(February 20th 2015 - 3:15 PM – Claire's house, New York, Earth)
After their encounter with Ralzith and the Voidborns, the Summoners and their champions were returning home. The first stop was Claire's house, all of them were tired already and wanted to get some rest.
When Matt stopped by the front door they all noticed something odd, it was open, most importantly half of it was missing, as the group walked out of the car they slowly approached to the entrance while keeping quiet, the intruder might still be inside. Nick hushed his companions who were behind him trying to peek at the window, however this stealthy approach was blown off when Katarina and Claire ran to the inside, the latter scared since her sister was left at the house alone.
Oddly the inside hasn't changed, as if nobody appeared to break in. All of the valuables were still there but there was silence, an awkward silence that made the house owner hyperventilate.
¨Liz? It's us you don't need to hide!¨ Claire shouted, no answer came from the inside of the house, she ran alongside the redhead to Liz's bedroom to their surprise it was empty. ¨LIZ?!¨ This time the brown haired shouted even louder and it could be heard on the entire house which made the rest of the group get in, when they saw Claire she was crying; at her side the Noxian comforting her.
¨W-what happened here? Where's Liz?¨ Matt looked everywhere as trying to find the missing sister.
¨She's missing, someone took her!¨ More tears coming from Claire's eyes as Leona and Marie tried to comfort her as well.
¨Maybe the neighbors saw something, maybe they-¨ Nick muttered but Kat cut him with an angry look, the last thing needed was more people involved.
¨Just… go¨ The constant crying from Claire was a sign for the rest to go.
(February 20th 2015 – 3:30 PM – Safehouse, New York, Earth)
¨… while the police is still investigating who were the people involved on the attack at the Shopping Mall it appears that the criminals have covered their track by deleting every recording from the security cameras. We'll keep informing-¨
The TV turned off, in front of it four people were sitting on the couch eating the leftovers of yesterday's dinner, even though two of them were wearing animal masks they could get a munch through the headwear's mouth. The chicken masked robber saw at his left the Zaunite psychopath using a screwdriver on a clock that was strapped to a couple of dynamite sticks, at his right the old man known as Graves eating his cold pizza without removing the owl mask the leader gave to him, on the far left there was a girl with a bag over her head, however she was not talking since her mouth was covered with duct tape.
¨Look girl, I don't know who you are but the person who is looking you has a lot of interest. And I made a deal with him so no backsies¨ The little girl was still struggling to get out of the chair in which she was tied.
¨Do you have any idea who are you working for?¨ The deep voice from the Outlaw struck into Richard's ears.
¨Oh, he is just working for the guy who wants to enslave our world and then he comes here and does the same thing¨ Jinx answered, still focused on her time bomb.
¨I don't care if he is a hobo or a member of the Spanish Inquisition. The weirdo gave me the keys to the city, hell, even the entire world! Why should I not help him?¨ Richard removed his mask and dropped it near the empty pizza box.
¨Because when he no longer needs you¨ Jinx crossed her finger side to side of her ¨You get it?¨ The leader nodded.
¨Not if I backstab first!¨ Richard chuckled.
¨Backstab who if I'm allowed to ask¨ A strange voice came from behind startling the criminals.
When they turned a man wearing a black suit was standing behind them, even though it was not the person the leader met before he knew the stranger was related to him. His eyes were purple and some of the veins in the face were glowing with the same color as the Void, even though the newcomer was disguised as a human it was obvious that he hasn't spent much time on the transformation process.
¨I haven't seen you before. Where's… the other guy?¨ Richard stood up, placing his hand near the weapon holster.
¨If you mean by Ralzith, he is having a discussion with the Overlord and I was sent to oversee this exchange¨
¨So they sent someone who can keep an eye on the little girl, eh?¨ Jinx chuckled throwing the time bomb away, however it was not activated so there was no explosion.
The stranger which was identified as Vel'Koz turned to Jinx ¨I don't understand your sense of humor Loose Cannon¨ the Voidborn turned once again to Richard ¨I expect that you give me the subject the Summoner talked about¨
The leader grunted and untied the hostage and led her to the Eye of the Void ¨Are you going to hand over that girl to the people who are enemies of our world?¨ Graves shouted at Richard who turned at him.
