Of Silence and Scars, Chapter 23

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XXIII The clock struck three. Swain rubbed his eyes and looked out into the night. His office was a tomb waiting for him to pass away with only his loyal raven Khan for company. He brushed the bird lightly on the beak and it warbled happily. Turning his attention again to the dusty old tomes and scrolls overflowing his desk, he had narrowed the search down to six items. The notes from Zaun and Shurima had been extremely beneficial, narrowing his search from millions of possibilities down to around twenty, which is where his work began as he scoured the legends and tales of old for any sign of what was transpiring in Valoran. An object strong enough to rip portals in the rift and command void monsters. The only problem wasn’t that all six shared those qualities, it was that no one could manage it. This was concerning. There may be more than one party at play here. He stood and paced around the circular space. Musing the possibilities, he tried putting himself in the shoes of the assailant. What had actually been gained so far? Yordles taken, then Piltover, then Demacia… Why them specifically? Their opponents hadn’t been touched. He pulled up the records on the teams that were left behind. Sejuani’s squad, Zaun’s team, then lastly the mercenary squad primarily from Bilgewater. Looking at the rosters the reason became clear to Swain. The Yordles had two mages, Lulu and Teemo, though his magic was weaker, more poison based. The other team only had Sejuani for magic, which was around as much as Teemo, that made the Yordles a more favorable target. Piltover was even more obvious, Ezreal, Orianna and Zilean being swept off, while leaving behind Viktor and Singed whose magic was actually mostly science. Finally the Demacians had sported Galio and Lux over Bilgewater’s lone fizz. Fairly confident that was the pattern, Swain still couldn’t put his finger on why mages were targeted. Mulling this over for a few minutes, a light flashed to his right. A lone fire burned above his desk, in one of his many signal flares. That particular one was for the torture dungeon. Urgot must have made headway with their captive from the assault. As he pulled on the nose of a marble bust of his own visage to reveal a hidden stairway down the tower, he wondered how Kog’maw had lasted so long in the chamber. He didn’t think it would take two days for the worm to crack. Something wasn’t right. After a lengthy descent, Swain tapped three stones in the wall rapidly and a gap form in the wall, leading him into the center of the lower halls. Housing mostly various torture rooms and methods of interrogation, Swain strolled through the bleak hallways towards the unmistakable hulking form of Urgot waiting to debrief him before they went in to see Kog’maw. “Report” “cuuurgh The voidling held his tongue out of fear sir cuurgh. But cut deep enough and maggots all beg cuurgh for the death they once feared. He is babbling sir, I can focus him cuurgh on your command.” He laughed and wheezed while brandishing a shock stick, making sparks flicker into the darkness surrounding them. Admiring the man… machine…. thing’s passion for its work, he nodded and they proceeded inside. The chamber was dank as rancid liquid oozed from the walls and water droplets fell from the moist ceiling irregularly around the room. Swain approached the reclined steel bed on which the Mouth of the Abyss was strapped to. “Are you ready to talk?” Kog’maw wheezed and huffed rapidly, “No talk! The lady, she kill me! She hurt poor Kog’maw!” Urgot jabbed swiftly with the stick, jolting the monster and sending him into minute spasms for a couple moments. The beast wailed loudly then cried, “Ok, ok. I talk, I talk. Stop hurting me!” Swain asked, “Who is attacking the League? How is it possible?” “The lady. She bears the stone! We gave it to her we did! She is strong now! Can take what she wants. The queen of snow and land!” Swain went rigid, Lissandra? She hasn’t been heard from outside of the Institute since her Frostguard had lost in the Freljord event nearly two years ago. She tried to summon the Watchers but failed. “What stone are you speaking of?” “She bears the stone of the void! Our power is hers for now.” “Why would you bargain with her?” “I know not! I swear! I only do as told. Eat, destroy filthy Noxian scroll and their questions. Stop them from asking such things!” Swain nodded, more things clicking into place, filling in the holes to the puzzle in his mind. The void rift was no coincidence, Lissandra and her affiliates knew that he had been asking questions and had a list of objects she could possess. He was almost done with the vermin, “Why are you taking mages?” Kog’maw paled. “The lady only speaks of watching. She is always watching!” Swain departed, telling Urgot to keep him alive in case they need more answers. Lissandra still wanted the Watchers to return. Kog’maw did not have much knowledge on the why, but that was acceptable. She must need the mages to release the Watchers. With the power of the Void and her own enhanced by this stone while the number of free champions grew smaller by the day, the odds were looking bleak. When would she strike next? She didn’t attack every match in the League, only attacking once a week or so. He had to know more. There was much to do. But time was shorter than he realized as he ventured back to his office. For once the Master Tactician would be too slow.