Author's note: so a little later than I was hoping but not too bad :). I had a lot of fun writing this chapter so I hope you all enjoy.
He let his breathing slow, closing his eyes as he tried to still his body and his mind. He knew the feeling he was reaching for; the empty restfulness of a detached mind, keenly aware of his surroundings and yet, distant from them. He'd achieved a similar state of mind through the repetitive action of Tai Chi. However, that sort of activity was based on motion, meaning there was a limit on the amount of detachment one could reach in such states. And that was the core problem Kennen faced.
Slowly, his thoughts quietened and the calming feeling deepened as he sunk into the still abyss within his mind. But, just like every other time he thought he was getting somewhere, the building energy he was trying to suppress within his being reached bursting point and he had to move, breaking his concentration.
With a sigh, he tried once again, stilling his movements and sinking once more into the deep feeling growing within his mind, only for his instincts to scream at him to move.
Without hesitation, the yordle flung himself backwards just in time to see two knives bury themselves in the ground where he'd been sitting not even a second earlier. As he twisted in his fall, the ninja threw several shuriken in the direction the blades had come from before landing on his feet, ready for another attack.
Katarina watched as the three shuriken struck the trunk in the precise spot she'd thrown the daggers from, in mild curiousity. "Not bad," she called from the shaded foliage above before she swiftly moved as more shuriken shot towards her, "for a rodent."
"I'm a yordle," the purple ninja snarled, as he tracked her. "Who are you? What do you want?"
"Who me?" the Noxian asked innocently as she landed on a new perch.
"No, I'm talking to the other knife-wielding assassin currently trying to kill me," was the smart retort.
She laughed even as she readied her weapons. "Oh, I'm just a girl looking for some excitement. And you, my dear little mouse, looked like a good challenge." With that the red-headed assassin leapt from her spot, tossing several knives with deadly precision as she sailed through the air overhead before landing gracefully in a tree on the opposite side of the clearing.
Despite the daggers coming from different directions, Kennen skilfully dodged them, quickly weaving through the blades before retaliating with a couple shuriken of his own. With a yell of exertion, he followed these up swiftly with a bolt of electricity headed straight for the Noxian woman.
Katarina was able to dodge the shuriken with ease but did not see the lightning bolt until it was too late. Eyes going wide, she barely had time to brace before the burst sent her flying backwards.
Shoved from her perch, the assassin twisted as she freefell before just managing to grab a lower branch and swing herself up onto it. As her feet found purchase on her new vantage point, she couldn't help the laughter that bubbled and out of her.
In the clearing, Kennen tensed. "Oh joy, she's laughing. Cause that's never a bad sign," he muttered sarcastically.
Eyes gleaming in excitement as the thrill of the fight filled her, the red-head grinned down at her foe as she practically purred, "Finally, a good challenge. Show me what you've got little mouse."
Haybai had just finished helping her Lao Lao with the cooking when she turned to look out the kitchen window, her expression clouding.
Nemr, who had been helping the Ionian's parents set the table, gave her a questioning look before realising where her gaze was directed: out towards the direction of the meditation gardens. With a quiet sigh, he strolled over to join her. "He'll be alright."
Haybai jumped, before turning with a guilty expression. "I know. It's just, he's so reckless, even after all these years. Always so eager to do something that he'll jump in without thinking. Nemr, he started to slip and didn't even say anything about it. I just worry one day, he'll jump headfirst into something he can't handle."
Nemr's voice hardened as he spoke. "Haybai, he is the Heart of the Tempest. He earned that position and you know he is smart enough and strong enough to handle all that goes with it. Yes, he is impulsive but he's also quick-thinking and he's not alone. Shen and Akali are there to help guide him and he knows when to turn to them for help. Now you must trust him to do his job."
The black and white female sighed. "I know. I know. I just… can't shake this feeling that something bad will happen."
Nemr snorted. "You will. Just wait till he gets here and starts flirting and joking like his usual self, then you'll feel better."
"You're right," her shoulders dropped slightly. "Thank you Nemr."
Kennen barely had time to react as the Noxian assassin moved. Jumping from branch to branch, Katarina sent a flurry of knives at the yordle.