¨This is just something I had to settle after the gift we received. She is going to be fine… probably¨ A smile was drawn on his face as he pushed Claire's sister at Vel'Koz.
¨An impressive job Earthling¨ The Voidborn gave a few steps back and grabbed the girl opening a portal to the Void dimension ¨If our Overlord requires assistance in the near future, we will be informing you¨ Those were his last words, once they both disappeared from the room the portal closed¨
The room became silent, both Jinx and Richard sat back on the couch while Graves was just removing his mask, he grabbed his weapon and headed towards the exit.
¨Hey! Where are you going my dear Outlaw?¨ Jinx asked him with a cute tone.
¨Away from this pit. I will not work with a man who can't think for himself¨ Graves grunted as he was turning the doorknob.
¨If you go through that door, you won't be welcomed here anymore but I'll let you know, since you helped me with the last two jobs you can go freely. But if you decide to become a whistleblower and tell everything to the cops...¨ Both males frowned but Graves just turned back to the door and left the building.
(February 20th 2015 – 4:00 PM – Marie's house, New York, Earth)
They were sitting in front of each other in silence, the clock was ticking as it was the only audible sound in the room, the blonde girl caressing her skeletal arm with a worried face, meanwhile Thresh was looking at her with a grin on his face as he played with his hook.
¨I don't understand why you didn't tell the other Summoners about your powers. Is it fear? A case of trust? Or is there something else involved?¨
¨They may not be telling me the whole story, so why should I tell them about me?¨ She turned at the Chain Warden and tapped her legs.
¨I expect that you have a plan, after all, you must complete your part of the pact¨ Thresh caressed his hook as a warning to the blonde but she was not paying attention to the last part ¨Should I remind you what you have to do?¨
Marie sighed and shook as she stood up from the armchair ¨You'll get their souls, but we must first defeat Malzahar. It's just… I keep getting haunted about the fact that I may get trapped in that thing¨ She pointed at the lantern which emitted it's traditional green glow, lots of souls were wandering inside for who knows how much time.
¨Just remember what's at stake and you'll be focused¨ Thresh laughed but the blonde walked away to her room and closed the door behind her. He stood up and walked to the room but he was not getting to the other side as she locked the only way in ¨Is there anything worrying you my child?¨ The support knocked at the door.
From the outside Thresh could hear Marie sobbing ¨I… I'm worried about Claire's sister, isn't there anything we can do?¨
¨There is nothing in our grasp. But I do believe there might be someone who can help you out¨ The crying stopped as if Marie was interested in Thresh's offer ¨I can detect the presence of other champions from the Shadow Isles, whether they are in front of me or at the other side of this world¨
¨What is your point?¨ The door slowly opened, a pair of ready teary eyes were peering through the small gap.
¨You need another champion. One that will help you in fulfilling our pact¨ Thresh grinned as the door opened revealing Marie who was wiping the tears from her cheeks.
¨I'm listening…¨
(February 20th 2015 – 5:15 PM – Matt's house, New York, Earth)
The trio was just sitting at the back of the house looking at the sun as it was going down slowly. Vi was drinking some beer while Caitlyn was treating Matt's injuries from the fight at the mall, the enforcer decided to remain silent since they arrive at home which was understandable after Jinx's escape.
The blonde looked at Vi who appears to be distracted by her own thoughts, even though he coughed she wasn't paying attention to him so in order for her to be snapped back into reality he grabbed the cap from the beer bottle that was lying on the grass and threw it at the enforcer's arm, she turned her head towards the Summoner, anger could be seen in her face.
¨So... do you fancy eating outside tonight? We all need to relax after today's fight¨ The blonde smiled, but Vi's face didn't change as she turned back at the sunset. ¨Come on! You would like to go out, especially after you-¨ He got cut when Caitlyn tapped at his shoulder asking him to go in. Once inside the sheriff closed the door to the backyard so her partner couldn't hear their talk.
¨You shouldn't talk to Vi right now, she acts up like this everytime Jinx escapes¨ The sheriff whispered at the blonde grabbing his hands.
¨Why keep following Jinx if she escapes everytime?¨
¨Have you ever loved something getting destroyed in front of your eyes?¨ She locked her eyes onto Matt's ¨Vi loves Piltover more than anything else, more than me. When Jinx started to attack the city, she was the first one to stand up against the criminal¨ Matt saw that the sheriff's face was getting sad.
