Desperate Times

a League of Legends fanfic

Chapter 7: The Mountain Trek

"Oh this is just getting ridiculous," Kattarina huffed "How many of these damned patrols are we going to need to dodge before the border?"

Garen glared back at her. "I don't know Kat. Jarvan never had this many men stationed in the north, not even during the conflicts in Freljord. He really doesn't want me to escape."

Kattarina bit her lip in thought, gazing down the hill at the patrol of about a dozen Demacian soldiers. Gently laying a hand on the pommel of one of her blades, she said, "You know... this would be easier if we just..."

"No Kat."

"But there's only a dozen of them! We could just go down there and..."

"No Kat."

"You're no fun." Kattarina pouted, but there was a glimmer of laughter in her eyes.

"You're enjoying tormenting me aren't you?" Garen glanced back towards where the soldiers were beginning to move further north.

"I have no idea what you mean."

"There. An opening, let's go."

The two slipped over the edge of the hill, Garen silently thanking the stars for the third time that week that he wasn't wearing his normal armor. It would have instantly given away their movements to anyone who even glanced towards them. They had needed to leave the cart many miles behind them, and were now travelling with a traveler's backpack each, both filled with the bare necessities to reach the checkpoint at the pass of the Ironspine Mountains that would let them into Piltover. It was risky, it didn't leave much room for error or unexpected delays, but it was necessary to draw as little attention as possible.

Garen had timed their move carefully, and by the time the next patrol came into sight, the two were already around the bend and making their way up to the mountain road.

After a little while, Kattarina spoke up, "I still don't understand why we didn't just kill them. It would have been faster, and we would already be halfway up this road."

Garen glanced over at his murderous companion, "For someone who's career was built largely on silent kills and infiltration missions, you really do enjoy making a mess don't you?"

"I enjoy getting the job done fast. If that means making a mess, then fine that's what's going to happen."

"I'll admit, for the two of us those men would have proved no challenge, however, there are a few reasons that I didn't want to kill them."

"Oh? You mean it wasn't just that you were feeling sentimental about your little Demacian friends. If we were in the same situation in Noxus, you would have cut them down in a heartbeat, and then gone looking for more of them probably."

Garen paused for a moment at that. Was she right? Giving himself a little shake and pushing the question to the back of his mind, he continued. "No, I didn't want to kill them because of a few reasons. Firstly, if we killed them, unless we wanted to be chased through the mountains, we would need to hide the bodies. Chances are, the next patrol would come upon us before we could finish that. And then, even if we did manage to kill them all, and hide the bodies before another patrol found us, the patrol that we did kill would inevitably be either missed or noticed by someone before the day was out. That would lead to a report making it's way, very quickly I might add, to the command base for this region. Somebody would more than likely put two and two together and guess that we were in the area. That would lead to two things happening, One: word would be sent to Jarvan, and Two: Jarvan would flood the area with soldiers and several Champions. Our trek into Piltover would then become almost impossible."

It was Kattarina's turn to pause. "You really were thinking of all that while we dodging those patrols?" Garen nodded. "Ok, I'm impressed. I honestly thought you were just trying to avoid your precious countrymen."

Garen flashed a small smirk, "Give me a little credit Kat, I am a General remember. Besides, with no dead bodies, they won't know where we are or where we're going unless they see us with their own eyes. For all they know, we're back in Demacia city sipping a Gragas Special at one of the lower city pubs."

"I knew there was some reason I liked you Crownguard." Kattarina smiled, "You really downplay yourself at the League. Did you know most of the men and women in the Noxian military think you're just a really good swordsman and that's it?"

"And that's entirely the point Kat. Deception is as important a battle strategy as shoving a sword through a man. The more people think I'm just a mindless berserker with a natural talent for hitting things, the less likely they'll be to be able to counter my strategies in battle and war. Not to mention, that in a large battle, they'll think the strategy was someone else's idea, and therefore won't see the truth. Mostly because they don't want to."

Kattarina let out a small whistle, it took a lot to really impress her, but Garen was doing a pretty good job. "It's a shame you weren't born a Noxian." She said quietly.

"What?"

"Nothing."

Kattarina shivered a bit and glanced around, they had made excellent time, already several miles up the mountain road, and getting higher every step. There was a light snow beginning to fall around them, she motioned for them to pause, and then pulled a pair of sturdy but otherwise unimpressive travelers cloaks from the packs.

As she fastened her cloak and settled her pack on her shoulders once more, she glanced up and caught her breath. The view from where they stood was absolutely stunning. The sun was showing through the clouds to the south out along the Howling Marshes and the light seemed to dance across the wetlands.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Garen's voice made Kattaria jump a bit. "I remember when I first came up here as a recruit, years ago, on a training excercise. My entire unit all stopped and just gazed out at the landscape. Of course then our instructor saw us and kicked us all back down the mountain, and made us climb back up carrying eighty pound packs filled with stones." He laughed slightly at the memory.

