Author's Note: The title for this chapter comes from a term that translates to 'counterglow'. It's also German. Much like Finales Funkeln. Coincidence? Entirely. I didn't even know the term existed until today, yet it can be applied to a couple ideas in this chapter. I was totally excited to find it. :D

Anywho, please enjoy this exciting part of the story, which will lead us all towards... the end... D:


Chapter 16 - Gegenschein

"Under attack?" Riven repeated, feeling a flash of adrenaline course through her, "Where? By whom?"

"I will explain on the way," Irelia stated coldly, her eyes showing little emotion.

Riven hesitated, thinking things through. Something big was happening, large enough that Irelia could actively ignore the other individual in the room without effort. Her thoughts were entirely on this new situation.

"I'll need my sword," Riven stated. As much as she hated cutting her time with Lux so short, she knew that in this moment it was better used for her own objectives, and her own personal promises.

"I will send someone to get it," Irelia dictated, "Let's go."

Riven nodded, and as Irelia turned to walk, Riven glanced back to the bed where Lux lay. Was she still asleep, or just pretending? Riven smiled. It was probably the latter, but she wouldn't call the girl out on it. She bid Lux a silent farewell, and hurried after Irelia, taking a deep breath to refocus on the task at hand.

"Where are we going?" Riven asked when she caught up to the Ionian.

"The Placidium. We will be meeting with the others there."

"Others?"

Irelia nodded, "This is not a small-scale conflict, Riven. The League is getting involved, or rather, I might say they have been from the start."

Riven paused in her steps, "This has something to do with Noxus, doesn't it?"

Irelia didn't answer, but the blade floating beside her twitched noticeably. Riven took that as a sign that she'd hit the mark, and a deep feeling of confusion stirred in her. Why would Noxus risk something like this? Did they really think they could get away with it, with Ionia under the League's protection? It was ridiculous.

"How do you save someone from himself?"

The question meant more now than it did back then. Riven was glad Lux had told her of it. It helped her grasp what needed to be done. She needed to save Noxus from itself.

Riven looked up to find Irelia hadn't slowed to wait for her, and quickly jogged to catch up. She didn't ask any further questions, and instead took the time to think. This was going to be complicated.


With Irelia's quick pace, they made it to the Placidium within half an hour. It was Riven's first time here, and the beauty of the place was not lost on her. After scaling the cliff-sides that separated the main city and the Placidium itself, they approached a large, empty courtyard. Beyond it stood the majestic-looking building, bridging a short waterfall, that served as the meeting place for the Ionian officials. More cliffs towered behind it, with even more drastic and impressive waterfalls.

Riven was dazzled by the image, but knew there wasn't time to admire it. She wondered if she'd be able to come back some day just to take in all the scenery, and if she'd even be welcome after everything had been finished.

The lack of people in the courtyard gave the journey across it an ominous mood, and the situation was sinking into Riven's mind more prominently. Irelia stayed silent the entire way, her footsteps firm and composed; ready. Riven was hoping she'd finally get some concrete information once they entered the building. She knew she'd get nothing out of Irelia right now, and kept her patience in check for fear of upsetting the Ionian further.

As they climbed the steps and finally entered the threshold of the building, Riven was relieved to find not only Lee Sin waiting, but several summoners, dressed in their token purple robes. They all seemed calm, as if the attack were indeed trivial.

Riven gravitated towards Lee Sin, and he smiled politely in her direction. Irelia, on the other hand, stepped up directly to the summoners.

"Are you ready to tell me why I wasn't informed of this beforehand?" She asked in anger, her blade twitching menacingly.

Somehow, Riven felt like she should have expected this, and sighed inwardly. It seemed even Irelia was at the mercy of the summoners' whims. The four summoners looked at each other, then to a nearby doorway. Everyone in the room followed their gaze to find an older summoner standing there. Riven immediately recognized him as Delfeer, the one who had arranged her partnership with Nigel. He stepped into the room, clearing his throat loudly.

"Ms. Irelia, thank you for bringing Ms. Riven. I'm sure she'll be quite interested in our present situation."

Irelia glared at him icily, "I did so at your request, now explain."

