Chapter 2B: Scenic Routes and Procrastination!
"I want to be the person that my baby sister can look up to. If I can't be one to the ones closest to me then I have no business trying to for my people."
"Quote from Demacia's Might Hero and leader Lux or Luxanna Rosawiese Piproxu"
Chapter 2B Summary : Just a short look into what the rest of Aesir's Edge is up to while on their way back to the capital city. Klonoa, Ekko and Zoe get excited about a carnival going on in Evenmoor Terrace while passing through the Southern Demacia Region. Sidetracking and unexpected shenanigans ensues much to Akali's adamancy.
Durasteel Coach Train: Westerly Ramparts
The Cloud Kitsune sighed as the gust of air blew his white tipped glove like end behind his shoulder that was attached to a longer black furred appendage. He reached for his hat that was blue in color with the symbol of Pacman on it, grabbing it from the rim and spinning it around before pressing it snuggly back onto his head. His slitted golden eyes scanned the mountainous peaks parallel to them and alternated to the gleaming ocean below as the train sped on. He opened the window and allowed the crisp evening air to buffet his face. The gentle breeze felt nice, blowing the small frame of needle like patch of white fur on his cheeks backwards along with the funny looking black and white tipped ears. He would have enjoyed the peaceful evening more if not for his boredom. Painstakingly boredom. He was so bored that he made up a make believe disease called boredomitis, (symptoms include chronic sitting on your fanny while waiting for something eventful to come along that never comes to pass. May induce uncontrolled bouts of nothing to do with the eventuality of becoming a gibbering lunatic of perpetual repetition). Maybe that was a little over reaching and too much imagination, (that and reading too much of Professor Heimerdinger's book of Super Serious Ailments of Serious Serious Man Series). Truth be told, he wanted to stay behind with Irvine's group. The mission they went on sounded like it would have been a blast and given him a chance to show case some of the teachings he passed onto him in hopes of impressing the man who he looked up to as an older brother and role model. Instead he got told that it'd be a little more dangerous than the norm that they're use to. That and he made the point that Akali and Jayce along with the rest of them would need him for the mission they took.
"Yeah... you call pointing a finger at a haggard old bandit and watching him keel over from *BANG!* a grade A assignment?" He fumed internally. "Guy probably couldn't fight his way out of a toilet let alone fighting a guild." Even though they were bandit scum that were terrorizing innocent folk, he did hope that he didn't give the poor old man a heart attack. In general, he just wished he'd stop treating him like a kid sometimes. He and his other younger companions would never grow or get stronger if they kept getting these lame missions. I mean yeah, it'd look good on the rankings but most of that hogwash was just for formalities. He wanted cold hard proof that he could tackle even the nastiest of circumstances. As he rambled on in the confines of his own thoughts, two cream colored hands clasped themselves over his eyes like pressed pancakes and causing him to shift lightly due to being caught unawares. His lips slanted a little, already knowing who it was.
"Guess who?" The voice said in a girlish giggle. He on the other hand tried to pry her hands loose gently, only for them to be slapped back onto his eyes. He let out another disgruntled wisp of air before entertaining the girl's response.
"I know it's you Zoel. Come on, not really in the mood to play." He said politely but with an edge of snippy to it. Zoel was short for her full name and was kind of his pet name for her. The rest of the guild called her Zoe or sugar charged wild thing. Seeing that he was being no fun she puffed her cheeks out. She was leaned over from the seat behind his. Deciding that his grumpy Mc Downer Pants mood was a no go, she acrobatically reached both hands and arched herself upside down into a hand stand before flipping over and landing with a loud cushion like thump beside him. She began poking his face, not liking his mopey attitude one bit and causing his right eyebrow twitch spastically.
"What's the matter with you? You've been like this ever since we got on the train?" Zoe demanded. Klonoa, instead of answering her immediately put a hand under his chin and focused back on the window.
"It's nothing, I'm fine." He said dismissively. She made a feminine like head movement with her hands on her hips with a no he just didn't kind of look. Seeing that he wasn't willing to budge from conversation, she went onto plan b. Klonoa felt a tingling sensation in the back of his head, sort of like a six sense when someone is staring at you or attempting to do something in your blind spot. He unfortunately didn't react in time to being speared and pinned against the seat. His eyes were wide before his eyelids slanted into squints. What started off as short pffts and hushed chuckles turned into a full blown bellow of laughter. She was tickling him. Not just anywhere. It was in two of his weak spots. She'd keep it up until he relented.
"Coochi coochi coo cochichichichichichi coo!" She said as if she were a ferret hyped up on energy drinks, hands moving as if they were sped up by 100x. Klonoa had tears of laughter and pain from the sensation that was causing the upset.
"Ahahahahahaha! HA HA! Zo hahahaha Zoe alright, alright I'll tell you ha ha..." He said almost out of breath. She slowed down before coming to a complete stop. She curled her fingers and raised them to emphasis her point if he kept it up but he put a hand up to indicate that he got the message. They both then fell into silence, grinning at each other while the ends of Zoe's twilight infused hair fell over her shoulders and hovered over the kitsune's right cheek. Not wanting the pregnant pause to continue, Zoe spoke up.
"So spill it? What's got your feathers all in a tussy?" She asked. Klonoa's smile faltered a bit, his eyes finding their way to opposite side of where he laid.
"I just wish big bro would quit sending us on these easy missions." He said softly. "Yeah, it's money and renown but what if someone comes along that we can't handle because of inexperience? We'll be in a real jam then." She did agree that he had a point. I mean some of these missions lately were menial and downright boring at times. If they were to pull through during a dire time then they would need to be able to tackle tougher jobs.
