From the Shadow Isles they came
Chapter 9
Louise didn't know what to think when she found a letter underneath her door.
No one wrote to her except her sister and that sort of letter was announced and delivered to her by the staff.
So it was most likely from someone at the academy.
Louise picked up nervously the letter, her imagination running wild.
Could it be from an enemy, a secret admirer?
A noble who had feelings for her but could not confess due to fear of his pears?
Maybe even… a peasant!
She gasped at the idea.
Her excitement and nervousness rose through the roof.
She quickly opened the envelope only to be met with disappointment.
"Pinkie, come to the woods we will train you do it before sunrise"
So it was just her familiars.
With a disappointed pout she crumbled the paper into a ball and threw it into the trashcan.
But the idea of training with them sounded interesting, beings of such incredible power teaching her spells and the like would surely help her progress.
So she grabbed her cape and wand.
The moon had already risen into the night sky.
Very carefully she exited her room, making sure to close the door behind her.
As she stealthy made her way deep into the woods, she noticed something.
She knew where she was going.
As if she was being guided.
Mordekaiser was probably responsible, she thought with a hint of nervousness.
Truth to be told she was still slightly terrified of him and his companions.
They might be slightly… silly but they were no doubt powerful warriors who could kill the most powerful mages with ease.
As she arrived at a clearing she couldn't help but to be shocked.
Mordekaiser, Hecarim and Thresh where waiting for her.
Not fighting, not bickering but staring at her.
Unmoving.
She gulped in fear as she made her way towards them.
"You… This better be worth it, it's not warm outside you know?"
Mordekaiser stepped forward "We do not feel cold, nor hunger little one"
She nodded and looked down.
"So this training…"
Mordekaiser chuckled and raised his hand.
Nothing happened.
"…"
Louise stared awkwardly around.
Hecarim coughed and Mordekaiser looked like was going to have a stroke.
"THRESH YOU PIECE OF %%$% THAT'S YOUR QUEUE!"
"Oh yeah right sorry"
Thresh raised from the ground his box and a single ghoul appeared in the middle.
"We want you to fight it"
Louise looked at them shocked.
"But… I can't kill…"
"It's not alive if it helps your conscience, the soul of this ghoul is long gone" Mordekaiser said as he pushed her forward.
"Once you enter there is no going back, use your power to destroy him do not hold back" was the only advice the metal man gave to the young mage as he stepped back.
Louise wanted to argue but a glare from Hecarim was enough to silence her, she barely knew the basics of magic and now they wanted her to kill something!?
She nervously walked inside the box, the ghoul staring at her lifelessly, a little bit of drool falling from his toothless mouth, Louise flinched at the sight.
The three beings behind her stood motionless, waiting to see who would be the first to attack.
Louise took out her wand and pointed it at the ghoul, her arm trembling slightly.
The ghoul took this as a sign of aggression and charged at her.
Louise let out a small scream and casted a spell its way.
The ghoul exploded.
Bits of everything flew in all directions.
The decomposing brain hit Hecarim square in the face who groaned in annoyance.
"#$%# my life seriously, I hate this"
Louise looked at her wand in disappointment.
"Reminds me of the Shadow Isles on Snowdown eve, blood and organs flying everywhere makes me feel quite nostalgic really" Mordekaiser commented as the box dissipated.
"Not bad pinkie you blew him up first try! I honestly tough he would bite you at least once" Thresh commented as he twirled around his scythe, cutting what Louise assumed was the stomach.
Louise shot him a frown but the feeling of disappointment that always followed after using magic refused to go away.
"Thanks I'm good at blowing up stuff, whoop, if that was a human I would have killed him" she said sadly as she sat down on the grass.
"OH NOT ANOTHER EMOTIONAL THING I HATE IT, IT RUINS THE FLOW!" Hecarim said as he walked away.
"Let me be horse man, I feel emotional!" the pinkette yelled back at him.
