Darkin Lore TL;DR (One of the best stories so far. Actual GJ, Rito)

My body is shaking with excitement after reading all of the new lore content, it literally feels like Christmas, Riot Lore Team, you have outdone yourselves with this one, GG. I sort of just want to make this post for people who can't be bothered to read the short stories and to listen to possible theories, but upon reading the new stories here's what I've figured out:

So we figure out that the Darkin (Old Shuriman dialect for "the fallen" [transformers much?]) aren't actually alien invaders, they're Ascended warriors from Shurima who have resorted to warring against each other after the death of Azir and the fall of Shurima (the whole Azir-Xerath fiasco). We find out that some of them look the way they do (see Aatrox, Rhaast) due to them practicing forbidden magic and using darker powers to gain the upper hand against each other.

Moreover, from the story of Ta'anari and his assembly of other 'Darkin' at Kha'zhun (place in Shurima I suppose), we learn that it was he who betrayed the other Darkin and made an alliance with the Targonians, specifically, an alliance with the Aspect of Twilight at the time: Myisha. It's told that Ta'anari and Myisha went off in search for Nasus in order to figure out the location of the Chalicar (Sivir's blade which is actually originally Setaka's blade as well!). Ta'anari sort of calls upon a few of his former Ascended comrades in an effort to end the war against each other, but in the end Ta'anari is forced to use the Chalicar and channel power from the moon in order to defeat his fellow Darkin. Ta'anari becomes human once more in the process but we see him get betrayed by Myisha who candidly giggles at his naïveté and just non-chalantly rips his heart out, no big deal, sounds like it's Monday to me. It's implied that after this event Myisha, gives the power to trap and defeat Darkin to the humans of Runeterra, who as we can tell, were successful in doing so.

So just a little commentary, I know a lot of people were skeptical about pushing Darkin lore into Shuriman territory, but personally, I believe that it fits perfectly with the League of Legends lore. The problem with having the Darkin as an alien race looking to invade Runeterra is that it just brings way too much story to the Runeterran lore, which is already messy as it is. You already have the story of the rune wars, the problem with the void, the watchers and don't forget the actual conflicts between Runeterran factions. To add another subplot of dark bloodthirsty Aliens invading Runeterra? it's just a lot of story to juggle for one planet in order to have a cohesive general plot. Having the Darkin as these fallen Ascended God-Warriors, we still feel their eccentricity being a race different from mortals, and better yet, it makes it easier to understand and relate to what they have gone through with them being an alien but not-too-alien race. I honestly just love how the Darkin are just this fallen race facing inner and outer conflict with themselves, having seen the horrors of the void, but also with their own kin, having lost their emperor and their home, ultimately having lost their purpose.

Again I just love this addition to the League of Legends lore, again personally, I find that this makes the Darkin much more interesting to play in-game, now knowing why they're the way they are, why they're mad, angry, sad, and bloodthirsty. We also get so much information on champions like Azir, Nasus and Sivir, lore-wise. It's heartbreaking reading how much the all Ascended loved Shurima, how it gave them purpose only to have it burnt to dust along with their leader, Azir. It really does help establish how the Darkin aren't exactly evil, they're literally just misunderstood: a broken, shattered race trying to find meaning and purpose may it be ruling Runeterra under their will or storming the gates of Targon.

**Also: Can we please talk about how a previous incarnation of sweet young Ezreal-loving Zoe literally just ripped out the heart of an Ascended God-Warrior candidly and GIGGLED ABOUT IT. **