"Let's put on our thinking caps! Hmm... hmmhmm, hmmhmm... ah, I got it!"~ Lulu, The Fae Sorceress
Last chapter for the day. Hope you liked it, I know I had fun writing it. Just wanted to get the Xin Zhao storyline out of the way and it will be better to read it in one sitting. I expect the story to end in around 20~ chapters but lets see.
Now a little bit of a change in the previous chapters.... Kennen doesn't summon dragons but the Twin Shadows (I think since it is a removed item) but describing them was kind of difficult and did not feel as grand. So I changed it.
And Gregori returns in a couple chapters don't worry.
Leave comments!
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Xin Zhao's eyes fell on the woman and he was taken over by a weird sense of deja vu. He had seen this woman before. Somewhere. Somehow. She was triggering every kind of response from his body that he recognized her.
WHOOOSH
But that train of thought broke apart as an orb flew past his head and into the massive creature's body.
It shrieked and recoiled as its attention turned to them. Its six eyes glowing an unholy red, two spindly arms extending far more than any creatures limbs ought to, one of which, was curled around the glaive. The rest of its body was hidden in the shadows of its own cloak that covered the entirety of its body. With no mouth, any sound it made was like the sounds of despair.
Yunara sent another orb flying at the creature but only for it to have been swatted away without any effort. With the glaive in hand it rushed toward them, half floating and half dragging its body across the ground.
The two spun back and ran toward a nearby grove and took cover underneath the heavy vegetation.
But the demon did not stop there. It flew all around them, stabbing the glaive through the gaps in the vegetation trying to spear at least one of them.
The two scrambled through the plants and pushed their way back outside and sprinted forward.
"We cannot run away from this forever!" Xin Zhao yelled as he leapt over a wide swing from the entity chasing them.
Yunara spun around, "Then we face it here!" She waved her hand and then Ionian magic flooded out of her, the Aion Er'na reacting to her desire and boosting her. She then proceeded to make the same hand signs as Kennen did before he sent them here, "KUANMAI'HAI FEN!" She roared as two Ionian dragons formed out of the magic surrounding them and flew at the creature.
Each twisted around each other and slammed into the creature.
WHAM
The creature fell on its back.
The woman raised an arm almost lazily in their direction.
A spiked red chain flew toward Yunara whose attention was fully focused on battling the demon.
SHATTER
Xin Zhao's spear slammed into the chains instantly breaking them. The residual Petricitedismantling the magic that sent the ethereal chains.
But the woman looked unperturbed. Shadows raced across her body, fully covering all but her eyes. Then she vanished.
Xin Zhao spun around frantically, searching for any traces of the woman.
WHOOOSH
Another chain came from behind him, aimed at Yunara. But he was able to intercept it.
The woman reappeared a few meters from them. But Xin Zhao couldn't move to attack her. The incoming chains were too many to ignore and if even a single one connected..... Yunara would lose her life.
And so he moved faster than he had ever before and smoother than he had ever before. The spear almost flowing across the chains, perfectly blocking every single attack.
The woman's golden eyes glowed brighter. All of a sudden, hundreds of chains flew toward him and Yunara.
Maybe it was the life threatening moment... maybe it was the fact that he had put everything on the line to protect Yunara... or maybe... just maybe.... it was because of the fact that the everything that had caused him to doubt and question himself all these years had disappeared, he felt the spear speak to him.
He had heard of that feeling of oneness. Of the weapon being an extension of the person themself.
He had seen the new Lady Laurent achieve it occasionally. A single thrust invalidating an incoming attack. It had sparked something within him. A desire to attain that level of perfection. A desire to stand at the peak.
And so.....
Xin Zhao swung his spear.
As if written in the very annals of existence, even if the attacks were coming from above or below, even if they came from behind them, the swing obliterated them.
A burst of wind spread out from the swing, pushing against the woman, forcing the shadows covering her to recede.
Surprise flickered across her face.
But that did not stop her.
More chains flew toward them.
This time Xin Zhao did not move. He stood calmly watching the attacks come toward him once more.
SHATTER
And once more they shattered.
But he had not moved.
The previous swing was still in effect.
Xin Zhao had achieved the peak.... the highest height of spearmanship.
CLING
But before he could relish the moment, he heard a choking sound from behind him.
The chains had erupted from the ground beneath them and restrained Yunara. The creature was free to attack now.
It roared, releasing a burst of magic that sent both of them flying across the room and slam into the walls.
Xin Zhao fell to his knees and grunted from the pain but still he pushed himself up.
His mind ran every possible decision he could make. Every possible way he could beat both the monster and the woman while ensuring Yunara lived. A single idea stood out from the rest.
A maniacal one.
He looked at the coughing Yunara beside him, "Can you cover me?"
She looked at him in confusion before nodding.