"Leave being emotional to other people, right now training commences, casting spells that don't… blow up seems to be your issue, I will correct that, or well at least try, I honestly don't care you just follow me" Mordekaiser said as he slightly swatted her in the head.
But Mordekaiser being Mordekaiser didn't know how to measure his strength, so he sent the poor girl flying forward.
With an unceremonious "OOF" the girl fell forward face first on the grass.
"FAMILIAR!" she screeched as she got up once more.
Thresh and Hecarim snickered.
"Are you all right Ms. Vallière?" a familiar voice said from behind her.
Louise frowned "What are you doing here maid?"
Siesta flinched at her tone.
"I was…"
"No never mind I don't care, if you were concerned for my safety or you were sent for me does not matter, get out of here now"
Siesta looked downcast.
"Sorry I did not mean to…"
"NO, no, no you're already making mistakes and we haven't even started!" Mordekaiser said as he brought a hand to his head.
"Excuse me, how does telling this peasent…"
"Oh my GODDDDDDDDDDDD you're so toxic, what are a summoner?" Thresh said as he threw a pebble at Hecarim for no real reason.
"What…?"
Mordekaiser shook his head "Step one of becoming a good mage according to The Master of Metal™ whelp, you don't know $%&# and you aren't $%&# as soon as you acknowledge that you can actually improve"
"But I am…"
"Get that whack ideas out of your dumb little pink hair, because to me you are nothing, Siesta here is actually more capable of casting a hex than you are"
Mordekaiser pointed with his mace at the maid who blushed and looked down.
"But she is peasant!"
"So? That does not limit her potential"
"Yeah and we like her more than we like you" Hecarim added.
"WHAT DOES THAT HAVE TO DO WITH ANYTHING?!"
"Look weakling you need to understand that you are nothing to us and when you do, start to listen you are no noble here nor you are our master, WE are your masters and I am the teacher that you need to impress not some noble looking jerk got it"
"But…"
"GOT IT"
Mordekaiser eyes became redder and the grip on his mace became so strong that both Louise and the other three present could hear the metal cracking underneath his hand.
"…yes"
Mordekaiser visibly relaxed and nodded.
"Good, now the basics of magic and me telling just how off you are, you channel way too much power into each spell what you need is to stop putting so much energy into it"
Louise nodded and started to try.
Siesta looked at the interaction with curiosity.
She shyly stepped next to the shadow of war.
"Excuse me" she said quietly.
Hecarim looked down at her and glared.
"The hell you want?"
Siesta flinched but stood her ground.
"What does Mordekaiser mean when he said that I have potential?"
"Oh that, no he was kidding we don't know if you have"
"Oh…." Siesta said sadly.
Hecarim stared at her for a moment before rolling his eyes.
"But you could have, Morde just assumes that you do because you remind him of someone from back home"
"Someone?"
"Yes, a friend of his, Sona, he seems some of you in her"
"TWO BIG THINGS IF YOU CATCH MY COLD AYOOOOOOOOOO!"
Thresh was immediately punched into the woods by Hecarim.
"Anyway, Morde has a soft spot for her because she is kind like you and… more weak stuff like that, so yeah"
Siesta smiled "Sona must be and amazing person if Mordekaiser holds her in such high regard"
"Yeah she is truly something else, I bet there is no one who doesn't like her"
Viktor hated Sona.
She just kept glaring at him as if she didn't trust him or believe him.
Why?!
He was a trustworthy sociopath, sure he lied to them and was taking them to his lab in Zaun which was admittedly not the best place on earth and…
Yeah she had good reasons to glare at him.
He still hated her, she dressed stupid.
Viktor gave some coins to the captain of the boat that brought them to Zaun and marched outside.
He was so glad to be out of the water it scared him to no end.
"Hey Mr. Robot, wait up" Ahri said as she jumped out of the ship.
Viktor nodded and stopped walking.
He smiled under the mask, oh Zaun.
He had missed this place while he was away stalking Jayce .
"What are you going to do, stab me?" said a man before getting stabbed.
