– A League of Legends fan fiction
The skies are witness to the deeds of men,
The tides are witness to the greed of men.
To spin a yarn on truth told,
Or covet and lust for another’s gold;
You invite the presence of a being old
The river king cometh, lo and behold!
The last rays of the Sun were vanishing, and the buildings were casting long, dark grey shadows. The streets of Bilgewater were bustling with folk who had come from all over to watch the show being put on by the local theatre. The actors were well-known, and tonight’s show was the story of Gangplank’s Fall. After his very public fall from power, the theatre group became bolder in their depictions of the former king, and the play quickly became famous around the land.
Reyald slowly walked around the gathering crowd. His eyes scanned the drunks, the gamblers, and the folk of the night gathering around excitedly as the theatre group started their preparations. A crowd was a haven for old Reyald, his quick hands, and slippery fingers ready to prey on his next target. He entered the crowd, having spotted a large coin purse. But he was quickly distracted by a couple who joined the crowd. The husband and wife duo looked like nobles from a distant land. Were they lost? He decided not to let this opportunity slip up and went to talk to them.
Forty minutes later, Reyald could be seen walking out of his inn, having helped the couple get a room there for the night. Apparently, the husband was a rich nobleman from Piltover who thought he could make a fortune as a bounty hunter. Reyald had seen many guys like this and took his chance to get to know the couple, posing as a friendly innkeeper and offering them protection and shelter for the night at a fair price. This was only a cover for his nightly operations. Tonight, he would pay them a visit when they were both asleep and help secure their belongings. Usually, he would just sell the women to one of the many captains of the city in an auction. But this one, he had decided to keep for himself. He was imagining the various ways he would play with her when he heard a low whistle from an alleyway.
Curious, he looked in the direction to see a figure vanishing around the corner. A beautiful, white skirt whisked away as someone had walked swiftly. What a lucky night, he thought to himself. Two pretty women on the same night. He double-checked the dagger in his belt and the hidden blade in his shirt and quickly walked into the alleyway. This long alley led to the sea inlet, and he knew there was nowhere for the woman to go after that. He started jogging in excitement as the flowing white skirt turned yet again in the corner out of the alley and into the open space.
Half jogging, half running, he reached the opening to see a beautiful woman bending over a crate in the distance, sweetly whistling to herself.
She didn’t seem to have realized he was there. “Well, aren’t you a beauty?” He called out to her as he closed the space between them. “Now turn around and don’t make a sound. Do as I tell you, and you won’t be hurt much.” He smiled, his hand gripped on the hilt of his dagger. The woman stopped what she was doing and turned around. And as if an invisible hand had wiped the air out, there was a slight shimmer, and in the place of the woman, there stood a seven-foot-tall, scaly monster. The illusion magic that was in use vanished with a low pop! With two giant tentacles that resembled a mustache growing out of its face, the demonic sea monster’s face resembled a catfish. It gave Reyald a wide grin revealing sharp dagger-like teeth and a long coiled tongue. Its voice was smooth and calm as it replied, “Oh, I have to repeat that sentence to you, I’m afraid. Do you like my clothes?”
Clothes? It took everything in his power not to keel over in fear. Reyald was a hard man, and having lived in Bilgewater all his life, he was accustomed to seeing all sorts of strange and powerful beings. But nothing he had seen or heard in his life could have prepared him for this sight. There was a huge fishlike monster in front of him wearing a beautiful set of women’s clothing. But he did not dare to laugh in front of this monster. The fish demon was oozing an aura that would chill even the most hardcore killer’s bones. He looked at the monster as its watery eyes fixed their gaze on him, waiting for his reply. He gulped, swallowing his saliva, and nodded.
“Why, thank you.” The monster seemed to smile even wider. This made it look even more terrifying than before. “Now, I’m here to make a deal with you, Reyald Barley.” The monster continued in an even tone. “I offer you a bargain. Bring the couple you have given shelter to here instead of harming them, and I will offer you this crate full of treasure in return.” It waved a large, scaly arm to indicate the now open crate. Reyald looked at the contents of the crate and gasped. Hextech! And the crate seemed to be full of the highly coveted raw material. These can be used to craft almost any gear and would fetch a great price. Better yet, with his contacts, it could be sold in a day, and no one would be able to trace it back to him. He looked at the smiling monster and nodded again. “Excellent! Then I expect them here soon.” Reyald turned around and ran towards his inn. Half scared, half ecstatic, he could not believe the turn of events tonight. What an extraordinary stroke of luck!
—
As the lone ship sailed into the sea through the backwaters, Reyald and his two guards stood wordlessly, staring at the crate of Hextech material. He ordered them to take the crate carefully back to the inn and looked one more time in the direction of the ship, quickly vanishing in the distance. The monster had left with the couple once they boarded the ship. He walked leisurely back towards his inn. His mind was abuzz with thoughts of luxury and power. The trio turned a corner and entered the familiar alley again. Reyald heard a Thunk! Thunk! Thunk! noise behind, and he saw a flash of blue light when he turned. The world seemed to spin and roll as his vision suddenly became witness to the night sky.
In the next two seconds, the pain settled in, and he realized that his body, now headless, was lying next to him, bleeding out on the dark floor, and beyond it were the two bodies of his guards. Two shadowy figures with masks over their faces carried the crate away, happily talking to each other, “The demon was true to his word. This crate is full of Hextech. We are going to be rich!” Reyald opened his mouth to say something, but it slowly filled with his frothing blood. And his eyes slowly dimmed.
—
Atop the sails, as the ship with the rescued couple sailed back to Zaun, a bright blue bird huffed unhappily, looking at the giant fish demon prancing around happily in her clothing. Janna had lent her clothes to Tahm laced with illusion magic because he promised to help guide her believers to a safe place. She would let it go this time. He did save her followers upon her request. But the sight of the Riverway King, Tahm Kench, dressed in a white priestess outfit, was one that she was sure would haunt her dreams for a long while.