Chapter 31 – Nowhere to Hide

A familiar sense of both thrill and fright rushed through Ruby's veins: the dynamic movement that an agile Huntsmen or Huntress feels on a regular basis. The imminent shock had passed, replaced with the bodily control that she had harnessed through practice and training.
Ruby reached behind her back for Crescent Rose, deploying it into its sniper form. She shot beneath her to reduce her velocity and partially break her fall. She could use more ammunition, but instinctively knew that it would be better for her to save as many rounds as she could for whatever she might encounter in the near future. A quick observation of the ground informed her that nothing but sand lay below her.
'Shouldn't be too rough of a landing…'

The timing was crucial. Ruby waited until the last second before firing another round at her feet, successfully stopping her descent and landing on the ground without any harm to herself. She looked around – just in time to see someone else falling dangerously fast towards the ground. 'Ryze!'

Ruby returned Crescent Rose to her back and blitzed forward, leaving behind a thin trail of red rose petals. He was over a hundred metres away from her, and less than twenty from his death.
It happened in less than two seconds. Ruby jumped and stretched out her arms to catch him, exiting her Semblance. Ruby landed on her feet, however she toppled under Ryze's weight. She fell backwards whilst Ryze rolled a few metres away.
The peril has subsided. Ruby and Ryze both stood up, groaning. Ruby brushed the sand off her boots and skirt. Ryze checked his scroll to see if there was any serious wear or tear. He breathed a sigh of relief afterwards.

Ruby walked towards him. 'Ryze! Are you okay?!'

'Yeah. Thanks.' he replied nonchalantly, as though Ruby had only done the meagre favour of picking up something that Ryze had dropped on the floor. He placed his attention onto their surroundings.

'Umm, Ryze… where are we?' Ruby asked as politely as she could.

It didn't even take one full circle for him to vaguely know where they had ended up. 'Shurima…' he muttered.

'Is that good… or bad?'

'Not great, honestly.'

'And far are we from where we originally going to? Ionia wasn't it?'

'Depends. Shurima is a massive desert in the south of Runeterra, which is mostly wasteland. If we're in the north, we'd be marginally closer. Anywhere west and south however, and we're going to be taking a long time to get anywhere. Either way, we're miles away from our original destination.'

'Wait, where is everyone else?' Ruby asked, only just noticing that they were completely alone.

'I don't know, I don't know!' Ryze snapped. 'Dammit, by the gods, we're in a mess. I cannot believe that a dragon of a myth would be our downfall. We should have gone straight to Valoran, because this was a stupid idea from the beginning.'

'Sorry…' Ruby murmured. 'I didn't mean to… cause you any more trouble.'

Ryze sighed. He turned to face Ruby again and put his right hand on her shoulder. 'It's not your fault, Ruby. Please forgive my temper. I try to keep it under control, but bad situations get under my skin very easily. Over a thousand years of unwanted stress does a lot to a man's head.'

'Well, I'll try and not get in your way then. I promise.' Ruby said earnestly.

Ryze removed his hand from her shoulder. 'That's a start. Just don't do anything stupid, stick close to me and listen to my instructions when I give them to you, because you know nothing about Runeterra.'

'Of course.'

'You're a practising Huntress, right? So you probably have common sense. I already know you're capable of fighting, and you're probably not half bad at listening to orders, because you're a student.'

'Yeah, that about sums it up, hehe.'

'Right then, I just got to figure which direction we need to move in. We're pretty much in the middle of nowhere, with no distinct landmarks or sights anywhere.'

'Are we trying to get directly to Ionia?'

'That was the original plan, but as you pointed out, your acquaintances seem to have vanished. We're in the Shuriman desert and there's no telling what the hands of chance dealt everyone else.'

'Maybe you could use that ability where you teleport us somewhere.' Ruby suggested. 'It would save us the trouble of walking through this desert heat.'

'Unfortunately it's not that simple.' said Ryze grimly. 'The Realm Warp rune can only be used a certain number of times before it has to recharge, and the further you go with it, the more of its energy you use up. When I went to Remnant, I had to burn through almost all of its power, and it only just had enough left for me to warp you away from Aatrox, towards the docks. Besides, it'd be better if we could regroup with your friends, so we wouldn't want to warp past them by accident. I never thought I'd see the day where I'd hear myself say that I want to be with a bunch of people…'

'I think that this is what you need Ryze: a team that you can rely on. This might be a good opportunity for you to be able to experience friendship and teamwork for the first time in ages.'

'That is if we all get back together. The dragon's might was very powerful, but I suppose you're right. I do need to try working with people again, as much as I inherently dislike the idea.'

'You said that you thought that dragon was a myth, didn't you?' Ruby asked curiously.

'I certainly did. According to legend, Ao Shin is a storm dragon that protects Ionia from incoming dangers. No one thought he was real though, considering the lack of reliable reports. That, and Ionia was invaded almost a decade ago by an imperialist region, known as Noxus. They fought a bloody war, and nothing or no one mentions anything about a dragon from the sky. Personally, I thought that the idea of Ao Shin was a misconception of another dragon: one that I know truly exists.'

'Ooh.' Ruby uttered. 'I know that the desert is all I've seen of this world so far, but I am already fascinated by it.'

'If we get moving, I could tell you more about it as go: the bad things and the minimal good that there is too.'

'It can't be all that bad, can it?' Ruby wondered.

'I've already told you briefly about the Rune Wars, and then Shen and Atreus talked about their troubled pasts. The list of horrors goes on endlessly, whilst the good of this world doesn't make up for any of it. Whatever though. Forget about that for now. We need to figure out which direction we go in.'

'Ahh!' Ruby exclaimed. 'If we want to get to Ionia, why don't we follow the direction that we came from?'

'How can you tell though with no indicators?' Ryze asked perplexedly.