The summoner studied her for a brief moment, then shrugged lightly with a sigh, "There isn't much to explain. The League has been monitoring a... rogue faction... that has expressed malcontent with the results of the Noxian-Ionian match. We waited for them to make their agenda clear before moving to stop them, for simplicity's sake."

"Simplicity?" Irelia snarled, "You would allow an attack on your members in order to make your job easier?"

"The world is bigger than Ionia, Will of the Blades," Delfeer replied sternly, "You need only look at Kalamanda to see the results of efficiency."

"I do not consider something as catastrophic as Kalamanda to be a success."

"Nevertheless, it ended the conflict with one firm resolution. Do you not see how advantageous this is on a greater level?"

"I will not have Ionia turned into a battlefield for the sake of the League's laziness!" Irelia shouted furiously.

"Irelia," A calm, feminine voice called from the same doorway that Delfeer had entered through. All eyes turned to the source of the voice, and Riven recognized the figure of Karma, dressed in the flowing ceremonial robe that she typically wore in public.

"Karma," Irelia stated impatiently, "Surely you do not agree with this?"

Karma frowned, keeping a steady gaze, "No, Irelia, I do not. But we have no other option. We are to follow the League's directive. It is the agreement we made with them nearly a decade ago. You know that."

Irelia clenched her jaw and looked away. Riven felt she could understand what the Ionian was going through. Wanting to solve the issue, and being told not to, was agonizing.

When Irelia finally grunted in resignation, she turned to Delfeer, "How long until you are ready?"

"Less than an hour," Delfeer answered, seemingly content with the timeframe.

"That might be too slow. They'll have reached Atama in an hour."

Delfeer smiled, "And that is why we've brought our guest along," He said, gesturing to Riven.

Riven sighed deeply at the words. She had thought as much, given the circumstances, and closed her eyes for a brief moment. It was alright. She had prepared herself mentally for this, knowing she'd have to fight her countrymen at some point if her goals were to be accomplished. The idea had been solidifying in her psyche ever since she'd resolved to create change in Noxus. There would be resistance, and that resistance would need to be convinced, one way or another.

Riven nodded at Delfeer, "I'll do it."

Irelia and Karma looked to her, and Riven smiled confidently back at them. They seemed surprised at the sureness in her response, but made no effort to reject it. Irelia smiled faintly, and the feeling that rose in Riven's gut was a familiar and welcome one. It wasn't just the conviction that she had felt she'd lost so long ago, but the reassurance of having an ally at her back. It was nice to remember the comfort of it.

Riven looked again to Delfeer, "Where's Nigel?"

Delfeer nodded, his wrinkled face creasing in a resigned expression, "He is here, making preparations-"

"The preparations are complete," Called the familiar voice of the boy nearby. Riven peered past Delfeer to see the young redheaded summoner stepping into the room. He waved to her casually, "Hi Riven. You ready?"

Riven was about to answer 'Not yet,' when she received a heavy tap on her shoulder. Only now realizing the large presence behind her, she spun to find herself overshadowed by the beast man, Udyr. Riven hadn't yet gotten a close-up look at him, and his size alone was intimidating, standing a good foot taller, and wider, than her. She quickly understood the difference in brute strength between them, and was thankful that his expression was non-threatening. He extended his hand towards Riven, and in it he effortlessly held her sword and Nigel's home-made belt.

"We believe this belongs to you," Udyr stated without a hint of caring.

Riven nodded dumbly, looking him in the eye as she received the blade. She wasn't quite sure whether to thank him, or if that might make him upset somehow. From his tone, he seemed like the type that disliked running errands for others.

Udyr grunted, turned, and began walking away. "Our debt is paid, Irelia. We shall see you in the Fields," He said dismissively.

"One task is not enough for your debt, Udyr!" Irelia called after him, "Don't think that's near enough!"

Udyr gave a loud "Hmph" that echoed around the hall, but didn't stop, disappearing outside again.

"What is his debt?" Riven quietly asked Lee Sin beside her.

Lee Sin hummed in thought, "I believe it has something to do with the war, but neither of them will discuss it."

Riven nodded, and decided to ignore the curiosity. With her sword in hand, tugging heavily at her fingertips, she felt whole again. It seemed like it had been weeks since she last held it. Riven turned again to Nigel and nodded with a grin. She was ready.

