Chapter 9
After being in the air for quite some time, Ezreal was finally letting himself relax. The breeze against his face felt wonderful and the view was breathtaking. Through this journey, he had seen so many new and exciting places, but this was the cherry on top. Never in a million years would he have ever imagined traveling across Runeterra on the back of a massive dragon.
A dragon? Ezreal thought to himself as if he had come to a sudden realization. He was on the back of the biggest dragon he had ever seen and it took commands from none other than Lux. How was that possible?
"So this dragon is your….pet?" Ezreal said to Lux who was sitting directly in front of him with the reins firmly in her hands.
"Well…kinda…but not really," Lux said slightly turning her head back to Ezreal. "He is more of my protector than anything."
"How did you end up getting him then?" Ezreal asked.
"I'm not exactly sure," Lux replied. "I have known Skarn my entire life. When I was a little girl, Skarn was just a baby himself. We have always been around one another."
"The only thing that I was told by my father was that the egg came from a thief," Lux said.
"A thief?" Ezreal said repeating her words.
"Yes, apparently right after I was born there was a notorious man with a gambling problem who lived in Demacia," Lux explained. "Well every now and then he would wind up being arrested trying to steal items from various stores in order to satisfy his gambling debt. Each time that he was arrested, the guards would confiscate the goods he had stolen and would return them to their rightful owners."
"Well one day they couldn't find an owner for one of his items," Lux said now turning a little more towards Ezreal. "At first, the guards thought it was a fake egg, merely made out of some precious stone for decoration. After not being able to find the appropriate owner, my father decided to keep it and place it in his trophy room."
"The egg sat for days without incident, but one day when my father entered his room the egg was not on its pedestal. As my father searched, he noticed pieces of the egg strewn across the room and it wasn't long before he came across Skarn who was fluttering along the walls trying to find an exit."
Lux gave Skarn a pat and continued, "Shocked by the realization of an actual baby dragon crawling around his room, my father immediately began to devise a use for his newfound property. After much deliberation he decided to keep the dragon and train it as the family's personal guard. In my father's mind no one would dare cross him if there was a dragon at his side and so Skarn instantly became a sort of guard dog if you will."
"Skarn took to liking me the most though," Lux said happily. "We are pals, but as I said earlier I'm only allowed to use him in dire situations."
"I see," Ezreal replied. "I'm just glad he's on our side."
"Me too. I don't know what I would do without him," Lux said with a smile while she gave Skarn another firm pat on his side.
"Yeah he can certainly scare off pesky guys that won't leave you alone," Ezreal said lightheartedly.
"Oh, unfortunately I do that well enough on my own," Lux quickly said back. "Guys are always too intimidated to approach me anyway….or that is what I've been told. It would be nice if one would though."
There was a long pause before a confused Ezreal said, "I thought you and Garen were…."
"Look at that!" Graves said pointing towards the ground and interrupting Ezreal before he could finish.
The group looked where Graves had mentioned and was greeted by a horrible sight.
"Look at the size of it. They must have brought their entire army," said Ezreal obviously in shock.
As the group looked on, they saw waves and waves of Noxus soldiers marching in formation towards Demacia. Soldiers, large and small, were covered in pitch black armor and carried weaponry ranging from swords to massive battle axes. Periodically throughout the formation there was one unfortunate soldier who was burdened with carrying a large flag that rose above the crowd which brandished Noxus' crest.
"Looks like they brought out the big guns too," Graves said motioning to the back of the formation.
Four massive catapults rolled along bringing up the rear of the formation. Attached to the back of each catapult was a cage that housed many different barrels each of which gave off an eerie glow. Adding to the glow were giant rock sentinels who were tasked with pushing the catapults towards their destination. The beings were made completely out of stone and were seemingly held together by the very magic that allowed them to give off the blue hued light.
"Those barrels are filled with Singed's weapon," Ezreal said immediately after noticing the catapults. "We have to destroy them before they can do any damage."
"I can't bring Skarn down there now," Lux said quickly. "We will be overrun even with him helping us."
"I know," Ezreal replied. "We have to hurry back to Demacia and fight with them."
"Looks like it will be one heck of a fight," Graves said chiming in to the conversation. "Look who they've got leading them."