'I can see which direction my feet were pointing when I landed.' Ruby retraced her steps and moved slowly towards her initial landing zone. She pointed at where her toes had been in the sand. 'If I was flying forward this way, then if we head that way in a straight line,' She waved her left hand in the corresponding direction to show Ryze what she was talking about. 'we'll be roughly on our way to Ionia.'

'That's some decent logic you have there. I'll admit that I'm impressed.'

'Aw, it's nothing.' said Ruby modestly with a timid laugh.

'It might be difficult to keep going straight in this desert heat, without water, but we might as well give it a try, so let's go.'

'Yeah!'

And they set off, taking their first of many steps.

'We'd better not expend too much energy though. I honestly don't have high hopes of finding water anytime soon.' Ryze glowered. He held his hand over his eyes and looked up at the sun. 'If only that thing would go away.'

'We'll be fine.' said Ruby with an optimistic, but serious face. 'You haven't given up on your quest even after a thousand years. I doubt that this desert will be the end of you.'

'So naïve… yet so determined and willing to face the world head-on.' said Ryze, more to himself than to Ruby.

'Ehehe, well I'm only fifteen years old.' Ruby said quietly. 'I don't have the experience that you do Ryze, but I see a reason to continue to fight for good. Remnant is filled with the creatures of Grimm – the black monsters you saw at Beacon – and bad guys who commit crimes and robberies, and I've fought them, with mixed results, but with enough victories to have confidence in myself: to stay positive, because there is an opportunity to succeed. We just have to take it.'

Ryze stopped walking. He felt something in his heart that he had not felt in a long time: 'You know, I have to say that there's something extraordinary about you.' Respect and admiration.

'Really? In what way?' coming to a halt after a delay.

'Last night, you said that you wanted to see peace as much as I do. You're very young and you're still a kid, yet you have a purity about you that I've never seen in anyone else in my whole life. I see a spark of hope and unconditional kindness that could rekindle the world if it became a roaring fire, so long as you continue to grow and develop as a person.'

'You really think so?' Ruby smiled eagerly.

'This is a strange way of putting it, but if you were a Rune, I reckon that you would be the most powerful one of all, and one that could override all the other destructive Runes, and save the world.'

'Ryze, that's such a nice thing to say. But your heart is probably far bigger than mine, if you can persist with your mission like that so for long.'

'Me? Haha, not a chance. I've made too many regretful decisions for that to be true.'

'But you recognise your own mistakes. Remember what Blake told you last night? You're doing what you think is right, and you've had to do things that you would rather avoid, because you know that those actions are wrong, ordinarily. But if they lead you to the end of your mission eventually, it will have been worth it.'

Ryze opened his mouth to object, but found nothing on his tongue. He closed it again and simply nodded.

'On that night, when you came to Beacon, I had a run-in with a guy that's been stealing and working in crime for a while now. This wasn't the first time that we've meet, and he told me that I have spirit, but the real world doesn't make room for that. That was his reason for being a bad guy, because he sees evil as the winning side. I think I have realised that the real world isn't like a fairy tale; that was one of the first things Blake told me when we first met. But I don't see that as a reason to give up. I'd rather die trying than give in to evil. Plus, being a Huntress is just really exciting. Do you feel that way too?'

'…yes, I suppose I do. The world is harsh, and doing wrong is often the easy way out, but like you, I refuse to sit by and let evil do what it wants. I wasn't exaggerating when I said that the World Runes are weapons of overwhelming destruction, which can destroy entire landscapes. I cannot let them fall into the wrong hands, because there are plenty of people who would mishandle them. The key difference between us however, is how much hope we have for the future, and how much enjoyment we derive from our lives. I am old, and I am tired of the burden that I have put on myself, but to me this mission was never fun or exciting to begin with. If I knew that there was someone reliable and capable whom I could pass on my responsibility onto, then I would do it, because I envy those who can have a good night's sleep and wake up to a job that they love. I don't know the cultural aspects of being a Huntress, but I would've thought that you would get sick of it as you get older. I don't see why you would actively want to put yourself into that lifestyle. I guess that's what I am intrigued by about you.'

'Maybe it's just a personality difference. I enjoy the action and you don't. But I don't think that matters. We both agree that there's a purpose to fight for good, that it's not a waste of time and that it is better than being bad. That's what's most important, right? Any other reason is just a bonus.'

'You're right. Being selfless is hard and not always rewarding, however it matters not what you have to gain from it, but what others will.'

Ruby beamed. 'That's why I wanted to come to Runeterra with you: not for my sake but to help you get rid of the Runes.'

Ryze smiled back. 'I just hope that you're truly incorruptible. Almost all of my former followers were susceptible to the Rune's power, some of whom I originally thought wouldn't fall into that temptation. The one who I remember the most, besides Kegan Rhode, was a woman called Kala. She was a Shuriman tribeswoman actually and lost her son years before I met her. We found a Rune, and when she picked it up, a desire to use it to resurrect her son coursed through her. It was only because she held onto it for only a few seconds that she did not fall victim to its enticement. I knew that it could bring him back to life, but not in that way that she would want to see him. She is the only person I know who never succumbed to the Runes once she made contact with one. She was close though.'

Ruby pondered. 'I don't know if I would be immune to them, but I promise that I will try to resist their effects. I don't think that I even have anything that I could use them for.'

'If we find any, I will ensure that you are protected from them, and any of your friends, if we find them. Anyway, let's keeping moving.'


Ruby and Ryze pressed on, making sure that their footprints were going straight.

'So Ryze, you said that you were going to tell me more about Runeterra and how cool it is.' Ruby reminded him.

'Oh yeah, I did. Anything on your mind in particular?'

'You mentioned that you first thought that Ao Shin was mixed up with some other dragon. I'd like to know more about Runeterra's mythical creatures.'