Nigel grinned back, and waved her over to follow him. Riven stepped past the other summoners without a word.

"Riven. Wait," Irelia called after her. Riven spun around immediately, and saw the Ionian looking hesitant among the glances of the others in the room. Irelia sighed and continued, "Could you wait ten minutes, and come with me first?"


Having Irelia's hands traversing her body was setting off all sorts of warning signals in Riven's mind, but she pushed them aside. There was no real threat in this... though Lux might object to it.

She inhaled sharply as Irelia tightened one of the belts. It had been too long since she'd had this experience.

"Is it too tight, Riven?" Irelia asked hesitantly. Her personality had softened at the contact between their bodies.

"No, it's fine," Riven shook her head, "It's just... been a while. I'm not used to it anymore."

"Will it be a hindrance?"

Riven shook her head again, "If anything, I think it'll help."

Irelia circled to the front and looked her up and down, smiling. "I'm glad it fits. I haven't used this set in a long time. My father commissioned it from a Demacian armoursmith for my 18th birthday. He wanted to see the result of our cultures' styles combined. Only... he didn't actually get to see it."

Riven glanced at the other woman, noticing her tone drop depressingly, "What happened?"

"He passed way when I was only 14," Irelia smiled weakly, "It seems he made this arrangement before he left."

Riven suddenly felt self-conscious wearing the gift. "Isn't this kind of important to you then? There's no way I can take this."

Irelia's smiled strengthened, "I'm giving it to you because it's important to me. I know you'll take good care of it."

'Better than my last set, I hope...' Riven grimaced with a deep sigh. "If you're sure. I'll wear it well," She promised.

"You already do. It think it suits you," Irelia beamed, "Especially with your tunic repaired."

Riven studied herself, twisting her body to examine the outfit. It was a little much that Irelia had gone so far as to mend the clothes damaged by Yi, but she had to admit it did match well. The armour itself looked impressive, and felt amazing. Loose enough to move freely, while still covering vital areas. The Ionian style was clear in those aspects.

"Ah, wait, I forgot the glove," Irelia turned to the desk and picked up the final piece.

Riven extended her hand to take it, but instead of giving it away, Irelia slipped it onto the hand herself. The glove was actually more of a guard, with a metal plate on top to deflect blows rather than simply protect the hand. Regardless, it fit perfectly, and felt good.

Irelia grasped Riven's hand and brought it up between them, giving her a challenging grin, "Are you ready to save Ionia, Riven?"

Riven smiled back, more amused by the theatrics than the promise of an opportunity to prove her conviction. "I've waited too long already," She answered readily.

Irelia's grin faded, dampened by a tint of sadness, "You know, if I had realized you were this honourable when we first met, I might have refused to fight you. You are no enemy of mine, and in my mind, you have redeemed yourself many times over."

Riven smiled in embarrassment, but shook her head, "It's not enough. It never will be. But I'll continue on this path until I'm close enough."

Irelia nodded, her expression giving away her gratitude, "And I look forward to playing a part in that path. Now, we should go. We've taken too long already."

"I'll say," Nigel's voice sounded from the doorway, startling the two women. As Riven turned to face him, his expression changed from impatient to astonished. "Woah. Riven, you look... cool."

Riven smiled, and picked up her sword and belt on her way to the door. She tested out the various angles she normally held the blade at, and was happy to find the armour did not interfere with her movements.

"Let's go."


Nigel led Riven and Irelia to another area of the Placidium, and the room they ended up in looked like it was straight out of the League. There were dozens of summoners shuffling around, speaking to each other in words Riven couldn't understand, and drawing large patterns of blue runes on the walls and floor. It looked like chaos, as no two summoners seemed to be working together, but rather doing everything at the same time.

They walked past all of this to the back of the room, where two moderate-sized nexi sat, cradled in some sort of transportation cage. The blue glow of the crystals illuminated the room more than the lights overhead, even though they were less than half the size of the ones Riven had seen in Summoner's Rift.

"We'll be using this one for ourselves," Nigel stated, pointing to the nexus on the left, "The other will be used for Delfeer's plans, which we're still preparing."