Ezreal, Lux, and Teemo noticed different figures standing on the front of each catapult. Looking closer they noticed the faces of none other than Swain, Draven, and some other man Ezreal didn't recognize who was holding an imposing guillotine style axe.
Ezreal shook his head at the sight of Swain and Draven, but then asked, "Who is the man with the axe?"
"Darius," said both Lux and Graves in perfect unison. Their tone was shaky as if fear completely surrounded the name.
"He is Draven's older brother. But don't put much into their relation to one another. Darius isn't flashy and careless like Draven. He is the most ruthless fighter in all of Noxus," Lux said.
"Maybe in all of Runeterra," Graves added. "You don't want to be at the other end of his blade. He won't let up and mercy isn't in his vocabulary."
"I see," Ezreal said now utterly terrified of this new man. Ezreal watched as the man stood stoically on the catapult looking straight ahead in the direction of Demacia. He never moved an inch.
"I don't see Karthas though," Lux said sounding surprised.
"Oh, he's there," Ezreal quickly responded with malice in his voice. "Those sentinels are his creation. I just know it."
As the words left Ezreal's lips, Lux pulled on Skarn's reins and he lifted higher above the clouds and out of sight of Noxus' army. She then tapped Skarn with her feet signaling him to travel faster towards Demacia.
"We have to hurry," Lux said pure determination in her voice.
Before long, Ezreal could see the stone towers of Demacia peeking above the horizon and for once he wasn't sure if he felt relieved or terrified. Before he had time to figure it out, Skarn was hovering above the city and working on his descent. With surprising grace, Skarn came to a stop in one of Demacia's courtyards and lowered his wings to allow the group to slide down. Teemo and Graves slid down first followed by Ezreal. Coming behind them was Lux, but not before she patted her friend on the head and thanked him for his service.
Before the group even had time to regroup, Ezreal could see a rather bulky man riding a horse in their direction. Ezreal quickly noticed the man was Garen.
"Lux, I am so glad you are safe!" Garen exclaimed as he leaped from his horse and stood in front of the group. "I saw Skarn and knew…"
"I'm fine Garen, thanks," Lux replied cutting him off. "But, we have bigger problems. Noxus' army is on their way here."
"I know," Garen responded. "Our scouts reported it not too long before you arrived. We are gathering our men as we speak."
"Let us help you," Lux begged.
"Absolutely not," Garen retorted as if he were an overprotective father. "Our army will take it from here. We have fought Noxus before."
"Not like this," Ezreal barked. He watched as Garen quickly turned on him with a scowl on his face.
"How so?" Garen asked.
"The weapon that you and Jarvan wanted me to locate, well they have it and they are bringing it to your doorstep," Ezreal explained. "We believe it is within barrels that they plan on launching via catapults."
"Let us help you," Lux begged once again. "We know what it is capable of. Your men don't."
Garen paused and it was obvious to Ezreal that he was in deep thought. Garen's eyes traveled from Ezreal and Lux down to Teemo and then back over to Graves who was busy lighting yet another cigar.
Garen, who was still eyeballing Teemo, said to Lux, "So this is what? Your merry band of fighters? And they are supposed to know how to beat this weapon?"
Lux looked back Ezreal, Teemo, and Graves with a smile and said, "Yes. They are my friends and some of the best fighters I know."
Garen, who was now motioning to two nearby knights, said, "Fine, you, Ezreal and the yordle can help, but I am taking him into custody."
Garen nodded to the knights and motioned towards Graves, "Malcolm Graves you are hereby under arrest for your crimes against Demacia. You have the right…"
"Whoa, now. I ain't goin nowhere," Graves said lifting his shotgun and pointing it at the approaching knights.
"Lower your weapon, now!" Garen yelled at Graves as he slowly reached back towards his sword.
"Garen!" Lux yelled taken aback by what she was hearing. "What are you…"
"This man is a criminal, Lux, and I won't have him running free around this city," Garen retorted.
Lux and Ezreal immediately stood in between Graves and the knights blocking off the line of sight between the two.
"I won't let you do this," an angry Ezreal said.
"Neither will I," Lux echoed not breaking eye contact with Garen. "Graves saved our lives. Without him we wouldn't be standing here."
Graves looked at Garen and allowed a smirk to cross his face. He lowered his shotgun and waited for the next move.
After a few moments of frustrated facial expressions and blank stares, Garen raised his hand and ordered the knights to stand down.