'Hmm… where to begin with him?' Ryze muttered, recollecting everything he knew. 'The dragon is known to some people as "Aurelion Sol". He is understood to be the forger of all stars, although some astrologists believe that he is not the only star dragon to exist. Testimonies of Aurelion Sol's appearance and size are not consistent. Some say that he is merely the size of a cloud; others claim that he is the size of a planet, and some go as far as to say that he is as large as a galaxy. But I myself have seen his tail. He fills up the sky, and certainly dwarfs the concept of Ao Shin, but it would be hyperbole to say that he was bigger than a galaxy.'

'Amazing! I would hope that he's good though.'

'It's hard to tell with him. I'm under the impression that Aurelion Sol is an intelligent being, and potentially very arrogant, but that's the full extent of my knowledge about him. As far as I know, he doesn't have an allegiance to people on Runeterra. I have to say though that it would be good if he could get off his cosmic rear and do some good for us.'

'He sounds so fascinating though. If it's from a distance, I'd love to see him.' said Ruby jovially.

'Are there not any stories of space dragons in Remnant faith or mythology?' Ryze inquired. 'Since your planet is presumable close to a sun, just like mine.'

'Being honest here, I'm not very familiar with religious beliefs in Remnant. I've only heard of a tale of two brothers, but I don't know much about it.'

'Never mind then.'

'What else is there that's particularly interesting about Runeterra?' Ruby persisted.

'Umm, let's see… There's the Darkin, which Atreus told you about yesterday. There are different regions with their own cultures and ways of life... A lot can be said, but I couldn't say with confidence what stands out, and we don't have time for you to be overwhelmed by a history and geography lesson.'

'Maybe you could tell me more about Shurima, since that's where we are at the moment.'

Ryze wiped the sweat off his forehead. 'Look Ruby, I'm not saying that your curiosity to learn more about the world that you're currently in is a bad thing – on the contrary, it's a good attitude to take – but we should save our breath. If we take a break, or find a settlement or a source of water, then you can ask your questions. Right now though I would rather not talk too much and focus on where we're actually going, okay?'

'Yeah… that's fine with me.' said Ruby, who was now very conscious of Ryze's temperament in the desert heat.

Ruby stayed on Ryze's left, to ensure that the footsteps they left behind were clearly visible. The journey was predictably uneventful for a long while, with nothing but sand and a few shallow mounds located sporadically around them. No indigenous fauna or any signs of life lay around them, unless it was buried in the sand.
The only indicator of how long they had travelled for was the position of the sun, but even that only provided a rough estimate. How long could their minds and bodies keep it up?

'This really is futile.' said Ryze when the sun was only scarcely in the west at the point of the afternoon. 'Whenever I've been in Shurima, I've always rode on these creatures called skallashi. They're ideal for traversing the desert, since they're very tall and have long necks that you can sit on.'

'Do you think that your teleportation power has recharged a bit by now?' Ruby brought up.

'Ehh, it might work. Let me have a look.' Ryze reached behind him for his thick tome (Ruby only just noticed that Ryze was carrying one) and flicked through the pages. 'I might be able to get us a short distance, but nothing more.'

'Will it help us?'

'Again, I can't be sure. We won't know what we'll be passing by, but if it helps us get closer to the end of the desert, then I am willing to risk it.'

'Okay then. Do what've you got to do.' said Ruby somewhat awkwardly.

Ryze closed his book and returned it to his back. He clapped his hands, channelling his arcane magic.

Ruby looked at her feet to see the bewildering blue circle form around them. 'I wonder if there's anyone on Remnant who has a Semblance similar to this.'

A flash of blue and white light exploded around them, and they vanished.


The limbo between the warp was a feeling only describable by those who had experienced it. Ruby could not adequately illustrate the sensation though. The closest one could say through words was that it was like being in a deep sleep for less than two seconds, and to be suddenly jerked awake, due to how disorienting the light was and the transition of their bodily matter.

What could one have expected their emergence spot to have been? Much different from where they had begun the Realm Warp?
Ruby and Ryze reappeared in another flash of blue and white light. They opened their eyes to see… nothing new: just sand and a few more mounds.

'Dammit!' Ryze barked. 'That was no good at all!'

'Sorry!' Ruby said, alarmed. 'I just thought it might help.'

Ryze scowled, but fought to regain control of his frustration. 'You aren't to blame.' he said coarsely. 'I probably should've expected that. Settlements in Shurima are densely populated, but sparse in area coverage. Oh, if I only knew the specifics and details of Shurima, then I might be able to tell where we are.'

'Well, at least we've skipped some of the distance, right?' said Ruby. 'And if we continue to follow the sun, then maybe we'll still be on track to getting out of the desert.'

'I can't predict anything with reassurance, but we still don't have much choice.'

'Are we gonna keep going then?'

'I reckon that we have to. Okay,' he took a deep breath. 'let's stay on course and get go- huh?'

'What is it?' Ruby asked.

'There's something in the distance, over there.' Ryze pointed to his left.

From afar, it seemed like a large wheel was rolling through the desert, kicking up waves of sand behind it. The thing was accelerating towards them at an incredibly fast pace.

'Ruby, get ready for anything!' Ryze ordered. He clenched his fists, letting the magic flow to his fingertips.
Ruby deployed Crescent Rose into its sniper form and steadied it on the sand.

'Is it making a beeline for us?' Ruby questioned.

'It looks like it.' Ryze responded. 'If it gets too close, I'll snare it!'

Ruby hesitated to shoot at it. Doing so might only aggravate it.

It was getting closer, and closer, and closer. As the distance between them decreased, more of the thing could be discerned. It was heavily armoured and spiked. Getting run over by that thing would spell excruciating pain, or worse.

'Gah!' Ruby panicked and fired a shot.