"So we're just a distraction," Riven noted, seeking confirmation. Nigel nodded, and Riven's mind accepted the role plainly, already reviewing possible delay tactics. It was times like these when her officer training was actually useful.

"Due to the constraints we have in this situation," Nigel added solemnly, "We can summon you to the directed area and provide you with some protection, but resurrection would be impossible. So don't get careless."

'Don't die,' Riven noted in her head, crossing off a couple possibilities. Shame, that could have been a great distraction, coming back from the dead.

"We have no more time to waste," Irelia chimed in, her tone back to its normal state, "There is only one place to stop them before the reach Atama."

"Meng Hill," Nigel replied with a nod. Without further discussion, he called over another summoner and began the process of readying himself. The ball of light that formed between his hands came through on the first attempt, much to Riven's relief. It seemed Nigel could concentrate even with the large amount of activity on the other side of the room.

Riven noticed the blue light surrounding her, and prepared herself for the next part. Within seconds, the world had vanished, and she was surrounded by the black shadows of whatever was in between the entry and exit of summoning magic.

And then, she was outside again, standing atop a sunlit, grassy hill beside some large rock formations. Riven took a moment to reorient herself before moving, taking position of the sun and wind direction. This must have been the hill that Nigel and Irelia mentioned, but how close had the enemy gotten?

Scanning the land below her, Riven spotted a small village a few miles away, its silhouette belittled by the ruins of a city behind it. Riven inhaled sharply at the sight of it. She had been here before. That city was been used as a Noxian fortification when Fury Company had been sent into Ionia. It was called Furuto back then... Were the villagers planning on rebuilding it?

Riven?

'Yes?' Riven replied to Nigel's voice in her head.

Good. You can hear me. We were getting some interference for a moment. That village to your north is Atama. You're standing on Meng Hill, which means the enemy will be coming from the south of your position. You might be able to see them coming now.

Riven made her way past the large rocks that blocked her view and looked over the land to the south. Her mind had been distracted by what it all meant, though. Why would the Noxians be this far inland, and coming from the south?

Sure enough, she spotted the troops in the distance, but... it seemed too few somehow. Her instincts were immediately put on edge. Where were the rest?

Riven, that's all of them. Don't worry. Nigel said after a brief silence.

'All of them? But there's no more than 400 men!'

...Nobody explained to you what was going on, did they? Nigel sounded deflated, like he should have guessed that in the first place.

Riven peered down at the small army approaching the hill and realized her assumptions had been entirely wrong. This wasn't a Noxian army. They were all cloaked in black robes from head to toe, with a large red insignia she couldn't make out from this distance.

"They are summoners," Irelia announced her presence beside Riven, "They have claimed to be representing Noxus."

'A rogue faction...' Riven recalled Delfeer's words. That was why he stated it like that. "...And what does Noxus think of this?" Riven questioned, sensing there was more to the statement.

Unofficially, they've claimed no responsibility. But since this is such a delicate topic, it's impossible to get an official statement without making it public knowledge, Nigel answered for Irelia.

'You're keeping something like this under wraps?' Riven thought incredulously.

We're still not sure what they're trying to prove. The League has been under a lot of scrutiny lately, so the higher-ups are trying to keep certain things... in proportion. This is being considered a minor case until further development. It might just end here and now.

Riven glanced at Irelia, who had obviously heard the explanation, given her steaming expression. Meanwhile, part of Riven was relieved, while the other part was anxious. She was glad that Noxus hadn't made such an extreme error in judgement, but now... what was she supposed to accomplish against 400 summoners? She'd seen what that amount could do to two whole armies. What chance did two people have?

'Nigel, what do we know of their goals?'

As far as I know, they want to reclaim the Southern Provinces as Noxian territory, claiming they were illegitimately returned to Ionia, despite the League match.

Riven sighed. She had wondered about the reactions that the League decisions might cause. It was both surprising and annoying that such a large group of summoners would do something so foolish and dangerous. Didn't they know that Noxus would not be so quick to oppose the League? Even if they managed to mount a successful attack, they could not win a war.

You think they have other plans? Nigel asked, sensing her doubts.

