Chapter 15 – Daring to Cross the Land Bridge
Climate is a fascinating part of the world. Whether you like natural geography as an academic subject or not, everyone should know the basics of weather and climate change, for all are affected by it in some way, shape or form, depending on where you live.
In Runeterra, if you go south, you are in the scorching sands of Shurima. In the midlands, from Demacia to Noxus to Piltover and Zaun, you get a mild, comfortable atmosphere that is ideal for humans. It is neither too hot nor too cold and agriculture can prosper. Go to the north and northwest however and you arrive in the glacial land of the Freljord. The cold is unforgiving and is politically divided into three matriarchal tribes with no central government.
But even if you do pass Freljord's ruthless trial of acceptance, you are never truly safe and complacency will certify your demise inevitably.
The Freljord has not seen peace for centuries, as the ongoing civil war between the three factions keeps everyone at arms. Only those destined to be warriors will survive the harsh environments and lifestyles and make it to adulthood, where one must stay continuously diligent and wary of what you cannot trust.
It is very strange therefore that a mere child of the nomadic Notai tribe has explored more of the Freljord and withstood its hardships greater than anyone else:
The boy who went by the name "Nunu", spent his first five years of life with his mother Layka in the tribe, being told stories, songs and poems that stirred his imagination. On his fifth nameday, Layka gave Nunu a flute so that he could learn the songs himself.
The boy and his mother were separated for life though when the Notai's caravan was attacked by thieves. Nunu was separated from his mother and rescued, along with the surviving Notai children by a band of people from the Frostguard: one of the three primary factions of the Freljord, led by the twofaced Ice Witch: Lissandra.
Nunu was taken to the Frostguard Citadel and raised by the mighty people who served Lissandra, mistakenly believing that she was a valiant leader that would bring them to eventual peace and viewed her as a saint.
Despite now being an orphan, Nunu believed that his mother was still alive and out there. The Frostguard were obstinate though that no child could search for her without putting their life at risk. Therefore he spent more time escaping into the songs that his mother taught with his flute and even met Lissandra herself, who was seemingly intrigued about Nunu and the stories and songs he divulged. Nunu was with his childhood companions, but he was eventually ostracised for his belief in himself of possibly being a hero and the fact that he still played with his flute when they were learning the way of the blade.
The boy was adamant though and devised a plan to earn the respect of the Frostguard so that they may help him find his mother. He would go and slay a yeti with his flute… Nunu's imagination led him to believe that his flute was a sword, which he called "Svellsongur".
Nunu found the last remaining yeti of its kind in a ruin, protecting a gem that could turn the wielder's mind into reality, waiting for someone who was worthy to take it. He realised upon discovering the four armed yeti that it was lonely from losing its brethren and was in need of a friend.
To the bewilderment of all who hear the story, Nunu tamed the yeti by… starting a snowball fight with it. The guardian sensed in the boy something that he had never experienced before with other humans that had raided his home with malice: love. It knew that Nunu was the right person to wield the gem that it protected. This unlikely duo almost immediately became the best of friends and Nunu named his yeti "Willump".
The two then set off on what neither of them could have done on their own: a grand, magical adventure.
Ever since Nunu and Willump united, the young Notai only returned to the Frostguard Citadel once. The elders were indeed awestruck by his precocious feat, but were still precautious of Willump as a fearsome animal. He was not allowed to be kept as a companion or as a "pet", so Nunu officially left the Frostguard for good.
As Nunu rode atop Willump's back, holding onto the antlers on his head, he thought back to the last person he talked to at the Citadel before leaving.
Sigvar Half-Quiver, like Lissandra, was an Iceborn. He had earned the nickname after he was struck by a shower of more than twelve arrows against a raid from the Tusk-Crow tribe. Four had hit his shield; two found their way into his legs; one went clean through his forearm; two in his chest, one in his shoulder and even more in his back. Despite this though, Sigvar persisted, killing three raiders and even using one of the arrows as a weapon after he dropped his sword when he was struck by one in the wrist.
Sigvar was then granted the honourable yet perilous task of descending into the Howling Abyss – an extremely deep trench built by the legendary demigod blacksmith, known as Ornn, along with one large central bridge across the top and multiple little ones beneath – along with two other Iceborn – Olar Stonefist and Halla Ice-in-her-Soul – to see if the True Ice at the bottom was holding in the creatures of the Void – an indescribable place on nonexistence where eldritch abominations and unspeakable horrors are born. The Void is nowhere in particular, but openings to it were most prominently found in Shurima and the now derelict city of Icathia. Sigvar found that one of the nine pillars, which served as locks, was melting and it let loose an indescribable monster. Olar sacrificed himself to keep the creature from escaping to the surface and Halla and Sigvar managed to escape with their lives, but not before Sigvar was forced to knock Halla's arm with her pickaxe as the creature infested it.
