;Fifteen

It had happened in a blur; witnessing the fall of Demacia, the almost imminent peril of her, Talon and Katarina, Syndra appearing in the last moment to save them, and ultimately, teleporting them to a location unknown. Baby blue eyes blinked in mild confusion at her surroundings, the dark shadows engulfing what seemed to be a high hall, and a few curious gazes masked by steel. She was holding onto Talon and Katarina for dear life, heart drumming in her chest, fear gaping at every pore of her body. She didn't know how to react, didn't know what was next. Would this be the end? Were they saved from one certain death, only to be thrown in the arms of another possible one?

Wild thoughts raged in her mind, and Lux almost thought that that was it, when a small groan brought her back to the present. Looking to her left, she saw the crumpling body of Syndra on her knees, small whelps of pain leaving her shaking body. Panic flew through her veins. Syndra did save them, but to what cost?

Before she could react, it was Talon who let go of her arm, effectively taking away the last strands of warmth she felt. The assassin hurried to Syndra's side, grabbing her by her arms, trying to lift the woman to face him. He looked like death, but Lux figured that everyone looked the same.

"You've got some explaining to do," Talon spoke sharply, as he tried to support the dark mage who was struggling to regain her composure. Maybe saving them cost her more than Syndra was willing to bargain for.

And yet, Syndra forced a small smile, before the pain burned through her body and it exploded through her once again.

"Hey, what's happening?" Talon then asked with narrowed eyes, making sure he wasn't holding onto her too tightly, as if to harm her further. But the whole situation was beyond him, and he had no idea what was next.

But, as things stood, an ominous presence made itself detected, and both Lux and Talon straightened.

"Don't do anything, try to stay there, in case things go down." Talon said sternly, black eyes staring into her baby blue ones. Lux was frightened, but she still managed to nod, and pull an unconscious Katarina closer to her.

The presence came closer and closer, until it filled the whole hall. Just as Talon was about to throw a cloak of shadows around them, a tall man with black and red clothes, with two sharp blades at his back and a silver mask, stepped before them. Talon narrowed his eyes, while Lux's mouth fell open at the sight.

"Zed?" She asked, bewildered.

Things were turning weirder and weirder by each passing minute. The Master of Shadows regarded them all with a quick glance then his eyes rested on Talon, and ultimately, on Syndra. Talon narrowed his eyes, unsure whether to leave Syndra and run to Lux and Katarina or stay with Syndra and keep her as a shield, in case Zed tried to do anything to harm them.

"Let me hold her," instead, Zed said with an unfamiliar hint of gentleness in his voice, as he walked towards Syndra and Talon, kneeling in front of them.

Uncertain, Talon moved away and quickly slid back to where Lux was holding Katarina with the last bits of her strength.

"What is going on?" Talon then asked with rising suspicion, eyeing their surroundings. Fighting all of the people on his own, and Zed as well, he didn't have many chances of winning, but if it came to that, he will fight until his last breath to protect Lux and Katarina.

Syndra, much to everyone's surprise, managed to rise in Zed's arms just a bit, forcing herself to speak "We came to save you, so give us some credit at least," she forced a grin.

"Don't speak, you need to rest. You've exhausted your powers with this stupid operation of yours." Zed warned, clicking his tongue.

"W-why did you come to save us?" It was Lux who dared to ask.

Zed heaved out a sigh before answering. "Because it was this stupid missy who ran to me, begging me to assist her in saving you. Apparently, you are someone who cannot be allowed to die, if we wish to save the world." Then he snaked his arms around Syndra's weak body, lifting her in his arms as he rose to his feet. "We have to rest before we talk things through, and Syndra has to recover as well. She wasted a lot of her powers to teleport to you and teleport back so she needs rest. And I assume, from your looks, that you need to rest as well. One of my subordinates will take you to your rooms so I suggest you wash up and rest before we all meet up at dinner, later on today. We have many things to discuss." With these said, Zed turned his back at them and started to walk away in the shadows.

That was when Lux looked around and realised that someone was missing from their small group.

Taliyah!

"Wait, someone is missing. She must've been captured by the Elders!" The light mage cried out with the last bits of her strength, but all she was met with were Talon's worrying eyes and the shadows.

