[Fanfiction] The Legacy of Shurima

Shurima wasn't always a relentess desert. Millennia before your time, a powerful empire once stood in place of the sands that would soon swallow it. The history before Shurima, however, no one knows. No one but me.

I came from a tribe of warriors on the east of Valoran, origins I don't even know of. Only the fiercest survived in my tribe; anyone who showed an ounce of weakness were swiftly executed in front of their bretheren. My tribe, over the years, slowly divided. On one side of my tribe were the barbarians who's breath was only for war, and the other shared the same views, however, wished for law to be laid down to follow. My older cousin, Noxus, a supporter of the latter, tricked the barbaric nature of the other half of the tribe to seek a fabeled Sun Disc said to Ascend anyone who completed the ritual inscribed on the disc to invincibility and unmatched power. According to legend, the disc was located on the peak of the highest mountain of all of Valoran: Mt. Targon.

My mother and father, supporters of the barbarians of my tribe, left our home with the others to travel to Mt. Targon for the Sun Disc. I followed along, and for weeks we walked on foot for this Sun Disc. The more we walked, the more tension grew between us. Some were unsure how the Ascension would take place: would only one person be Ascended? Would a group? Would a battle have to be fought for Ascension? Bets were taken between the older warriors of my tribe for who would be Ascended, and if a battle was to break out, who would win. At last, the treacherous Targon came in to view at dawn, its peak shining brighter than the rest of the sky. For the next three days we'd climb to the peak, anyone left behind were left behind.

Only a handful of the travelers reached the peak. My mother stayed behind with young children who weren't able to make the journey up the peak while I was dragged along with my father. Our family has left a bad taste in our tribe's mouth, way before we broke from our lawful counterparts. My mother, due to give birth to me soon, was called forth by our tribe leader for her rite of passage to becoming a warrior, her current state exempt from the 'rules'. She refused, and as tradition, she was to be executed, but my father rushed to her aid and fended off our leader, the current fiercest warrior our tribe has to offer, Jagen the First. Instead of killing Jagen, my father showed him mercy. Jagen, instead of acknowledging my fathers mercy, turned him into the laughingstock of the tribe. Upon hearing the Sun Disc's Ascension powers, my father quickly left for it to prove his worth to our tribe. Either he'd be Ascended, or I would, the last of our bloodline.

The people among me and my father included Jagen, two other warriors I do not know of, and a lesser child member not of age yet. The Sun Disc, larger than any of us, gleamed down to us from the sky, the approaching sun seeming to add to its power. The ritual inscribed on it was unreadable, according to Jagen. When I looked at it, the words on the disc spoke to me. The disc's message was clear: the ritual was only to be done in times of need. The six of us retreated to the cold slopes below at the end of the day with the rest of our tribe. Jagen and the two other warriors entered his tent to plan how to Ascend, but my father attempted to enter and was turned away by Jagen on the excuse cowards didn't deserve to live, much less Ascend. Such an insult usually led to a fight, but my father didn't budge from his spot outside the tent. Jagen ordered my mother not to set up tent that night, and we would have to endure the cold to live another day among them.

While sitting in the cold, I watched the Sun Disc shine from the peak. It still managed to give off the aura of the sun, despite it being the darkest part of the day. A warrior left from Jagen's tent, and I pretended to be sleep, looking out from my squinting eyes. The warrior, despite going to one of the many tents, headed up to the pathway to the peak. When he was out of my sight, I got up and followed him. When I caught up to the peak, he was kneeling before the Sun Disc, asking for answers. Was this their plan for Ascension?

The Sun Disc whirred to life, its rays shining brighter in recognition of the warrior. A portion of the disc seemed to shine at the warrior, and the same voice as before answered his question: An Ascendant is to be reborn to a great legacy.

I understood now. The Sun Disc wasn't inscribed with a ritual, but a prophecy. Soon, someone would Ascend and create a great legacy. But Ascension would have to be used in times of need. Something terrible was going to happen.

The Sun Disc's rays fell on my hiding place. The warrior turned around and I quickly tried to conceal myself, but sadly, this warrior wasn't barbaric fool. He ordered me to come out of hiding or he, the son of Jagen the First, would smite me. I wasn't in a position to refuse and start a battle, so I showed myself. He faltered out of battle stance at the sight of me; as if I wasn't a threat. He asked what I heard, and I lied and said I never understood it. He seemed to believe me, but the Sun Disc did not. It revealed another portion of the disc, a list of names. I was near the top: Shurima. Below me were the names Nasus and Renekton.

The warrior, instead of scolding me, told me to head back down before I was caught.

For the next month my tribe focused on colonizing the mountaintop. But still, everyday the Sun Disc shined upon us. Ascension was so close yet so far. Our travel was useless. The lives lost inbetween the journey from the east all the way to the peak was in vain of the search for ultimate power. Jagen held many council meetings in the tent to the point our tribe sat outside to eavesdrop. They stopped talking about Ascension, but instead on things a tribe council should. For instance, the name of our tribe would be in honor of the celestial body Rakkor, a constelation that depicted the finest warrior Runeterra could birth. The council meetings became so boring no one wanted to listen in anymore. Considering my family and I didn't have a tent to sleep in, I had no choice. The other warrior beside the son of Jagen would check to see if anybody was listening, and then they would talk about Ascension. After their talk, the son would go out to the peak for answers.