It swerved out of the way and went in a circle around Ruby and Ryze, maintaining a distance of twelve metres, until it eventually slowed down. Seven seconds passed, and it uncurled to reveal a large armadillo/tortoise hybrid with an excessively spiky shell. Its flesh was green and had yellow eyes without pupils or irises, and an uncanny smile. The creature walked awkwardly towards them, like a dog coming for a sniff.

Ruby converted Crescent Rose into its scythe form, and Ryze held his magic tightly in his hands.

The creature seemed completely oblivious to Ruby and Ryze's defensive stances. It slowed its walk until only a few metres separated them. It looked up and down at Ruby and Ryze, seemingly scrutinising them from head to toe.
'Ok.' it suddenly said, quietly.

'Umm, hello?' Ruby said nervously.

'Hmm.' it grunted back.

'C-can we help you?'

'Alright.' It pointed to its right with its stubby arm and walked a few steps slowly in the direction it had indicated before stopping and facing them once more.

'Do you, want us to follow you?' Ruby asked anxiously.

'Yeah.' It curled up into its ball form once again and began to rev up on the spot without moving.

'What do we do?' Ruby whispered. 'Do you know what that thing is?'

'Not a clue.' Ryze whispered back.

'I wonder what it wants from us.'

It began to move, slowly at first, but was speeding away within seconds.

'Ryze, hand on to me.' Ruby commanded. She raised Ryze off the sand and put him into her arms.

'Guh, Ruby, what are you doing?'

'Following it.' She entered breakneck speed and they took off, blitzing just above the ground.

It was a thrill ride unlike anything Ryze had ever experienced. The world spun around him in a disarray of the desert's yellow-orange, and the sky's blue, and the inside of his body was being shaken like a volatile soda in a can. 'R-r-ruby, s-s-stop it!' he cried out.

But Ruby wasn't listening. Though difficult during her semblance, she kept her attention focused on the spiky ball. Fortunately, it was not going too fast for Ruby to not be able to catch up. Who knew what its top speed was though?

The creature decelerated gradually, going slower and slower until it came to a stop.
Ruby turned off her Semblance and fought for control of her legs. She was still not used to carrying people with her though. She stomped multiple times to force herself to a halt, but the sudden drop in momentum was too much for her. She slid in the hand on her heals, and fell forwards into the sand, dropping Ryze straight down. They both landed with their faces squarely in the sand, and they spat out a mouthful of it as they stood back up.

Ryze put both of his hands on his head. 'Ugh, my head. It won't stop spinning.'

'Sorry…' Ruby said apologetically. 'I just didn't want to lose it.'

'W-where are we a-anyway?' Ryze stammered.

Ruby looked over Ryze's shoulder to see the spiked creature standing next to the bank of a – 'It's a river!' she exclaimed. 'We're saved! There's water!' She ran to the river's edge and peered into it. The water wasn't exactly clean and sparkling, but it wasn't completely murky either.

Ryze staggered over to Ruby and the spiked creature. He sank to his knees and exhaled. 'Thank the gods.'

Ruby made eye contact with the creature. 'Thank you.' she said, still unsure of how to communicate with it.

'Ok.'
Without another word or moment of hesitation, it entered its ball form and began to zip away.

'Hey, wait! Don't leave!' Ruby begged.

The creature made no response. Within ten seconds it was completely obscured by the billows of sand that it splashed behind in its wake, and disappeared into the distance.

Ryze, without hesitation, scooped up some water in his hands and lifted it to his lips. Ruby did the same. They drank until their thirst was quenched. In the vicious climate of the desert, they did not care about the dirt and the sand.
Ryze was finally able to untighten his stress. He removed the scroll from his back, stretched his arms and laid down in the sand. 'Ruby, tell me: what happened just now? You picked me up, and we somehow ended up here. And what happened to that spiky animal?'

'In Remnant, many people have their own unique superpower. We call it a "Semblance". Mine is to go really fast. I used it to follow that strange creature.'

'Interesting… Wait, couldn't you have told me about that earlier?' Ryze said, frustrated.

'Sorry, again. I still haven't mastered control over it, but I think I'm getting better, and I can only go short distances before it wears off. Also, people tend to get overwhelmed by how fast they go when I carry them, as you now know. Hehe…'

'Hmm, alright then, at least I'm aware of this; it could definitely come in handy.'

'Yeah. Oh, and that rolling thing just left. It lead us here, but didn't stick around. I wanna know more about it though, since it did us a favour.'

'Ah, forget about it. I'm grateful, but it doesn't concern us. Let's just relax here for a while before we get moving again. I think it would be wise to follow the river though. We are more likely to stumble upon a settlement this way, because the populace of Shurima are more likely to live near one.'

'Yeah, let's do that.'

The idea of relaxing in the desert was easier said than done, with the sun pouring its light, and its heat scorching the sand. Despite this, it was great to give their feet an opportunity to rest.

'C'mon then, time to get moving.' Ryze ordered.

'K then.' Ruby stood up, brushing the sand off her back.

'It's fortunate for us to have a source of water close by. If it gets too dark, or if we run out of energy from no food, we can rest by this river.'

'Should we jump over, so that we're on the side that's closer to where we want to be?'

'Not a bad idea. Let's jump across then.'
Ruby went first, making the distance with ease. Ryze followed after. He was nowhere near as athletic as Ruby though, and barely made the gap. Ruby caught his hand to stop him from tipping over (and ruining his scroll).

'Umm, Ryze?' said Ruby as he pulled him to safety.

'What is it?'

'It may be beneficial to stick to the river, but I just thought: what if it goes even further away from Ionia?'

'Hmm…' Ryze fiddled with his beard. 'Realistically, we aren't going to make it out of Shurima by sunset. We're going to have to settle for somewhere that's even remotely habitable, or just stay by the river. Good point though. We'll concentrate on how this river meanders as we go along, okay?'

'Yeah, that should work.'