"Fine," Garen finally said anger obvious in his voice. "But if causes any problems it is on all of your heads."
"Don't think I won't deal with you later," Garen said now staring Graves down who still wore a smirk.
Suddenly, a loud ringing filled the streets of Demacia and the two knights darted back towards the city gates. Garen turned towards the sound worry present across his face.
"Noxus is here," he said to the group. "If you four really know how to beat this weapon then follow me. We have to get to the gates."
Ezreal, Lux, Teemo, and Graves followed Garen through the crowd of panic struck Demacian citizens who were running in every direction for some sort of cover. The ringing of the nearby bell and the screaming of citizens made it hard to hear anything else, but Ezreal didn't need to hear to know where to go. As they neared the front of Demacia, Ezreal began to witness the Demacian army in all its might. Hundreds of soldiers dressed in silver armor filled the streets as they made it to their posts outside the city walls. Though they had seen the Noxus' army from overhead, it wasn't until now when he was on the ground with the soldiers that the gravity of his situation really hit Ezreal. He was about to fight in a war with real soldiers. He began to panic; his mind raced and his heart beat harder than it ever had before.
Ezreal looked to his friends and found a surprising peace in their demeanor. Teemo had his goggles over his eyes, his backpack on tight, and his blowgun at the ready. Lux had tightened her armor and her wand was within arm's length. Graves had filled his belt with fresh canisters and was busy loading two of them into his trusty shotgun. If any of his friends were scared they didn't show it. Ezreal nodded and steeled himself. He needed focus more than ever now and worry would only hinder him. He looked to the gauntlet on his hand and realized that it had never let him down before. Not only that, but it had made him stronger than he could have ever imagined. He gave it a twist and wiggled his fingers. He was ready.
Bringing him back to reality was the voice of Garen yelling over the crowd, "We have to get to the front. Noxus is in view now."
As they proceeded through the massive front gates of the city, Ezreal could see the Noxus army approaching like a gigantic, dark tidal wave of terror. The Demacian soldiers had fallen into perfect formation making it easy to keep up with Garen as he continued to the front.
Once at the front, they were greeted by another familiar face.
"Hello, again," said Jarvan who looked rather intimidating. He was standing in armor as gold as the sun with black spikes emanating from the shoulders and arms. Atop is head rested a helmet in the same gold armor supporting a blue crystal in the center while leaving only his face to be seen. At his side was his trusty lance that had seen him through so many battles before now. Ezreal noticed that he wasn't scared or nervous at all rather he was completely at peace.
"I am glad you four have come to help," Jarvan said. "We will need all we can get."
Pride swelled inside Ezreal as he heard the words from Jarvan. All his fears and anxieties melted away while immediately being replaced with courage. They were going to defeat Noxus, he could feel it.
Just before Noxus was in range of their archers, Jarvan turned to his army and said, "We shall not fall on this day! Know that you are the pride of Demacia! You are her defenders! And you will vanquish any foe that threatens her walls!"
The army cheered as Jarvan started again, "Fight to your dying breath men! Noxus cannot be allowed to blanket out all that is good in this world!"
The soldiers continued to cheer as Jarvan turned and said to Garen, "On my mark."
Garen removed his sword from his back and held it high above his head. Like a well-oiled machine, each Demacian soldier locked their shields and created an impenetrable wall of metal. The archers on the walls took aim and readied their bows.
Within the Noxus ranks, Jericho Swain stood unimpressed with the army the Demacian's presented. He knew that he had the upper hand to win this fight in one swift blow. The Demacian's, in his mind, would not be able to resist his new weapon.
Swain looked to Darius and Draven and said, "Charge."
Without hesitation, the wave of black armor charged towards Demacia at full force. Every Noxian soldier craving Demacian blood.
"Now," Jarvan said to Garen.
"Fire!" Garen yelled to his archers as he swung his massive broadsword towards the Noxians.
The archers released sending a hail of arrows careening through the sky towards the onslaught. As the arrows fell, many hit their mark forcing various Noxus soldiers to the ground while others fell harmlessly or bounced off the black armor.
Swain laughed over the commotion as he urged his warriors on. Once the catapults were in range he would show Demacia the full force that Noxus had to offer.
Suddenly, Jarvan lifted his lance, held it in front of his body, and yelled, "For Demacia!"
