Following the infrequent shrieks, Ezreal found himself past the city walls and on the edge of a small dried oasis. - dead branches cracking as he waded through. The explorer charges up his gauntlet: arm shaking in the armor.

"Huh? A Voidborn?"

Its body was one giant mouth, with stubby little limbs protruding from its sides. Acidic drool pools beneath its second mouth, which looked more like a malformed tongue. The creature howls loudly; nearly rupturing his ear drums. A pair of bolas is wrapped around its legs: preventing it from finding a better place to die.

"Ouch. That looks like it hurts."

Ezreal knew of only two people in Zuretta that could possibly take a Voidborn on their own - and Kai'Sa was currently fast asleep.

Rengar.

Pushing aside the disgust for the hunter's treatment of his prey, the explorer grabs a nearby rock. The creature shrieks again, long tongue turning towards him and sizzling with acid.

"Hold still! I'm not here to hurt you-"

Surprisingly, it seemed to understand.

The thing rolled to one side, allowing the adventurer to cut through the bolas with his new tool. Despite the scars across its body, the Voidborn let out a cry of victory: rolling onto its feet.

"Alright. Go on now, run off."

It regards him blankly. Ezreal considers that he might have made a mistake.

Thankfully, instead of leaving or attacking, the creature nuzzles him gently. Either this thing had the demeanor of a giant puppy or it was getting Ezreal to let his guard down so he would be easier to devour. Both options had their own set of implications.

"Ok, ok buddy I get it-" He chuckled as he pushed the creature a safe distance. "You're welcome."

The bushes rustle. The Voidborn panicked, scrambling away and into the undergrowth.

"Oh."

The looming figure pulls back their cloak, revealing the white scarred face born out of an unholy union of human and lion. Based on the expression in his single eye, Ezreal was fifty percent sure that the demigod knew the boy had been looking for him.

"So you must be Rengar. Any chance you're going to be reasonable?"

With a ferocious battle roar, the Bastard Child of Setaka leapt forward.

Ezreal yelped in a panic as he blinked past a downward swing from the apex predator, and leapt over a spinning bola thrown his way. Rengar moved faster than any Voidborn, blade singing in the air.

The explorer rolls out of the way of a strike, which manages to cut a tree trunk clean in half.

That was not something Ezreal could survive in a t-shirt and pajama pants.

"Essence Flux!"

Dozens of golden rings emerge from the gauntlet, most of which are parried away with the flat of Rengar's blade.

The hunter leaps forward with a roar. Ezreal blinks out of the way, but a spinning bola to catches him mid-air. Another pair wraps around his legs, knocking him down to the ground. Rengar snarled, sheathing his dagger in favor of his claws.

"You lasted longer than I thought, for that I will give you the mercy of a quick death."

"Wow, what a totally normal thing to say to someone you just met." Ezreal jokes desperately, wiggling the gauntlet to point parallel to his legs. "Quick question, were you the one who killed the animals?"

The beast paused for a moment, deep voice lowering further. "Do you really think I would stoop to slaughter defenseless beasts?"

"I thought so - anyways, look down."

His Mystic Shot causes a chain reaction, the resulting gold-hued explosion sending both of them into the air.

Ironically, it is Ezreal who lands on his feet and not the giant cat - snapping the ropes thanks to the sharp rock that he had used to free the Voidborn.

He wipes the dust off his shirt triumphantly as the Voidbotn reappears from its hiding place, chirping with a mix of curiosity and concern.

"Woah uh- calm down buddy, the big bad is dead."

To spite him, Rengar emerges from the smoke completely unscathed.

"Well scratch that."

The hunter cracks their neck, baring sharp fangs longer than his fingers.

"You will die for that."

Unfortunately, the Tear of the Goddess begins to dim; running out of power as the explorer needed it the most. Ezreal raises it regardless, pointing the weapon at the approaching demigod.

Until an idea comes to him.

Rengar almost looked surprised when he threw aside the gauntlet of Ne'Zuk, letting the gauntlet drop onto the sand.

"What?" The beast snarled. "Oh."

He does not flinch even as the towering demigod leans over him, snarling and bringing his dagger up to Ezreal's neck.

The blade is mere inches away from cutting into his jugular - one swing, and the boy was as good as dead.

"Do you really think that I will spare you simply because you are defenseless?"

"No. I don't think that you'll spare me. I know that you will."

The standoff only lasts for a minute longer, but to Ezreal it felt like hours.

"How foolish." The blade dashed upwards before Ezreal could blink, hovering beneath his throat. "If you want to live - tell me where it is. Now."

"Sorry, but I have no idea what 'it' is."

"The Voidborn."

Considering the choice to use a Voidborn as bait, the smell of 'plasma' and the general unease that had plagued his friend: Ezreal realized that it was possible that Kai'Sa was the target Rengar had been pursuing so doggedly.

Despite his situation (being held at knifepoint) his voice rises with courage.

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Do not lie to me."

The blade pricks: a light breeze would be enough to send it into Ezreal's juglar.