The monster was subdued, but word had gotten out that the frozen tomb was not entirely secure, so the Frostguard Citadel have since been prepared for the Void and its outbreak, but that day was yet to come at full force.
"You must be careful, young Nunu." said Sigvar as they stood outside the Citadel.
"It's okay Sigvar," said Nunu, who was eyeing the large hammer on his back. It was called "Thunderchild" and had belonged to Olar. "Willump and I will look out for each other."
"You should know as well as I do that the Freljord does not take kindly to spirit and plucky determination. If you stay here at Frostguard, you will be guaranteed food, warmth, shelter and safety. Are you sure that you want to go out there and potentially never find your mother?"
"I know she's out there!" replied Nunu who was sick of being told that there was not a chance that he would find her. "I would rather die whilst at least attempting to find her than stay here and not search at all!"
Willump grunted and nodded in agreement.
Sigvar sighed. He admired Nunu's pertinacity, but wasn't sure if he condoned his reckless approach to the matter at hand. An Iceborn like himself would have been hesitant to travel across the Freljord without a group. To think that a child would be this daring. But then again, Nunu was driven by emotions and his love for his long-lost mother. Who was Sigvar to say that the boy did not have the right to reunite with his true family? "Look, Nunu, I'm not trying to dissuade you from going… I just… want you to be sure that this is what you want to do."
"I'm sure! Surer than I've ever been in my life! Don't you feel the same way Willump?"
"Grunts"
"I understand. But before you go, I'd like to give you a few things."
"Hmm? What kind of things?" said Nunu, interested.
The Iceborn reached into his pocket and pulled out a sachet, tied at the top with string. "It's not much, but there are five hardboiled eggs in there and two pieces of already cooked meat. Make it last before you run out and need to find more."
Sigvar handed it over to Nunu and he put it in his backpack.
"Thank you Sigvar!" said Nunu gratefully.
"And wait, that's not all." Sigvar added. He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out two objects, which were attached by a little chain. "It's a fire starter." he explained as he saw the confused expression on Nunu's face. "You use the blade and strike it against the little stick downwards. It'll create some sparks and can easily set anything flammable on fire. Use it when you need some warmth or something to cook."
Nunu's perplexity was replaced with joy as Sigvar finished explaining what the fire starter was and as he gave it to him. "You're the best, Sigvar!" said Nunu euphorically.
"Grunt, Grunt…"
"Uhh, don't worry Willump, I just meant that Sigvar is a great guy for giving us these things.' Nunu laughed nervously.
"Rrr" Willump nodded to show that he understood.
"I got it from Delverhold. A bunch of warmongers just happened to drop it when I was sent on a mission there."
"That's cool!" said Nunu.
"I've still got more stuff." said Sigvar, who was now smiling as he saw how happy he had made the boy. He gave Nunu some cotton wool and a knife. "Cotton is flammable." he said. "If you and your yeti can kill a sheep, then cut off its wool and use it as the base for a campfire."
"You're so nice, Sigvar!"
"And lastly, I've noticed that you love stories, songs and poetry, so I've decided to give you my prized possession from my childhood." He gave Nunu a leather book. "I, like you, love the world that does not really exist. Stories, ballads and melodies were what put me to sleep at night and I bet you'll get as much pleasure out of this book as I did."
Nunu felt a tear escape his left eye. Sigvar's generosity was warming his heart. "Thank you, but… don't you want it still?"
"Eh, I guess you could say I've 'grown out of it', so to speak."
"No one's too old to have a bedtime story or song."
"Maybe, but you will probably get more out of it than I will at this point. Here, let me show you some of my favourites."
Sigvar took the book and flicked through the pages. Nunu spotted the title at top of the left page: 'The Lost Tales of Ornn'.
"You've heard of Ornn, right?' Sigvar asked.
"Of course I have! The grumpy yet awesome forger of all things, and his big bad brother Volibear! My mom used to sing a poem about him to me."
"There are five tales in this collection. Some parts of it are undoubtedly myth, but other parts are very much true."
"Really?! That's amazing!"
"Yeah, it is. Let me show you something else."
