Chapter 18: The Institute awaits.
The Half-track's engine had, once again, stopped.
Xerath heard the noise of Ezreal and Sivir both opening and slamming the track's doors, followed by curses and the clanging of metal as their boots rammed into the half-track's fuselage. Their weird prayers to the engine woke it up once more. Shuriman sand appeared not to be kind to any machine, even those with countermeasures.
"Huuuu… Wha… My Lord!"
"Good morning Azel, you slept well?"
"Good, I guess, until that banging noise started." Azel replied, her voice slurred from her sleep. "What was that anyway?"
"The engine failed its task,"
"I thought Ezreal had that fixed. It could just be the terrain maybe-"
"It failed its task over ten times already."
"Oh." Azel looked across to the still sleeping Malzahar. Malzahar had just came up to Ezreal and talked about how he 'wanted to get it over and done with', whatever that meant. She still disliked him from the whole stuff with her father and her nationality. Xerath had supported her then, something that one would not expect from an empire-killing sentient sapphire. That was really puzzling about him. She was nobody, so why should someone really care about her? Her father had managed to get her out of Nalepsis at the cost of her remaining family. She had done nothing to protect Uebel either, just communicating Xerath's thoughts to the Colonel and nothing else.
She felt weak.
She was weak.
She was always being protected.
There was nothing she could do on her own that would really help anyone.
That was just how it was for her.
"Only a couple of miles left till we get to the Institute grounds. From there, we'll go to the reception desk to drop you two off and get you signed in. Sivir, Malz and I need to do other things. I'll need to check up on other things as well so I won't see you guys for a few days. Hope you get acquainted with some good friends. Xerath, I suggest seeing Heimerdinger, he always could use a good academic to talk to. The guy's a freaking genius, even though this stupid bucket of bolts is rather faulty."
"Noted. Is there anything I should be expecting in terms of the League introduction process?"
"Not that much to be honest, there isn't that much to it. You are a special case where it is in the Institute's interests to keep you because where else could you go? For all they heard about you from Zilean's visions, you could have annihilated Shurima if you so wished. I know that won't happen now, but you are a magical glow-stick. I really doubt that people would not notice you and not consider you to be somewhat dangerous."
Xerath disagreed with being called a glow-stick. He had truly immense power, yet Ezreal would consider him a glow-stick?
A stick that could glow.
Such a pathetic name.
Ezreal continued. "You will have to battle with one of the older Champions in a show-match, but apart from that, there is little else you should be concerned about. I had to face off against Luxanna when she started, that was a pretty funny battle. Lux is pretty serious about stuff despite her looks. It can be fun to annoy her sometimes, but no one likes her angry. I've come across several times where she gets p*ssed and all of them have ended up with massive bills for destruction of property."
Ezreal continued to ramble on about Luxanna, oblivious to Xerath's lack of care and Sivir rolling her eyes at the constant rate of useless cr*p that poured out from his mouth like a river.
After half an hour of listening to Ezreal's annoying voice, he had finally shut up after an enforced bloody nose all thanks to Sivir's fist. The half-track had almost veered off into a ditch in the dense forest that surrounded the Institute, yet was saved thanks to Ezreal's swift maneuvers.
Azel felt relieved.
Finally that guy had shut up.
That and not crashing into a clump of oak trees.
"HALT! Who goes there?" A large gargoyle flew into view, threatening to stop the half-track with its unyielding body.
"Expedition Sarcophagus. We got the mage here ready for entry to the League."
"And who are the other two in the back?" The gargoyle's eyes panned across to the rear of the half-track, examining all three of its passengers.
"Oh come on Galio, can you not see that it is I, the Great Seer Malzahar?" Malzahar declared, his cloak unmoved from covering his eyes from the glaring sun while he slept.
"And the other?" Galio focused his attention on Azel, the simple girl feeling an intense resolve capable of halting even mountains.
"Local girl from the place we got Xerath from, her services were required during our stay and now a close follower of him."
"You know that I dislike potential threats, Ezreal." Galio's brow furrowed at this unannounced newcomer.
Ezreal, knowing what would happen if Galio disapproved of Azel, responded with his own brow furrowing as well.
"But my sight sees none from her. You may pass." The gargoyle relaxed itself, allowing the vehicle to pass.
Ezreal breathed a sigh of relief. They had Galio's approval. Galio's approval meant that the League had let them in. The gargoyle's judgment was impeccable, even sharper than that of a bloodhound's sense of smell.
"Thanks Galio."
"May want to look at your nose there, Explorer."
Ezreal put his free hand over his nose and found drops of blood.
Pointing his thumb over to Sivir, Galio stifled a laugh.
"Perhaps you should start talking less, Ezreal. You know how you can spout all sorts of nonsense from that thing." He replied in his deep and wizened voice.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah."
The Institute was a massive place.
Its immense spires almost touched the heavens themselves, and the grounds covered even beyond the horizon.
Truly impressive, Xerath thought.