The day was on the brink of its closing, with the sky hanging onto its last few moments of perfectly bright blue. The intense heat was steadily being cooled down.

Ruby's stomach grumbled, and she held her right hand over her belly and she groaned.

'Ignore it.' said Ryze firmly. 'Your body can go for longer without food than it can without water. You're a strong girl, so keep it up.'

'Fine…' Ruby said glumly. Her exuberant buoyancy were turning into morose embers. Was this how things were going to end: dying from being stranded in a desert, with none of her friends or family to save her? 'I miss my team, and everyone else for that matter, but especially Yang, Weiss and Blake. I wonder what happened to them. They'd better be okay, because I can't bear to lose any of them. Even with Ryze here, I've never needed them now more than ever before.'
She struggled to keep her head raised and her eyes on the river. Ryze was leading the way, so Ruby had subconsciously let her acute senses slack.

Ryze's gaze went to a fro, from the north horizon, to the south. Nothing as far as he could see. Not only was their situation dire, but it was also painfully mundane. 'This is ridiculous.' he muttered under his breath. 'Surely we would've found something by now. Ruby's friends might not even be in Shurima. Not being together has already complicated things, but if they have ended up somewhere else in Runeterra, then this makes things even more difficult.'


Something in the distance.
'Ruby, look.' Ryze put her attention onto another thing moving rapidly towards their location. Was it the fortuitous creature that had led them to the river?'

'It's not spewing lots of sand behind it this time.' Ruby commented.

'Stay on your guard though.' Ryze instructed.

It was not going straight for them, but was certainly coming in their general direction. It got closer: close enough to be discerned. It was not the spiky ball, but a person, riding atop a stone through the sand, like a board on the sea. The corner of the eye caught Ruby and Ryze, and suddenly brought the rock to a stop. The person got off, and jogged towards them. She was a young girl, probably of a similar age to Ruby, with brown hair, a red coat with two long tassels, and a headdress and shoulder pads made of stones. 'Oh my goodness, travellers! Are you okay?!' she asked concernedly.

Ruby and Ryze hesitated to answer, unsure of what this girl wanted.
'Yes, we're fine, absolutely fine.' Ryze replied dismissively after a few seconds of awkward silence.

'No, we're not. We need help.' said Ruby.

'What troubles you? Please tell me, so that I may help.' the girl asked.

'It's kinda embarrassing to admit, but we're lost and don't know how to get out of this desert.' Ruby answered.

'Where were you trying to get to?'

'Ionia. Do you know how we can get there?'

'You are a long way from there, however I do know. I went to Ionia not too long ago, but I have come home to see my family again and make sure that they are safe.'

'That's so sweet.' Ruby commented. 'So umm, maybe you could help us by giving us some directions?'

'To be on your way to Ionia, you must go north past the Kumungu Jungle, then through the city states of Piltover and Zaun, and then you will be in Noxian territory. It is from there that you can take a boat to the continent of Ionia.'

'We already know where Ionia is.' Ryze said impatiently. 'We just want to know how to get out of Shurima.'

'The most direct way would be to proceed north until you reach the Kumungu Jungle, like I said, but I would not recommend that today. The moon is nearing, and it would be perilous for you to tackle the jungle at night time. Instead, I will take you to the Bel'zhun, where food and water will be available.'

'So, is Bel-whatever it's called a good place?' Ruby questioned.

'It is a coastal outpost, and a Noxian colony.'

'Hold on a minute.' Ryze interrupted. 'Did you say a Noxian colony? I don't like the idea of us going into an area that is under the influence of Noxus. That's asking for trouble.'

'Do not worry. I have been to Bel'zhun on multiple occasions, and the native Shurimans get along with the Noxian colonists. If you keep out of trouble, then they will have no problem with your arrival.'

'We have been following this river, hoping that we would find somewhere good for us. Do you know where it leads to?' Ruby asked.

'To follow this river would bring you into the heart of the Kumungu Jungle, just above the isolated faction of Ixtal.'

This information was meaningless to Ruby, so she just nodded her head. 'Is there anything notable back that way?' she said.

'Oh no, you must not follow the river too far to the west, otherwise you will encounter serious dangers.'

'What kind of dangers?' Ryze asked.

'Terrible ones. Please take my word for it. You do not wish to head in that direction.'

'Well, if you say so then.' said Ruby. Her mind sought an answer to what kind of dangers that the girl was talking about, but perhaps it was best to not know. 'So, are we going to Bel'thingy?'

'If that is okay with you, then we shall.'

'Sounds good.' Ruby nodded.

'If so, please follow me to my stone.' the girl said. She jogged back to the slate that she had been surfing on, picking it up and turned it to face the direction she had come from. She stood on it and turned to face Ruby and Ryze. 'Please stand directly behind.' she commanded.

'Excuse me?' said a confused Ryze.

'To take you to Bel'zhun, I must carry you there. I beg you to not be alarmed.'

'I'll do it.' said Ruby subserviently.

'Put your hands on my shoulders.'

Ruby stretched her fingers before she gently laid her hands on the girl's stony shoulder pads. Something shook beneath her feet.
'Woah!' Ruby gasped in fright as a stone emerged from the ground beneath her feet. It raised her up to the girl's height, and it merged with the stone that she was standing on.

'You do the same.' the girl said to Ryze.

'Fine.' Ryze stepped forward and gingerly placed his fingers on Ruby's shoulders. Just like with Ruby, a stone plopped up from the sand underneath Ryze's feet, and it merged with the two other stones, forming a rather long surfboard.

'H-how did you…' Ruby faltered.

'It's not worth explaining in detail, but I shall say that stone moves by my will, although I have yet to fully master it.'

'That's so cool.' Ruby whispered. 'Is that your Semblance?'

'What's a Semblance?' the girl asked, perplexedly.

