Hey all it's me again, Just to let you guys know I'll try to post at least once a week, hoping to aim for twice a week. Steph and I have been working on another fanfic so if anyones interested in a love triangle with the setting of Akali is the princess and Zed and Shen are two guards, just send me a private message/review and if enough people are interested I'll let Steph know. Exams are coming up but hopefully I'll still be able to post. Hopefully you enjoy the chapter!

For a bit of context, the box that Zed refers to is the artifact that Zed used in the lore to discover the secrets of the shadows.

Edit: Sorry guys, if you noticed a double part of Zed's that made him OOC, it was because I didn't catch that when I was editing.

Chapter 2

Akali wasn't aware that she drifted off until she woke up to the sound of footsteps. She didn't like letting her guard down in the prison and her sleep was light but without rest, there was no way her composure would hold for her entire stay, which she assumed would be quite long. Without a way of getting up or stretching, her body was stiff and she had little idea of how she would escape.

Zed walked into the room and stopped directly in front of her. He was deathly quiet and she was slumped against the wall, her eyes closed and she looked asleep but very uncomfortable… Mocking her, he yawned lazily and loudly when he reached up to cup her face and started pinching her cheeks to get her to be more alert. He teleported with his shadow to just outside the room and picked up a glass of water. He switched places again, appearing instantly in front of her and let her drink some cool water out of the glass after he took a gulp to show her it wasn't poisoned. When she was done, he set the glass on the table from yesterday and began undoing her cuffs on her legs.

Akali looked up at Zed a little groggily. His cheek pinching helped her wake up by causing anger to rush into her veins. She sent him a glare before he teleported away and gave him a suspicious look as he brought the glass back. After she was sure it was safe to drink, she gulped its contents down, some of the water dribbling down the sides of her mouth. She couldn't exactly wipe it away so she left it there and watched with surprise as Zed undid her bindings.

Wiping her face with his sleeve, he laughed mockingly at her. Zed said derisively "You're just like a baby" and continued to undo her bindings for her legs. He did however bark for a servant to come in and a heavy pair of manacles were brought out. He quickly attached it to her leg and his so that she couldn't run away. Then he undid the bindings on her arms. Zed outwardly relaxed as she was freed, challenging her wordlessly as a sneer appeared on his face.

Akali's lips twitched into a frown for a second before it disappeared. She didn't dignify herself with an answer and just stayed still as the manacles were put onto her legs. She felt relief that she could finally move as her wrist cuffs came off and stretched painfully to get rid of the knots in her muscles. She didn't jump out at Zed as it would be too predictable if she did, so she settled with eyeing him distrustfully.

Zed barely waited for her to stretch before roughly pulling her along, a painful hold on her wrist while a shadow dashed behind her and Zed's student placed a bag over her head. Zeds hand was firmly on her wrist and he began pulling her, jerking her along. She tried to hit him and he instinctively dodged, but realizing the waste of time it was he kept walking. Her hand hit into his armour and he sneered at her foolish decision. After about ten more minutes of forceful dragging, he smirked and jumped into a small pool of water, pulling her down with him.

Akali didn't sense the shadow in time since her aching muscles were such a distraction. The moment she felt the movement, the bag was already making its way over her eyes and she was left in the dark. She felt Zed's hand clamp down on her wrist and she used her other hand to punch him in the face. She missed, of course. He was dodging every swing she tried to make at him. She hit him once in the chest but that only hurt her. His armour served him well. Reluctantly, she walked with him, dragging her feet so that she could be difficult without earning a punishment. After a while, she was debating whether or not to speak to ask him questions he wouldn't answer. She never had a chance to decide when she felt a violent tug on her arm as she was pulled downwards. Next thing she knew, she hit the water's surface and went under.

Zed broke the surface and shook his head, pulling off the mask while he was at it. He pushed on Akali's head under the water, making sure that she couldn't come up for air. When she started struggling intensely, he let her take a breath before pushing her face down under. He repeated this process two more times and when she came up for air, he roughly shoved her against the sharp rocks and growled "Where's my box?"

Akali had little time to appreciate the fact that she could see again. She realized that Zed had a firm hold on her, making sure she couldn't resurface for oxygen. She couldn't see his face but she could feel his touch and she saw the sharp rocks at the bottom of the body of water they were in. Her lungs were starting to burn and no matter how much she resisted, Zed wasn't letting up. Before she started swallowing the water in a desperate attempt for air, she was pulled up. She took a deep breath immediately and was about to whirl around on Zed when he pushed her under again. He did this again and again, each time only bringing her back up when she thought she was dying. Her brain was not doing well with the lack of oxygen and her lungs ached when she was allowed to come up for air for the final time. She heard his question but refused to answer even as the rocks cut into her skin.

