"The wounds of betrayal never heal."~ Kalista, The Spear of Vengeance
Sorry for the delay. I was taking care of things in real life. I've got two interviews lined up for next week and its quite important that I land either one. Pray for me lads!
New cinematic was cool but will not be fully incorporated into the story. New Galio skin goes so incredibly hard.
Also read the author note at the end to understand why certain things happened that way in the chapter.
Comments please!
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Vander raised his head to the sky and roared.
ROAAARRRR
At the same time, the army closed in on them.
"We have to leave. Now!" Briar shouted as she grabbed those close to her and pulled them. The group began to run away.
Ambessa's eyes found Rictus's body leaning against the greenhouse and then met Caitlin and her daughter's.
Anger and betrayal rushed through her as she yelled pointing toward the creature, "Capture it!"
The army rushed at them.
Vander looked at the incoming army and ran toward it. Clambering through the ground, he reached the army and began to mow through them.
Looking at him, one would think that he had lost his sanity.
They would be correct. He was very insane but the thought of him harming his daughters was so against his nature that even through his insanity he rampaged away from them.
Spears plunged into his body but he didn't stop. His claws swung left and right as they cut through plenty of bodies without rest.
Noxians watched as their allies fell in battle and continued to put themselves in the path of the rampaging beast.
"Vander NO!" Jinx yelled as she ran toward him, her hand reaching for her pistol as she did so.
"JINX!" Vi called out to her, "POWDER!" She corrected herself, "NO!"
But Jinx did not listen, her feet carried her forward. No words could stop her, not when her father stood right in front of her, suffering.
She had lost enough family already.
The soldiers weren't going to simply let her join the battle either, spotting her run toward the monster ripping through their ranks, they pointed their spears at her.
BBUUDDDEWWW
BUDDDEEEEWWW
Jinx fired off a couple shots with her pistol. Two beams of blue light flew out of the gun, punching holes in the bodies of the men attacking her.
"That's what she was tinkering on." Sevika commented as she snatched up Isha who tried to get to Jinx's side, immediately she began running away from the Noxians.
"I can't leave her Cait!" Vi said as she watched her sister fight her way to their father.
Caitlin looked at Vi and then toward Jinx, apprehension evident in her eyes. In her eyes, Jinx was irredeemable. She was the one who had killed her mother, right when the two cities were on the cusp of co-existence. She was the reason everything was the way it was currently.
But the desperation on Vi's face.....
Caitlin couldn't bring herself to say no.... not when the woman she loved looked like her world was being torn apart. But she couldn't bring herself to say yes either.... saying yes would mean allowing Vi to rush to her death.
But something in her failed. She didn't know if it was the cold calculating leader of Piltover in her or if it was just a momentary lapse of judgement.
Her grip on Vi slackened.
Vi seized the opportunity and wrested herself free from Caitlin's grasp and ran toward her sister, swinging her fists at anyone who stood in her way.
"FUCK!" Sydell cursed as he turned back to see the two idiots run toward the rampaging monster, "FAYE BRING THOSE TWO BACK!"
Faye spun around and focused on the two, her magic rushed out along her eye of sight. She grunted as she swung her hands toward her body.
That magic was instantly felt by both Vi and Jinx as they felt themselves be lifted into the air and pulled back.
"NO!" Jinx yelled as she reached her hands out for Vander, flailing in the air.
As they were pulled back, Vi reached for Jinx and pulled her into a hug firmly but Jinx still struggled, tears flowing from her eyes as she called out to her father. "VANDER PLEASE!"
Vi looked at their father fight the army, tears flowing from her own eyes as well.
The two landed close to the running members who were at a considerable distance from the army, who didn't bother chasing them further since their main focus was on capturing Vander.
BOOOM
A wave of pure magic erupted from the center of the battlefield. From the sphere where Viktor had died.
A layer of the metal from the surroundings fully covered the sphere.
The bodies of the dead commune members began to float in the air. A thread of magic connecting each of them to the sphere. As if attracted to the sphere, they all began to float toward it.
Ambessa turned toward the sphere, confused as to what was happening.
"Viktor is alive again." Rell whispered, "How?" Her magic showed resistance when she had tried to control the metal in the structures around them.
"We have to go back!" Jinx shouted, "If he is back alive..... then he can save him!"
Mel and Jayce met each others eyes, shock and fear evident in them. Viktor was alive again. "I..... failed my promise?" Jayce muttered, "How? He was dead."
Vander stopped moving. The red hot molten metal flowing from his his body stopped as he stopped struggling and fighting.
And then Vander's body rose, a white thread of magic connecting him to the sphere.
