Spoiling the End: An Author's Copout
Hello, folks. It's been awhile, hasn't it? Did you know I'm a published author, now?
You know, this poor fic hasn't been updated in years, but I still feel bad about it. Not so bad I can muster up the urge to write (or to play League again, for that matter), but still bad. So I finally got together the energy to write up a spoiler-filled conclusion. All the plot points I was originally going to write, all hurled at your face!
And so, hopefully, you'll get a little closure
(Bear in mind, this fic is set in the pre-Lore change universe. So Nasus is from another world, not just from Shurima)
SPOILERS! ALL KINDS OF SPOILERS!
Let's start by finishing Part Two:
Lux pretends to take Nasus prisoner with a little Light Binding and presents him to Jarvan and folks. They immediately set off with him to Shurima, after confiscating his staff. Evelynn goes with them to watch over Nasus. There is all kinds of Evelynn sneaking around and disrupting the Demacian army, as well as having heartfelt chats with Nasus. Evelynn and Lux are not fans of each other. Lux is also cracking under the strain of having to so thoroughly betray her upbringing. Several scenes of the Demacians attempting to interrogate Nasus, with Nasus pwning them with all his knowledge and wisdom stuff. Evelynn manages to discourage them from doing anything worse than intimidating him, mostly by causing a ruckus somewhere in the camp whenever they try.
The rest of the good guys (Ahri, Orianna, and Malzahar) ((You know this fic is just my gleeful celebration of all my favorite AP mids, right?)), set off for Shurima, post haste. They are joined partway by Kassadin, who is not pleased to have been used by Noxus. Him and Malzahar snipe at each other continuously, but my more light and cheerful interpretation of Malzahar doesn't end up trying to kill him or corrupt him. They just bicker. Orianna and Malzahar flirt. The group has several awkward encounters with towns. Ahri rides on using her charm skill to smooth over all potential issues. She gets tired and cranky, because there is a LOT of magic required to get townsfolk to accept a robot, a monster, a floating guy, and a fox lady walking through their town without the pitchforks and torches coming out. They all muse at one point or another about betraying the cause and running off. However, all these people have the desire to do something good in common—Malzahar because he's escaping the grasp of the Void, Kassadin because he's just a good guy, Ahri because she's guilty, Orianna because she is a robot-becoming-a-good-guy, etc.
Noxus perspective. Katarina figures out the Fang of Registrana kills anything it pierces, ruins armor, causes weapons to disintegrate, etc. Cassiopeia studies the poison on it, starts to fall under the influence of Registrana—who is a snake god, after all. Wouldn't half human Cassie do better on the world of Amon than Runeterra? Singed is also along, representing the alliance between Zaun and Noxus. He's jealous of the Fang and starts trying to develop an antidote. They are all on their way to Shurima.
The gang gets to Shurima barely ahead of everyone else and meet Zilean at his tower. Zilean has narrowed down where Nasus and Renekton emerged into Runeterra—a sandblasted ruin with a cool runic circle in the middle. He reiterates what they already know—they'd need a relic weapon from Amon to open the portal. Nasus' staff and the Fang of Registrana both work.
Quickly, T'sa's perspective in Amon. Nasus' former mate is on the run from the justice of Registrana. She makes her way to Nasus' abandoned library, trying to find him. Brief chapter on the library, mostly playing with setting and description. She finds where Nasus and Renekton fought and is sad about it.
Demacia reaches the ruins half a day before Noxus. Evelynn prepares to "incapacitate" Lux and free Nasus. But Lux has succumbed to her conditioning—she reveals Evelynn with her powers and the two have an epic fight. Evelynn, badly wounded, manages to slip away with help from Ahri. Malzahar, Kassadin, and Zilean, back at the ruins, are trying to use their combined powers to seal the rift between the worlds. Orianna stands guard, watching the Noxians approach through the Ball.
The Demacian rearguard encounters the Noxians, and a huge fight erupts. Shyvanna, Jarvan, and Lux go ahead to the portal area with Nasus' staff. Their collaborator, hinted at previously, is revealed—Xerath agreed to power the portal in exchange for Nasus' staff. He uses the staff to free himself, stuns the Demacians, and begins to open the portal. Zilean attempts to stop him and is disintegrated. Back at the fight, Cassiopeia frees Nasus after he promises to help her reach Amon. Katarina is furious, but chases after them. Nothing can stop the Fang of Registrana, and it's all the two of them can do to keep her from killing them. Nasus' magic is significantly weakened without his staff.
The gang fights an unleashed Xerath as the portal begins to open. Kassadin is most effective, of course, but Evelynn is useless—no one wants to get close enough to Xerath to fight him in melee. First Malzahar is defeated, then Ahri, then Orianna—and Kassadin is finished off by Katarina, who kills him with the Fang.