Riven nodded. Even foot soldiers would think more rationally than to simply charge and hope for the best. 'Nigel, can you summon my sword in this state?'

I believe so. But not for very long. This nexus isn't as capable as the others.

'That's good enough. Wait for my signal then.' Riven rested a hand on her sword, tightly secured in her belt. With a deep breath, she began walking down the hill, towards the company of summoners.

"Riven, what are you doing?" Irelia called after her in concern.

"Trying to get more information. Stay here," Riven commanded, not daring to look back. She didn't want Irelia involved in this. It would make it too complicated.

What are you doing? Nigel asked.

"Just trust me. I won't fuck this up," She said aloud to both Nigel and Irelia.

'Right Lux?' Riven thought to herself, 'I'll follow you. Just wait for me to get there. Wait just a little while longer.'

There was action in the ranks of the summoners on the field below. They'd spotted her, and were preparing for an ambush. They likely felt wary seeing only two warriors waiting for them. Still, Riven continued towards them at a steady pace. She could only hope that they would hold off attacking.

The summoners stopped and held their ground not far from the base of the hill. The front line was ready and waiting, some of them armed with swords and maces. Riven took in as much as she could see and ran over the numbers in her head. It appeared that less than half had physical weapons, but Riven was wary about it. They could simply summon one, right?

If they wanted a physical weapon, they'd need a conduit like a nexus, or it would be a risky move. They might be able to create magic weapons though, so be careful, Nigel offered.

Riven nodded in thought, quietly thankful for the information.

I hope you don't intend to take them all on, Riven. Remember-

'Don't die. I know.' The idea didn't faze her. She wouldn't allow it to. It wasn't just confidence that strengthened her resolution, but obligation. Riven's pledge to Lux only reinforced her desire to see through her own goals. The promise of protecting the one she loved brought her more comfort and anticipation than anything she'd felt in Noxus' military. She finally felt that perhaps she could move on, and begin the next chapter of her life; the next road on her chosen path.

One of the summoners in the front line began walking outward, and he removed his hood. Riven was now close enough to see the annoyed expression on his face.

'Good. He doesn't see me as a threat,' Riven thought, more to herself than to Nigel.

He probably thinks you're insane. Nigel quipped.

'Even better. Will he know I've been summoned?

Not likely, until I apply the enhancements.

'Keep it that way then. You'll know when to act.'

The summoner stopped about twenty paces from his allies, and Riven approached him calmly.

As she neared, the man spoke in a steady tone. "What are your intentions, Exile?"

Riven walked past him, without so much as a glance.

"That's far enough," The summoner commanded in irritation.

Riven stopped, and turned to face the man, leaving her back intentionally exposed to the army behind them. She wanted them to think she was less of a threat. The summoner in front of her was definitely Noxian-born. His dark eyes, dark hair, and sharp features gave him away. She stared him down, refusing her emotions any access to her visage. The focus she felt in this moment was powerful. It had been a long time since her thoughts had been this clear, and her senses this sharp. It made her wonder how much was from being summoned, and how much was simply from her state of mind.

"Why are you here?" The summoner asked again.

"I want to ask you the same question," Riven answered.

The man squinted in thought, but remained silent.

Riven shifted her weight, feeling her impatience starting to take hold. "If your answer is satisfactory, I will not get in your way."

This seemed to get the summoner's attention, and after a short pause, he chuckled. "You will not get in our way, you say? Why would you be an issue in our plans? We've already determined that you will not be a threat."

"Then you wouldn't mind if I struck you down here and now?" Riven idled her fingers along her blade's hilt.

The man stopped laughing, but his smile remained, "That would be most undesirable, but not nearly enough to defeat us, Exile. Surely you remember the army behind you?"

"Suppose I defeat this army, then," Riven replied without missing a beat, "Will that be enough to stop you?"

"Not at all," He grinned carelessly.

"Thank you," Riven said, closing her eyes, relaying her thoughts to Nigel, and readying herself.

'Nigel, go.'

Without waiting for a response, Riven detached her sword and swung it outwards. It seemed to get both lighter and more forceful in mid-swing, letting Riven know the summoning enhancement had taken effect. In this mere second, the summoner in front of her had realized his fate, his cool visage now a mixture of fear and regret. As her sword made contact with a rather satisfying sound, Riven sent out her next command to Nigel.