Soldiers who stabbed the spear through him also rose to the sky when they didn't let go of their weapons.
A few seconds later, the weapons embedded in his body slid out of his body as if being pushed out from the inside. The wounds instantly closing.
"He is healing." Daisy frowned.
"They all are." Annie responded as she pointed toward the floating people, her hands reaching for Tibbers, "But they aren't alive. He isn't either."
"He IS alive. Look at him!" Jinx refuted her words.
"We should leave." Caitlin muttered, "This place is not safe." She turned to Vi and Jinx, "If your father is alive then you can leave it to Viktor to heal him. Running into an army to your deaths is pointless."
The two looked at her and then toward a floating Vander in thought.
Meanwhile, Ambessa watched as her prize rose to the sky and floated toward the sphere. She raised her gauntlets in the direction of the sphere and ordered, "Toward the center! Attack and kill anything that stands in our way!"
The Noxians rallied behind her cry as they marched toward the sphere.
As they came closer, all the floating people turned toward the army and the group in the distance. Their mouths opened and together they spoke in Viktor's voice, "I wanted to bring peace to Zaun. Heal those who suffer. But you prevent me from doing so. At every turn I face enemies and betrayal. This just proves to me... that what I'm doing is in fact the right thing."
The heads swiveled around to Jayce.
"My brother. We could have healed the world together. Brought salvation onto its people. Hextechwas always meant for this. Everything else was just... a frivolous endeavor." The voice let out a sigh, "But I did not expect you to be the one to stand against me."
"You have to stop Viktor." Jayce replied, "This is not the right thing..... no matter how much you convince yourself that it is."
"Maybe my previous method was wrong." Viktor acknowledged, "I was perhaps..... too passive. Humanity is flawed. I will change that."
With those words the people floating began to change, this bodies solidifying into some sort of metal construct. Puppets that hung from the strings that connected to the sphere.
The bodies then fell to the ground and then began to rise like animatronic machines, shaking and jerking as they rose.
In the sky, Vander too, began to change.
"My naivety led me to believe that I wouldn't face resistance regarding this but I was wrong. There will always be those opposing me." Viktor's voice echoed from all of them, "Opposition cannot be reasoned with.... they can only be... removed."
The metal puppets lunged toward Noxian soldiers.
The soldiers reacted as they swung their weapons at them. Despite the anti-magic enchantments on the spears, they did little to no damage to the constructs.
The constructs however, did not attack them. They grabbed onto their bodies and prevented them from moving. Slowly, their magic began to flow into the soldiers and they too, began their change. Change into the metal puppets that held them.
"You have brought an army to me Ambessa." Viktor spoke through them, "MY army. Watch as I show you the price of not heeding my words. Watch as your army crumbles. Watch as you will be left alone. Human. Weak."
Ambessa's gauntlets fell to her side as she watched her aspirations begin to crumble around her, she fell to her knees, completely defeated.
The soldiers struggled as they tried to break free from their captors, fearing for their lives as they watched their comrades turn into cold unfeeling creatures.
"IS THIS YOUR SALVATION VIKTOR?!" Jayce yelled as he held his hammer in front of him, "YOU ARE TAKING AWAY THE VERY THING THAT MAKES THEM HUMAN!"
ZWOOOOOM
The puppets turned toward him, "And what may that be?"
"INDIVIDUALITY! HUMANITY!" Jayce yelled, "THE RIGHT TO MAKE CHOICES! I'VE SEEN HOW THIS ENDS VIKTOR.... I WILL STOP YOU!"
KA-BOOOOOM
He fired his a bolt of corrupted magic from his hammer toward the sphere.
It blazed forward, breaking through anything that came in between.
ZWOOP
A body appeared before the blast and swatted it away. The bolt landed in the midst of Ambessa's army, exploding and sending limbs and chunks of body parts flying through the air. The body that had appeared was Vander's.
It wasn't its monstrous self. It was.... different. More human. More regal. Silver gray fur lined his body. The wolfish facial features were now more human like. The metal claws now sprouted out of hands. The cylinders that pumped blood and Chemtechthrough his body were now just a metal structure, with a sharp tip. His tail now had a metallic spiral that encased the fur inside.
"Vander?" Vi asked as she saw the flying Vander.
Vander's head turned toward them.
And by the time they blinked he stood in front of them, his claw raised.
Vi's eyes widened as she saw it come down on to her.
BANG
SKREEEECH
Both Faye and Rell reacted instantly by pulling Vi out of the way and putting in a shield of metal around them.
"RUN!" Rell yelled.
The group turned about and began to run.