"Maybe when we get back you should run your thoughts by him?" She suggested. He looked back at her but shook his head.
"No... he'd probably shoot it down and insist that I'm still not ready." He said dejectedly. She then grabbed both of his cheeks and forced him to look at her.
" A" She said as drawn out as possible. "I got your attention?" She said intensely. He nodded albeit somewhat confused at her change in demeanor. She gave a light sigh. "Listen, Irvine can be unwavering sometimes but not unreasonable. It's honestly not going to hurt to run it by him. I mean, you never know what he'll say unless you voice what's on your mind, right?" Zoe said. He watched her for a few more seconds before smiling again.
"You're right. I guess it wouldn't hurt." He said relenting. She smiled back, getting off of him before their attention shifted to Akali grinning toothily from the seat in front of them and rocking her head side to side.
"Not interrupting anything am I?" She said teasingly and causing a small patch of red coloration to appear on both kid's noses.
"No idea what you're talking about sis, right Zoel?" Klonoa said quickly and fumbling with the rim of his hat while Zoe nodded profusely, nearly giving herself a headache.
"Yeah totally! Akane, you say the darndest things," she said flabbergasted and causing the kunoichi to laugh heartily at their responses. She put a hand on her chin and focusing her brown eyes on the kitsune. He noticed and focused back with her speaking.
"Listen kiddo, I know you think the older bro is being a hardass but it's just like Zoe said, he has his reasons." She explained. "Trust me, I've been living with him practically all my life and know fore and foremost that he's trying to keep you guys safe. As a guild leader he feels it's his responsibility to keep you kids out of unnecessary harm if possible. Not because he's trying to treat you guys like kids. He just cares, that's all. I was the same way when I was your age but I knew he just wanted what was best for me and I'm eternally grateful for it. I'm still learning though. He has had to bail me out of a couple of situations. Sometimes due to my own impulsiveness but I know he was just doing his part as the responsible older brother, " she said lovingly. Seeing as she still had both of their undivided attention she continued on. "When he feels you two and Ekko are ready, he'll let you come hang for the tougher jobs. Sis promises, kay?" She said giving him a wink and tipping a finger under his chin.
He nodded happily. "Okay!" He chimed. Jayce hearing the commotion, walked down from the seat he was in, still in his Full Metal Armor, (although un-helmeted) and placed his armored hand on Akali's head much to her disapproval.
"Yeah, there's no rush you guys. You definitely wouldn't want to end up like this one," he said snickering and rubbing her black hair. " Can't tell you how many times we had to pull her out of the fire." He joked and causing her to throw his hands off her head. Both of her eyebrows were raised in annoyance but the way the two went back and forth, you could tell it was all in playfulness and fun.
"Oh please, like we haven't had to save your hind end a couple of times." She shot back. A light bulb popped up-top of the Hextech Armorer's head before he realized what she was getting at.
"Hey, that time really sucked you know? Thought I was really going mess myself..." He said embarrassed. She on the other hand continued to remind him of his uselessness that time. It served him right for the joke.
"Yeah, unceremoniously being rendered impotent for combat because you had to crap was really great timing there? Absolutely heroic." She remarked at him jokingly and causing the two kids to laugh. His head hung in defeat. Not in a bad way but not being able to think of a come back towards the low blows.
"Alright alright, you made your point Azuma." He said before looking towards Ekko. "Hey Chronomere?! You've been awfully quiet over there? Don't have anything to add?" Hey said in a friendly manner. Ekko looked up from messing with the arm unit of his Timeshifter Project Armor. While he was in his normal entire, he had his right arm transformed.
"Huh? Oh!" He said as if being snapped out of a trance. "I don't really have any disagreements on how Irvine goes about things. He is the man with the plan, however? It wouldn't hurt to go on tougher assignments though. Easier missions just mean more down time for my tinkering." He said focusing his attention back on the bionic arm. "Dang it, why can't I get this to configure properly..." He cursed. Curious, Jayce walked over.
"Maybe I can help? What are you trying to do exactly?" He asked. Ekko looked up at him and back to him arm.
"I'm trying to divert power from other systems within my armor to my arm so I can improve the time distillation factor of my Timewinder Disc. Can't seem to find the proper output to balance out the amount I'm sending over." He said tapping various keypadded buttons on the arm. The hammer wielding hero was thoughtful for a second before something struck within him.
"Hmm... I know most users of Project Armor have a fusion generator built within the core of their suits." He said eying the green lens that was centered on his chest. " Try diverting 20% of power from it to your arm and run a loop cycle. Your internalized computer should do the rest and be able to allocate the proper amount to distribute without you running into a general protection fault error from overloading." He mused which caused Ekko to put a gloved hand to his chin.
"Never thought of doing that? Let's try it." He said with scientific interest. So far so good. He wasn't running into any of the messages that warned him of power unbalance that he had before. "Going to let it run like this for a little while but think this may just work, thanks Jayce!" He said happily and giving the older man a high five.
"Anytime kiddo. I could tell you some more stuff so you don't run into any more issues in the future while you're trying to run diagnostics or adjusting a setting to get better performance out it." He offered. The time manipulator nodded his head eagerly and listened on as Jayce talked. Over on the far side, Zoe adorned a look as if road kill uppercutted her nostrils due to the smell being horrendous.
