not long judging by the way Malzahar keeps attacking." Lux said as she put her arm around Jinx and pulled her into a hug. Janna, Poppy, and Lulu joined in and the team embraced each other as they were finally a full team. When they broke apart, they all just sat on the hill and enjoyed the view as the sun started to set.
Malzahar would normally be running around screaming his head off at this point, but instead he was in a tube being healed after he got hit with, well, everything. Cho'Gath was overseeing the conversion of energy and there was going to be a nice take. More than they expected, but less than they hoped. They would have enough to fight for the nexus, and some extra, but they would have to manage it carefully, and Malzahar falling for the guardian's trap didn't help.
"How's he doing?" Kha'Zix asked as he entered the healing room. Cho'Gath turned to look at him.
"Well he was stupid and it's going to cost us. We still came out better than we needed and more than expected, but this would have put us into a safe zone. We should be fine, but we'll have to manage carefully." Cho'Gath knew that even if Malzahar was awake, he was free to talk.
"When will he awaken?" Kha'Zix stayed back from the tube, but was still curious enough to stay in the room.
"In a few hours, hopefully. He will need time to recover before the battle. I will lead the preparations for it." Cho'Gath and Kha'Zix left the room to let Malzahar recover from his own stupidity. In the tube, Malzahar brooded to himself. He knew that Cho'Gath was right and he knew that his own hubris is what got him into it.
'Next time the guardians won't be so lucky. Still it wouldn't hurt to exercise some self-restraint in the future. I'll let Cho'Gath lead the preparations for the battle. We will then see what Vel'Koz is coming up with. That dirty traitor is up to no good."
As Lux looked up at the moon from the park, she looked around. Janna was under a nearby tree with Zephyr, reading a book. Poppy was climbing said tree as a challenge to not drop on Janna. Lulu was in another tree, sitting with Pix and enjoying herself. Jinx was under yet another tree relaxing with Shiro and Kuro. Lux looked down to see Dorcha and Solas on her lap, also seeming asleep.
It was the first time they felt like a team and it was also a warning to Malzahar. They were whole, and nothing would break them apart. Lux turned up to the moon and smiled.
"Come get us Malzahar. We will be waiting."