Zed pressed against her even harder, growling again as she didn't answer. Glaring at her, he sent waves of irritation and killing intent, enough that would make an ordinary assassin quail with terror… But. None of that showed from her. She just stared at him defiantly and he held back a sigh of irritation. He said his voice soft and menacing "why the fuck are you so stubborn". Pulling out his blades, he quickly cut her clothes to pieces as she was still recovering so that she was fully naked. He turned away but kept her in his vision as he muttered "go take a bath. You fucking stink.". He walked away, turning to smile at her with an unnatural kindness. "If this is how this is gonna be.. You better be prepared for everything". His voice started out warm but by the end of it, it was low and warped.

Akali stayed quiet as the rocks dug into her harder. When it seemed he had given up, the tiniest surge of triumphance went through her as she resurfaced. To have survived and gotten through that torture session made her heart swell. It had been difficult to endure and now her lungs burned, but she fucking did it! Zed's hatred was rolling off him in waves but Akali just glared at him just as stubbornly. There was plenty of hatred within her for the man in front of her. She winced but gave Zed no reply as he cut her clothes. She was just trying to calm her breathing from his attempts to drown her. As he moved away, her weight shifted on the rocks; the adrenaline gave out on her and her legs turned to jelly. Her body hurt and it took her effort to straighten herself out. When he turned around, she met his gaze and her heart jumped when she heard the kind tone he used. It almost sounded like the man she once knew, but then his voice warped and that man was gone. A small shudder ran down her spine and the moment she could start moving again, she covered her private areas with her arms before she sat down in the water. She stared down at her reflection and washed herself slowly, not looking up at Zed once.

Zed was meditating with his eyes closed, half naked as he took off his armour and shirt because of the water. Despite his ruthlessness, despite everything that he had done, despite all of the people that he had killed… He felt.. strange about torturing her. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't eliminate this… feeling… He opened his eyes to glare at Akali, intending to intimidate her once more but when he saw her looking at him, he instinctively shifted his gaze to the side. What? "Are you finished?" Zed asked, his voice feeling strange.

Akali gave herself a mental pep talk before allowing herself to peek at Zed. She stared at him, not expecting him to be half naked. He still had his face mask on but she focused on his scars, specifically on the one caused by her in their younger days. Zed caught her staring and she turned away, her face warming a tad with embarrassment. "Yes," she called out coarsely in reply to his question. Her voice felt weird from the lack of usage.

He nodded and stood up, pulling on the chains. Pulling her forward, he grabbed a towel and threw it at her, toweling himself off as well. His eyes were on the ground, his demeanor cowed by the earlier feelings. Murmuring softly he said "Lemme know when you're done.". He stared down at the water, looking at his reflection with an empty expression. What is going on?

Akali moved towards him but kept herself underwater. She wasn't very comfortable with showing off her naked body. But having no choice but to reveal herself, she sucked it up and stood up from the water. Catching the towel Zed gave her, she dried herself off and made sure that he wasn't looking at her before continuing. She changed into the clothes he gave her quickly but she voiced her concern about getting her panties on with the manacles on her ankles. She said it in an emotionless way but the way she stood was obviously a defensive stance.

He glanced at her face, his face emotionless as more and more feelings swirled within him but he shook his head. "I'm not gonna unchain you." he said coldly but he picked up a towel and held it up as a curtain as he walked towards her. He called for another servant asking for a pair of handcuffs. Keeping his face blank, he asked the servant to hand it to her and told Akali "Cuff yourself, hands behind your back."

Her facade faltered as he neared her, going from stoic to slightly hesitant. Akali could feel her face heat up despite the towel that blocked her lower half. If Zed just glanced down once, he'd see her birthday suit, which she'd really rather not show him. It was already uncomfortable enough knowing that his servants and a few students could see her bare chest and butt cheeks. Not wanting to act difficult for pants that she really needed, she obediently moved her hands behind her back as the servant handcuffed her.

The moment she was cuffed, Zed dismissed the servant. He stared at Akalis face, his red eyes narrowing in confusion as a slight warmth appeared in his cheeks. He wanted to punch something. Averting his eyes, he sighed softly and closed them, kneeling on the ground and his hands brushed along the cold, rough rock on the floor. When his hand reached her foot, he slid his fingers along her skin barely touching her and then he touched smooth metal. Getting the key, he unlocked the manacles, preparing a shadow behind her just in case. Impatiently, he held out a hand snapping to hurry Akali as he waited for her panties.

Akali's blush darkened as Zed knelt before her with a hand on her leg and another hand waiting to receive her underwear. She dropped the article of clothing into his hand and tried to calm her heart by taking deep breaths. Their predicament was absolutely ridiculous and she hated the fact she couldn't put clothes on by herself. As she looked down at him, a thought crossed her mind, giving her the idea to knee him in the face and run for it. It was a stupid idea since his servants and students would catch her indefinitely, but just imagining the satisfaction of inflicting some pain back on him pleased her.

His hands trailed down her soft legs and… What is this? What is wrong with me? Moving down slowly along her legs, he lifted up her foot carefully so he could slip her panties on and he did so with the other leg. His rough calloused hands brushed against her legs as he pulled it up to her hips. Keeping his face impassive, he asked her "Do you still need help or can I open my eyes?"