"Nerds..." She grumbled. She turned around and raised an eyebrow at Klonoa and Akali. Wondering why they had gotten quiet all of a sudden, she followed their gaze to the windows,only for her mouth to drop open like her furry friend beside her. She let out a glee filled cry of joy as she saw what had them so mesmerized. Ekko and Jayce, wondering what all the commotion was all about wandered over too only for the both of them to fall silent as well. Everyone's eye lit up while smiles graced each and every one of their faces as they took in the view. It was a carnival. Mystical lights shone everywhere that probably would have given anyone an epileptic seizure from gazing at it for too long. Rides and buildings spread far and wide through the small town as they passed by. Klonoa and Zoe were the first to say anything with the twilight girl beating the kitsune to the punch.
"Pretty..." She said breathtaken. "Oooo oooo! Can we go, can we go?! Please?!" She exclaimed and moving her body up and down to show her excitement. Klonoa piped up too.
"Come on sis! I've never been on a ferris wheel before!" He said with fervor. Akali shook her head.
"No because what's going to be supposedly an hour is going to turn into a 24 hour occurrence. Plus, the next train probably won't be here until morning." She said concisely. The three kid's faces fell with Ekko being the next to speak up.
"Oh come on Akane? It's not like we're in a rush or have any urgent reason to be back." He moped. Akali sighed, knowing exactly where this was going.
"Yeah and that's exactly the problem. Something could come up while we're all there lollygagging around. Answer is no." She said, unyielding and causing them all to verbally shout out in sadness. Jayce then offered his input.
"The train is making a stop here before the royal capital. Unless Evermoor has changed since the last time I've been here then there should be other trains that make round trips back to the city as well. I don't think it'd really hurt Akali. I mean we got a little bit of time to kill so why not take a little reprieve? Jarvan has a way of reaching us should something come up that requires our intervention." He said before nudging her arm and causing her to grit her teeth in annoyance and looking up at the ceiling from being pressured. "Probably won't have another time like this?" He coerced further. She finally let up, seeing as they wouldn't stop begging.
"Alright fine! By the goddess Kikyo... all of you are such brats sometimes. 3 hours and no more. We're leaving after that! No ifs ands or buts about it, got it?!" She barked. They all screeched with joy with Klonoa and Ekko pumping their fists at each other at eye level while Zoe speared Akali with a hug. Jayce smiled at her with a hand on her shoulder, giving her a nod of approval. Akali however put a hand to her forehead and shaking it.
"My brother is so going to kill me..." She murmured.
xx
Evermoor Terrace: Megaton City Carnival
(Welcome to the big city: Klonoa 2/Under the Frontline: watch?v=aTM6jBs3qLo)
The service station was crowded. To the point that it nearly made it hard to move around. The civilian populace were either headed to trains, shopping at the vendors or sitting down and conversing with themselves. They weren't really surprised. A carnival was going on so it was to be expected that Megaton would be packed at this hour. As the four walked on, Ekko took notice of a familiar figure talking with one of the ticket vendors. Two men who looked to be soldiers also accompanied her.
"Miss Caitlyn!" Ekko shouted. Caitlyn immediately snapped her head towards the sound of the shout. She tilted her hat up and squinted only for a warm expression to etch itself across features.
"Why hey there kiddo! Wasn't expected to see you here?" She said embracing him as he ran up for a hug. She made a motion with her head towards the two soldiers. "You guys go on ahead into town, I'll catch up." She said. Both men gave her a salute before setting off. She then looked back at Ekko. "You've gotten a bit taller since the last I've seen you? Everything been okay?" She said. Ekko nodded with a smile.
"Yup!" He said cheerfully. "We just got back from a mission but we decided to drop by for the carnival!" He said before facing the others walking up. She did the same.
"Yeah, I was wondering who else was with you?" She said before walking up to Akali with the both of them giving each other an arm bump. "Well met Azuma! See you're still doing a good days work eh?" Caitlyn said. Akali nodded with a smirk.
"Heh, if you want to call mopping up some bandit fodders a good days work then I guess." She said amusingly before speaking some more. "So what bring's Piltover's Lionguard here?" She questioned. Caitlyn chuckled before answering her.
"The mayor needed an outfit here to make sure nothing went amiss during the carnival so me and my men are here patrolling the town. Don't usually like guard detail but hey? It's money." She said. A thoughtful expression then appeared on Akali's face.
"Vi isn't with you?" She said looking around with the Lionguard's captain shaking her head.
"She is but I have her out on patrol with a couple of soldiers. You'll probably see her if you go into town." She said before eyeing Jayce in the background. He was a fidgeting mess with a tint of red on his cheeks. With a sly smile she walked up to him, a little too close. "Heya handsome? Guess they dragged you here too huh?" She said and causing him to laugh nervously while rubbing the back of his neck. He loved her accent and the way she would address him everytime they conversed kind of made him, a little hot and bothered.
"Haha no no. I didn't mind. We were on our way back to the capital anyway and the kids wanted to come here for a little bit since we didn't have any particular reason to be back in a hurry heh heh.." He said sheepishly. Her face contorted into an even more seductive grin as she started running her fingers along his armor and making him even more uneasy.
"That So? Hmm hmm, Hey? So I was thinking maybe when you and I have some downtime and when you're not playing hero or babysitter, you can maybe come to Piltover and take me out for a couple of drinks?" She purred. For some reason he entered a minor coughing fit, having trouble finding his voice before finally mentally kicking himself with a 6 inch metal boot to the brain and manning up."
"Uh um yeah! Yeah! Absolutely! Wouldn't like anything better!" He exclaimed. Over on the far side Akali had an eyebrow arched with a smile and nudging Ekko which caused him to snicker as well. She didn't know why he always got so flustered when he talked with her. Her eyes then widened a bit as she forgot about the other two. Spinning around sharply she managed to catch a glimpse of the two far ahead of them. While they were too far to hear anything that they were saying, Zoe said something to the kitsune before they both broke off into a dash straight into town much to the kunoichi's horror.