"There isn't much like it in Noxus," Kattarina admitted, "I've just never really seen anything quite like it." She turned to the man beside her and placed a hand on his shoulder, "Thanks."

Garen raised an eyebrow, "For what?"

"For not mocking me about stopping to admire the view."

That actually elicited a full belly laugh from the large Demacian. "Kat, you're a human being. Even if you are a homicidal psychopath, you're still allowed to appreciate something genuinely beautiful once in a while." Kattarina blushed a little bit and hurriedly pulled her cloak's hood up to hide it, "Besides, if I did mock you, I imagine the I'd end up with a blade or two sticking out of me."

A dangerous smile appeared from the shadows created by her hood, "Trust that instinct Crownguard."

Garen laughed again and turned back up the road, pulling his own hood up over his head.

The hours passed uneventfully, as they made their way further into the mountains. They spoke of inconsequential things, and for the first time in his life, Garen felt a sort of weight lifted from his shoulders. Even though he was a wanted man, here, on this mountain road, just walking and talking with the woman who had once been his deadliest rival, he realized that none of it mattered. He felt... normal.

As they rounded a bend in the road, his heart stopped. Ahead of them and moving towards them was a full patrol of Demacian soldiers. He felt Kattarina bristle beside him. His voice dropped to little more than a whisper, "Don't do anything, just keep walking."

As the gap between them and the soldiers closed, he almost felt Kattarina moving her hand ever so slowly to her blades, and to his surprise, he could feel his own hand mirroring the movement.

Please don't recognize us. He thought, Let the cloaks and the late afternoon lighting make us into just a couple of simple travelers. Aloud he spoke, again in the half whisper, "The checkpoint inn is just a little ways ahead of us. If we can avoid fighting with these men, we can get a good night's sleep for once."

That got Kattarina's attention. For the last several nights they had gotten only a few hours of sleep due to the need for avoiding patrols. She seemed to become a different person over the course of a couple steps, from the cold-hearted killer to a weary but happy traveler. The transformation was so complete that Garen almost didn't think it was the same woman. What impressed him most was how effortless the shift had been, she simply shifted her shoulders a little bit, brought her hands up and placed them along the straps of her pack, and replaced her carefully neutral expression with a full warm smile.

By now the soldiers were only a few meters away, Garen and Kattarina moved to the side of the road and politely allowed the soldiers to pass unobstructed. A few of them nodded in their direction, but otherwise it was almost like they were invisible. Moments later, the two travelers continued their trek up the mountain, not daring to glance over their shoulders. As the sound of the Demacians disappeared down the sloped road, Garen let out a breath that he hadn't realized he'd been holding.

"That was closer than I'd ever like to deal with again." he said, smiling over at Kattarina.

She grinned widely, "Aw come on," she teased, "You know it would have been a fun fight."

"Maybe, but I also noticed that you took my advice." He grinned back.

"Only cause you made such a convincing argument about a good sleep."

"Still, you made the choice to listen to me, thanks."

"Don't get used to it Crownguard." She said as they reached a small plateau. Just ahead of them, nestled into the side of the mountain, was a small two-story building. Smoke from a cooking fire drifted lazily upwards into the early evening. "Once we make it into Noxian territory, you're going to need to listen to me. And I'm going to enjoy every second of it."

Garen grimaced a bit as they reached the door to the small inn. "I'll need to watch my step i guess."

The door opened to reveal a pup. There weren't many people present, for which Garen was silently thankful. There were several large round tables scattered around the room, with a few booth tables along the sides, and along one wall was a large open hearth with a cackling fire already started.

Garen stepped inside after Kattarina, removing his hood, trusting the rather rugged beard he had begun to cultivate in the last few weeks to at least make it a little trickier for anyone to recognize him.

Most of the people in the room were simply gazing into their mugs, or talking to their companions, and didn't spare the new arrivals more than a cursory glance at best. Kattarina lowered her hood tentatively, hoping that a repeat of the battle with the Dauntless Vanguard from a few weeks earlier. When nobody even glanced up, she relaxed a little.

Garen walked up to the man at the bar, "Excuse me sir, my companion and I would like a room for the evening. And perhaps some food."

The Innkeep was a large man, easily over six feet tall and well muscled. When he turned to speak to Garen, a patchwork of scars up and down his body showed that the man had served in the military for many years. Garen's eyes widened slightly, but he kept his face as neutral as possible. The Innkeep looked Garen up and down, and gave Kattarina a similar glance, before speaking. "You're armed." His voice was something similar to a boulder rolling down a mountain.

Garen nodded, "Bandits have been pretty bad down in the marshes this year. We figured it would be better to be ready for trouble, just in case."

