Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

As it was foretold.

On the eve of the era of desolation, in the year of brightest sun, it will return.

Its destination finally reached after millennium of oozing beneath their feet.

The five forgotten will remain apart, hiding away from their shame in the furthest corners they can crawl.

At the top of the world, across the ice sea the oldest recedes. Home in a body fortified with centuries of blood, pain and madness the blade never halted, slaughtering his way across the Ursine glaciers. Never delaying, soaring onwards to the next slaughter.

Across the lands and too sea, in the isles of money and blood, searches the stealing axeman. For the last few centuries, he made home taunting and testing the monster slayers and bounty-man of the land. Prepared and eager to make home in the next one to cross his path, always ready to take upon their name and their list of feats.

North of him, in the first lands that still seep ancestral magic, the one of lost honour is carried. For not even a full cycle of the sun he has been free, retrieved from his home of two centuries in the land of metal and war. Held by a child of that very land, reborn in mud, blood and shadow, not even the stars know the conclusion of their feud. Perhaps it won’t even matter.

Across the sea and south, in the realm of forests mixed with magic and the all-consuming, hunts another. In a form born of two tragedies, the bow follows the sands life bringer from the Delta to the Kahleek, meticulous and unseen all fall alike beneath his aim. For over a decade he pursues his unforgiven prey, but still to scared, perhaps, to venture where he desires. Standing at the cusp of the riverbank, he stares South at where it all began, then West where it all fell.

Finally, north again, to land once for the honoured kingdom of white and poison of magics the sceptre stays. Unknown to the realm of metal and war that hold her crypt, buried beneath land tainted with the injury and disease that seeps from her, she sleeps. East of the grove named for the disaster she bought, she remains deaf and blind for the last century.  

As it was foretold.

Soon they must return to the risen city of sands.

As from beneath their feet the seeping devourer has finally carved its way to its destination.

Soon it will return and th-

“Boring!” Interrupts a high-pitched voice.

Turning his gaze towards the twilight touched creature, Aurelion Sol, the star forger queries his century long headache. “If you didn’t wish to hear the prophecies of the mudball. Why did you come to me and ask for such?”

“Because the others don’t dare tell me the tales of Runeterra anymore. But I knew I could rely on you.” Flicking her hair to the side she gazes at the Celestial dragon. “But if you really wanna know. Its cause I knew there’s a Darkin without a host. I just didn’t know where.”

Stars rumbling with a growl he warns. “Beware your latest game little Aspect”

“You’re not going to start threatening to destroy me again, are you?” The celestial’s eyes burn and narrow dangerously. 

“Right! Sorry, interrupting.” She mimes zipping her mouth shut. Not that the star forger can understand such a motion.

“Beware your games. And I speak directly to the Aspect. The last time you interfered you stopped the war with those god creatures. With cost.” Aurelion Sol doesn’t care for the mudball, if anything the Aspect of Twilight’s games will benefit him. Without the ‘aid’ of the flesh beings siphoning his power he can finally teach the other aspects their lesson. But lying to the trickster in his current state will gain him nothing. 

“The prophecies and sight of your fellow Aspects went blind until this newest one was written. …But this prophecy has no ending. Before, even after the god warrior war continued, the few who survived without killing each other led the mudball to victory against the endless devourers. Those god warriors died, and these surviving ones are unknown, and unstable if the others are to be believed.” He leaves the ‘due to your actions’ left unsaid.

Zoe is aware. She may not know exactly what the previous Aspect of Twilight did, but she knows the basics and she knows the other Aspects were… are beyond furious for meddling in the affairs of mortals.

Myisha did what she had to. And now its Zoe’s turn to continue. The star forger is right, due to previous actions of the Aspect of Twilight the story changed. Changed to help the now, then. So now Zoe must change the now for the now.

She has the location of a Darkin without a host, and an idea to use them with getting the Darkin together. And more to the point back to Shurima.

“This time is different. I won’t play technicalities… much. I will guide a human to where they need to go. Just show the path, not create a path and happen to drop a human right on it... It’ll work.”

It has to. The portals beneath open on peak of Targon’s coming summer.

Chapter Text