Sigvar turned the pages back until they reached a poem. 'The Path to Hearth-Home'
"Oh, that's the poem my mom sang me!' Nunu said.
"The original piece has been translated from Ancient Freljordian into our contemporary vernacular."
'Contemporary vernacular?' repeated Nunu, unsure of what that meant.
"Oh right… sorry. It means our own modern language."
"Oh, I see. Thanks for clearing that up! I can't thank you enough Sigvar!" said Nunu.
"You can thank me by promising that you will be careful out there and that you take good care of the book." He handed it back to Nunu. "The original writings do exist outside of that thing, but I don't have another copy and I highly doubt that you'll be able to get your hands on a new edition of something so old."
"I promise that I will take good of it!'
"And yourself?"
"And myself! Hehe…"
Sigvar smiled. "Well I don't have anything else to say… so I guess this is farewell…"
"Goodbye Sigvar! Thanks for everything! Let's go Willump!"
Willump made a noise that only Nunu could decipher as: "I'm ready to go!" He turned around and jogged at a moderate pace.
"Wait!" Sigvar called out. "Do you have any idea if you'll ever come back here?"
Nunu thought about the question. "I don't know." he replied truthfully. "But I wouldn't put your hopes up that we'll return."
"Okay." said Sigvar. "Goodbye Nunu."
"Bye!"
Willump grunted with impatience.
"Okay Willump, let's go, for real this time!"
Not a second had passed after Nunu had finished speaking before the yeti went on all sixes and scampered away, this time very fast.
"Woah! Don't go too fast, Willump!"
Sigvar watched until the boy and his yeti had climbed the nearest hill and disappeared behind it from view.
Almost a week later, Nunu and Willump had reached the westernmost side of the Freljord. They had stopped by the harbour settlement of Glacerport to get some more food but quickly continued their journey as soon as they acquired everything they needed, because people probably wouldn't take nicely to the presence of a Yeti. Finally they had made it to the peninsula of Lokfar, although without a proper map of any sorts in their possession, Nunu and Willump did not know this. To their slight disappointment, their peregrination had been rather desolate, with very little to do. They had met little Poros along the way – adorable, fluffy little creatures with horns, a rather large appetite and were incredibly friendly to people. Willump had been on edge around Poros until Nunu reassured him that they were harmless.
They had wrangled with a few predators along the way, found some deer to eat and rested whenever they found an area that offered protection from the wind.
By now, the sun and moon had already been set back by five hours, and this unexpected event interfered with their habit of falling asleep when it became too dark to see the stars and wake up when the sun shone bright enough to penetrate their eyelids.
This didn't matter much to them, but it was an adjustment that had to be made for their daily routine.
As they finally reached the top of the closest mountain to Lokfar, which showcased the sea and beyond, Nunu noticed that there was a stretch of frozen land, about a mile in width that extended outwards, going beyond the horizon.
'Let's go check it out, Willump!' said Nunu, pointing at it.
'Grharh.'
Willump slid down the hill on his back until he reached even ground again.
They approached the water and looked at the extension of land. It was frozen ice, not earth. The water had frozen to form a bridge across the water.
'Don't step on it, Willump! It probably won't hold your weight.'
'Grunt grunt, grunt.'
'No, I don't mean that you've fat. It's just that ice breaks very easy.'
'Grunt.'
'No hard feelings, right?'
Willump murmured.
Nunu could feel the ground shaking, right through Willump's body. 'Did you feel that, Willump?'
'Uh Huh.'
It was coming from inland. As the shaking got worse, Nunu and Willump could hear the sound of voices coming from the hilltops. A gang of sorts were coming towards them.
'Quick, Willump! Let's get out of here!'
Willump nodded and ran towards a stray boulder towards their left. It was large enough for the big yeti to hide behind.
The two of them peeked around the corner to see an army of monsters charging towards the sea. As they approached, Nunu noticed that they were trolls. They were hulking in size, making even Willump look small by comparison. Each one had large muscles; coarse blue, brown or green skin; hair growing out of their backs and limbs and rags around their waists.
The biggest one of them all who was leading the pack was enormous. It could have easily taken Willump down if it so wished. Only a few of the other trolls came up to its nose in height. Its skin was blue, with a red beard and hair, long massive teeth on its jaw, and a large purple nose.
The general rule of thumb from troll clans was: the biggest and ugliest ones were the leaders. It carried a giant club with it; made of ice; thicker than five portly men and longer than ten tall men combined. This troll had overthrown the previous one – whom he deemed to be too timorous – by finding his massive club from Lissandra's very own layer, which was made of True Ice, and caving in his face. He called his club "Boneshiver".