The Demacian army charged, meeting the Noxians head on. Swords slashed, metal clanged, and it wasn't long before both ranks had been broken apart as warriors on both sides fought to the death.
Ezreal quickly found himself separated from Jarvan, Garen, and the rest of his friends amongst the fighting. He watched as Demacian soldiers clashed with Noxian soldiers. All around him personal battles were being forged and within seconds decided. Luckily, he had fallen back and wasn't on the front line when the battle ensued, giving him time to soak everything in. He had never been in a full on war before and it was hitting him hard.
Ezreal didn't have long to remain in his stupor as the ranks were quickly breaking apart. A Noxian solider locked eyes with Ezreal, raised his shield, and without warning charged in his direction. Ezreal's first instinct was to run as fast as he could back towards the city, but he resisted and stood firm. That Ezreal, the one who only looked after himself, was gone now. He had something to fight for and fight he would.
Ezreal raised his gauntlet, but before he could fire a shot, the soldier closed in and swung his sword. Ezreal teleported away from the attack and to the soldier's side while delivering a swift kick into the soldier's shield. Before he could recover, Ezreal launched several energy bolts into the soldier's chest sending him flailing into the mud below. Once he realized he had bested the soldier, Ezreal lowered his gauntlet and a smile surprisingly covered his face.
He could do this. Courage swelled in his chest and adrenaline flowed through his body as he turned to see two more Noxian soldiers approaching his position. With ease he teleported around their attacks forcing them to swing at nothing, but thin air. He turned and launched several more bolts dispatching the soldiers with ease.
Looking down at his gauntlet he realized that he had to pace himself. Though the gauntlet made his attacks powerful, they still took a lot out of him. This was going to be a long fight and he had to conserve as much energy as he could. As he looked back towards the dark wave of Noxus soldiers, he realized the catapults were almost in range. He had to get to either Jarvan or Garen and warn them about the weapon and what it could do.
His head on a swivel, Ezreal began to scan the battleground looking for any signs of Jarvan or Garen, but none was to be seen. In the distance he could hear the booms from Graves' shotgun, the squeals of pain from Teemo's toxin, and the explosions of light from Lux's wand. As he continued to scan the area he finally saw what he was looking for. Tossing soldiers like they were ragdolls, Ezreal caught a glimpse of the top of Jarvan's lance and he hurried in that direction dodging attacks as he ran.
"Jarvan!" Ezreal yelled as he ran.
"Jarvan!"
It was no use. Jarvan couldn't hear Ezreal over the sounds of the fight, so Ezreal pressed on.
Dodging a swing of his Lance, Ezreal said, "Jarvan, I have to tell you something about the catapults."
"I almost took your head off, Ezreal!" Jarvan said in a scolding manner. "Are you okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine, but I've got to tell you something about the catapults," Ezreal repeated.
"They aren't normal catapults," Ezreal said as he listened to the cranking of chains and large wheels in the distance.
"What do you mean?" Jarvan asked looking over Ezreal's shoulders as the catapults rolled into striking range.
"They plan to use them to launch their weapon. It's a chemical. It will turn your soldiers…"
"Look out!" Jarvan yelled as he yanked Ezreal by his shirt and dove out of the way of the oncoming blast.
Ezreal hacked and coughed before wiping the dirt off his face. As he stood, he saw that the catapults were now launching barrel's full of the chemical weapon into the center of the Demacian forces.
"Thanks for pulling me out of the way, Jarvan," Ezreal said still staring at the catapults in the distance. "We can't let that stuff touch us or we will….Jarvan?"
Ezreal turned to see Jarvan hunched over in pain, his hands were gripping his head which was firmly planted against the ground.
"Jarvan, are you…okay?" Ezreal said as he approached the warrior carefully.
Jarvan didn't respond, but looking around Ezreal noticed many of the Demacian soldiers in his vicinity had already turned into gnarling, gnashing creatures that began to lash out at anything in their path. The chemical worked as intended and Ezreal was surrounded.
The creatures closed in on Ezreal faster than he expected. With gauntlet at the ready, he sent bolts of energy careening in every direction chopping the beasts as they stood. One by one they fell, but Ezreal was losing the fight. There were too many for him to take alone and in moments he would be overtaken. As he continued to fire, one of the creatures grabbed his arm from behind and spun him like a top. He was caught off guard and the creature raised its claws to charge.