Xerath tears the portal open as the Demacians wake up, and Nasus and Cassie reunite with the rest of the good guys.
Part Three:
Xerath is immobilized by the effort of holding the portal open, but the Demacians quickly move in to protect him. The good guys flee through the portal as Lux's lasers tear up Zilean's tower. She's taken Nasus' staff where Xerath dropped it, and it amplifies her powers as it once did his.
They find themselves in the antechamber of the library, with T'sa. Introductions are hastily made, as well as plans to defend the library. With Nasus' return, its wards deactivate, and he is no longer strong enough to put them back up. He immobilizes himself to put the ward back up on the main door—if he dies, the library will be open to anyone. T'sa joins the rest of the good guys to mount a defense of the library. It will be Evelynn and Ahri's job to try and get close enough to Xerath to break his concentration, and let the portal fall. There's some conversation between all the members of the party. Cassie and T'sa hit off oddly well, and manage to mediate with Registrana somewhat. The goddess tells them that Her Fang is somewhat beyond her control, but she is able to create an antidote to the poison. Orianna hides the antidote inside the Ball. Malzahar and Orianna flirt, and Malzahar expresses regrets about Kassadin's death. Evelynn gets her own internal monologue time as she deals with her injuries and worries over Nasus.
The Demacian army comes through, triumphant over the Noxian strikeforce. They immediately begin to lay siege to the library. The tremendous battle that follows has many parts. Every main character gets the chance to do something awesome, including: Ahri seducing and eating a number of the soldiers, Evelynn convincing Lux to give her Nasus' staff and flee, T'sa kicking all kinds of ass, Orianna protecting Nasus, and Malzahar fighting off the remnants of the Noxians. Katarina comes through and she is all kinds of pissed with her sister. But the good guys have done a good job routing the Demacians, so she doesn't have far to go. There is an epic duel between Shyvanna and Katarina as the Sinister Blade decides whether or not to try assassinating Jarvan while she is at it, but it eventually ends in a draw. Back in Runeterra, Lux fights and kills Singed, then runs into the desert, trying to escape her conditioning. Her fate is left ambiguous, but I like to imagine she does good, hiding far away from Demacia.
Finally, the good guys push out and fight their way to Xerath. Orianna stays back to protect Nasus, and no one knows where Evelynn is. Shyvanna badly injures Ahri, but Malzahar manages to drive the dragon woman off. T'sa fights Xerath while Cassie taunts and flirts with Jarvan. The raven woman eventually manages to defeat the Magus Ascendant (remember I built her as a ranged anti-mage?) and the portal begins to collapse.
Flash back to the library. Orianna is winding up her key when she's struck by the Fang of Registrana. Her hextech resists corrosion, but she is damaged and taken out of the fight. The Ball prevents Katarina from finishing her off, but Katarina is alright with that—she's here for Nasus. Her mission was to plunder this library, and nothing was going to get in her way. She taunts him for a time, running the Fang along his neck.
But Evelynn is there, engaging with a descriptive version of Agony's Embrace. She kicks Nasus' staff over to him, but he's unable to move—if he lets the wards drop then Katarina can just teleport into the library. He watches helplessly. Evelynn is already hurt from her fight with Lux, but she is the ultimate monster in the shadows—and she manages to pin Katarina down. Snarling in frustration, Katarina throws the Fang at Nasus, and Evelynn lets her go in order to save him. The Fang goes through her hand, and she falls, obviously in agony.
Nasus abandons his duty, letting the wards fall and taking up his staff. He freezes Katarina in the Sands, keeping her a living statue, trapped in time, and quickly takes the antidote from Orianna. He scoops up Evelynn and helps her drink it. In a tender moment, Evelynn caresses his face with her injured hand, obviously expecting to die, and asks Nasus if he still thinks she is selfish.
The story ends with the good guys returning from the portal entrance, and Evelynn's survival is left ambiguous…
AT LEAST IN THIS FIC. The intended sequel, A Shadow in the Desert, would deal with Evelynn's experience in Amon, and her relationship with Nasus. An epilogue for the other characters would be provided in the first chapter of A Shadow—Orianna and Malzahar live happily ever after, Malzahar takes up new Void-guarding duties and Orianna repairs herself. Ahri decides to stay on Amon and deals with the shame of having scars. Lux hides among the nomadic tribes of Shurima. Nasus and Evelynn share longing looks. Etc. The plot of A Shadow would involve a return of the shadowy masters of the slave race that Nasus' people used to control, and possibly deal with the Void turning its attention to Amon because of Malzahar.
I hope you enjoyed this plot summary. I will put on up for Permafrost Diplomacy shortly. I am open to your PMs and I will respond to reviews.