OK so this lore patch was quite bigger than the last one and I can say that I am a huge fan for it, a pity many was kinda leaked or shown off before the patch though since I personally love just getting to read them altogether through the day and give my comments the night of it releases yet each story was amazing and found so many advancements in the lore which was a bit shocking and though I do love it, it also does worry me in a sense since I kind of want every champion to be established and set before we progress the lore as though you have done a nice job at placing many characters I still feel like there are a couple missing before I feel comfortable putting the story into motion but yet that didn't stop me from enjoying it and just left me unsure of wanting more or wanting to wait.
Allow me to start with the comic as I feel like this has been the best chapter yet, as it not only moves the story forward perfectly illustrating, now many characters more honestly and fully, Lux willing to give up magic temporarily and even subjecting herself to a patricide shake just to try and correct her mistake, going in a weakened state to stop the Sylas, J4's bond with his father , his conflicted feelings with Shyvanna and feeling of betrayal from his people even though mages, Garen waking up not through medicine or rest but by duty to serve and protect not only his nation but his sister and friend, and finally Sylas with his more psychotic tendency and anarchistic views presented their, wanting to force J4 into eating a live rat in front of his people and attacking Lux and willing to kill her after not wanting to join their cause, such great showings and made so many great lore and character moments.
But speaking of lore moments let me say that the continuation in "Aftermath" might just top all the previous praise I gave the comic, it was an amazing read giving such good insight into not only J4 and Xin life and growing up, but also to the King, J3, and how great of a man he was in both their eyes, and their grief at losing him, unsure of where to go now, it showed such character and pain from them I didn't expect to see and truly felt for them in ways I was not expecting it might have moved to be one of my favorite short stories if not FAVORITE story that has been told in Leauge, and though I do worry for J4 and how this good man might fall I still believe he will do right when the time comes, especially with Xin and Shyvanna, will finally be the one to unite Demacia and learn to honor his fathers final wish.
I will move to the shorter bios now as I want to talk a bit about the Pantheon short story so let me say that once again there is usually little to say here, as though they nice and sometimes give a bit more view into characters they usually make it just easier to read with more coherent sentences yet both the Ori and Jinx one gave us a bit nicer input of who the characters wear, especially since both can be said to have gone through great change, one physical another mental, but both philosophical, and unsure of where to go now leading to more wonder into the characters yet still giving us enough to love and learn of them.
Now for Pantheon new lore and short story, I will say I love yet I might be in the minority and say I don't fully buy that the aspect of was has died, and is actually the main reason he goes Pantheon, and though this might be more of a theory I do wish to share here before giving my thoughts on them as to understand my views a bit.
As we know the celestials kinda choose their host, within some cases, choosing them from distant lands with Taric and Kayles/Morganna's mother, to even giving some the ability to seemingly able to hand them a guide to reach the peak in an instant as in with Diana and Leona, and sometimes not even needing them to climb to the top as with Zoe, more so choosing their host by the attributes and qualities they show. So to me, it would seem really odd for Pantheon to choose Artrius if he found him that pathetic, especially if you consider that he didn't even need to choose him even if he did reach as it has been shown with Kayle father, and even in the Targon Bio page that even if they reach the top no award is actually mandated, so there must have been a reason, and I think it was cause Pantheon, the aspect, knew he would not win vs Aatrox but instead wanted a soldier that could fight him and all other dangers Runeterra might face, someone that would know the struggle from Mans view and would fight to protect them from even the celestials if must, and that figure perfectly describes Artrius, yet Panth needed to ignite the fire to do so, burying Artrius in his own mind to open his eyes to the danger of celestials and allowing himself to dye to Aatrox, in order for Atrius to pick up the role, in such making it so war didn't really die that fight but evolve and change, Atrius succesfully becoming the new Aspect of War. This also is the main reason I think we still call him Pantheon rather than Atrius, and though this is just a personal theory the more I thought on it the more it made sense, and it is all more likely with the short story.
Phew sorry for that long divert but now with Pantheons short story, I can say that it illustrated to me once again how Atrius fits with the role of man a warrior ready to protect and fight alongside them from an unspeakable ascended type of being, and through the sacrifice of another manages to stand again, the fallen warrior now part of the Pantheon constellation as their fellow warriors manage to stand up again, alongside Panth in order to fight, one can't help but rally along with them, from the screen, I screamed her name, imagining the soldiers to my right and left ready to fight an impossible godlike being as mortals ready to show that we won't give up to any being, that our pain and effort is not for their amusement and that we are more than what they find us and made me pumped at its end. And yet it also showed to me how the Pantheon constellation is made of the many soldiers from before that died protecting something, something they most definitely valued, it illustrated to me that the OG Aspect of Pantheon could not have hated Man for war is fought cause we all value something, something we would die to protect something we love and care, that we also struggled and met our own challenges, if Pantheon truly hated the weak, his constellation would not be open to those that died for it, he would not remember them like soldiers remembering their friends after a battle or families that lost their loved ones, Pantheon chose to remember those willing to protect no matter the cost, and to me that's why Pantheon chose Artrius, cause he would stand up, willing to fight anyone, to protect that idea.
... OK if you read all that, sorry for it, I just really love the lore, and wish to share it here, hoping that the RIOTers working on it know how much I value their work, while also kind of wanting to share my thoughts on it, but yeah... might have gone overboard, hehe, but let me say I can't wait for the next lore patch, going to try to control myself though.
Bret "Ashekandi" Forbus
[zombie-nunu-hearts] 
