Ten years ago, in the depths of the Immortal Bastion.
The atmosphere of the place was dark and depressing, wrapped in gray tones that stretched along corridors of gloomy walls, the same color as the stone that encased the Empire. In this setting, the footsteps of three people echoed, and that was when a young 17-year-old Midas finally appeared.
Midas was being escorted by two Noxian soldiers clad in black armor. Both were expressionless and didn't say a single word, reinforcing the silent, oppressive atmosphere.
As he walked with a downcast posture, Midas stared at the ground with empty eyes. On his hands rested the inhibitor that restrained his mystical powers—the same powers that had wiped out an entire battalion. Though his hands were locked inside the device, traces of golden metal could be seen creeping up his wrists.
"Move, boy," one of the soldiers said.
Without protesting, Midas lowered his gaze further and quickened his pace. The deeper they descended into the Bastion's stairs, the more palpable the sinister presence of the Black Rose's failed experiments became. The further down they went, the louder the wails and screams of those mysterious beings hidden behind reinforced doors.
It continued like that until they reached a long hallway filled with cells. Inside one of them was a girl repeatedly smashing her head against the wall. She wore a sinister smile as her own blood streamed down her forehead. She stuck out her tongue to lick the blood running over her lips, and the wound on her forehead closed.
Suddenly, she heard the guards approaching. She peeked through the bars, her eyes lighting up with excitement at the new monster they had brought in. However, this one didn't look like a monster at all. He was a thin boy with messy short black hair and strange golden markings that could be seen for a brief moment beneath the folds of his black shirt. As for his clothing, it was essentially a male version of what she wore: a black shirt with odd markings, slightly loose short pants, and no shoes—something she caught in a split second when she leaned forward.
"Get in the cell," one of the soldiers muttered.
The hinges of a door creaked. Then came the sound of bare footsteps, and finally, the door shut.
Silence.
A deathly silence followed by the suffocating aura of the place. She sighed in disappointment and returned to smashing her head against the wall. As she leaned closer, she suddenly heard something. Pressing her ear to the wall, she focused.
A faint sound echoed through the darkness of the long corridor… soft, sorrowful crying.
"I'm sorry… Please forgive me. I didn't mean to. I didn't want to do it."
If she used all her intellect, she would conclude that the voice came from the boy they had just locked away. She figured he must have caused some trouble outside to end up here. But setting that aside, she smiled upon hearing someone cry. Sure, many cried here from hunger—but this one was different.
"Hehe. You're a crybaby," she mocked, but he ignored her.
The boy on the other side of the wall quieted down, which disappointed Briar for the second time.
Briar… yes. She had been locked in this place for a few years after causing too much trouble for the important people of Noxus. Now she was trapped, bored, and hungry.
After several long hours of Briar crawling on the ground, eating bugs she found, smashing herself against walls, and biting her own toes, suddenly…
"Hey, crybaby. What did the vampire say to the night?"
She got no response, obviously—but she decided to act as if Midas had actually answered.
"I'm hungry!"
She smiled as if her joke was funny. The only response she got was four seconds of silence. Then, Midas' voice echoed weakly, with a faintly deeper tone that hinted at his nearing adulthood.
"That… that's not funny," he said, sounding dull and dry.
From the darkness of his cell, Midas stared at the floor. His eyes faintly glowed gold, and the metal on his wrists seemed to crawl upward like claws along his arms. This was because his power was spiraling out of control—but that's what the inhibitor was for.
When Midas' Golden Touch activated, a red gem inside the inhibitor glowed. With that, the light in his eyes faded, and the golden metal slowly receded, settling back over his hands.
"It's not funny…" he repeated, as if trying to carve those words into his own mind.
"Looks like we've got a party pooper here," Briar continued her strange conversation. "But whatever. Do you have a name? What's your name?"
"My name is none of your business," Midas replied. Though it could've sounded harsh, his tone was still flat.
"Aah… so that's how it's going to be? I see…" Briar puffed her cheeks. After a second, she sighed and pressed her face against the bars. "Then I won't tell you my name either. I'll never tell you."
"Okay… just shut up."