¨I didn't knew she was that passionate about the city, but still, she is two steps ahead of us. We can't do much about it¨
¨Promise me you will help Vi get Jinx, ONCE, this is all over¨
Matt turned to see Vi still focused onto the sky ¨If I accept, will I get my own police badge?¨ He looked back at Caitlyn who gave him a tender kiss. ¨I guess that should do for now¨ They both smiled as they walked back to the backyard sitting at the side of the enforcer.
(February 20th 2015 – 7:15 PM – Nick's house, New York, Earth)
Even after a rough day fighting the Voidborns, Leona forced his Summoner to train even though he was not in the best condition, however Nick managed to learn the Clairvoyance spell (that he considered quite useless in the game, and now in real life as well). As the duo headed back into the house Nick sat on his couch and relaxed closing his eyes. Leona sat at his side and was caressing his hand and resting her head on the Summoner's shoulder. Nick tried not to move so Leona didn't felt uncomfortable but turned his head at the Radiant Dawn, her eyes closed and a smile drawn on her face, without interrupting he closed his eyes as well.
¨You still have questions, don't you?¨ The Radiant Dawn opened her eyes, his opened as well.
¨What, about me glowing back at the mall? About summoning a pillar of light that almost killed Ralzith?¨ He chuckled ¨Actually no¨
¨You are a Chosen of the Sun now¨ She raised her head and locked her hazel eyes onto his ¨You and I… are not so different now, Nick¨
He blushed ¨So I... that… means I can kiss… I MEAN… be a Summoner as well?¨ He got nervous, especially after having Leona so close to him.
¨Nick…¨ The support started to get closer to Nick's face ¨…kiss me¨
¨What?!¨ Nick gave a dumbfounded after her request but she moved away laughing.
¨Oh, you should have seen your expression. I did the same to Pantheon back at the Institute, he reacted like you¨ She kept laughing, standing from Nick's side.
¨So as a Chosen of the Sun, what are my duties?¨ He was still confused, both by Leona's question and the fact that he became a Sun worshipper.
¨Well you will have to represent the Solari at the Institute as a Summoner. But since there is no Institute here I guess you'll have to help me with the other task I was commended¨ The Radiant Dawn stretched her arms and then her legs, still looking at the confused Nick.
¨And that is…¨
¨Hunt all of the heretics that defy our rules. I think you already know someone right?¨ Leona asked and Nick nodded silently. Of course, they were talking about Diana, also known in the League as the Scorn of the Moon. After stretching, the ginger walked towards the stairs and headed upstairs ¨Today was a stressful day, you better get some rest. You still need to learn two more spells¨ She smiled and climbed up.
¨(Does she actually suspects that I love her?)¨ The black haired shook his head and walked around the house turning off every light switch before joining Leona.
(February 20th 2015 – 11:30 PM – Central Park, New York, Earth)
As the Chain Warden and blonde Summoner were walking almost blindly, the lights at the park weren't lit, and even if they were the trees were blocking any light source coming from outside. The duo arrived at a specific spot in the park where most of the vegetation changed, the trees were thicker; their roots were coming out of the ground trying to attack anything that got closer to them but the weirdest part was that the trees closed the path from where they came from.
Darkness surrounded Thresh and Marie but the former used his lantern to light the path in front of them, they kept walking until a big tree blocked their way. The Chain Warden moved his lantern towards the abomination blocking their path, on its branches, little saplings with arms and feet were playing and observing the two of them, especially Thresh.
¨This is it¨ His voice scared the saplings who climbed to the top of the tree.
¨It doesn't seem like him. Isn't he supposed to be alive… or something?¨ The blonde looked at the ground, a few saplings were curious and instead of running away they grouped near their feet.
¨He is watching us, observing every step we took since we entered the park¨ The Chain Warden illuminated the small saplings which were attracted to the light the lantern was emanating.
Marie placed her transformed hand on a tree, she could feel magic flowing through it, magic that was trying to communicate with her, speaking on her mind.
Leave… this… place…
¨I think he wants us to leave¨ Marie turned at Thresh who was holding one of the saplings with his claws.