At the last second, a massive lance shot through the creature's chest stopping right before it impaled Ezreal as well. With a swift flick, the creature was thrown to the side.
"Jarvan!" Ezreal exclaimed with a mix of excitement and horror in his voice.
Ezreal now knew why he hadn't been injured by the barrel blast. Jarvan had used his body to shield Ezreal, but as a result he was covered in the vile toxin. Jarvan's skin was melting from the bone and his armor, what hadn't been blown off, was now infused to his body. He was supporting himself by his lance and Ezreal could tell he was trying his best to fight off the toxin's effects.
"You have…to tell…Garen," Jarvan managed to say through pained words.
"But Jarvan…"
"Go!" Jarvan yelled as he began to cut down the nearby creatures. He was using what little strength he had left to cut Ezreal a path.
Sorrow gripped his chest, but Ezreal didn't have time to argue. He ran behind Jarvan and through the path only stopping for a second to look over his shoulder as the valiant warrior fought to his last breath. Ezreal shut his eyes and darted away in the direction he hoped to find Garen.
Ezreal ran with all his might, dodging nearby barrel blasts and the gnashing ghouls. He had no sense of direction and was running blindly through the chaos. Just as he was giving up hope he heard a familiar voice.
"I ain't got time to bleed you worthless flesh bags."
Graves! Ezreal thought to himself. As he pushed through a few more Demacian warriors, relief flooded his mind. Graves, Lux, and Garen had found each other and they had rallied a group of Demacian soldiers to fight back the onslaught.
He ran over and heard Lux say, "Ezreal! You're safe!"
"Yes, and I am so glad to see all of you. We have to take out those catapults," Ezreal said.
"Garen, the weapon…."
"I know what it does," Garen said interrupting Ezreal. "Lux explained. Where is Jarvan?"
Ezreal paused trying to find the correct words to say. He stared straight at Garen and said, "He's dead."
Garen's eyes grew wide as he only stared back at Ezreal. Rebounding after mere seconds, Garen said, "That means I am in full command. So, let's take out those catapults."
"Look out!" Lux said pointing at the nearest catapult. It had been loaded and was pointed in their direction.
There was no time to move. They were standing directly in the path of the barrel and they would be completely covered with the weaponized toxin. The group watched as the catapult was released, slinging its neck upwards towards the sky. Without thinking, Ezreal raised his gauntlet, took aim, and released a massive crescent energy blast straight at the attacking catapult.
The energy blast connected, chopping the neck of the catapult like a twig and sending its attack careening down on itself. As the barrel exploded, it finished off what was left of the catapult and spilled over onto the Noxian soldiers. Just as was the Demacian soldier's fate, so was that of the Noxians. They began to lash out at one another and fight amongst themselves.
Swain scowled and ordered the infected soldiers to be dealt with immediately. The Noxian's were ruthless and cut down their own without hesitation.
"That's one!" Lux said with excitement. "Great thinking, Ezreal!"
Ezreal blushed, but was quickly brought back to reality as Garen said, "We still have three more to deal with and another one is loaded and ready."
"Leave that to me," Graves said from behind the group as he was loading a rather large shell into his shotgun.
Graves cocked his gun and heaved it up into position.
"Only got one of these left. You may want to back up."
Lux, Ezreal, and Garen backed away right before a giant fiery blast flew out of Graves' shotgun nearly burning everyone around. Graves was launched off his feet in the opposite direction as the fireball was sent torpedoing towards the catapult. As the shell collided, the catapult exploded and immediately burst into flames. Noxian soldiers fled trying to escape the inferno, but it was too late for some as they were already severely burnt or dismembered.
"They picked the wrong fight," Graves said lowering the now heavily smoking gun.
"Excellent!" Garen yelled before flinching at the sound of one of the other catapults launching another attack.
Spinning on their heels, the group saw Lux who was floating slightly above the ground and had fired a beam of pure burning light towards one of the remaining catapults. The power from the beam cut through the massive weapon with ease sending it crashing to the ground.
"Good job, Lux!" Garen exclaimed.
"There is still one more!" Lux yelled as she gasped trying to regain some strength.
"Can any of you do those attacks again?" Garen turned to ask the group.
Each member shook their head no and Graves said, "That was my last collateral shell and these two need to regain strength."