Just like he remembered it; stupid, dangerous, stupidly dangerous and dangerously stupid.
"This place sure looks… interesting" Ahri commented as a rat the size of a dog ran away with a piece of food that he found on the stabbed guy.
"Reminds of Bilgewater honestly it's just missing the sea monsters and ships, but this city has a green like thing going on for some reason"
"It's the chemicals, they are used for powering the city and sometimes if manipulated correctly they can be used to alter the human body" Viktor said.
Sona raised an eyebrow at the last part.
Leona on the other hand looked like she might have a heart attack.
"Where is the sun?" she asked quietly.
"Oh that, yeah the sun can't trespass the wall of smog that's in the air of Zaun, it's so dense that it doesn't move to other places and it only affects Zaun, no, do not question me about it, is science I swear"
Leona looked horrified at this revelation and questionable science.
As the group walked in silence on the streets of Zaun, Miss. Fortune noticed that quite a few people stared at them in hate but none dared to get close.
At first she thought that it might be because of Leona with her big sword and big A$$ shield but she noticed how their eyes darted at Viktor.
Was it respect, fear?
The red head couldn't help but to look back at their strange companion.
He had been acting different ever since they got to Zaun.
As if something might just crawl out of the shadows and kill them.
Sara walked next to him.
He turned to stare at her for a moment but then resumed his inspection of the city.
"You know I know that you don't want anything bad to happens to us but you should relax Zaun is not that bad"
Viktor stopped abruptly.
"What is…"
The machine herald hushed the pirate lady which earned him a glare.
"Something stupid is coming this way"
"What…"
As if by magic Urgot popped out of nowhere with a huge banner on his hand.
"We will make Zaun great again, going to build a wall and make Piltover pay for it!"
Viktor let out a disappointed sigh and tried to move past him.
"Urgot step aside I am on an important errand I cannot be…"
"No! Is because of people like you that Zaun has been infested by THIS sort of people!"
Urgot pointed at the group of ladies behind Urgot.
"Urgot you stupid crab mother$%$&% I am the MACHINE herald I do not care for humans"
Urgot rolled his eyes .
"Really now, so I bet you don't care if I shoot the ma SHOT GUN KNEES!"
Urgot prepared himself but was stopped by Viktor.
"NOT THE PIRATE!"
Ahri threw her arms up in the air.
"What about us!"
"… nor the cat lady, or the instrument lady nor the sword lady"
Sona felt a shiver go up her spine, they were being observed by someone else.
She turned around and to her surprise a young blue haired girl glared at her.
"Don't steal my look man is bad taste"
Before Sona could question the girl, she fired herself next to Urgot.
LITERALLY fired herself as a bullet by dropping some explosion bellow her.
"Hey what's up machine herald I heard that we were voting for Mayor of Piltover and that we have to impress you to be elected so I, Jinx, with my secretary here will do just that" she pointed at her weapon.
Viktor raised an eyebrow impressed, referring to machines as people got her some points in his book.
"NOT SO FAST BITCHSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!" a voice came from an alleyway as the Mad chemist, Singed, ran next to Jinx dressed in a tuxedo out of all things.
"I also wish to participate in this election, I after all am the most qualified person to participate in this just ask Warwick"
Ahri heard a scream of hatred from somewhere in Zaun.
"F%$& YOU!"
"See, backed up by the public"
Viktor brought a hand to his chin and looked back at the group he was guiding.
With a sigh he waved his third arm dismissively at them.
"As I told Urgot before I am in the middle of something important, we can have this discussion later and also what of the Chem Barons? What do they have to say?"
"Oh we killed them" Jinx said as she smiled creepily.
"…"
"Nah just kidding that comes after the election"
Viktor nodded.
"Seems logical"
"LOGICAL?!" Sara yelled at him.
"but never mind that now, step aside"
"Hehehe or what you will throw a laser at us" Singed said as he prepared his chemicals that he had hidden in his tux.