'Reforge.'

The response was immediate, as if Nigel had guessed her intentions. As soon as her initial attack had run its course, her sword was enveloped in a blue-green flash.

'Create an opening,' She instructed to herself, 'Cause confusion.'

The words of her drill instructor sounded in her head. "The trick to fighting several people at once is to disorganize them. Make sure you act first. Always be one step ahead. But most importantly, know your limits."

'In this moment, limits won't be a problem.'

Following up on her momentum, Riven twirled on the spot, releasing the energy from her sword in a Wind Slash. She didn't wait for it to hit, and dashed quickly after it to follow up the attack. It all felt so clear, so smooth. The summoning magic coursed through her, attenuating her strength and senses. But more noticeably, she could feel her sword's magic flowing through her hand and into her body. Any vagueness that had plagued it before was gone.

'I understand now,' She thought, washed over with relief, even in this situation. It finally made sense.

The magic blades formed from the Wind Slash tore through the front line, and unlike the wind, continued on, undaunted by the contact. The summoners it passed through were knocked off their feet, and Riven was already plowing through them towards the back corner of the formation. The entire manoeuvre had taken just three seconds, but Riven knew her goal was to delay them, not defeat them.

The sea of black robes that surrounded her was one of chaos. The ones that she sliced through didn't have time to react. The ones that did were carefully placed in an obstructed position. Riven's sword was a blur of blue-green light as she danced through the ranks, taking in every movement and position of the enemies around her. They were setting themselves up perfectly.

It looks like things are ready on this end, Riven, Nigel informed her as she reached the back of the formation, Can you get out of there?

Riven smirked, 'That isn't the plan. Just go ahead. I've got some stress to relieve.'

But you don't need to-

Riven stopped listening, and turned her attention back to the enemy. They had begun to spread apart, realizing her strategy was reliant on inner turmoil. That was alright, she had expected as much.

She dashed along the edge of the back line, noticing several of the summoners readying spells. Just a couple more seconds...

'Nigel. Bring me right into the middle of them on my mark. You can do that, right?'

Well, yeah, but-

'Good. Go.'

With that, Riven jumped high into the air, drawing her sword behind her to seemingly strike the ground in front of her. She felt Nigel's magic take hold of her in mid-air, and grinned a little. This was kind of fun.

A split-second later, Riven was falling twenty paces away from her last position, directly into the enemy's formation, and right as the spells that had been aimed for her erupted. The poor soul her sword fell upon didn't even get to see what hit him, and the ground around the impact blasted away anyone nearby from the excess energy.

Riven quickly determined the next step and made to move, but as she stood, something strange set off a warning in her mind. She looked down to see the robe of the summoner she'd landed on, yet... it was laying flat on the ground, as if there was nothing inside of it.

It didn't make sense. Where had his body gone? She glanced around, trying to get a better look at the others' faces, but they were all shrouded by their large hoods. They looked... eerily similar to the minions on Summoner's Rift.

"And that is just the basics of magic. Imagine what one could accomplish as a master of it."

'Nigel?' Riven tried to communicate with him, but there was no answer. The light coming from her sword was lashing out irregularly, and Riven felt the magic encompassing her weakening. Meanwhile, the dark robes were moving to surround her in a wide berth, cutting off possible routes. This wasn't good. Something was wrong, not only with this battle, but with Nigel.

"We've already determined you will not be a threat."

With a small flash, Riven's sword reverted back to its broken form. Her confidence was beginning to falter. Things weren't going as planned, and her possible strategies were being shut down. She needed to find a way out of this, and fast.

A thin red line of light appeared in front of Riven, giving her brain a shock of reality. As soon as she realized what was happening, she dropped to the ground. A second later, an enormous beam of light passed through, obliterating any 'summoners' in its path.

"Riven!" Lux's voice called out, "Get out of there!"

Riven quickly looked to the source, now visible through a distinct hole in the formation. She picked up her sword and dashed for the opening, swinging in frustration as the robes attempted to trap her again. She had fallen for the trick. They all had. Just what the hell was going on?