"Hey you two! Don't go off on your own!" She yelled before sighing. She looked at Ekko and only got a shrug in response before looking back at the other two who had saw the whole thing. "Well, we better go before they get too far ahead. Catch you later Caitlyn she said before running after them with Ekko in tow. He waved and said goodbye to her as well.
"Cya Miss Caitlyn!" He shouted. Caitlyn waved before looking back up at Jayce and making a gesture with her head towards the direction they went.
"You should go." She said before putting a finger under his chin. "Call me when you get the chance." She said in a hushed manner. He was about to make a response back but looked on in puzzlement as she got even closer and leaned in. He then went bug eyed. While it wasn't long or drawn out, it was enough for him to go slack jawed before replacing it with a stupid grin. She gave him a passionate peck on the cheek before breaking it off and slowly walking in the opposite direction with a complacent smile. He watched her walk off, that crap eating grin still on his face before silently saying "Man... didn't think she'd make the first move..."
XX
After visiting the many locales that the carnival had to offer, along with rides, (Klonoa having the unfortune of losing his dinner on a roller coaster) the group found themselves walking amongst the crowded town.
"Rides aren't all their cracked up to be huh?" Akali said amusingly and causing the black furred animal's face to adorn an even paler coloration. Zoe was eating on cotton candy while patting his back with a sympathetic smile.
"Your stomach is probably empty from all that hurling you did, here." She said trying to offer him a bite. He put a hand up and shook his head, not wanting to make his nausea resurface again.
"Ugh, never again..." He said morosely and causing them to chuckle. While the kids walked ahead of them, Akali and Jayce hung back with Akali speaking up.
"So when are you and Hartlova going to do the deed?" She said impishly and causing him to raise an eyebrow at her prodding.
"I'm not trying to get in her pants you barbarian..." He said defensively. "We're just taking it slow for now. Both of us are busy but there's no need for any rush." He said and causing her to shrug.
"Well you two aren't getting any younger. Should shag while you can." She said nonchalantly and causing his lips to slant.
"You know... you and your brother don't fit the norm for Ionian ninja." Jayce said and causing her to let out and a humored gust of air.
"Yeah we get that a lot. After all, he didn't always live in Ionia. He was a city boy before we found him after the incident. Being around him kind of grows on you hehe." She said happily and making Jayce use the opportunity to crack a joke that may have been a little too much.
"You have a lot of appraisal when it comes to him. Sure you're not a brocon?" He teased and causing her to glare at him, obviously not amused. He flinched at the the reaction. "It was just a joke Akali, relax..." He said with a small nervous laugh. She stared at him for a second longer, lips curled before exhaling.
"Yeah well it wasn't funny." She said before sighing. " Look, I love my brother. He's my everything and I don't think I could live in a world without him but I don't look at him any other way than that." She said and getting a prompt response back from him.
"I get it, hun. Trust me, I know he's a wonderful guy and it's good that you have a brother like him." He said honestly. He paused for a minute before indulging another question. "So what's the story with Cait and Ekko? How did they meet each other?" He said.
"His story is pretty much the same as Irvine's. He basically had no parents. Caitlyn found him on the streets of Piltover and took him in. They've been together ever since. Long story short, her the brother and I go way back so once she took notice of his knack for technology and keen intellect, she sent him down our way, figuring he'd be a good fit in the guild. Now here we are." She finished and causing him to nod.
"I see." He stated simply. As they walked, Akali was so absorbed in their conversation that she didn't see the person she was about to collide into and brushed roughly against his shoulder causing the both of their eyes to meet for a short timespan.
"Oh sorry, excus..." She said trailing off. He wore a black cloak with a hood covering most of his features but that's not the thing that was unnerving her. While one eye was the color of onyx, the other was a nightmarish red. His whole aura was wrong, as if it radiated the very concept of evil itself. He looked familiar as well but she couldn't place a hand on how. As brief as their short encounter started, it ended with the both of them walking onwards. She stopped and glanced back at the mysterious man only for him to be nowhere in sight and causing Jayce to walk up with a hand clamped firmly on her shoulder and startling her.
"Everything alright?" He said in concern. She nodded.
"Yeah..." Akali said. "Who was that man? I feel like I've seen him somewhere before..."
Megaton Archives, Relic Chambers
The cloaked figure wasted no time finding the place where his bounty lay. Not caring whether there was anyone nearby or if the box that laid in it's glass resting place had countermeasures in place, he smashed it, retrieving the item from the stand that it sat on.
"What a bunch of blithering bafoons. It's obvious they have no clue what this does or else they would have had tighter security here." He said brandishing a hand from his cloak and palming the cube in his hand. "Well, no need to tarry here any longer." He stopped as he heard the door swing open. He turned to see a pink haired woman with metal gauntlets larger than her head and Lionguardsmen walk in.
"I seriously can't wait until this damn carnival is over." She said talking to one of her soldiers. " Geezus, out of all the assignments Cait could have had us on she choo... hey you listenin..." She said before deadpanning as she saw what had her guardsman's attention. Her eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Sup? You take a wrong turn somewhere?" She said tersely with another guard chiming in along with her.
"This is a restricted area! You need to leave at once!" He ordered. Looking further, the soldiers caught a glimpse of the broken glass and what he had in his hand, causing another to shout.
"Capn Vi! He has the Hextech Box!" He yelled and causing the rest of them to draw their swords. Vi took a threatening step forward.
