Starless Night [Star Guardians, League of Legends, engl.]

Starless Night [Star Guardians, League of Legends, engl.]

A starless night

There had always been a darkness inside her. Seeing her family and friends getting hurt, tortured or killed, their race nearly diminished, the magic dwindling from this once so pure and precious world left scar upon scar on her skin and soul alike. The Vastaya were a folk of kindred and song, their inner light shining with their love for the world they lived in, for the spirits of nature that breathed life in every straw of grass, every leaf and plant, every being.

But the peaceful times are long gone, only a dim spark of memory in the minds of those ancient beings that managed to survive, that didn't lose their minds. Vastaya weren't made for fight, they weren't made for war, they were beings of light and not of darkness. But fight they did, fight they must, and lost they have too many times.

But it wasn't only the Vastaya race that was on the verge of being destroyed - many shared that gruesome fate. The two unusual lovers found others with the dream of restoring their world to its former beauty, people that were ready to fight, to dedicate their lives to this self-imposed duty; people that went from being strangers to becoming friends to eventually becoming family.

When they formed the Star Guardians, Rakan finally dared to hope again. Not only for his home and people but for his love too. Now they stood a chance against the odds of the world, and with a team this strong ... what could possibly happen? Xayah, having found new purpose, new strength was flourishing in the prospect of fulfilling her dream of once again peaceful lands. He still remembered her smile, sweet and so pure, after the duo had besieged Zed and his pawns in a ferocious and bloody fight and the land was finally freed from the evil. The magic had returned then, slowly and steadily, and they could hear the jolly singing of the trees and animals, of nature itself. O how their souls had rejoiced in the merrymaking and wonder ... But the greatest beauty hadn't been in the restored forest but in the Vastaya in his arms, her deep eyes lit up with joy and delight, a contend smile upon her lips that he'd almost forgotten it existed. She'd never smiled back then, but started to do so more often with the time going by - and every single time it was as if his whole world suddenly was filled with happiness and love.

O he loved her with every fibre of his being, with his heart and with his soul.

He had turned to her afterwards, bowing slightly and extending his hand to her. A cocky smile had grazed his lips, but his eyes were soft and full of loving. She'd looked at him with such adoration that his heart had started to race, before she accepted his invitation. Xayah had put her hand softly on his, before he suddenly grabbed her, pulling her body closer and spinning them around a few times. She had laughed then, shaking her head about his behaviour, a red shimmer upon her sweet cheeks, but then she had leaned in and they'd dance ... for minutes, hours, maybe days. He didn't know anymore, he had just been so lost in her eyes that he had had no care for the world, even less for time. He had only cared for the love of his life, as he had always done and will always do.

The world had been hard but good for a while. The vastayan pair loved each other with every inch of their skin, with every spark of their soul, with their whole beings. And they loved their family, the other Star Guardians, that had grown so close to them that they couldn't think of a time without having each other.

But the darkness came back, stronger and fiercer, bloodier and more brutal than ever, going even as far as to corrupt the mind of one of their own, tearing it apart in pieces, shattering the soul of someone so dear. For a long time Zoe had seemed to battle nameless ghosts in her head, hearing voices no one else could hear, illusions only made for her eyes. She had turned against them, her friends having no chance to hold her back, and with the power and mind of the ever-strong darkness she now embodied she lusted for death and a starless night. The Star Guardians took her loss hard but still tried to fight for the good in this world, tried to fight to free one that they had once called family from the prison of horror that caged her. But in one fateful night even their light diminished ...

The battle had been going on for ages, and the Star Guardians were worn out from their seemingly endless fight against masses of dark creatures. Although heaving for breath, his body aching for rest and having various wounds on his bloody and ripped skin, Rakan leapt headfirst into the enemies. He threw them off their feet with one swish of his feathery coat and the momentary knock up was enough for Xayah to pull her razor sharp feathers back, ripping through armour and bodies like thin paper, killing them on instant.