'As in, is it your own superpower?'

'I wouldn't put it that way myself, but I suppose you could say it is.'

'Either way, that's amazing.'

'That's nice, but let's cut the chit chat and just go.' said Ryze impatiently.

'Good idea,' said the girl. 'but before we proceed, may I ask for your names?'

'I'm Ruby, and this is Ryze.'

'Ruby and Ryze: such beautiful names…. Mine is Taliyah.'

'Aww, that's a pretty name too.'

'Thank you.' Taliyah smiled back at her. 'Now hold on, this may be rough.' She scrunched her eyes and clenched her fists. 'Focus Taliyah, focus…' The ground began to shake, over a few seconds. It was the perfect dramatic moment, waiting for something awesome to happen.
It did. The stone began to move: slowly at first, but it soon picked up speed and accelerated forward. Fortunately for them, the wind was blowing into their backs, so the sand that was being kicked up from the stone did not blow into their eyes.

Ruby watched the sand in awe as they surfed through it smoother than water itself. How this was possible was beyond her understanding, but it did not stop her mesmerisation.

'It's a straight line from here, so it should take about an hour at most to get to Bel'zhun.' Taliyah explained.

'Good to know.' said Ryze, seeing fortune on the horizon.

Ruby wanted to talk to Taliyah: to ask more about her and who she was, but was conscious that she might need to concentrate on what she was doing. She was not sure how much energy Taliyah needed to expend to maintain control. She remembered her mentioning that she had not fully mastered this technique yet. Perhaps moving in a straight line was easy, but turning left or right might have been far more difficult.

The ride itself, though unconventional for sure, overall felt no different from simply driving along the highways in Vale, but without a roof over their head and no traffic. Nothing had yet to stand in their way.

Yet…


Half an hour passed of nothing but sand. Now, the terrain was getting slightly rough, and for the first time on their cruise, Taliyah had to manoeuvre the stone.
'Hold on, bumps and stones are up here.' Taliyah warned them.

'Thanks.' replied Ruby.

'Understood.' Ryze also returned.

Even with Taliyah proclaiming to not have conquered the art of sand surfing, her confidence brought them safely through the rocky surface.

'We're getting close to Kenethet, which is south of Bel'zhun.' Taliyah announced. 'We're going to pass through it though, because it is only home to a few nomad tribes. They won't bother us. Wave at them if you wish.'

Ruby nodded and smiled at Taliyah as she looked over her shoulder. She reciprocated Ruby's soft visage.

A subtle crackling sound could be heard, even through the wind rushing by their ears.

'Oh no…' Taliyah said apprehensively.

'What is it?' Ruby asked.

'Hold tight, we're coming to a stop!' Taliyah said perturbed. She pressed her feet down on the front of the stone hard, sharply bringing the three of them to a complete halt.

Ruby held her right hand over her chest, feeling her heart beating moderately fast.

'Why are we stopping?' Ryze asked demandingly.

'Please stay quiet.' Taliyah ordered.

The same crackling sound played, this time with an audible echo, and far louder with the wind not lapsing over them. It was menacingly eerie.

'No, this is not good…' Taliyah whispered.

'Taliyah, do you know what the sound is?' Ruby asked whisperingly.

Taliyah pointed north. 'Over there.'

It was slightly difficult to see from a distance, but something was moving through the sand. It looked like a dorsal fin.'

'If I'm not mistaken, that's a Xer'Sai.'

'And what is that exactly?' Ryze questioned.

'An apex predator of the desert.' said Taliyah said nervously.

'What?!' Ruby cried out.

'Ruby, I said be quiet!' Taliyah hissed.

Ruby clapped her hands over her mouth. 'Sorry.' She said, her voice muffled.

The fin suddenly turned and began to head slowly towards them.

'Any second, we might have to make a run for it.' Taliyah informed them. 'Be ready for anything.'

Ryze simply nodded, whilst Ruby gulped.

As the fin got closer to them, its immense size and the danger that they were in was becoming more and more apparently. There was no mistaking it now.

'Yep, we're not taking any more risks. We're getting out of here!' said Taliyah in a panic. She stomped on the stone with her left foot, instantly turned it around and blasted off.

The Xer'Sai screeched and picked up its pace: its sights (or lack of it) locked onto them. The chase was on.

Adrenaline overloaded them in fear, and their hearts pumped more blood through their bodies than they could handle. Most inconveniently of all though, the wind was now blowing strongly towards them, and Taliyah had to squint to protect her eyes.

Ruby and Ryze looked behind them. It was still relatively far away, but the speed at which they were travelling did not widen the gap between them and the Xer'Sai.
Could they fight it? Ruby had fought and killed countless Grimm, and Ryze had centuries of experience in combat. Maybe, but it was beneath the sand, and they couldn't tell how big the beast itself was.

Ruby reached behind her back for Crescent Rose, and held it out to the side to deploy it into a its sniper form.

Without even communicating it to each other, Ruby and Ryze awkwardly switched places on the stone whilst holding on for dear life to Taliyah's shoulders as support and balance, so that Ruby was at the rear.
'What are you doing?! You almost made us fall off!'

'Getting ready to attack it!' Ruby replied.

Taliyah had doubts that this piece of technology could do much to a Xer'Sai. If anything, it might just exasperate it, but decided not to object.
Ryze stood sideways, using his right hand to grip onto Taliyah's left shoulder, and his left hand on Ruby's right shoulder to stop her from plummeting to her doom. The possibility of death was shielded only by Taliyah's control over the stone, and their own balance…

Holding Crescent Rose with both of her hands at that moment, whilst they were travelling so fast was horrendously risky, but doable. She mounted the handle on her left shoulder and peered through the scope, aiming it just in front of its dorsal fin. Now was not the time for hesitation, but she wondered if she should actually shoot it, as a feeling of incertitude, similar to Taliyah's, crossed her mind. She knew that her bullets were only typically lethal against the Grimm: creatures with no Aura or soul. How durable was a Xer'Sai? Could it withstand a shot from Crescent Rose?