"The right to make choices?" Viktor spoke, "Choice is false Jayce. It is how we clothe and forgive the baser instincts that spur us to division. Do you think humanity can survive with emotion? Survive as what? Creatures blinded by impulse? Do not worry..... All will soon change. Even if you are not there to witness it, you can take comfort in the fact that humanity as a whole will be one step closer to perfection. To evolution. Glorious Evolution!"
A rumble shook the earth. Like the very earth was protesting against what was taking place.
Vander appeared in front of the running group, halting their progress.
"You cannot escape." Viktor's voice sounded through Vander, "It is futile. Choose to become something greater. That is the only choice that is not an illusion. Your magic will benefit me Rell." He said as he turned to Rell.
Rell shook her head as she put on a tired smile, "Don't think so Viktor. I do not think so. My magic....." She let all the magic in her loose, "It belongs to me alone!"
Vander's body stumbled as it took a step forward, "You can affect my magic. That is temporary. Once I attain my true form... your magic will not interfere with mine any more."
He took another step and then halted.
"What about mine?" Faye held her hand out.
"This isn't Ferromancy." Viktor commented, "Telekinesis maybe. Your magic would also be useful."
Vander's body found footing again as it pushed forward to them.
"Don't forget mine." Daani grunted as he held both his hands out in front of him, his magic coalescing into a ball of pure unadulterated magic. He then began to compress it. The ball shrunk. Smaller and smaller until it was the size of a fist.
Daani pushed his hands forward.
ZWOOP
The ball raced toward Vander. Replicating his previous movement against Jayce's attack, Vander swung his hand.
The ball made contact with Vander's claws.
FZZZZZZ
SIZZZLEE
Vander's claws evaporated. His arm disappeared. Watching this happen he shifted his body out of the way.
The ball passed through him like butter and then flew toward the ground farther away.
BOOOOOOOOM
It caused a massive explosion in the distance.
The rumbling of the earth didn't stop.
Daani began panting from the attack, his magic keeping the transformation failing and revealing is true form.
"Your magic." Viktor spoke, "Volatile. But it can also be put to use."
"Can you do one more of that attack?" Daisy asked.
Daani nodded, "One more and then I'm completely out."
She held her sword out in front of her and nodded to Rell and Faye.
Annie reached into her bag and pulled out the Wooglet's Witchcap and put it on her head. It's effect occurred randomly but it was always a good idea to have it on. She raised her hand and began to follow Daani as she too created a ball of concentrated fire magic.
"Another mage?" Viktor marveled, "Pyromancy..... You are all mages." He deduced as he looked at the group. "Your retaliation is futile. Even if you take down this body...." Vander's other hand came up, pointing behind the group.
The army of metal puppets were advancing toward them.
Daisy lunged at Vander. His claw came up to meet with her sword.
CLANG
"A sword isn't going to do much to this body." Viktor said.
Daisy looked up and smirked.
"Hm?" Viktor voiced his surprise as he saw frost climb up Vander's arm.
"I don't need to cut you to kill you." Daisy proclaimed as she pushed further.
Vander leapt backward, "That sword...." His body began to freeze over. Little by little, it continued to freeze until Vander was simply a frozen statue.
"True Ice works." Daisy stepped back as she announced.
Annie nodded as she spun around sending the massive fireball into the incoming army.
It melted through quite a bit of the army, leaving a trail of molten lava on the ground as it fizzled out at the end.
Daani launched his magic again, it hit the army and blew up somewhere taking out many of the puppets. He then fell to his knees as the exhaustion became too much.
"TIBBERS!" Annie yelled as she threw her bear into the air.
The bear flew in a wide arc before catching fire and falling to the ground.
The closer puppets stopped and stared at it, "I was expecting more from that." Viktor spoke, unimpressed at the attempt.
The army began to close in.
PLAY TIME!
With the demonic voice echoing throughout the battlefield, an inferno erupted with Tibbers at its center. Claws swiped through the inferno as Tibbers stood in the center transformed into his first stage, the seams and thread holding his body together straining to keep the fire inside.
"What manner of creature are you?" Viktor asked as he watched a massive burning shadow bear appear out of the inferno.
I AM YOUR END!
The burning bear leapt into the army swinging its arms and claws cutting through the army and burning anyone that came close. An aura of flames surrounded him as he attacked anyone close to the group.
Everyone other than the siblings were shocked at the appearance of Tibbers. Aside from Jayce, they had all heard about Annie's bear. They had even heard it speak but this was something else.
"Evolution has no end." Viktor spoke.
The sphere behind them began to crack open and a figure rose into the air.
"Let me show you."