He barely escaped his foes, sending one energized attack back in their midst and flurrying himself to his love, healing them both with his magic. Rakan pressed a fleeting kiss on her long ear, feeling her fingertips caress his arm softly, their eyes meeting on instant, two pairs full of exhaustion and love and worry for each other, before they rushed on, fighting a fight with no possible way to win. The Star Guardians were pushed back more and more, and already Ahri was shouting for retreat, firing her orbs of magic into the enemies' ranks, diminishing every dark being in its way - but already new ones filled their places. At some movement to his right Rakan turned his head and was set back for a moment when he caught a glimpse of ... himself, running into a group of enemies. He blinked, confused, looking down at his hands for a short moment – no, he still was himself. His mirror picture leaped into the air, his features changing and the figure finally turning into someone completely else. It was too late for the enemies to turn away, having expected the Vastaya as their opponent, and Neeko turned them all into ashes with an energy wave exploding around her. Chaos ruled the battlefield and the darkness crept ever nearer, killing off plants and animals, clouding the moon and corrupting the air itself. It was hard to breathe, like thick fog that invaded him, that tortured his mind and soul. He could hear Zoe's childlike laugh from afar, portalling herself forth and back, destroying whatever life was in her way. Her once pure and good magic was long since rotten, madness having taken over her mind, coating her heart in ice and stone. An ancient being devoid of kindness, striving with power and yet always wanting more: A kingdom of shadows and ashes, and she the ultimate queen, ageless and immortal.

Already Rakan could feel tendrils of her dark soul seeping into his own very being, clouding his light. It was hopeless, they had to abandon this place. He began to run towards the other Star Guardians, wanting to get as fast and far as possible away from these shadows. His gaze was fixated on their exit, then strayed farther away in search of her. But she was nowhere to be seen.

He slowed down, nearly coming to a halt while his head whipped around, eyes frantically seeking for a speck of pink in these masses of black. Where was she, where was his love? "Xayah!", he heard a familiar voice, and looking back he could see Ahri staring wide eyed at some point in the distance he first couldn't make out. Rakan followed her eyes and that was when he saw her, a glimmer of light, and his racing heart dropped to the ground. Xayah was surrounded by bloodthirsty enemies, an ocean of dark creatures, threatening to drown her in their midst. No ... It took him only a second to gather himself, to muster his nearly drained magic, and with a feral scream he charged into the waves of evil. He wore his magic like armour, weaving it around his body and thrust forward, ignoring blades and spears aimed at him, breaking through his skin. He had to get to her ... He couldn't lose her!

Rakan took a last, wide jump, his arms reaching forward and catching Xayah in the middle of his leap, shielding both of them from a wave of dark energy that hit them merely a blink later. He didn't want to think of what would've happened to her if she'd been hit by that ... The attack exploded, throwing them off their feet, but his shield still guarded them. "You came", she gasped and stared at him with wide eyes, wiping blood from his face. "Always", he answered softly, gifting her a loving smile and taking a moment to pull her close, their souls entwining and enlightened to be together, to be whole again before the moment was lost and both had to get up again, fighting back to back.

But their strength was fading fast, both exhausted and hurt, and Rakan tried to find familiar faces in the crowd that surrounded them, but his friends were nowhere to be seen. Where were they? Where were their fellow Star Guardians?!

They got pushed back more and more, further away from their way out, and they were alone. No help was coming, the other Star Guardians nowhere to be seen. There were only Xayah and he, two Vastaya against a whole army, two shining hearts against a battalion of heartless.

The fight was hard and brutal, and ongoing endlessly. The ground was strewn with corpses of their enemies, black blood mingled with dots and splashes of red, and their foul enemies slowly got fewer in count, many of them felled, many of them on the hunt, going after the other Star Guardians that had fled in their despair but wouldn't came very far. There was no escape from darkness.