Garen turned and looked on worriedly at the last catapult. It continued to be loaded and soon it would continue its barrage on his men.
"Looks like that's all they could muster," Swain said with a menacing laugh. "Fire, now!"
The massive chain cranked as another barrel was loaded into position. Just before the catapult was released, hundreds of tiny explosions rang from its sides as squeals of pain followed closely behind. Noxian soldiers rushed from the catapult gripping their eyes in terrible pain. Purple acid spread over the catapult's chains and gears and began to melt them away instantly making the weapon inoperable.
The group cheered as Garen said, "That was brilliant!"
"Guess we know where Teemo has been," said Ezreal with a chuckle.
Moments later the childish laugh in which he had first heard in the Howling Marsh and had become so familiar with rang through his ears. Shortly after, Teemo appeared in front of them with blow dart in hand.
"Teemo! You are amazing!" Lux squealed at the sight of the little yordle. Teemo gave off a big smile and puffed out his chest.
"We still aren't out of the woods yet. Look," Graves said pointing towards the Noxian generals.
Swain, the target of Graves' concern, stood brimming with rage amongst his now completely destroyed catapults. Though the catapults were gone, he found solace in the fact that the weapon worked as intended. An evil smile stretched across his face as he noticed the numbers of Demacian soldiers who had been turned into ravaging monsters. They now outnumbered their old comrades and were closing in on Garen's army at an alarming rate. Soon, the Demacians would be fighting a war on all fronts.
As Swain's anger faded, another idea came to mind, "Karthas!" Swain yelled.
After a few moments the ragged mage appeared at his side, the crystal on his staff glowing a bright blue.
"You called, Swain?" Karthas asked annoyance obvious in his voice.
"Yes, I'm in need of your…assistance," Swain said maliciously. "With the catapults down I need another delivery method. Order your golems to hurl them over the walls. We should be close enough now for their range."
"Shouldn't the golems be used to fight them Demacians?" Karthas questioned.
Swain turned on Karthas, rage ever present once again.
"Do not question my strategy," Swain snapped.
"As you wish," Karthas replied. With a wave of his staff each golem left the catapult in which it had been tasked to push and began to gather the remaining barrels. Because of the golem's size it could fit a barrel in each hand.
Karthas waved his staff again and the stone giants stormed towards the walls of Demacia.
"Take them out!" Garen yelled to his archers who still dotted the walls.
The group watched as waves of arrows pelted the golems only to fall harmlessly to the ground. Once the golems had nearly reached the walls they reared back and began to chunk the barrels full of the deadly toxin over to the citizens below.
All Garen could do was stare as his city was now being completely infected. One barrel was thrown too shallow and exploded amongst the archers. Horrendous monsters immerged forcing the archers to remove their attention from the golems and onto this new, more personal threat.
"Garen! Garen!" Ezreal yelled as he shook the commander.
Once Ezreal had pulled him out of his trance he said, "We have to fall back now! We are nearly surrounded out here and we have to protect the city."
"Right," Garen replied.
"Fall back!" Garen yelled to his remaining men. "Fall back into the city! We cannot let Demacia fall!"
Swain smiled as he watched the Demacians scamper back behind their walls. Nothing was going to stop him from finally overcoming his old enemy.
"That's why I'm in charge," Swain said to Karthas who didn't acknowledge the advance.
"Press on into the city!" Swain yelled with his raspy voice. "Have no mercy!"
"And you two," Swain said to Draven and Darius who were at his side, "go have fun."
Draven smiled showing off his sparkling teeth and said, "Oh I will."
Darius' facial expression remained unchanged as he was deadlocked on his destination and merely made his way towards the gates.
Garen, Ezreal, Lux, Teemo, and Graves barely made it through the front gates of Demacia before they were slammed shut. Immediately, they could hear the beatings coming from the other side.
"That won't hold for long," Garen said.
Ezreal looked around at the once beautiful city. Toxic liquid and the fumes that it gave off covered the city and citizens were running panicked in every direction. Smoke rose from burning fires while brick and mortar covered the streets. What Ezreal could only assume was the final barrels were still being launched over the walls. As he looked, he noticed that many citizens were beginning to turn into unrecognizable monsters.
"We've got to clear the city," Ezreal finally said.