"Gee, thank you for stating what I already didn't see." She said before focusing her attention back on the man. "Drop it..." She hissed and causing a menacing laugh to escape him.
"Aww, don't be that way taicho-san, I just wanted a hands on examination of it. Can't blame me for being able to break in here due to the incompetence of your lackies." He said chastising her. Vi on the other hand closed her eyes with a slick grin.
"Smart ass huh?" She said before leaping in a burst of blinding speed and closing the distance between the two quickly, smashing the ground with her gauntlets that caused splinters of wood to fly in different directions and putting a sizable hole on the floor below them. He narrowly avoided the attack, back flipping like a wheel in drive out of the way and landing on a desk in a crouched position, cube still in hand. Everything then happened in a short time span. Charging her gauntlets with arcane power, she bounced off her initial point of impact and flew right towards him, using her momentum to twirl her body before rocketing a fist towards him. The sound of clashing metal could be heard as he brought an object to bear to counter the punch and causing her pink colored eyes to widened in shock. She didn't know when he summoned it or how he made it appear in thin air but he intercepted her blow with a large scythe.
"Shit..." She cursed. He then got dangerously close to her face and causing her lips to frown in disgust.
"Too slow taicho-san..." He taunted. With abnormal strength he maneuvered the edge of the scythe so it cupped her gauntlet and swung it around, with her still latched on before throwing her with vicious force against a wall and causing her to go half way through it with only her legs being visible through it.
"Capn!" One of the guards shouted before directing his angry gaze at the scythe wielding assailant. "Detain him!" He shouted furiously. The figure smirked darkly at this. Agonized screams could then be heard shortly afterwards.
XX
One of the Lionguardsmen radioed in to Caitlyn about a situation in the archives. She and the soldiers with her walked in to see the aftermath of what had apparently took place. She saw that the case holding the Hextech Cube was completely shattered along with it being missing. She brought her rifle up, nerves set to their upmost threshold. Scanning the area, ready to fire on whoever had did this, should they still be present.
"By Melandru... it looks like a tornado's been through here..." One of the soldiers said. Caitlyn looked back at him before scanning around the room again.
"All of you spread out and check if any of these soldiers still have a pulse." She said before training her light blue eyes on the broken wall. Curious she walked over before shouldering her rifle and running over, instantly recognizing who it was.
"Vi!" She exclaimed, hoisting her up and causing the latter to cough. "Are you alright?! What happened?" The Lionsguard Commander said in alarm. Vi opened her eyes and put a hand on the side of her head, feeling a throbbing headache coming on.
"Some guy in a black robe, hooded... damn good, really good. Wiped the floor with me and my men, took the Hextech Cube. Don't know where he ran off too." She said in a raspy voice. Caitlyn cursed harshly.
"Damn it! I need to warn the mayor and stop this carnival. I had told him it was a mistake taking that thing in. I knew something wasn't right about it the moment they hauled it in here. Aesir's Edge is here so I'm going to see if they can chip in and get the cube back from whoever this bastard is." She said as she helped Vi up.
"You go on ahead, I'll clean up here and round up any remaining soldiers out on patrol. Let them know this is a Code Red." She said with Caitlyn nodding before taking a couple of soldiers and making her way to the mayor.
XX
Everyone was gathered around a stage. On it was a man who looked to be a spokesman of some sort. He stood in front of a large curtain with lights illuminating his image. The four managed to find a clearing away from the crowd to get a better view of the show.
"Welcome, men woman and children alike! And thank you again for coming to Evermoor's 5th annual extravaganza!" He screamed out jubilantly and causing a choir of cheers and claps to echo out within the crowd. "As you all know, with each carnival and towards it's end, we always have something extraordinary to show you. No magic tricks, talent show or music this time. No this is something unprecedented. A treasure that could be described as more than just a rarity," he said as he continued on with his over the top description. Back over yonder, the four had started to talk quietly amongst themselves.
"Oh geez, enough with the bravado already, just reveal the dang thing..." Zoe said impatiently with Klonoa being next to speak up, not feeling sickly like he was before.
"I wonder what it is? He makes sound as if it's something no one's seen before?" He mused thoughtfully while Ekko made a reply to his assessment.
"Doubt it Noa. Probably something run of the mill. Think he's just being extra for the crowd." The time manipulator said dismissively with Klonoa agreeing.
"Yeah, he does seem like he's exaggerating a bit huh?" He whispered before the both of them got shushed.
"Quiet, he's about to reveal it." Akali said before they all directed their attention back to the spokesman.
"Ladies and gentleman! I present to you the Hextech Cube!" He said as the curtains began to open and causing a large amount of whispers to resound through the crowd.
"Hextech Cube...?" Jayce said absolutely awestruck. Ekko mirrored his amazement.
"Well guess I can stick my foot in my mouth now too, this is news to me as well. Guessing it's some new form of Hextech technology.." He said before going silent along with the rest of his compatriots and the crowd. There was nothing there except an empty stand on where it should have been. The spokesman had a dumbstruck expression, looking at the spot and back to the crowd.
"I'm terribly sorry good people, there seems to be a problem, just a moment." He said hurriedly before walking over to his assistant. "What in the blazes is going on?! Did that woman forget that the cube was suppose to be at this spot at 9?" He said with growing impatience.
The assistant shook his head with a frown.
"She was on her way here Mr Joilant, maybe madame Vi got held up somehow?" He stated. As they talked, an approaching Caitlyn along with the mayor came up to the crowd.
"Have your men still not located this rumble rouser?!" He said panicking as they walked with Caitlyn turning her head to acknowledge him.