Akali felt her face warm further as Zed trailed his hands down her legs and she had to take a long deep breath to not actually knee him in the face. She got into her underwear with Zed's help and she reluctantly muttered, "Don't open your eyes yet. You still need to help me with my pants." And don't touch my legs like that, she added as an afterthought.

He nodded without expression and held out his hand for her pants again. His face was deathly robotic and Zed was in the process of sorting out his emotions. It's been a long time since i've felt anything besides anger… So what is this feeling in me? Lust?

Akali was a little glad that despite his desire for information and his attempts at drowning her painfully, he still had some smidgen of respect for her and decency to keep his eyes closed. Too bad his hands still liked to wander. Handing him the article of clothing, she continued to stare down at him. It almost felt like he was a servant helping her change. Almost. Her handcuffs and aching lungs didn't agree with her.

Zed was mulling his thoughts over as he repeated the same thing as before. His hands trailed up and down her legs, touching her bare skin slowly, grazing against them. Finally he pulled up her pants, pulling them rather quickly and his hands rested on her hips for a tad longer than necessary. Zed angled his face up, his eyes still closed and he waited silently for her to give him the ok.

Akali was not fond of all the contact he was making. Most of it was quite unnecessary. It was too sensual a deed and she really hoped he wasn't getting turned on by it. When her shorts were on and Zed had his hands on her hips, she looked down at him and her blush returned. It was just such an awkward situation. "It's on," she said.

He opened his eyes and looked at her, his eyes bright and a scar that stretched from just below his right eye down his cheek glinted in the dim light. He glanced at the manacles and cuffed her again, standing up and taking a few steps back. What the fuck just happened to me? He took a deep breath and turned around, dragging the manacles back to put on his armour and mask. When that was done he walked to Akali gracefully, almost like a predator and stopped in front of her for just a moment before he walked around her and undid her cuffs. It appeared he had something on his mind as he began to lead Akali back to the prison cell without a word towards her.

Akali looked down at his intense red eyes. It could easily instill fear into hearts but right then they were stunning. Not in the attractive way, but in a way that made her want to keep staring. She kept her eyes on him as he attached the manacles on her and looked away only when he got dressed. If he gave her that decency then he deserved the same. Her gaze automatically went to him when he was done and although he walked to her rather menacingly, she wasn't scared. For some odd reason, she couldn't feel very afraid of him after he was just so vulnerable to her. That fact made her a little antsy but she was otherwise unfazed. It nearly felt like a temporary truce, but Akali knew he'd hurt her again sooner or later. She stayed still as he undid her cuffs and when they were off, she did a quick stretch for her arms.

Zed walked silently as he led him back to her cell. He was.. He was very confused by himself and he was trying to analyze it. They walked about a minute or so before Zed stopped dead in his tracks and Akali bumped into him. Turning around with irritation, he took out his blade and cut a long strip from his shirt and he tied it around Akali's eyes. It was a very dark cloth but he cut another strip and tied it again around her eyes. Gripping her painfully tight, he led her randomly along the complex, going around in a circle at one point and turning chaotically so she would have no idea what the route was. After 20 minutes of aimlessly wandering, he finally went back to the dungeons and shoved her against the wall, roughly binding her.

Akali was surprised by the freedom she was getting. Zed seemed to be lost in his thoughts, giving her an opportunity to take a good look around. She kept her eyes on her surroundings, memorizing every detail she could. She wasn't about to remind him that she could find her way out if he kept this up. Akali saw Zed doing something from the corner of her eye but paid him no attention. Knowing her path out was more important. After seeing him disappear from her peripherals, she was about to turn to see what the hell he was up to when he appeared in front of her and covered her eyes with cloth. To say she was disappointed was an understatement, but she knew he would have had to come to his senses eventually. She pressed her lips into a firm line when Zed gripped her tightly and followed him as he walked. Being led around made the rest of the trip feel like a maze, but it probably had to do more with the fact Zed was just leading her in circles so she didn't know the rest of the way to her cell. She sighed internally and just followed him the best she could with manacles on. They stopped after a while, probably having reached their destination, when she was shoved against the wall. She let out a gasp and a flash of pain crossed her face before it was replaced with irritation. While Zed binded her to the wall, she tried resisting the bindings for the sake of being difficult.

Zed felt… distressed? at seeing her in pain but most of him enjoyed it. The part that was corrupted by the darkness took a perverse pleasure in the look at her face. He shook his head trying to clear his mind of his past self. It was not needed now. It was not needed ever in fact. Whatever happened today… It will not happen ever. He tried to focus on his darker part of him and allowed a sadistic smile to appear on his face. Zed turned around and left without saying a word.

When Akali heard the door shut, signalling Zed's departure, she slumped against the wall and sighed heavily. She wondered how she would find a way to escape this place, which ultimately brought her thoughts to Shen. Her heart clenched and she hoped he was alright. She hadn't seen or heard any sign of him in the complex and Zed hadn't mentioned him either. Hopefully, he was spared from being captured. Closing her eyes, she tried to ignore how alone she felt.