Garen merely gave an unsure look as Ezreal continued, "Some citizens have already succumbed to the gas and if we don't act we will be fighting an even bigger foe within our walls."
"Agreed," Garen finally said. "I'll remain at the gates with my men and hold it as long as I can. All of you go and protect the remaining of Demacia's citizens."
Ezreal turned to look at his friends who were all waiting for the plan, "Alright, we need to split up. Each of you pick a direction and clear any of those ghouls that you come across. Be careful though they can overwhelm you quickly."
He watched as they all darted off into different directions and disappeared into the city. Ezreal then picked his path and with a deep breath ran steadfast in that direction.
As he ran, Ezreal could hear the screams of terror and panic echo through the city. Smoke from both the gas and nearby fires made it hard to see, while bells and explosions rang in the distance, and gargled growls followed reminding Ezreal that he wasn't far from danger. Before long, Ezreal found himself in the center of Demacia. He stopped to momentarily catch his breath only to realize that he hadn't come across a single person. This part of town was eerily abandoned and Ezreal was starting to get a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.
Jerking him out of his own thoughts was a blood curdling scream coming from a nearby ally. Ezreal rushed down an ally in the direction of the scream. Not even half way down the narrow corridor, he saw a woman pressed against the back wall pinned in by a group of citizens who had been turned by Noxus' weapon.
"Hey, down here you freaks!" Ezreal yelled gaining the attention of the monsters.
Without hesitation, they charged at Ezreal with surprising speed. Easy shots, Ezreal thought to himself as he lifted his gauntlet. Because they were in such a narrow alley, there was no way Ezreal would miss his mark. Ezreal fired off several energy shots cutting down the monsters before they could reach him.
He smiled, proud of himself, but it was quickly dashed when another scream rang through his ears. The woman was still in trouble. He failed to get the attention of all the monsters and the last remaining one was now barely being held off by the frightened woman. Ezreal raised his gauntlet again and took aim. This time, however, he had to be more accurate as there was at least twenty yards in between him and his target and little room for error as he didn't want to hit the woman.
Ezreal took a deep breath, focused, and finally shot a bolt of energy straight down the alley. Within seconds, it connected with the ghoul and separated its head from its body. Ezreal let out a sigh of relief and ran over to console the frightened woman.
"Are you okay?" Ezreal asked the woman who only nodded through dulled whimpers. "Let's get you out of here."
Ezreal helped the woman to her feet and they made their way down the alley back towards the center of Demacia. In the distance explosions could be heard from more barrels being flung over the walls. As they neared the opening of the alley, Ezreal quickly realized they were in deep trouble. All around them the once human, but now ghoulish creatures began to surround them in impressing numbers.
They must have heard her screams, Ezreal thought to himself trying to remain calm. He had already used a significant amount of his energy and hadn't had the time to rest. On top of that, all of the guards in the city had been called to the front gates in order to prepare for the impending attack. Ezreal looked for any possible escape, but could find none. His only option of survival would be to leave the woman to her own grisly fate and never in a million years would he even consider it.
He could hear the woman whimper again and he tried to be consoling while maintaining eye contact with the monsters. He knew that if he made any sudden movement they would charge. Ezreal forced himself to stand between the mob of monsters and the woman and raised his gauntlet. If he was going to die here and now he was going to make sure that he took some of them with him.
Before the monsters had a chance to charge, Ezreal decided to strike first. He began letting off bursts of energy in every direction cutting the monsters in half before they got close. One after another fell, but the group was massive. Any second Ezreal would give out and he and the woman would be done for.
Just as he was tiring out and the mob began to close in on them even more, Ezreal caught, out of the corner of his eye, a bright shining light high above in the sky. Suddenly, as if a comet had come whizzing down from space, an object crashed in the center of the monsters crushing them or sending them off into various directions. Ezreal covered his eyes to shield himself from the rock and dust that was now settling over a newfound crater in the center of town. Once clear, Ezreal looked up to see familiar and very welcomed face.
"Galio!" Ezreal yelled with excitement. Standing in front of him was the colossal, stone gargoyle that had shown him how to unlock his powers at the very beginning of his journey.
"Did you think I was going to let you become ghoul food?" Galio said letting out a chuckle. Though he had destroyed many of the fleshy monsters, they were trying their best to bring down the disinterested Galio.
"You couldn't have come at a better time," Ezreal replied relief in his voice.