"No mayor, I got them tearing this town apart trying to search for him. I assure you that we'll have this matter resolved." She said in frustration. He on the other hand wouldn't let up.
"Well he needs to be found commander. Your captain was suppose to have the archives locked tight, how did he manage to slip through all of them?!" He said exasperately. She was almost at her limit of patience.
"If I knew that, then he'd be dead already. We had the proper security set in place and every nook and cranny covered that he could have gotten into. I told you before hand something was off about that thing..." She said heatedly and causing him to balk at her explanation.
"That's why he needs to be found and detained immediately! If it's allowed to get into the wrong hands then there's no telling what kind of trouble it'd cause!" He said even more frantically. Caitlyn spun on her heel and grabbed the short portly man by the shirt.
"Alright you need to start talking now? What the hell is that thing and why did you drag it here into town, potentially putting these people at risk? I have four men dead trying to protect whatever that piece of crap is." She said venomously and causing him to break out into a cold sweat. Before he could answer, she caught sight of the four guildies in the distance.
"Oh thank heavens! I've been looking for you guys." She said letting go of the mayor's shirt and running over with the four of them meeting her halfway.
"Hartlova, what's going on?" Akali said suspiciously and causing her to adorn a grim expression.
"Someone broke into the archives and took that cube. Vi and her men tried to stop him but somehow he managed to overpower her and killed four of my people before making a run for it." She said bleakly. Jayce was next to speak up.
"We can chip in and help. If he's around here somewhere then we'll find him. If they were brazen enough to storm in here with security like this and be willing to kill people to get that cube then it's best that we don't allow him to make off with it." He said with the two woman agreeing as well. Before anything else could be said, a shout rung out from Klonoa.
"Up there! Look!" He said pointing. They as well as the crowd directing their attention to the roof of the stage to find the mysterious figure perched above it. His features were darkened with one eye glowing an ominous white while the other a devilish ruby red. In his hand sat the cube. Vi and the rest of her guard caught up with the rest of them only for them to stop as they saw what had everyone's attention. The figure spoke, voicing a grave warning to all of them.
"Look at all the little roaches gathered here. Bristling around, stumbling about without a clue. Yes here's your precious Hextech Cube. Sadly it won't be in your company any longer. My master has better uses for it instead of it being on circus display for a bunch of ignorant simians. Great things will happen soon. You can either embrace it or be dragged into the incoming dark along with the other faithless." He spoke with zealotry. Aesir's Edge as well as Caitlyn and Vi had their eyes narrowed, already knowing where this was headed.
"Arrogant jackass... honestly the pair on him." Vi said viciously and causing Akali to step up.
"So that's the guy? I actually bumped into him while we were walking in the streets. I knew something was off about him the moment I laid eyes on him." She said starting to reach for her two kamas sheathed near her lower back and butt. Caitlyn quickly interjected.
"If you guys can keep him busy until we get the civies out the way then you can go wild." She said before the mayor cut in.
"Now just a minute? You can't just start destroying things left and right?! The cost of the damages is going to be astronomical!" He said in horror. Caitlyn's face had taken a gate of upmost fury.
"Well you should have thought about that before you decided to show the damn thing off in the ci..." She barked before being cut off from a scream by one of the people. They all looked in time to see the figure boomerang his large scythe towards one of the ferris wheels that hovered over the town and causing Caitlyn to quake in terror.
"NO DON'T!" She screamed in vain as the others stared on gobstruck. While the scythe didn't completed rip the ferris off it's hinges it caused it to lean dangerously from the cut while the people still in it screamed bloody murder.
"Crap! You guys stay down here and try to stop that thing and get those people off of it! I'll handle him." Akali said before any of them could protest and disappearing in a wisp of jade green colored leaves.
Rooftops: Akali vs Mysterious Stranger
Showdown under the Gibbous Moon/ DJ Will Vega - Akuma - Killing Moon After Glow Remix ( watch?v=ZDK6AMnH49w)
The green garbed assassin appeared on the rooftop with a graceful swirl, scattering the jade leaves in different directions with her arms angling her twin kamas Kasumi and Shizuru. He smirked amusingly at her flashy entrance as he watched her get into a stance. She raised one at chest level while she lowered the other near the waist. It was a variation of her sister Ayame's Azuma-Ryu kenjutsu style that she tailored to her own liking and calling it (Danshingu Hisui Ha Shi, literally meaning Dancing Jade Leaves of Death). Slowly the two shifted towards each other, sizing one another up.
"You can make this easy by handing the cube over or don't. Either way, you're not getting away with killing those soldiers and putting innocent lives in danger." She said getting closer and causing him to laugh before making a snide remark.
"Heh, as fickle as ever I see. Still holding onto that weak sense of justice? Truly a pity." He taunted and causing killing intent to be ever more present on her face.
"Why the hell are you going on as if I know you? Who are you?" She said coolly. At this, he tapped the side of his head with a curled finger.
"Who knows?" He said sarcastically. Having enough of the man's games, Akali threw the kama Kasumi at him, prompting him to tilt his head to the side. His eyes widened in alarm as she disappeared from view.
"What...?" He gasped before pivoting sharply around as she materialized in a body shaped green image due to the speed she was moving at. Catching the kama in hand, she swung it in a cleaving arc, forcing him to bring his scythe to bear, blocking it with said object upside down. As quick as lightning, he took a step back, spinning his scythe and making a sweeping blow, causing her to disengage and dip low as if she were playing a game of how low can you go. She was stomach first against the ground before using both hands to twirl her self into a drill like fashion, sending a straight kick towards his face and causing him to somersault away. Not giving him a chance to get away, she used her clan's signature dashing technique to close the distance between the two, leaving green afterimages behind in the same fashion as her brother. As she got closer, she began to perform different sets of flips before launching herself in the air in a front flip, spinning like a shuriken and bringing her kamas down dual handed with as much strength as she could muster. She caught nothing but air as he disappeared in a thick fog of black smoke and causing her to crash down with a thundering boom. She immediately reoriented herself, eyes on full alert.