Riven noticed some red blades soaring past her, through the ranks of enemies that straddled the escape passage, and silently thanked Irelia for the assistance. Finally, with one last Ki Burst, Riven broke through the final group that had shuffled in front of her and dashed away from the so-called army.

The moment after was one of astounding splendour. Just as Riven reached Lux's arms and steadied herself, the area around the army behind her seemed to distort, like it was surrounded by an enormous bubble. With flashes of blue light, dozens, if not hundreds of League summoners popped into existence around the bubble, and the ground lit up in large purple and blue runes. Right beside the three champions, Delfeer and a couple other summoners appeared, looking quite satisfied with whatever was happening.

"Delfeer," Riven shouted upon his arrival, "They're dolls! This is part of their plan!"

Delfeer looked at her in confusion, but said nothing, turning to look back at the army.

"Are you listening? It's a decoy!" Riven yelled. There was no way she was letting her experience and information be ignored once again. She'd had enough of that during the war.

"We shall see in a moment," Was the only reply.

Lux placed a hand on Riven's arm, and Riven glanced back at her, distraught. They were wasting their time and magic on nothing. Lux's expression told her she understood, but her grip on Riven's arm was saying to hold off and wait.

Riven grunted in annoyance at the summoners, and watched the event unfold. Lux grasped her hand, stepping over to stand beside her.

"They're cutting off all magic in the area," Lux explained softly, "If you're right, they'll notice it right away."

Riven grit her teeth. If they would just listen to her in the first place...

'Nigel?' She tried again, but there was still no response. Was there just too much interference with the magic, perhaps?

"Hey Riven," Lux spoke in a confused tone, "Are you having trouble communicating with Nigel?"

Riven looked at her in surprise, "Yeah, how did you know?"

"Hm," Lux muttered, "That's strange. I can't seem to get through to my summoner either. We should be able- ...Ow." Lux touched her head lightly.

"What's wrong?" Riven asked in concern, steadily growing more worried by the situation.

"Mm. It's nothing, I think. My head just really hurt for a moment," Lux replied, before flinching again. "Ow! What the heck!"

"Lux?" Riven grabbed her shoulders as the girl started holding her head between her hands.

"Nngh, something's not right," Lux gasped between strained breaths, "It feels like- like my head's going to burst."

Riven's adrenaline spiked as she racked her brain to try to figure out what was happening. Lux was suffering from something right in front of her, and she didn't know how to stop it. She glanced over to Delfeer and the summoners beside him, only to find that they were already surrounding Irelia, who seemed to be suffering the same effect. Her too?

"Riven," Lux whimpered, her body shaking, "This... I didn't think this was possible."

"Lux, what's happening?" Riven asked in a panic.

Lux looked up and met her eyes, pained tears blurring their sparkle, "Summoning-"

With a bright blue flash, Lux vanished, leaving Riven holding nothing but air. Riven kept her hands where they were, her mind not registering the change. What was that? Where did she go? What did she mean?

In a daze, she looked over to Irelia, or rather, where Irelia had been. The summoners were standing there, looking at the spot where she too had vanished. Delfeer looked back at her, a stupefied expression on his face. This wasn't their doing. Even they didn't know what was going on. He began speaking, but Riven couldn't hear his words. The other summoners looked at her too, and began running for her, except they were moving in slow motion. She couldn't figure out why. Was her vision was affected by something? Everything was turning blue.

Then, after a short flash, it was nothing but darkness. For a second Riven thought that she had black out, but upon thinking it, she realized she couldn't have. She was still awake. Slowly, Riven felt her senses coming back, enough to figure out that it wasn't just darkness surrounding her. It was the shadows she saw in the process of summoning. Did Nigel unsummon her? Is that what happened to Lux and Irelia too?

Riven's legs gave out beneath her, and she fell to her knees. She just couldn't latch onto that glimmer of hope that it was just an accident; that they'd all end up back at the Placidium, safe and sound. There was too much happening to believe it. She closed her eyes, afraid of what she would see on the other end of the passage.

When she finally felt the sun against her eyelids and the air in her lungs again, she first listened for any sign of where she was. She heard nothing, and breathed deeply, steeling herself for whatever awaited her.

When she opened them, her eyes were met with the front entrance of the Institute of War.