¨We shall not leave until the Twisted Treant joins our cause¨ He started to crush the small sapling in his hand, small cracks were forming on it.
The ground pulsed around the two of them, a pulse that was coming from the tree blocking their path, Thresh kept crushing the tiny creature inserting his claws deeper, another pulse coming in front of them; this time with a bigger intensity than the last one. A small crack was heard, the support removed the very life of the sapling, a grin in his face showed that he had success on his plan, the ground trembled and the tree that was blocking them started to move, it stood up with its monstrous wooden legs, two hands coming from the trunk, one of them was a small branch with tiny fingers while the other on was part of another tree's trunk but unlike the other, this arm had a face engraved in it, one that appeared to be alive. The mystical creature turned towards the duo with an angry face, his wooden face emanating a blue glow growled at them.
¨You came here to disturb the peace of me and my children. Talk now before the nature in this place crushes your corpses¨ Just like Thresh, Maokai had an echoing and deep voice.
¨Great treant, we came here because we need your help. The Void is attacking this world, trying to conquer and destroy anything they come across¨ Marie walked towards the magical tree and stood a few centimeters away from him.
¨An interesting offer, but I am not offering my services¨ Maokai moved past the duo as he waved his big hand onto the trees behind them, they started to move revealing a path outside of the forest ¨Leave now while you still have the chance, nature requires peace… and you are disturbing it!¨
¨You will join us, or face the consequences¨ Thresh raised his boot and crushed under it another sapling, this made the Twisted Treant growl and run at them, and even though he was a big tree he moved with an abnormal fast speed.
¨LEAVE MY CHILDREN… ALONE!¨ He shouted at the duo and used his big arm to swipe at them but none got hit. The tree turned towards the blonde and used his small arm to grab her by one of the arms ¨You, mortal, shouldn't have come here in the first place¨
He raised Marie to the point they could see each other's faces, but she had other plans, with her free hand she placed it over Mao's head which made the tree scream in pain, when the blonde released it a handprint was marked on his face, she used the spell Ignite but it wasn't so effective as in game.
¨Summoner, nature will rise against you!¨ Maokai turned and threw Marie onto a tree, even though the impact wasn't too hurtful she could still feel some pain. The blonde looked at the champion coming at her but he was too blurry, all the stress and tiredness from today's fights have taken its toll and made Marie lose consciousness.
(February 20th 2015 – 11:50 PM – Meeting room, ?)
Marie opened up her eyes, she was no longer in the forest, not even on Earth apparently. She stood up and looked everywhere but there was nothing to see around her but there was something odd, she wasn't wearing the same clothes she was using at the forest, instead the blonde was wearing a purple robe similar to what the Summoners use on the game. As Marie kept walking forward something was appearing on the horizon, it was a table; big enough for more than five people could fit, however it was empty.
A strange figure wearing the same colored robes appeared on one end of the table, sitting and smiling at the other Summoner ¨Please, take a seat. The others will be here soon¨
¨Others? Who are you? What is this place?¨ The blonde sat one of the empty chairs, there were four more waiting for someone to occupy them.
¨That, my dear child, is something you should ask to your fellow Summoners¨ He turned as three more figures appeared, two of them wearing purple robes, the other one using only casual clothes ¨Here they are¨ The three newcomers sat on the empty chairs and looked at Marie as if they were expecting her.
¨Claire, Matt, Nick? How… no, I mean what is this place?¨ The blonde girl turned at her friends, the first two were using Summoner robes while the latter was not.
¨I'll tell you everything tomorrow, for the time being you should know that his name is Arlor and is the High Summoner of the Institute, more like the leader¨ He pointed at the old man sitting at left end.
¨Indeed. Now, onto more important matters, I am glad that you managed to recruit the girl known as Marie. I'm sure you four will be able to do great things in the future¨
¨Why am I wearing this robes? I wasn't using this before coming here!¨ Marie was still shocked.
¨All of the Summoners who have completed their training will be rewarded with a veteran robe, that is the reason why the black haired doesn't have it¨ A smug was visible on the old man's face, he moved his hands and a small sphere appeared in the middle.
¨Arlor, I don't want to be a nuisance but Claire's sister is missing and we can't focus on the Void until she is rescued¨ Matt told as he was laying back onto his chair.