"Alright…"
Like an obedient dog, Briar walked around her cell with exaggerated steps for a few seconds before sitting cross-legged on the ground. She stared at the door in silence—stared intently—then closed her eyes and…
"Hey, one time I fell off a cliff. I smashed my face, but there were a lot of fish nearby and I ate them. They were delicious. Those fish literally tasted like river water. It was great. But then the soldiers found me and sent me back to the battlefield."
"Aah…" Midas hid his face between his knees. He had thought she would finally shut up—but it was the complete opposite.
Briar kept talking and talking for a long time.
Maybe their relationship wasn't deep. It couldn't even be called a friendship. But at some point, Briar began to think of Midas as her best friend. In this dark abyss, Midas was the only one who listened to everything she said—and Briar loved being heard. It made her happy, and that was why she wanted to escape with him.
In the end, they did.
After years trapped in that darkness—with Midas sinking deeper into his depression and Briar constantly questioning her place in the world—freedom finally became theirs.
That was the dream that should have come true, but…
***
She ran desperately, hiding within the dense green forest. Trees rushed past her, but that was only because Briar was running with all her strength. Her breathing was heavy, blood dripping from her chest. Her vision was blurring, and her grip on Midas' cloak with her teeth was weakening.
Despite everything working against her, Briar kept running. She understood they couldn't be caught. After losing to Darius, her only thought was survival. And yet, even while thinking about survival, she thought about Midas.
'I feel weak.'
Everything around her seemed to spin. As she ran, she recalled her past with Midas.
"Mai… Mai…" Midas' dying voice echoed faintly.
Midas was dying. It was already surprising that he had survived this long, but the life within him was fading like a flame in a storm. The blood had stopped flowing from his wound—because there was no blood left to spill. His heartbeat slowed rapidly, and his organs began to fail.
Briar heard him and clenched her teeth.
There were many emotions she didn't understand. The only things she truly knew were pleasure and hunger. Anger was something she could feel, but not fully comprehend. Beyond that—sadness, happiness, fear, love… they were nothing more than words to her.
That's why she had been so confused earlier. When she saw Midas being fatally struck, she felt something—something that hurt, but didn't wound her.
"Over here!"
"The blood trail goes this way!"
"She's close!"
Noxian soldiers were chasing her.
Marking the beginning of a tragedy, small droplets of water fell onto Briar's face. Then, suddenly, the rain began.
The cold filled the air, and the damp scent of earth spread across the scene. Briar's rapid footsteps splashed through the water gathering beneath her feet, and the bleak image of two people on the verge of death intensified.
Two blue eyes watched from the shadows.
Kindred appeared and disappeared within the scene, shrouded in the mysticism of their existence. Behind the Lamb… the Wolf smiled in satisfaction.
The rain brought momentary relief to Briar and Midas, washing away the blood trail and making it harder for the soldiers to track them. It was undoubtedly a stroke of luck—but escaping death required more than that.
As Briar ran, Midas began to relive his childhood in his dreams. Blurred images flashed one after another. Among them was the reason he was in Noxus instead of his home, Zaun.
'I can't keep going. I can't breathe,' Briar complained.
Her eyelids felt heavy, and every muscle in her body weakened. Staying on her feet was already a feat. Though small and strong, Briar realized she could also be weak.
Her fight with Darius had taught her a valuable lesson.
The only problem was… she might not live long enough to use it.
Without watching where she stepped, and with the mud formed by the rain, Briar slipped. Her head struck a rock, and she fell violently into a hole surrounded by stones. Midas fell with her.
They tumbled down a long tunnel that stretched over ten meters. The fall wasn't clean—it was filled with jagged rocks.
When they finally hit the bottom, Briar landed on top of Midas. Due to the previous impact, she was completely unconscious.
The fall had been loud, but afterward, only the sound of rain above remained.
Briar lay on top of Midas, their wounds pressed together. Her blood, mixed with water and mud, seeped into Midas' wound—and his into hers.
In the end, darkness consumed everything.
Kindred's eyes gazed upon them.
"What a shame. Another time," the Lamb whispered in a calm, feminine voice.
"How boring. I thought we'd have a good hunt this time," the Wolf growled, his voice rough and irritated.
The Lamb turned away, ignoring the Wolf and giving her back to Midas and Briar.
"Fate changes. Death changes. This is nothing more than a delay. The moment will come… sooner or later."
Just as they had appeared, Kindred vanished into the darkness.
And when they were gone…
Midas and Briar's wounds had already closed.