Xayah and he had reached the end of their endurance, barely being able to stand straight. His head was swimming and he was fighting for air, his breathing ragged and muffled, the world twisting and turning before his frantic eyes. When a scream erupted from behind him Rakan whipped around, eyes wide with fear, suddenly feeling like a fist closed around his heart. Xayah was on the ground, hands pressed against a red stained spot on her stomach, her defenses down. Without thinking he threw himself over her, not feeling the sharp blades blocking his way, and shielded them momentarily from oncoming attacks.

"We have lost", Xayah pressed out, and his heart broke at the sight of so much blood of his loved one, but more so about the look of dashed hopes she gave him. Rakan had long since lost all feeling in his body, now it was just a broken shell with a screaming and crying soul inside. Crying for she was right: They had lost, often and with great sorrow, and now the time had come for their last loss. "You're right ... We're finished" He had always known that their end would come eventually, had always known deep down that they would go down in a fight. Still he had hoped desperately that they would die of age after a long and fulfilling life, surrounded by light and not by darkness; that they would've reached their goal of restoring the world, and they could live happily ever after.

But in this fairy tale the evil witch won, killing the two lovers and all her former friends in the process to take over their kingdom of gold and turn it into dust.

Xayah looked him in his eyes, determination settled in those deep orbs of sunlight. He knew what she was up too, needing no words of explanation, and he gifted her a last, wide grin before readying himself. Their foes had gathered their power for one last, ultimate strike of darkness, and the two Vastaya could feel the terror of this massive energy settling in their pure hearts, their worn-out bodies shivering with fear. But no, they wouldn't stop now.

Rakan couldn't hold his shield for much longer, the gold sphere surrounding the two Vastaya cracking more and more like glass breaking, and he groaned with exhaustion and hurt. When his magic finally shattered and they were left without cover he used the last thing he could offer to guard his love: his body. Blades sliced through his skin, black magic burning through his body, covering his heart in ice, his soul drowning in the flood of shadows. Rakan screamed at the torture inflicted on him, and the moment he collapsed Xayah finally jumped. She ascended into the air like an ethereal angel of death, her feathery coat outstretched like a wide, single wing. By the gods she looked beautiful ... In the same motion she fired countless feather-daggers at the dark masses surrounding them, the delicate but deadly weapons piercing every foul beast in their way and killing them instantly. The black magic their foes had summoned exploded in that moment in a massive blast, destroying every spark of life, but Xayah managed to pull her feathers back at the right time and so killed the remaining opponents - before she too got hit.

Everything was quiet. Smoke rose from the darkened earth they lay upon, the sky was black and there was only death. Two bodies rested in a sea of red, their life slowly seeping out on the dirty ground. "Miella ... I helped ... right?", he asked, his voice rasping, his eyes fluttering exhausted. He was so tired ... Never had he felt so exhausted. "Couldn't have done it without you ... mieli", came her answer, and they slowly smiled at each other, although their eyes were already blind. Xayah laid beside him, a contend smile on her bloody lips, and with his last strength he pulled her close to his body. She snuggled against him, desperately, hiding from this mad world like she often did when they were alone. Rakan knew she was crying before he heard her weak sob, and he too had tears in his eyes. "Shhh", he quietly shushed, pressing his lips on her forehead. He was afraid too. He couldn't really feel his body anymore, and he barely felt hers. There was a touch of her soul that showed him that he wasn't alone, that Xayah was with him, that they both would tread this new path together. "Together in life ...", he heard her mumble, her voice so quiet and sluggish he could hardly hear her. "... and together in death", Rakan answered, tears streaming down his pale face, before he felt her body slumping against his. With a last cry he clung to her, holding her tight and sobbing in her soft hair before he too stopped breathing finally.

So they had died like they had lived for so many years: Together in a world of darkness and shadows. It was on this fateful night that the stars disappeared and the world lost its last defense. A new era dawned, and with it came Zoe and her forbidden magic of evil, waking the dead and spreading her madness.