¨Well then, you should know that the kidnappers are from the Void itself, so as a good thing it will be like killing two birds with one stone. A big one if I may¨ The High Summoner chuckled but the rest didn't.
¨Alright, where is she?¨ Nick asked, looking at the darkness surrounding them.
¨I don't have an exact location of where she might be. The Void is a complex place that even I can't understand completely. I do expect that you have noticed something that is missing here as well¨
The group turned at the empty chair and then back to Arlor ¨A fifth Summoner?¨ Marie asked.
¨Indeed! A team of Summoners is composed of five people, and you are not the exception. You must find the last of you in order to confront Malzahar¨
¨Who is this time? Maybe this time no fighting involved¨ Matt yawned and stretched his arms.
¨Good question, I know for certain it's a man but my powers aren't telling me who is he, or how does he look like. But there is something you must know too…¨ Arlor waved his hands over the sphere and revealed the figure of a man in a suit wearing a chicken mask, he was counting a lot of money, at his side the crystal the High Summoner mentioned on their last visit was floating as if it was watching the person.
¨Wait… that's the guy who stole the bank last week!¨ Nick raised from his chair and got closer to the sphere.
¨You are correct. This is the person who kidnapped your sister¨ He said as he turned his head towards Claire ¨The Void offered him the crystal in exchange for the girl. If he discovers the true powers of the artifact, who knows what may happen¨ The High Summoner waved his hands once again making the sphere disappear.
¨So where is this guy?¨ Claire muttered, her face showing anger, she needed to protect Liz.
¨My powers show me many things, but the location is not one of them¨
¨So you are telling me that you can see who kidnapped Liz but not tell us where he is?!¨ She stood up from her chair and raised her voice at the end.
¨Exactly, but I do know something will come and guide you on the right path¨ Arlor smiled and stood up from his chair walking towards the darkness.
¨Wait, what do I have to look for? Don't leave just yet!¨ Claire shouted at the High Summoner.
¨You will know…¨ He turned with a smile on his face ¨… when the time is right¨ The last words from Arlor echoed in the Summoners ears making them fall asleep and disappear from the strange room.
(February 21th 2015 – 12:15 AM – Central Park, New York, Earth)
¨… mortal will stay in this world while we return to the Shadow Isles. They call it win-win¨
Marie opened up her eyes once again, there she was back on the park controlled by Maokai. The two champions were discussing something while the blonde was trying to get back up, the Twisted Treant walked towards the Summoner and kneeled before her and grabbed Marie placing her on his back.
¨The Chain Warden gave me the enough reasons to help you fight against the Void¨ The forest started to reveal a path outside ¨Tell me where we have to go and I'll gladly take you. Summoner¨
(February 21th 2015 – 12:15 AM – Claire's house, New York, Earth)
The Summoner woke up, this meetings with Arlor and his friends made her feel uncomfortable and wasn't helping her stay sane, especially after Liz's abduction. She walked out of the bed and headed towards the kitchen and saw Katarina sleeping on the ground in front of Claire's room holding her daggers. Before she could open the fridge the brown haired heard a noise coming from the living room.
On her way she noticed someone sitting on the armchair looking at her, even though the shadows were hiding his face in the darkness the Summoner noticed his weapon, an oddly designed double-barreled shotgun.
¨What are you doing here?¨ Claire gave the visitor a grim look while clenching her fists.
The stranger left a note on the coffee table with an address, still no words coming from his mouth.
¨What is this?¨ Claire inspected the note with a confused look but once she turned again at the mysterious figure disappeared.
¨What does it say?¨ Claire looked up, Katarina was leaning on the wall pointing at the note.
¨It's an address… but I don't understand¨ She turned the piece of paper and noticed something was written on the other side as well ¨It says… sister¨
¨You know what that means, right?¨ The noxian crossed her arms with a smirk on her face.
The Summoner nodded as tears were forming on her face. Tears of joy.
Hey everyone, new chapter up. Hope you enjoy it.
Next chapter will take some more days to complete as my current objective now is to rework the prologue, mostly to make it longer and have a better quality. Will I ever rework older chapters as well? Maybe, but they aren't in my plans at the moment.
In the meantime I'll keep thinking of new ideas. As always:
See you next chapter ;D (- MFW Fnatic won playoffs