Utilising all his speed and dexterity, the purple ninja was able to dodge most of the attacks, only one scraping past his cheek while another grazed his shoulder as he navigated his way through the nigh impenetrable wall of blades. But while he was just able to deflect the blades from his more vital areas, he had very little ability to retaliate, the couple of shuriken he'd managed to fire back barely impeding the steady flow of projectiles headed his way. He needed to level the playing field – literally.
Tracking the red-head's movement overhead, Kennen suddenly put on a burst of speed, allowing his excess momentum to take him through the danger zone and up into the trees. Zipping up on the surprised assassin and into close combat range, the ninja threw a fast punch at her, shuriken clutched between his fingers.
Instinctively, Katarina leant backwards, the shuriken slicing through her bangs as she barely managed to dodge the fast-moving punch. Swinging back upright, she blocked his next swing with an arm before throwing her own jab at his face.
Kennen wove between her punch and the following kick before continuing to press his advantage, however small it may be. Ducking in close to her, the small ninja sent a series of rapid punches into her abdomen, knocking the assassin backwards. However, he did not expect her to twist with the fall into a high spin-kick. The unexpected assault catching him in the side and sending him sailing off their perch.
As he fell, the yordle sent an arc of lightning hurtling upwards, shattering the branch she was standing on before he hit the ground. Swiftly Kennen rolled back upright, throwing several shuriken ahead of him as he rushed the Noxian.
Katarina landed lightly on her feet, before quickly back-flipping away from the assault, loosening a couple of her own blades as she did, in retaliation. The small ninja dodged them easily but she hadn't been aiming to hit, instead utilising the delay to reposition herself further away.
The two adversaries paused for a split second before launching themselves back into the fight.
It seemed they were evenly matched – for now. However, as the exhaustion from his previous mission started to set in, Kennen was keenly aware it wouldn't last. The longer this went on, a bigger advantage would go to the Noxian woman. Already he was struggling to match her, sporting several cuts to her one. He couldn't afford to lag further, it could very well cost him his life.
Come on, he thought, where are the others? He knew this garden was in a secluded corner of the village but surely someone had noticed the commotion by now.
The moment's distraction was all it took. Faster than he could have anticipated, Katarina struck. Kennen barely managed to block the incoming thrust before her subsequent kick sent him flying back into a nearby tree. The impact knocking the wind out of him and stalling the ninja just long enough for the following blade to connect.
A cry of pain tore from his throat as the blade pierced cleanly through his shoulder and deep into the wood behind, anchoring him in place.
Akali rhythmically attacked the dummy before her, the soothing motions keeping her distracted enough to sort through the thoughts in her head.
Jab. Knee. Jab. Uppercut. Side kick.
The mission shouldn't have gone so awry. They'd known their target. They'd known his routine, his habits, his colleagues. They'd known exactly what to do to eliminate him.
Jab. Spin. Front Kick. Drop. Spin. Jab. Jab. Hook.
But they hadn't anticipated the extra security. Not just around their target but in the whole of Zaun. All the Chem-Barons had increased their defences. Hiding their products but not the fact that they were there. It had been concerning, on more than one level. And it had made staying out of notice much harder.
Snap kick. Jab. Cross. Jab. Roundhouse. Backfist.
And really, that had been the major problem. The subtle but high alert of their target's Chem-thugs had prolonged and disrupted the three ninja's plan. Leaving them playing the waiting game as they'd scoured for a good opportunity. But even their patience had started to wear thin when, after three months of inaction, their youngest member's mental health had started to slip.
Hook. Snap kick. Roundhouse. Uppercut.
It had left them with a risky course of action. One that had ultimately worked, but with a much, much higher casualty rate than any of them had wanted. And on top of all that, with very little information about the recent going-ons in Zaun. But after their mission success and with their cover blown, they hadn't had the time to stick around and find out more.
Knee. Front kick. Jab. Cross. Hook. Roundhouse.
Akali paused as the head went flying off the dummy, leaving the remaining structure to wilt as the sand inside cascaded down onto the floor. With conscious effort, she slowed her breathing, counting as she continued to inhale and exhale to try and contain the simmering anger burning away in the centre of her being. An anger that had been there ever since he left.
The green-clad ninja immediately stopped her thoughts from heading in that direction, focusing once more on her breathing. But even as her anger dwindled she could not shake the worry over her teammate and over what they had seen. A worry she knew the other two ninja both shared, along with a guilt the smallest of them carried.
