Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year everybody! Hope all your holidays are going well, here is a little chapter for all you brilliant people out there :)

Chapter 6 - The Storm

Syndra was really beginning to wish she had put more effort into getting to know the energetic yordle that was Kennen a lot earlier. The two were sitting in the large courtyard of the Order of Shadows temple, enjoying a simple brew of Ionian herbal tea and listening to the wind making its way through the stonework and trees. The peacefulness was occasionally cut off by a synchronised grunt from the training ninjas around them, all of whom were performing the same technique to perfection. It was truly something to be marvelled at. Kennen had been watching them the whole time, occasionally sipping his tea, but by the speed he was drinking it was obvious that this aspect of Ionian culture had never clung itself to him. Syndra however had spent many years in seclusion, nothing but the stimulating scents of teas and spices to change her mood, so the art of drinking tea was one she enjoyed greatly. She sighed, realising she had found yet another thing her and the yordle did not have in common. They hadn't had a proper conversation since Zed had left, Kennen too distracted by other matters, and Syndra unsure what she could possibly say. Thankfully for her, it was Kennen who broke the silence.

"This is as awkward for you as it is for me, right?" Syndra laughed, smiling at how blunt the yordle was.

"We really haven't talked much, I know so very little about you." Kennen put his tea on the ground, pushing it away with his foot.

"Well, first things first, I hate tea." Syndra laughed again, putting her tea down as well.

"It is an acquired taste I suppose. Mind if I ask some questions?" Kennen just shrugged, and so Syndra seized her opportunity to get to know the yordle.

"How long have you been in Ionia?" Kennen looked pensive for a moment before responding.

"You know, I seem to have lost track, but it has been years, I left Bandle City when I was still very young."

"What's it like being the Heart of the Tempest?"

"Exhausting! It's like being a normal ninja, but you have to do everything at five times the speed! I know it may look like I handle it well, but trust me, it is very hard work." Syndra continued to ask questions for some time, and Kennen would answer all of them truthfully, slowly warming up to Syndra's company, and soon he was telling his own stories.

"Have you got a girlfriend Kennen?" Kennen laughed at this, shaking his head.

"Do you know how many yordles I've seen in Ionia? One, and I see him every morning when I look in the mirror. There are no yordles here, which makes finding even so much as a date very awkward. You get the odd human who is interested, but that kind of thing was never really for me. I haven't even kissed a girl since my childhood, and that was only ever playfully!" Kennen laughed, and Syndra found herself playing along, putting on a playful pout, feeling a little bit of sympathy for the yordle.

"What about in Bandle City? Surely one of the institute's yordles catches your eye." Kennen thought on this for a moment, again shaking his head.

"Of the three of them, two are in relationships, and Poppy never really seemed like my type. Nope, I think staying single is what it's going to be at the moment." The two smiled at each other, finally able to enjoy each other's company.

"At least you seem to know where your heart stands." Syndra's voice didn't even try to mask her pain, her hand instinctively reaching for her throat where there was still a red mark from her run in with Zed earlier. Kennen couldn't understand what had gotten into Zed, both with him agreeing to go to Navori with very little convincing required, as well as his loving and then later aggressive actions towards Syndra. Some people Kennen could not understand, but that didn't mean he wasn't going to try and help.

"You know he wasn't always that heartless." Syndra met Kennen's eyes, her face telling him to continue.

"I wasn't around when he was still training to be a member of the Kinkou, but I heard the stories from Shen and Akali. Would you believe it, but he was originally expected to be the Heart of the Tempest over me! Kind of gives a new meaning to 'Shock-blade Zed'. Him, Shen and Akali were supposed to be the greatest trio that Ionia had ever seen, that was before the whole incident with the shadows, but I get the feeling you know that part of the story." Syndra nodded. There weren't too many people in the Institute that didn't know that story, whether it came from Zed or Shen.

"Well, what you may not know is that not only was Zed good friends, some even said brothers, with Shen, but he was also going out with Akali." Syndra had made the mistake of picking up her tea to take a sip, and ended up spitting it out over the floor in surprise.

"When did that happen!?" Kennen laughed.

"Like I said, he wasn't always this heartless. Back when they were at the same order, Zed befriended Akali. Nobody is entirely sure how, in fact I'm fairly sure the only ones who even know they had a relationship are Shen, you now, and myself. After some time they grew particularly close, and I suppose that inevitably resulted in a relationship. Akali said she used to be completely infatuated with him, and by the sounds of it, he was quite the sweetheart himself. She would never have admitted it, but I think she still had some feelings for him, although certainly not stronger than her feelings for Shen." A tear rolled down Kennen's face, and Syndra could only marvel at how well the yordle was actually managing to keep himself together given that one of his best friends had probably been killed.

Positive Syndra, be positive. She thought to herself, putting a reassuring hand on Kennen's shoulder.

"I just wish he was more like that now." It wasn't that Syndra was looking for a relationship. She had spent so much time by herself, she would really have been happy if she could just befriend Kennen and have someone to spend time with when she would otherwise have been alone. But after everything Zed had done for her, offering to protect her and save her life, comforting her, showing her the closest thing to love she had ever had, she didn't want to give up on the prospect of Zed being in her life, even if the red mark across her neck suggested otherwise. Kennen grunted.

"You'd be surprised. The Master of Shadows may be many things, but a heartless coward is not one of them." Kennen stood up, offering a hand to the mage before realising his height would be of little help for her being able to stand.