'See, I told you there's a bridge here!' said a troll next to the leader. 'Since when have I ever lied to you?!'
'Plenty of lies, Sind!' said another troll angrily. 'You've stolen ale from my stash so many times now that I've lost count!'
'Did not!'
'Did too!'
'Did not!'
'Did too!'
'Did not!'
The trolls started barking at each other as they debated whether or not Sind was a liar.
'SILENCE!' bellowed the troll leader, slamming his club into the ground to catch their attention. Once everyone was quiet, he began speaking. 'We came here in the hopes of finding something valuable. There's never been a bridge here before, so like the stories of old, we will cross the bridge to see what's on the other side. Look, there are footprints here, so somebody has already gone over!' His voice was the deepest and gruffest of the lot.
'There could be treasure!' said one troll.
'Or weapons!' said a second.
'Or even more Ale!' said the troll who had accused Sind of stealing from him.
One troll near the back looked nervous. 'B-but that's a bridge made of ice… what if it breaks and we sink?'
All the other trolls turned towards him. 'What's that supposed to mean?!' said the leader.
'Well, we don't know how far this bridge goes and what it'll lead to. It could be a waste of our time.'
'Are you telling me you don't want to cross it?' said the leader with contempt on his teeth.
'No, that's not it. It's just… um…'
'I don't believe it! You're a coward!' bellowed the leader. 'Look everyone, Timber's a coward!'
The other trolls began to laugh as the leader went up to Timber, knocked him down with his club and started beating him repeatedly. Timber wasn't especially small but he wasn't big either and could not stop the big troll from beating him into submission.
'You defy Trundle and you get hit by Clubbems!' the surly leader said.
'Chicken! Chicken!' chorused the other trolls. They laughed as Timber held his hands over his head.
He put on a brave face until he eventually couldn't take any more. 'Alright! Stop! Stop! I confess! I can't swim!'
Trundle stop beating him and smirked. The other troll laughed even harder though. Without much effort, Trundle grabbed Timber by the leg and dragged him towards the bridge. 'How pathetic!' he said and threw him onto the bridge. He slid across it and panicked as he tried to regain his balance.
Nunu held his breath. He had never seen something so brutal in his life. 'Don't say anything…' he whispered to Willump. The yeti nodded. Even he looked scared.
'C'mon boys, let's get this princess a date with the ice!' said Trundle gleefully.
The trolls all sprang up at once and ran onto the bridge. Miraculously it held them all up and no cracks appeared.
Trundle reached Timber and swung his club as hard as he could with two hands and sent him sliding across the bridge like a giant curling stone. He screamed as he lost control and kept on sliding for more than three hundred metres.
'To the end we go! Go, go, go!' Trundle ordered.
All the trolls weren't adept and running across ice and some of them fell onto their faces, much to the amusement of the others, but they kept on going, taunting Timber as they did.
Nunu and Willump waited until the trolls were only a speck of dust in the distance. 'Do you think we should follow them, Willump?'
'Grunt.' said Willump, meaning that he wasn't sure.
'Adventure is out there, and I'm desperate to know what lies at the other end.'
'Grunt, grunt, grunt.'
'True, but if we keep our distance, we should be fine, so long as they don't turn back. We can also go fishing as well if we need any more food.' Nunu had acquired a basic fisherman's kit from a settlement near Rakelstake. Whether he could figure out how to use it though was a different question altogether.
'Grunt.'
'Are you sure then?'
'Grunt, Grunt.'
'Then let's go!'
Willump took off and ran across the bridge.
It was a heedless decision for sure, but Nunu knew that his gem would provide sustenance wherever he went.
Besides, he could not ignore the insatiable desire to know what was on the other side of the bridge.
Was it a warm place full of sunshine and rainbows: a type of place that Nunu had never been before?
Perhaps it had an infinite pot of gold at the end.
It could have been another mysterious wintry land.
Or maybe, just maybe… his mother was somewhere on the other side.
Nunu didn't have any bets on what he and Willump would find, but this didn't matter so long as his curiosity was fulfilled.
And if the trolls did come back, then Willump could easily outrun them on a mile wide bridge that most would struggle to cross without falling over. The risk was worth the pay.
Not even the most foolhardy of Iceborn would have the guts to dare their lives to cross this land bridge, but Nunu and Willump's courage led them on to who knows where…