One night was different. The son rushed from the tent up to the peak. Minutes later, Jagen woke up the entire camp. He said the only way to gain Ascension was to destroy the Sun Disc. My tribe, the Rakkor, rallied their weapons to fight against the Sun Disc at dawn. My father was the first donned with battle armor, inserting himself to the front lines. Not wanting to linger, I secretly went up the passageway to the peak. The son was frantic, asking the Disc over and over what to do. When I came into view, the Sun Disc finally responded: Shurima.

Another part of the prophecy shined. At first I didn't understand it, but once the events happened I understood. I was to take the Sun Disc and flee to the area of sand between Mt. Targon and the Jungles. This area was plagued with violent sand storms, guarenteed to whisk me away if I were caught in one. The son of Jagen were to hold off the Rakkor while I escaped. The tens of my tribes members against one man. I asked if he could escape with me, but the Disc said there wasn't a choice; the son would have a legacy of his own to make.

Dawn was rapidly approaching, and I could see the torches being lit to light the way up the peak. How was I suppose to move this giant Sun Disc to the furious sands that awaited below?

The Sun Disc seemed to read my mind. Again, the list of future Ascendants shone at me: Shurima. Of Course! I had to Ascend, but how?

The Rakkor reached the peak and the first rays of dawn broke. My father wasn't in the front lines anymore; probably pushed back by Jagen in his men. Once Jagen fell sight on me, he yelled to his men: Shurima! The daughter of the coward who dares enters our front lines, has come early to take Ascension for herself!

The Rakkor laughed. Then Jagen looked at his son: I hope you haven't come for Ascension too!

His son resumed battle stance at his father. Jagen looked surprised, then smiled at his son: Your rite of passage isn't for a few days!

His son responded: I will not let you destroy this ancient relic in vain of power, father. You, all of you, will have to go through me first!

The son turned around to me and whispered to start to Ascension ritual. The Sun Disc revealed a portion in the middle of it for me to read. As I began, the Disc seemed to gather the rays of dawn and grow brighter. The son of Jagen and the Rakkor clashed. Some of the Rakkor went around the son and towards the Sun Disc. The Disc obliterated them immediately in rays of light.

The son was being overpowered quick, but as the sun came in the sky he seemed to gain more strength. When I was done with the ritual, a single, bright light shone upon me like those who were destroyed around me. I was frozen for a few seconds, and in these seconds of terror I believed I completed the ritual wrong and the Sun Disc was punishing me for not being able to save it from the wrath of the Rakkor. When the seconds let up, everyone around me seemed small, puny. I looked at myself and I was covered with the power given to me from the Sun Disc: I Ascended.

The battle around me stopped. Jagen pointed at me and yelled: She has Ascended! Kill her!

The Rakkor forgot about the son of Jagen, bloody and wounded on the ground. Despite my Ascension, I had no knowledge of how to use my power. The Sun Disc didn't answer either. I grabbed it and put it under my arm and fled to the pass of jagged rock that lead down the mountain.

The son got on his feet and raised his sword to the sky. He shouted something in the language written on the Sun Disc: Smite the enemies of the Sun!

The raw power of the sun came hurtling down on the Rakkor tribe, a circle of ash in the middle marked the spot where warriors should have been. The flare blinded me, I lost my footing, and hurtled down the mountain with the Sun Disc. I hoped my current state of Ascension would protect me from the fall. I held the Sun Disc to my chest, afraid the Disc would shatter if I used it to cushion the fall. I waited for impact, but I never did. I seemed to float off of the ground. I looked at the Disc for conformation. It brightened my name again: Shurima.

I walked floated to the sand stretch the Disc prophesied about. Nothing was there but endless sand dunes and whirling winds. The Sun seemed to burn right through my Ascension coat. What was the reason for me to be there? An Ascendant with an ancient Sun Disc wandering the sands for eternity? I looked at the Disc for answers.

The Disc shined my name again: Shurima. Then another part of the Disc: An Ascendant is to be reborn to a great legacy.

Around me, the sands seemed to cave in like quicksand. A hole was formed, and then out rose an empire of jewels only I could dream of. The Sun Disc flew out of my hand and settled atop of the highest building in the empire. It shined one last word: Shurima. The Sun Disc let out a wave of solar energy, powerful enough to knock me back.

After a few days of Ascension I returned to normal size. I however still shone with power. These days I spent wandering the streets and buildings of the empire I just created. Was this my Ascension power? Creating an empire from pure sand? Days turned into weeks. Then, the first group of people came.

They were poor nomads in search of the great empire of Shurima. I welcomed them and gave them homes in the lesser area of the empire, not sure of their true intentions. Soon more came. More poor nomads or people who used their gifts of art to work for money, searching for Shurima. It was as if the Sun Disc erased its history in Runeterra and replaced it with the story of the empire I resurrected. Soon the empire was filled. These people looked to me as if I was a god. They needed a leader.

I, the Great Shuriman Empress, Ascendant of the Sun, Mother of Shurima, born the great legacy of your empire.

The ending sucks tbh. The more I wrote this the more I hated it but imma post it anyway because I have nothing to lose but upvotes peace out.