Originally designed to separate the two city-states of Demacia and Noxus, the Institute had done its job and more with taking in monsters that none wished in their respective countries. It served as a medium for all diplomacy between the nations so as to provide neutral and secure ground, denying most efforts of sabotage and bribery within its borders. The Rune Wars had caused massive schisms in the physical, arcane as well as social structure of the world. Its secondary mission was to provide action and compensation to all civilizations that had been affected by them.
Which was almost the entirety of Runeterra.
A massive job was required of them.
So they had an equally large territory to do it.
Institute authority was nigh absolute, on par with the ruler of a nation.
Yet humans ran it, those magicians known as Summoners, were the commoners, a very peculiar case considering the prestige of being just a mage was significant enough to award high-ranking positions to them.
Yet here, Summoners were the middle class and the most common sentient populace.
Other men, mutants and outcasts, were uncommon and did the work unsuited for their Summoners. Although a harsh existence, it was better than dealing with unforgiving nature of human society in their minds.
And then there were Minions, Automata with relatively simple existences.
To fight on the battlegrounds as well as form frontlines should a significant power get involved. Although they were as strong as a standard human soldier, they had such number and could be salvaged within minutes of their deaths that sheer numbers would overwhelm their foes.
The half-track slowed to a stop outside a large complex, its heavy oaken doors capable of holding even the force of tempests.
"EEEEEEZZZZIIIEEEE!" An incredibly feminine voice cried out in excitement.
A young blond girl was running towards the half-track, one of her arms waving with a warm smile all over her face.
"Lux! Haha! It's so good to see you." Ezreal shifted in a brief flash, his body reappearing beside the girl and his arms out wide to embrace her.
The two wrapped their arms around each other, Ezreal twirling Lux's smaller form around in joy.
"So the crystal guy over there is the new champ? Looks like he'll be an interesting one."
"Yeah, we had a couple of things we had to attend to on our way out of Shurima. But now that's all done, you want to have dinner later maybe?"
"Sounds lovely!" Lux turned over towards Malzahar's lazy form. "Hello there Malzy, how've you been?"
"I've just been through hell and my stamina just hasn't returned to me. I've known better times."
Lux moved her sight over to the woman in the front of the 'track.
"Hello, Sivir." Lux's voice grew deeper with malice.
"Oh hey there, rainbow-girl." Sivir responded with just as much hate as Lux had.
Lux had never enjoyed sell-swords, especially when they would tread on the ideas of justice and honor that all Demacians believed in. Sivir was all that and more, her very essence stank of greed and bloodshed.
Sivir despised dogma in all forms. To her, humans only spoke lies and half-truths. Yet this pathetic b*tch before her had such a strong belief in the Demacian creed of those alien values of 'trust' and 'honor' that she would actually lay down her very life?
Stupid girl.
Lux swayed her view back to the rear of the vehicle, finding a small girl trying to hide behind the crystal mage.
"It's OK dear, you can show your face."
Azel cautiously withdrew from behind Xerath, showing herself to this 'Lux' girl.
"You guys want to sign in at the reception desk right through there." Lux nodded behind her, pointing towards the heavy doors.
"I thank you for the information, Lux…?"
"Luxanna Crownguard, but my friends call me Lux."
"I am Xerath, the Magus Ascendant."
"I welcome you, Xerath. May want to remove the title though, its kind of… awkward to say."
"Just Xerath then. Ezreal has told me quite a bit about you during our journey."
"How long did he talk for?"
"Half an hour."
"So who stopped him?"
"Sivir punched him in the nose."
"I see. One sec."
Lux suddenly and swiftly ran towards Azel.
"D'AAAAAAAWWWW! SHE'S SO CUTE! Xerath, can I keep her? PLEEEEEEEEEAAASSSEEE?"
Lux had Azel locked in her arms as she proceeded to rub herself on the girl. Patting Azel's head, Lux felt completely at ease, her face completely relaxed.
Azel on the other hand, was desperately trying to get Lux off her to no avail. Several years as a military officer had granted Lux the strength to hold onto a horse in full gallop, nothing compared to holding onto a struggling girl.
"She is to be my assistant, so I doubt that I can spare her for your… enjoyment."
"Pleeeeeeaaaaaasseee?" Lux was trying her hardest to get Azel, even if only once in a blue moon.
"I… will consider it."
Lux's smile stretched across her entire face, all the while Azel had just become a dead women walking. Like hell would she be able to stand against another one of Lux's assault.
"I'll leave you two to sign in at the reception, the rest of us have some other things to do."
"OH YES! Xerath!" Lux had just remembered something important.
"What is it?"
"There's going to be an inquiry into the situation in Uebel and the region of Shurima sometime tomorrow. The High Summoners will want to talk with you on this since you were there first hand. In the meantime, you just check out your quarters and settle down. Check out the canteen if you want as well."
"Thank you for telling me. I will be there."
Xerath and Azel opened the heavy doors, entering the League of Legends.