"Darn... come on Akane, focus, he's here somewhere." She said as she composed herself and allowed her ki to sense where he was. Her brown eyes darted too and fro like a computer processor. Something went off in the back of her head as she turned around in time to bring both of her kamas up for a block.
"Over here!" He said before kicking her with tremendous force, sending the Azuma konouichi bowling over into a tumbling roll, causing bits of the roof to be taken off from her impact. She backflipped and slammed the weapons against the ground before coming to a skidding halt, causing sparks to fly everywhere.
The two would then become a blur as they charged each other again, with he, using a combination of roundhouse kicks, scythe strikes and other unorthodox methods of attacks, causing her to be put on the defensive. Seeing an opening, she caught one of his roundhouses and went into a handstand before launching off said leg, using her momentum to flip herself and bringing her heel down with thunderous pressure on the scythe and causing the man to be slightly rooted to the roof. He smiled viciously as he used the opportunity to attempt to hack her in two but seeing the danger she was in, she jumped off it, angling her body so that it was parallel to the ground, the scythe missing her by inches and making a shallow gash on her back. She landed in a crouch before rushing him again and the two locking weapons together. They were evenly matched in the struggle before both pushed each other back, coming to a sliding stop.
A few minutes before Akali and the mysterious strangers initial clash
"Can't ever catch a break!" Jayce said as he brandished his magnetic hammer Thorim. "Ekko! Zoe! Slow that thing down asap! Klonoa! Try to get as many people off the wheel as you can!" He roared as the ferris wheel titled further, hinges and moorings buckling and beginning to loosen their grip. The screaming civilians inside weren't making matters easier. The other three wasted no time. Ekko shifted into his project armor while Zoe flew through the air with Klonoa holding her hand.
"Come on Z drive, don't fail me now!" He said hurriedly as he began charging energy in his Timewinder Disc. When it was sufficiently charged, he slung it in the direction of the falling ferris wheel, before sprinting to a building closest to the hazard and wall running. Using it as leverage, he leaped from it, grabbing hold of one of the ends of the wheel. Once his Timewinder Disc embedded itself in the metal of the wheel, he used the built up power in his suit to unleash his Parallel Convergence ability. Blue energy then washed over the ferris wheel and enveloped it in a dome that slowed it's decent down by 60% but it wouldn't be enough.
"Zoe, Klonoa hurry!" He yelled with urgency. Zoe looked down at Klonoa and received a nod of approval from him.
"Don't mess this up Noa! Here we go!" She said spinning like a hurricane before throwing him above the ferris wheel. She herself, started whispering an incantation, that was so fast that no one would have been able to follow it and enabling her to use her Portal Jump ability. She instantly appeared on top of Ekko's spherical dome before reciting another litany.
"Alright you hunk of inanimate junk! Time to go stasis for good!" She echoed before slapping a hand down. Yellow energy began to glow from her palm and got brighter and louder as seconds passed. "Extreme Magic! Mega Sleepy Trouble Bubble!" She boomed and causing the blue doom to take on a dark shade of purple, complimented by the appearance of stars all over it and a golden ring swirling below it. While the ferris wheel came to a snails place, the people would still need to be removed from the falling death machine. That's where Klonoa came in.
Using his signature Wind Ring, he allowed himself to free fall upside down, until he was leveled with the slow falling wheel. Taking careful aim, he was able to get off three wind bullet shots at the carriages, pumping them full of air but not enough to make them explode. Any inanimate object or being with magical power lesser than his own that's shot with a wind bullet will be blown up full of air. He can control the amount that's pumped into them at will as well as being freely able to manipulate whatever he currently has pumped full of air. The affected object also is virtually weightless.
Seeing that he had the three carriages snagged, with a swipe of his hand, he sent them on their way, safely below and dispelling the effect once they touched down. Seeing as he was nearly about to be a pancake and roadkill, he aimed the Wind Ring back to the ground, shooting another bullet and causing him to be launched at high speed back towards the wheel. After the last remaining civilians were safely detached from the wheel, he smiled in satisfaction before being grappled into a hug by Zoe, with her squishing her cheek against his and keeping him from plummeting towards the ground again. "You did it!" She said cheerfully with him chuckling with one eye closed at the affection.
"Yup!" He said mirroring her only for it to disappear. "Oh no! The spell is becoming undone! Uncle Jayce!" He yelled down bellow and getting a loud grunt from him in response.
"Already on it kiddo!" He exclaimed back. Copious amounts of lightning began pouring from out the hammer as he thrusted it towards the falling giant piece of metal, streaks of lightning raking the bottom of it. He let out a strained grunt as he struggled under it's bulk. "Test your strength my zopha! Ngggh!" His expression softened a bit as he felt the weight become somewhat lighter. He dared himself to look for the cause only for Vi to come into view. She was holding another end up, her gauntlets crackling and snapping with arcane power that brimmed within it.
"Thought you could use a hand! On three, we chuck this damn thing into the ocean, you ready?!" She said through breathes. He nodded with a confident grin. She then screamed out.
"THREE!" With a mighty roar from both of them, they sent it sailing at high speed. With it out of sight, they all visibly relaxed, nearly out of breath.