"Actually, I think I can show you." Syndra stood, her curiosity certainly piqued at this statement. Kennen led the way out of the temple, following the path Syndra had taken to get to the order, before taking another familiar turn and making his way towards the ruined village. He stopped on the outskirts, bowing and muttering a quick sentence under his breathe. When he looked back up, his eyes were red.

"Akali got me to do some research, and from what we found out this was an old yordle village. I don't remember many blessings from my childhood, but I know enough." He slowly began to make his way into the village, marvelling at all the buildings.

"I've never actually been here in person, all I had to go on was Akali's descriptions and stories. It's a lot more… tranquil than I expected." Syndra followed a few paces behind the yordle, listening intently to Kennen's words.

"Many ages ago, long before the Noxian invasion, there was a war in Ionia. The details have been lost to the ages, but remnants still exist in some of the ancient libraries, of which I visited all of them. It spoke of a group called the Purists, a cult that strove for 'the perfect Ionia'. Their crusade was a bloody one, and many were killed. The largest victims were the yordles, which they saw as impure creatures. This village is one of the only remaining yordle settlements, the rest were burnt and trampled during the war. The temple that Zed claimed is possibly the only one of its type, built by the yordles to worship their own gods and beliefs. What I wouldn't do to explore the depths, see what I could find." He cleared his throat, brushing a tear off his cheek.

"Anyway, Akali found this place as a child, and she would come here in order to meditate, finding that there was an unmatched silence amongst the destruction. She used to call it 'Sanctuary', because to her that was exactly what it was. As time went on she joined the Kinkou, and despite making friends she shared the secret of her haven with nobody. That is until Zed came along. It took some time, but eventually Akali decided to bring Zed here. She never said what happened here, although I'm sure we can all fill in those gaps." Kennen walked into the large clearing, setting himself down in the centre, rain beginning to drop through the foliage and onto his fur.

"When Zed betrayed the order, Akali followed him. He ran here, to their sanctuary. When I asked Akali what happened, she almost cried, and I haven't pushed her since, but what I do know is she came back a changed person." Silence fell upon the pair; the sound of droplets on leaves the only background noise to their solemn moment. Looking around, Syndra could imagine a village of yordles, happy and energetic as they were, living a normal life. To think that they had all been killed, it was almost too much to bear. Having been silent for a good while now, Syndra spoke up.

"That doesn't seem to inspire confidence in Zed's ability to be loving." Kennen stood, raising an eyebrow at her.

"The fact that, after everything they went through, Zed built his order in the shadow of their sanctuary doesn't inspire confidence? No matter what he says, no matter what he does, he loved Akali, and he loved her enough that their shared sanctuary still felt secure enough for him to call it home." Kennen walked over and gently squeezed Syndra's hand.

"Don't lose hope." Syndra knelt down and kissed the yordle, nothing long but one full of gratitude and joy. Kennen was a little shocked at first, but when Syndra pulled away and embraced the yordle, he found himself feeling a little more comfortable.

"I can't thank you enough Kennen, I…" Her sentence was cut short by the sound of a bell, a familiar sound that instantly put the two Ionians on edge.

"The order is under attack!" Kennen rushed off at near light speed, shurikens already in his hands. Syndra felt her magic build up around her, embracing some of the power the Dark Sovereign offered her, and made her way towards the battle at a much slower pace.

She knew something was wrong the moment she left the village, the prickling sensation on the back of her neck that that tells her if she's being followed was acting in overdrive. She was listening intently, hoping to hear any sign of movement, the snapping of a twig, the rustling of leave, or the swing of a blade. Syndra barely had time to push back the assailant, sending him flying into the tree, his sword dropping from his hand. She could hear voices now, more figures appearing out of the foliage around her. She was surrounded.

"You little wretch." The man she had blown into the tree stood up slowly, brushing blood from his lower lip, eyes filled with an indescribable hatred.

"People like you will be the death of our land. If the damned Order of Shadows won't finish you off, then we will." The men slowly began to converge one her. They didn't really scare Syndra, she knew her power well enough to know they couldn't beat her. But her senses told her many more people were heading in their direction, her presence clearly being broadcast to the soldiers. She was strong, but she wasn't invincible. She figured her best bet was to stall until help arrived, so stall she did.

"You are the ones who attacked the Kinkou." A couple of them laughed.

"Clever girl. They were weak, unable to protect us, and so they will be replaced." They kept moving, her plan wasn't working.

"And the Order of Shadows?" The main one slowed, his face suddenly filled with something Syndra recognised from many of the champions at the Institute; Egotism.

"They had their chance to prove their loyalty, but yet you live. They will meet the same fate as the Kinkou." He raised his arms, leading Syndra to look up. She gasped at the sight, smoke trailing into the evening air, an orange glow surrounding the green trees.

"Ionia will be reborn, and you will join your ninja friend in the afterlife." The soldier's words were met by a few cheers from the crowd, but they were soon cut off by the sound of thunder overhead, storm clouds rolling in. There was an unmistakeable sound of a weapon being drawn, and Syndra smiled. A new voice rang out over the small clearing, one tainted with pain and anger.

"You will die for your actions." Three whistling sounds could be heard, and the soldier in front of Syndra fell to the floor, three metal shurikens sticking out of his chest. A bolt of lightning fell from the sky, striking and instantly killing one of the other soldiers. They slowly began to back away, the rain from earlier now turning into a torrential downpour. Another whistling sound, another fallen soldier, and now panic was spreading amongst the ranks. All Syndra could do was smile though, happy that she had been saved, and that her friend could get his revenge. She needn't fight the soldiers; their fate had been sealed. The storm had come.