The deadly woman sighed as she picked up the broken head. Perhaps she should check up on her two teammates.
Pain flared through his shoulder as the blade was driven precisely between the bones, slicing cleanly through the muscles and into the bark behind with ease. His left arm hung limply by his side, any slight movement shooting agony up the limb and rendering it completely useless. The yordle grit his teeth as another wave of pain washed over him before he slowly reached for the blade.
Before he could pull free, however, Katarina followed up with a flurry of knives, effectively pinning him in place. Agony once more screamed through his body as a blade skewed his ear, while another was driven deep through his right forearm; it and the knife pinning the sleeve of his weakened arm effectively stopping him from pulling free. Another two blades restraining his legs was all it took to stop him squirming away from the killing blow.
Kennen felt a freezing wave of fear seize him, cutting through the burning pain for an instant of searing clarity. If he didn't do something right now, he was going to die. So, in a last-ditch effort to save himself he gathered up his remaining energy.
He drew on the seemingly bottomless power dwelling in the core of his being. Pulling the electrical energy up to the surface and holding the tingling, pulsing power there until he couldn't bear to draw up any more. Then, with a desperate and agonised cry, he released all the energy at once.
Katarina's eyes widened at the massive wave of electricity racing out and away from the trapped yordle, knowing that it would be all over unless she got out of the way in time.
Immediately, she activated the Zaunite device attached to her wrist. It was a relatively new addition, one she hadn't quite gotten accustomed to using in battle, but now she had little choice.
She jumped forward, space warping around her as she teleported, just as the lightning surge tore past the spot she'd once been before dissipating.
As suddenly as she'd disappeared, she reappeared next to the caught ninja, knife in hand.
"Good move," she complimented with a satisfied smile. "But not good enough. Looks like the game's up little mouse, and I win."
Shen left the council's chambers in a sombre mood. The elders had agreed with their findings in Zaun and had decided to send some ninja to investigate. But Shen had never been worried about the meeting's outcome – given the evidence, it had been the most logical course of action to take. No, what worried him was if the implications of what they'd found were correct. And what that would mean for Ionia.
The blue-clad ninja walked through the temple halls in deep thought, but not so deep that he didn't notice the large man approaching him.
"Hello Bear," Shen greeted the hulking, black man.
The giant flashed him an easy grin, but his blue eyes remained serious. "Friend," he clasped Shen's arm in a friendly gesture, "you look troubled."
Considering the mask that concealed Shen's face and the years of training he'd endured to limit his true feelings from showing in his posture, such a statement would have seemed strange coming from anyone else. But Bear was not anyone else. Shen knew the strange Ionian could see through any deception.
"Yes," he answered. "Some of the things we found on our last mission were… troubling."
Bear gestured for him to continue as the two ninja continued walking.
"While we were in Zaun, there were signs of increased industry, particularly defence enhancements and weapons manufacturing. The hints were subtle to see, but they were there none the less. There were also a lot more Noxians around than usual."
"An invasion?" The blacksmith queried.
"So it would seem," Shen confirmed.
"But that makes no sense," Bear mused. "True, Noxus has a well-known history of combat and conquest, but since the truce amongst the major city-states and the forming of the Institute of War, they've been unable to expand their borders. Why go against that now and risk the League intervening?"
"Because they wouldn't be," Shen explained. "The League will only intervene if Noxus invades another protected city-state, but they have no jurisdiction over unallied nations. And Ionia refuses to join the League based on a difference of principles, leaving Noxus free to invade without consequence."
The large man was silent for a while, before he responded quietly, "I can see why you're concerned. If such a thing were to happen, it would not only affect the balance directly, but also affect the Kinkou's ability to act without major resistance."
"I know," the blue-clad ninja nodded. "That is why the council-" he cut off when Bear suddenly stopped, body tense as his gaze snapped in the direction of the village.
"What is it?" the Eye of Twilight asked, as his hand automatically reaching for his swords.
The giant's piercing, blue eyes widened as he gasped, "The Heart is in danger! You must go now!"
Shen's stomach dropped even as he turned and raced towards the gardens.
Well, that escalated quickly. Hope you enjoyed it (and that you won't kill me). I'll try to have the next chapter up on time.