A shot of purple energy suddenly erupted from the Xer'Sai, rocketing towards them like a missile.

'Look out!' Ruby cried out.

Taliyah gasped and swerved the stone to their right, barely dodging the shot as it passed them.

'Woah, agh!' Ruby felt her heart beat out of her chest and tumbled left – if not for Ryze putting his arm around her neck at the last second to save her. 'Thanks.' she puffed, but Ryze didn't hear her over the wind, and the Xer'Sai emitting a sound of what seemed like a rasp of frustration.
Ruby recovered her offensive position on the stone, with the handle back on her shoulder and her left eye looking through the scope. At least she now knew that it could do that. What other predatory moves did it have though...?

'Should I shoot it?!' she queried.

'It's worth a try! Better to shoot it now than when it's closer to us! We'll see what reaction it gives us!' Ryze suggested.

'Okay, here goes nothing!' Ruby gritted her teeth and pulled the trigger, hitting it straight in the fin and it growled. She did not anticipate the recoil from Crescent Rose however. It pushed her backwards into Ryze, who was knocked into Taliyah's back.
Taliyah flailed her arms to keep upright. By some miracle, they remained on the stone. 'What on earth is going on back there?!' she said in dread.

'Sorry!' Ruby shouted. 'I forgot that that happens!'

'It's alright, but what happened to the Xer'Sai?!'

Ruby and Ryze looked at the sand. 'Yes! It's fallen back by a few metres or so!' Ruby said with some triumph. 'Should I shoot it again?!'

'Only if absolutely necessary! We don't to be pushed over again!' said Ryze.

'Isn't now a more necessary time than ever?!'

'Yes, but can you control that weapon of yours?!'

'Try and push me when I shoot it! Maybe that'll negate the recoil!'

'Let's hope your physics are on point then!'

Ruby readied Crescent Rose to shoot again. 'Okay, three. Two. One. Fire!'

As Ruby was forced back, Ryze let go of Taliyah for a split second, so that he could push Ruby back with both of his hands.
She had been right: the recoil was counteracted. Ruby and Ryze stood upright as if nothing had happened.

The Xer'Sai growled again, and shot out another missile of purple energy.

'Dodge, dodge it!' Ruby screamed.

Taliyah turned the stone, this time to their left. They had evaded the attack by about a metre more than last time – thanks to the space that they had made between them. Thankfully, the second shot from Crescent Rose had increased the length of the gap between them. Rapidly shooting it in quick succession might deter it from coming any closer, but there was now way that they could withstand the amount of knockback it would generate.

Taliyah analysed the area in front of her. It only occurred to her now that she had no idea where she was heading. All that had been on her mind was getting away from the Xer'Sai. She looked into the distance, and saw tall, derelict building, made out of stone and sand, which was surrounded by the rubble of what was once a blooming city. Something was floating upwards, rising above the tall building at the centre of the settlement. It was radiating with light blue and, although not noticeable from where they were, it had fragments of stone surrounding it, which had failed to encase it.

A burst of its arcane energy erupted from the source and soared towards them.

'Yikes!' Taliyah screamed. Without warning, she sharply swerved the stone to the right, avoiding the blast of energy as it exploded upon hitting the sand.
The Xer'Sai hit the sand swam right past it.

'Oh, no, no, no! Not now!' Taliyah groaned.

'What is it this time?!' Ruby said after she fought to regain her footing.

'Xerath!'

'You've got to be kidding me!' Ryze exclaimed. 'Not him!'

'What is a "Xerath"?!' Ruby asked, with her eyes darting back and forth between the Xer'Sai and Xerath.

'No time to explain, just focus on the Xer'Sai! I'll make sure we don't get hit by Xerath!'
Taliyah moved the stone right, taking them in a new direction. They could not go back in the direction of the Xer'Sai, nor towards Xerath, so going left or right was the only option. Taliyah looked up at Xerath. She grimaced, waiting for him to take another shot. Unluckily though, she did not have to wait long. Xerath fired another blast. Taliyah manoeuvred the stone left, barely dodging it.
Without any delay, Xerath released another shot, and another, and another!

It was as if Xerath was the embodiment of one's life flashing before their eyes. But Taliyah was not going to give up. She focused on her power bestowed by the Great Weaver. She lifted her arms upwards, commanding a giant tunnel of stone to be forged above them as they rushed along the sand.
Ruby and Ryze stared upwards in awe.

They heard Xerath's energy make impact on the stone, but it did not burn through.

The Xer'Sai followed them through the tunnel: its fin fitting perfectly and not quite scraping the roof.

'You cannot hide from me!' said a booming voice. 'Flesh and blood; so fragile! I will show you true power!'
Xerath unleashed his arcane energy, raining a hailstorm of his unending lust for power.

Taliyah mustered all of her power to create another tunnel of stone to protect them from Xerath. It strained her mind to accurately control it, but she did it, phenomenally. The tunnel was pelleted by arcane energy, yet they remerged unharmed.

The Xer'Sai exited the tunnel and shot a third purple missile.

'Incoming!' Ruby yelled.

Taliyah saw it and swerved the stone to the left. But it still hit them. The Xer'Sai was smart and had anticipated their movement…
They were coated in an ice-cold sensation and a sharp but brief pain, as though they had been stabbed with a few needles.

The Xer'Sai then let out an ear-splitting shriek. It dove and submerged itself entirely beneath the surface for less than a second, before it lunged out at them, completely breaking the surface and revealing its full form. An abomination of a monster, ginormous in size with blue and purple armoured skin. Its claws were outstretched, and its mouth was wide open with teeth big and sharp enough to bite them in two.