"Indeed I will I do not fear dead"
Urgot walked up to him and glared down.
"We are giving you a choice Viktor, or do you wish us to harm your… friends mmh?"
Viktor glared back.
"I only have one thing to say to you maniacs"
Urgot prepared his shotgun knees, Jinx grinned as all of her guns pointed at Viktor and his friends.
Singed giggled like an idiot and flexed ready to FLIP.
Sara gulped nervously and looked at Viktor, he looked ready and calm.
Despite the situation she blushed, he truly was different than anyone she ever met.
Sona and Ahri were hiding behind Leona.
Viktor shot a laser at the ground throwing dust into the air.
Viktor, the Machine Herald, Piltover's most hated person, Zaun's greatest hope turned tail and ran.
Sara stared in disbelief as Viktor ran away.
It took the group a second to get over their shock but once they did they immediately started to run after him.
Followed by the candidates of Zaun.
Viktor ran out of breath quickly and started to slow down.
"We are fine keep running!" Ahri yelled as she passed him.
Viktor wheezed.
"No… follow me" he really did not want to do this but desperate times called desperate actions.
Viktor ran the other way until he reached a deserted alleyway and soon the group found themselves face to face with a torn down house that looked like no one had lived in it for a long time.
Viktor cursed as he tried to find the key to the door.
"Not to stress you but I can hear promises of Walls and Explosion coming our way so you might want to hurry"
"GOT IT!"
Viktor flung the door open and ushered in his guests.
When all of them where inside The Machine Herald closed the door softly.
Sara let out a sigh of relief as she heard the maniacs run pats the house.
"That was close" Leona commented.
Ahri smiled in relief, but her smile lessened when she looked around.
"Who lives here?" she asked as she looked around, the place looked surprisingly clean and well taken care of, there was even some furniture around.
"This is my house, I haven't been here for a long time so sorry for the dust"
Sara blinked surprised, so he lived here?
Or well used to, the dust in everything meant that he hadn't been here for a very long time.
Sona sneezed as Ahri dusted the couch.
"Do you mind if rest here for a while?"
Viktor shook his head "Please do what you want, I have to find a way to get to my lab and then get you out the city safely, and after all that… I will vote for a mayor I guess"
Viktor grumbled as he walked upstairs searching for some old blueprints.
Miss. Fortune coughed as the dusting continued.
"Could you stop that you are killing me"
"I am not sitting nor sleeping on a dusty couch, my nine tails will get ruined" Ahri said with a pout.
Leona inspected the house and to her surprise she found a small picture hanging from the wall.
"Miss. Fortune do you mind giving me your opinion of this?"
"You call me Sara if you want sunshine, less of a mouthful" Miss. Fortune commented as she walked next to the Radiant Dawn.
Leona handed her a picture of a young man standing on a bridge in what looked like Piltover.
His brown eyes and shy smile where unfamiliar but the rest was all Viktor.
His sense of fashion was still terrible back then apparently.
"He looks…" Leona started.
"Cute" Sara finished with a small smile.
All of them heard a huge crash upstairs.
"Are you okay?" Ahri yelled from the bottom of the stairs.
"The Machine Herald is fine, Glorious Evolution will resume once he recovers from his fall"
Ahri, Leona and Sara snickered.
Sona on the other hand stared out of the window of the house.
She could barely make out the city.
Night had arrived and the other side of Zaun revealed itself.
A wolf howled in the night.
Sona looked at the green clouds of the night of Zaun and thought.
Her friend was gone to a faraway world.
Sona frowned.
She would find him and save him, she bowed that.
As he had saved her a long time ago.
A/N: Not so much comedy in this one, I wanted to write a bit more of character interactions and lay out the emotions of some of the characters. Sorry if it feels off.
But anyways next we will begin with the whole Familiar Festival arch and the introduction of royalty and on the other side of the multiverse Viktor must race against the clock to escape Zaun.
I hope you liked it.
See you next chapter!