"I can smell its plasma on your body, I know you've seen that monster nearby."

"Monster? Who are you to call her a monster?"

"Stop wasting my time." Rengar growls. "Tell me where it is or-"

"Or what? Are you going to kill me? What, can the greatest hunter in all the land not find his prey without the help of someone 'beneath him'?"

The blade is pushed deeper under his throat. Ezreal does not flinch.

"Tch. You are not worth my time."

Rengar disappears back into the underbrush, every step completely silent. Ezreal thinks of following, but the gauntlet was still sitting in the sand.

By the time he picked it up and slotted it back onto his arm, the hunter was already gone.

"Crap. That hurt." The boy rubbed on his neck, breathing a sigh of relief. "A rare perk of being pathetic I guess…"

He readies as Arcane Shift, ready to return to the Palace of Dreams until something bumps into his leg.

"Huh? What?"

Ezreal thought of just leaving it here, but a part of him reminds him of what this thing was.

His wrist crackles with arcane energies. The Voidborn was too dangerous; it had to go.

Chittering curiously, the Voidborn approached despite the burning light at his finger.

"Ugh." Ezreal sighed, golden energy flickering out. "I can't do this."

The Voidborn tilted its head, before bumping into his side playfully. He couldn't help but rub its armored head: earning a low purr for his efforts.

"You know, you need a name. How about Cogmouth?"

The Voidborn couldn't talk, but it looked more confused than before. Ezreal was really starting to think it understood what he was saying.

"Basically, it's a toy that has a bunch of teeth that you and a bunch of friends press on one by one. Whoever gets bit is the loser. Maybe Kog'Maw, yeah, that sounds Icathian enough."

It probes the ground with its tongue, ignoring everything Ezreal had said.

"Well I'll take that as a yes."

An abrupt gust of wind caused the boy to shiver. Kog'Maw perked up, noticing his discomfort.

Without another word, the creature runs up to his side. The Voidborn warms itself up, plasma beneath its alien skin pushing away the desert's chills.

"Huh, thanks. Maybe you guys aren't all bad after all."

The smell of plasma reminds Ezreal of his roommate.

"Shit! How did I almost forget about that?!"

Thankfully, Kai'Sa was still in their bed.

Ezreal had never been happier to see a mound of pillows, sliding into the window and carefully closing the curtains. He brushed the dust off his clothes, stretching casually.

A pillow on the bed falls, revealing that Kai'Sa had taken the time to build a decoy with the surplus of cushions and cover it in their blanket.

Ezreal gulped, sweat forming on his forehead as a familiar shadow appeared out of the darkness.

"Fancy seeing you up this hour." He chuckled. "Trouble sleeping?"

The joke only made the tension more apparent.

He had forgotten how hard it was to make eye contact with Kai'Sa: there was something about her that made Ezreal extremely nervous.

"Where were you?"

"Not important, because someone's trying to kill you."

To his complete shock, Kai'Sa didn't panic or flinch. In fact, she looked calmer. Somehow.

"What? Are you not scared? Concerned? Not even a bit?"

"I can handle myself."

"But that's - wha - is this an everyday thing for you or something?"

Her silence is enough of an answer.

"Right." Ezreal slumped onto his side of the bed. "Ok then."

Honestly, Kai'Sa could probably defeat the demigod; which made his efforts to be useful even more laughably futile.

Despite his best efforts to hide the other big thing, Kai'Sa's withering glare was too potent.

"Well?" The girl raised an eyebrow. "Is there anything else?"

"..."

"Ezreal-"

"Ok fine. There was also a little itty bitty Voidborn also there."

The explorer flinched as she approached; Kai'Sa looked about one minute away from slapping him into the next decade. She was literally glowing with anger; eyes and armor lighting up purple.

"And you didn't think to didn't tell me?"

"I mean, it wasn't that serious or anything. I killed it. Easily."

Sweat forms across his forehead as Kai'Sa leaned uncomfortably closer.

"Answer the question."

"Well, uh, because, because you were sleeping and I didn't wanna bother you. Yeah."

"So is this my fault then?" Her whisper was calm, yet brimming with a silent focused rage. "Are you blaming me?"

"No, no of course not. But like - look at it from my point of view."

Ezreal hated having to lie to her: but he also hated the idea of sending Kog'Maw to the meat grinder so soon.

"What I did was stupid and reckless and whatever - but there was someone in danger. I know you'd probably just tell me 'people die all the time' or something, but - I won't just leave someone to die out there."

To his relief, Kai'Sa finally relented; giving him a little breathing room by moving away. She entered their shared bathroom without another word, shutting the door loud enough to rattle his bones.

"Well." He muttered. "That was - something."

When the morning came, the explorer needed to find a way to get the little Voidborn far away from Zuretta as soon as he could. Easier said than done.

Ezreal fell onto the bed with a weak plop. If Kai'Sa ever found out, what would she do to Kog'Maw?

Even more concerning, what would she do to him?