Ruby saw it but did not stop to think. She returned Crescent Rose to her back, and activated her Semblance, pulling Ryze and Taliyah away at lightning speed.
The Xer'Sai's mouth easily consumed the stone, with more than enough room for three more hapless human prey.

Ruby moved them almost fifty metres away, but she could not keep the speed up whilst dragging two people behind her. They all toppled over and rolled along the sand until they came to a stop. All three of them were on the floor, dazed and scarcely remembered that they were caught between Xerath and a Xer'Sai: death on both sides.

Xerath began to channel his energy, whilst the Xer'Sai prowled towards them on all fours.

Ruby and Ryze regained enough strength to be able to stand up, but Taliyah had not. All her energy had gone into concentrating on using her powers.

Ryze retrieved his spellbook and began frantically searching for the Realm Warp rune: their one last chance at survival. 'Where is it, where is it?!' His desperation and panic were betraying his thorough knowledge of the book.

'Hurry up!' Ruby screamed.

'I'm trying!' Ryze yelled back.

Ruby trembled harder than she had ever done before. Was this her end, to die at only fifteen years of age? There was no way that she could fight the Xer'Sai. It was far too big and tough for her to deal with. She could use her Semblance to get away, but she was not able to carry Ryze and Taliyah with her again, and even in that moment where the instincts to survive would normally take over, she was not willing to leave them to die. Either they all survived, or she would die with them…


Something was rolling fast towards them, from the direction they had been chased. Ruby eyed it, and a trickle of hope found its way into her veins. The spiky creature that had led them to the water earlier that day. It jerked suddenly towards the Xer'Sai and rammed into it, knocking the creature over and creating a giant splash of sand as it hit the ground. The Xer'Sai squealed as the spiky creature began headbutting it with the top of its shell.

Ruby's eyes widened with relief, even with the other threat looming over the ruins. She looked towards Xerath, who was still channelling his power.
Something however was running towards him. Through the sands, a towering figure had its eyes set on Xerath. It had a jackal head on top of a humanlike body, with shoulders that were heavily armoured, and was carrying a massive axe in its right hand.
The jackal headed man roared and jumped high into the air. He reared its axe before swinging it straight through Xerath's body, catching him off guard.

Xerath exploded in a blast that consumed the whole of the settlement, and the jackal headed man was knocked back with force of a thousand cannons going off at once. He landed hard on his back and skidded across the sand for more than a hundred metres.

Ruby and Ryze covered their ears from the deafening bang. When it ended, they looked both ways. First at where Xerath had been and the jackal headed man, and then the spiky creature fighting the Xer'Sai. It was considerable smaller than the Xer'Sai but had far more defense.
The Xer'Sai had gotten up and swiped its claws at the creature, but could not break through its shell, and instead ended up prickling itself on its spikes.
With one last attempt to come out on top, it opened its mouth and bit down on the spiky creature.
Although smart enough to predict the movement of fleeing pray, it appeared to not be able to realise that this animal was almost impossible to kill with brute force. The Xer'Sai screamed; its mouth bled furiously from being impaled by the armadillo. In a fright, it re-entered the sand and swam away as fast as it could, back where it had come from.

The jackal headed man stood up, clutching his head in dizziness. He was mostly uninjured from the explosion, but it had nonetheless been terribly painful. He stumbled towards the remains of the city, using has axe to support him. 'Xerath! Show yourself!'

He had lived. Xerath rose again from the rubble. 'Nasus, the loyal pup, ever nipping at my heels!'

'Do not try my patience, Xerath! I will stop you, and your tyranny!'

'All bark and no bite, as usual!' Xerath laughed. 'This world is mine to conquer, and there is nothing you can do to stop me!'

'All things must come to an end, including you!'

'All things, except me.' Xerath said cockily. 'Azir's pitiful empire ended because he was weak. Renekton's love for you has ended, because he was weak-willed.'

'Do not speak of my brother!' Nasus bellowed.

'Remember the last time we fought here? You were lucky that day, and you were blessed today as well, with me being distracted by those weaklings over there. I told you that I would not be the one to kill you, but it would be your brother. His madness will be your end, for you will not willingly wound him, but he will have no hesitation to rip your flesh from your bones.'

Nasus clutched his axe tightly and glared at Xerath.

'I will let you go, for now. said Xerath. 'There is much more that I could be doing than talking to a dog.'

'Running away, are you?!'

'Granting you mercy, that's what.' Xerath waved tauntingly with his right hand before floating further upwards and flying away.

Nasus bowed his head. How many more times could he let Xerath get away? It would not be long before he'd indeed bring Shurima to its knees.
He rose up again and turned to see Ruby, Ryze and Taliyah, who was still lying in the sand. Nasus walked over to them.

Ryze stepped forward to meet him.

'Ryze. It's been a long time. Good to see you again.'

'Same to you.' Ryze replied. 'Gotta say that you saved me and these two over here.'

Nasus scrutinised Ruby with calm eyes. He bowed on one knee to get closer to her height. 'My name is Nasus. It is a pleasure to meet you.'

'Umm… thanks, I'm Ruby.' she replied uneasily. Nasus seemed sincere, but he was nonetheless naturally imposing.

He then looked to the sand. 'And the young Taliyah.' She was out cold. 'What is wrong with her?'

'I think she's out of energy, and possibly injured as well.'

Nasus put his cane behind him and picked up Taliyah, cradling her in both of his arms. 'And… is that Rammus over there?'

He looked over at the armadillo, along with Ruby and Ryze.

Rammus simply nodded. Without making a sound, he curled into a ball again and rolled away.

'You all seem exhausted.' Nasus observed. 'Rammus was here, and I think I noticed that the queen, Rek'Sai was here just a moment ago too. Tell me, what have you all been up to?'

Ryze looked up at the evening sky and sighed. 'It's a long story.'