"Sheesh...g-getting way too old for this." Jayce said tiredly. Vi laughed at his response.
"Hahaha! Don't tell me y-you're tired after that ha...ha.." She said between pants. "Wasn't even a work out..." She finished and causing him to raise an eyebrow.
"Is that why you're panting?" He said before looking around. " I'm guessing Cait and the soldiers were able to get everyone away from here?" He said with Vi agreeing.
"Yeah we both did while you guys were handling the wheel. I came back because I thought you guys could use the help. Speaking of which... oh shit, Azuma! We need to go back her up!" She said suddenly and causing Jayce to mentally smack himself.
"Completely forgot about her! Kids we need t..." He tried to say but he saw that they were already in tow.
XX
Akali along with Zoe, Klonoa and Ekko surrounded the hooded figure. They had all apparently gotten done around the same time Akali and the thief, broke off from their lengthy scuffle.
"Give it up, you're surrounded and there's going to be more on the way. It's over." She said precisely. He simply frowned at this and causing them the four of them to tense up.
"Yes yes, stupendous work." He said sarcastically. " You stopped my little distraction like the good little heroes you are. I'll let you in on something little cub." He said addressing Akali. "I've only been using 20% of my true power during our fight but if all of you are so eager to die, I can show you what really lurks beneath this skin of mine. It is then...it is then that you'll know TRUE DESPAIR!" He said maniacally as his red eye glowed an even more infernal red and causing Klonoa and Zoe to recoil back in fear while Akali and Ekko got in front of them defensively.
XX
As the figure got ready to show them exactly what he meant, something appeared behind him and grabbed his hand. They all stared apprehensively at the new entity. It looked like a hideous combination of bat and demon mixed together to form some unholy hybrid. His large heavily armored hand kept the man firmly rooted in place as he tried in vain to free himself from his grip. Demon like wings flexed threateningly.
"That's enough. You've wasted enough time here and there's no need for you to use that form on these weak mortals. We got what we came for, let's go." The creature said and causing the man to argue back.
"You may be the herald our lord but last I checked, I didn't take orders from you Aatrox." He said still trying to move but was still rooted in place. Aatrox got closer to his face but the younger man didn't shirk away from it. An aura of dark magical pressure began to form around the two, causing chills to snake their way through the other four.
"Perhaps I wasn't clear enough. This isn't up for debate... we're leaving unless you want to explain to his dark majesty why it took you so long to retrieve the cube." He said forcefully and causing the man to lose his patience.
"You better let go of me Aatrox! I'm not some nip sucking child that needs to be followed by the likes of you or told what to do!" He said almost brimming with hatred. They both stared at each for an unhealthy amount of time before the demon let go. Sparing him one last glance, the half and half eyed man focused back on the guild.
"This is your temporary stay of execution. If we meet again which I'm sure we will, it'll be your last little cub." He said before the both of them disappeared with the cube into a portal. They all looked bewildered as they watched them go, causing Akali to drop to her knees with her hands on the coverings of the roof.
"Sis! Are you okay?!" Klonoa said coming to her side and kneeling. Worry etched on his features. The other two followed suit. She was sweating profusely.
"By the goddess, I've never felt such power. It was almost suffocating. Who were those people... and why does that man look so familiar?... I- I need to get back to him, I have to tell him..." She thought to herself hastily. One thing was for certain, that everything had just gotten a lot more complicated.
Still Upcoming Chapter: Chapter 3 Unsettling revelation and journey to the Nakhiti Deserts. :P :P :P
Author's Note;
Luna's birthday was Thursday so that's what brought this chapter on mostly. Few things and bare with me for the long author's note please. I made a pronunciation error in my older chapters. Shiruma is suppose to be Shurima haha so sorry about that. Think of it as slight translation error from a manga. I'll be sure not to make the mistake in future chapters. Even though OC stands for original character, I use it to describe any characters I add from any other series simply because they aren't characters that are apart of whatever series I'm writing for and to put emphasis that they are from another series.
Just like I stated in my disclaimers , those kinds of characters do not belong to me and aren't mine. They are there because I've really liked them and thought they would make a good edition to the story. Luna, Irvine and Alex are original. Klonoa isn't and again, I don't claim him. Second thing, I didn't like the idea of a possible Ezreal and Zoe pairing in the future so sorry if anyone ships them. It won't be in the story but I have plans for him. Just don't know with who yet.
Classes are in and tomorrow along with next week are probably going to be really busy for me so again, no e.t.a on Chapter 3 or when I'm going to find time to sit down and actually write about it. When I catch some down time or another break, I'll get started on it. After all, quality over quantity.
That's all. If you've been reading this story or following it so far, then I really do appreciate it. Means a lot if someone is taking the time to read it. I know my work won't appeal to everyone. Still I'm really appreciative for anyone who is though. Some I know some that I probably don't who are reading in secret. You guys are the ones that keep me going.
Putting two themes that I thought of for Lux and Aatrox before I close this out. Thank you for reading and see you again on the next chapter!
PS: TLDR. Stay ur arses in school and get that lesson! O: O: O: !
Aatrox's Theme: Harbinger of Doom/ Different Type by Magicxbeats ( watch?v=UYjGLqKK-58&t=30s)
Lux's Theme: Runterra's Greatest Mage/ Asis Galvin's:BOTBs TE 2 - RD 1 CreativeNature90) Entry by CreativeNature90 ( watch?v=l0gmcqNbTxg)
Went back and made a few changes. I know there's some more I maybe missed but I just wanted to correct the glaring ones. For the most part the problem was corrected in future chapters.