"You know what's hard about fighting?" Galio asked as he swatted the ghouls away as if they were bothersome ants. "Nothing! I'm made of stone."
Ezreal couldn't help, but to laugh. Whether he actually found it funny or if he was just relieved not to be dead he didn't know. All he was sure of now was that he and the woman were safe.
As Galio finished clearing the ghouls he turned to Ezreal and asked, "What is going on in this city? Here I was peacefully sleeping and I was woken by the most terrible explosions. I came outside only to be greeted with chaos. That's when I saw you about to meet an unpleasant fate at the hand of these….things."
"The city is under attack by Noxus," Ezreal quickly replied. "And the ghouls are their design."
"Noxus?!" Galio said with a gasp. "This close to Demacia? We must act!"
"All of the remaining Demacian forces are at the front gate," Ezreal replied.
"Then that is where we will go. Climb on," Galio said kneeling down to allow Ezreal to climb on his back.
Before climbing up, Ezreal turned to the woman and said, "You're going to be fine now. Get to the library. You will be safe in there."
The woman nodded and ran off towards the library just as Ezreal had instructed. Without warning, Galio shot off towards the sky and in the direction of the gate.
Within seconds Galio landed amongst the Demacian soldiers who were all gathered at the gate. Ezreal could tell that though large and imposing the gates could only handle so much abuse. It was only a matter of time before the Noxus army came flooding through.
"Good to see you, Galio," Garen said walking up behind the pair.
"Garen," Galio said with a nod. "I had no idea the state of the city. I am here to help as much as I can."
"We need Ezreal's friends. They were tasked, like Ezreal, to find survivors, but we need their help here. Do you think you can find them?" Garen asked.
"But of course. How many are there?" Galio asked Garen.
"Three others. Lux, Graves, and Teemo," said Garen.
Galio nodded and took to the sky disappearing as a mere gleam in the sky.
Garen turned his attention to Ezreal, "We have to take out Karthas. He is the one controlling those golems and with the remaining force we have left those things will carve through us if not taken down quickly. Can you do that?"
Garen was staring more intently at Ezreal than he had ever seen before. It was at this moment Ezreal knew Garen valued him. If Ezreal failed to defeat Karthas, the golems would live on and Demacia would fall.
Without hesitation Ezreal replied, "Consider it done."
Breaking their conversation was Galio who had reappeared behind them, his targets in tow. Ezreal stared and marveled at his rocky friend who had not only located his friends, but had managed to return them all at one time. Graves and Teemo looked worse for wear as Graves had been clinging to the gargoyles back while little Teemo held onto his ankles for dear life. Meanwhile, Lux was set down gracefully after being airlifted with ease nestled within the grasp of Galio's massive arms.
"Your friends," Galio said presenting his find.
"Wonderful. Thank you, Galio," Garen responded.
"We managed to get a few people to safety," Lux said to the group.
"Yeah and we cleared out some of those gnarling jerks too," Graves added as he regained his footing.
The front gates continued to jeer and moan as Demacian warriors tried with all their strength to keep in intact.
"Okay listen up," Garen said rallying the group. "We don't have a lot of time so here is the plan. Those golems will eat us alive if we don't take them down, so that's our first priority."
"Galio," Garen said looking at the stoic gargoyle. "Can you keep those golems busy and away from my soldiers?"
"Of course. They are merely a weaker version of me," Galio quickly responded.
"Okay. If Galio can keep them busy Lux, Graves, Teemo, and I will focus on the Noxus soldiers along with Swain, Draven, and Darius. Take your shots if the opportunity presents itself, but don't act careless," Garen explained.
"What about Ezreal?" Lux asked.
"His sole purpose is to kill Karthas," Garen said as he gave Ezreal a reassuring look and a nod. Everyone looked at Ezreal who, for the first time, was feeling a little nervous.
"Once Karthas dies those golems should fall apart. It is his magic that is keeping them alive. Once that happens Noxus will be out of tricks," Garen said as the rest of the group nodded in agreeance. "Now get ready."
As everyone was taking their places, Lux walked over to Ezreal, gave him a kiss on the cheek, and said, "Go get him!"
The nerves were gone. Ezreal steeled himself and focused on what he had to do. Failure was not an option. He wasn't fighting just for himself, but for Demacia and all of his friends.