The large man nodded, "Those blades stay sheathed." Garen nodded again, "Room's four gold. Food come's with the room. I don't care who you are, where you're from or where you're going. You don't cause trouble. Or you don't stay."

Garen smiled warmly. "Good terms." He set five coins down on the bar and nodded towards an empty booth, "We'll sit there."

The Innkeep nodded, and placed a large hand down on the coins. He then turned and made his way down the bar to an open door leading into the back, pushed his head though the doorway and spoke to someone who was out of sight. Garen and Kattarina made their way over to the booth and, after setting their packs on the booth bench closer to the wall, sat down with a sigh of relief.

"I like him." Kattarina said, gesturing with her chin towards the Innkeep. "He would fit in perfectly in Noxus."

"I think he may actually have been a Noxian soldier once." Garen said. Kattarina's eyebrows shot up. "One of the scars on his face is very similar to a practice that was adopted at the end of the last big war. When the Institute of War was made and forced Demacia and Noxus to sign those treaties, apperantly one of the conditions set by Noxus was a mandatory release of several thousand prisoners captured during the conflict. The Demacian High Command decided that just letting the captives go was a 'security risk' and so they decided to mark each prisoner so that they'd be easy to spot in a crowd. The mark ended up as a small scar just under the right eye, made by heating a knife blade and burning the skin like a brand. Of course, Noxus and the Institue were furious, but they weren't able to stop the markings in time. According to rumors and stories, some of the then released Noxians decided to stay in Demacia, just to spite their former captors. The High Command tried to round them up and get rid of them, but the Institute put it's foot down and declared that the former prisoners were free to settle where they chose. The Marking doesn't exist any more of course, Noxus High Command was furious that it had happened in the first place and made the Institute put a stop to it. But it still happened. A... less than glamorous moment in Demacian history."

They were silent for a while, Garen's story had rather dampened the mood. A few minutes later, the Innkeep walked over, carrying two plates and a pair of mugs. He set the plates down on the table and then set down the mugs, then returned to the bar, filled a large pitcher with ale of some sort, and returned. He then nodded and returned to the bar once more.

"Let's forget about the past for a while," Kattarina said, taking a moment to admire the food prepared in an actual kitchen for the first time in weeks. It was a steak, garnished with potatoes and a small salad, and Garen had to admit, it looked very good. "Let's just enjoy the now, enjoy this food, and then start planning what we're going to do once we hit Piltover."

Garen nodded, smiling once again, and then set to eating. The food was good, and the ale, while not a Gragas special, was quite exceptional. The two friends ate and once again began to speak, laying plans and readying themselves for the trek to come.

The night was dark. The moon little more than a sliver in the sky. To the south of the Institute of War, an even darker figure glided through the cool night air.

Galio's eyes narrowed, as a massive shadow loomed ahead of him out of the darkness. The golem flared his wings out behind him and came to a soft quiet landing on the edge of the structure, one of his feet slipping a bit on the edge, sending a collection of loose stones and dirt tumbling down the steep cliff and into free fall as the stone ended and the sky began again.

Turning his gaze towards the citadel before him, Galio began to walk forward, but stopped dead as something darker than a new moon smashed into the ground in front of him.

"Who goes there?" A voice challenged from the dark.

"I am Galio of Demacia. I seek an audience."

A ring of torches magically lit themselves around Galio's landing place and a tall woman with hair of purest silver walked into the light. "I warned you never to come here golem." She said with anger in her eyes, "You have meddled in my affairs far too many times."

Galio raised his hands in a gesture of peace, "Be calm Syndra. I come here only because I know of no one else strong enough in the magical arts to aid me."

The woman paused, "And why should I aid you?"

Galio pulled a small crystal pendant from around his neck, "Please just look at the magical data held within this," He said, gently tossing it to her. "I am not strong enough to accomplish my goals, I need the help of someone genuinely powerful. I could think of no one more powerful than you."

Syndra caught the pendant and glanced at it quickly, "You sound desperate Galio." She said with a thoughtful expression.

The golem sighed, "Something evil has taken root within Demacia, it is corrupting all that I have sworn to defend. yes, I suppose that 'desperate' is an appropriate description. Please Syndra. Will you help me?"

The woman smiled wickedly, "Hmm, I don't know, I sort of enjoy watching you beg Galio. perhaps I'll just force you to stay and grovel for a time."

Galio's expression hardened into something that quite literally froze the human's blood for a moment. "Do not mistake my request for aid as a sign of weakness human. As you said, I am desperate, and I am more than willing to take drastic measures. You may be powerful Syndra, but do not forget that I was created to break magic users like you."

Syndra froze, somewhat taken aback by the hostility Galio was showing. "Heh, you are usually the one to advocate a peaceful solution... perhaps there is hope for you yet." She paused, thinking silently for several moments,"Very well, come with me and let us see what manner of magic you need destroyed.