Xin Zhao took a deep breath before rising to his feet. He spun the spear above his head once before repeating the previous swing. Another formless barrier formed, separating the enemies from them.
"Watch out for attacks from the ground and the wall behind you." He said before sprinting out.
A couple chains raced toward him.
He leapt over one and ducked the other.
The woman chuckled as she watched his futile struggle. More chains rushed toward him.
Every single one of them were dodged or broken.
But why hadn't the demon attacked?
He looked upward as Yunara's orbs parried every attacks coming at him. The woman noticed this and turned her attention to Yunara. And despite the warning, she found herself shackled and straining against the chains once more.
The demon swung the glaive at him.
A mad smile appeared on his face, his almost completely grayish-white hair bouncing in the wind. He tilted his body to the side, letting the attack pass harmlessly.
And that was all he needed.
He appeared right in front of the creature.
THRUST
The attack blew a massive hole in the creature's torso.
"A commendable attempt." The woman's voice coldly spoke.
SCHLINK
Xin Zhao folded over as the demon's other arm speared his abdomen cleanly. He coughed as the pain set in, blood flowing out of his mouth. He watched as the demon's body returned to its previous state.
He sputtered weakly, "It is a commendable attempt." A smile spread across his face.
The woman's eyes widened as she finally noticed. The shock letting her hold on Yunara falter as she fell to the ground.
Yunara looked up, her hands trembling as she too noticed it.
Xin Zhao's hand had touched the glaive.
-x-
"You do not belong here seneschal."
Xin Zhao opened his eyes, finding himself in an empty desert. He raised a hand to protect his eyes from the sand rushing past him.
"Mortals should not meddle with the power of gods."
"Is that what you consider yourself?" He chuckled as he made eye contact with the owner of the voice. "You look very human to me."
"I am but evil deferred." The man spoke. Unlike Yunara's description of him, he did not possess the head of a bird but that of a brown skinned man. Tall. Ethereal. Cloaked in a white satin cloth, with a black and gold vest and pants. In his hands lay a glaive. Not alike the one he had seen previously but a pristine golden blade, untouched by neither dirt nor grime.
Xin Zhao propped himself up with his spear, "Evil does not relinquish power. But you did." He gave him a weary smile, "You must have known that you could not hide forever."
"No one is meant to return from beyond the veil."
"I have seen beyond the veil…watched as the spirit of the First Lands roared to life…only to see it all burned away in an instant." Xin Zhao spoke of his nightmares, "Yunara has fallen.... the temple's defenses.... destroyed."
He took a shaky step forward, "There is not one left."
The man stared back.
"I do not trust you." Xin Zhao continued as he took step after step toward the man, "But your power will darken the realm.... with... or without your permission."
"You know not of what you ask."
"I have seen what the Darkin can do firsthand." He spoke, "The Darkin known as Joraal rampaged across Demacia for less than a couple minutes half a decade ago. The people still have not recovered from that."
"Joraal?" The man showed visible shock, his unchanging expression finally cracking, "And he was stopped."
"Yes."
"How?"
"You will know once you accept this." Xin Zhao now stood in front of the man, staring eye to eye.
"And you are willing?"
Xin Zhao looked at the man, his eyes clear, "Without a doubt. You sacrificed everything to save this world once…let me do the same." He raised his hand and grabbed the glaive.
-x-
ZWOOOOOOOM
The demon was launched back, its arm ripped from its body. It landed right in front of the woman.
The spot Xin Zhao once stood was now occupied by a Darkin. Skin completely gray, bones pushing to the surface, intertwining with the flesh. Thin wings of flesh on his back, that were folded in on itself. Two horns extending from the back of the head and into the sky. Gold marking ran across his body. His eyes completely black with red irises staring forward. But the biggest change was the missing eye on the glaive itself. It had repositioned itself to his forehead.
ROAAARRRRRRRRR
The demon roared in challenge.
The Darkin raised his spear and swung it downward in a straight line.
SWOOOSH
Both the demon and the woman behind it were split in half. The demon turned to a black liquid and then fizzled out of existence, while the woman tilted her head in curiosity before shattering into pieces.
"Even demons can be undone."
Far away in Zaun, Tybaulk felt its power grow as another domain assimilated itself within him.
The domain of Ruin.
The Demon known as Atakhan, Bringer of Ruin, One of the Ten, had been vanquished.
On this day, Koeshin Temple had been attacked. The Temple of Twilight was dragged out of the Spirit World. The Fist of Shadow, Shrine-Maiden Yunara had left her eternal post. The Darkin named Zaahen was freed.
And The Lord Seneschal of Demacia, The King's Spear, The Reckoner known as Viscero, Xin Zhao died.
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Author note: This had to be added at the end but in my fic Atakhan is one of the ten. And even though he gets one shot it makes sense. The fella has been constantly been weakened for over a thousand years. A Darkin can kill him.