Despite the fact that they were given 3 separate rooms, just for show, Lux and Talon decided to use only one, as they were being cautious of their surroundings. And even under such circumstances, when they were told to rest, they could barely do so. The only one who was 'resting' was Katarina, since she's lost consciousness.

Talon carried her to the bed from one of the provided rooms, and let Lux change the redhead out of that mess of a dress she was wearing, even though she was very tired herself.

"Don't you want to wash up a bit? So you can rest better," Talon said softly as he walked to the other side of the bed, watching Lux adjust the covers over the unconscious Katarina. She only managed to wipe off the leftovers of her make-up and the ash, she wasn't capable of thoroughly washing the redhead, given the fact that she was barely standing herself.

"I should... But I don't think I'll be able to rest properly. I'm worried about Taliyah. What will the Elders to do her? What will happen to us?" Her voice was shaky as she spoke, it almost felt like she was about to cry.

"Lux," Talon didn't know what soothing words to use, as he was never good with that, so instead, he walked around the bed and over to her, taking the small of her shaking hand in his and gently leading her to the small bathroom they had attached to the room.

Lux complied wordlessly, her mind a mess and her body in pieces. Yet, she did not object when Talon turned on the water in the tub, and after checking it to be warm enough, he turned around to face her. She had to crane her head backwards a bit to look at his face and when she did, she was met with the most handsome man in the whole world, covered in dust and worry.

Lux said nothing when he moved closer to take off her torn cape, then her dirty shirt, proceeding to undress her piece by piece. His touch was gentle, and it almost brought her to tears when she felt his fingers caress her naked skin as he revealed more and more of her. Out of instinct, she wrapped her arms around her stomach, being more and more certain of what everyone was accusing her of – that she was pregnant.

The mage said nothing as Talon stepped back a bit, creating some distance between her and she shivered the moment his warm touch left her body. But then, he started to undress himself as well, revealing lithe muscles and a scarred but strong body. Dark eyes never left hers as Talon moved in the tub, stretching out his strong arm for her to take. Lux let out a breath she never knew she was holding, and, taking in the sight of him, every part that she loved about him and lusted after, she took his hand and he twirled her around so she would sit with him, her back turned to him, comfortably nestled between his legs.

Lux let out a sigh when he started to pour water over her thighs, her hips and her shoulders, cleansing her of dirt and healing the scars others gave her, wherever his fingers touched. She felt so tired but his touch was refreshing.

"Talon," she managed to whisper, and it took all the strength she was capable of, as she was leaned against his strong chest, one arm dangling on his knee while her other was resting against her stomach. That's become a habit already.

"Hmm?" He hummed against her neck, and the hot air which brushed past her ear made goose bumps rise on her pale skin.

He was treating her so gently, with so much care, that it ached. It hurt Lux, just thinking about this man, and what she had put him through. And most importantly, what was next to come. She wanted to tell him, wanted to tell him oh so badly the truth, but she was afraid. She would've had so many opportunities to get out the truth, but being the coward she is, she just couldn't do it. Lux knew in the deepest corners of her heart that, if she were to tell him the truth, she would lose him forever. And she didn't want him to feel responsible for her, for their actions, she didn't want him to restrain him and tie him down to her, if it even came to that.

She would have to hurt him, to make sure that he will loathe her for the rest of their lives. For some reason, the hands that used to caress her were starting to leave burn-marks on her skin, the more Lux thought into it. She would have to make him despise her so much, that he would forever leave her. And... if that was the only way for him to be happy, then she would willingly cast herself into a life lived in suffering. And that life was going to end soon, anyways.

She was well aware of the curse cast upon her, after all.

"I am sorry. For everything." Lux said after an eternity, but the response she received broke her heart bit by bit.

Talon placed a gentle kiss on her round shoulder, then locked his arms around her. Lux made sure that the arm she had around her stomach was held firmly, so as not even Talon's embrace would crush her. It was silly, but these instincts couldn't be fought back.

"I love you."

The world lost all sounds, colours faded to black and white, and she lost all of her senses, aside from the feel of his strong body around her small frame. Her heartbeat was twice as fast, and she couldn't help the way her body was acting up at the simplest of his touches. She fit so perfectly against him, she felt so good when he was inside of her, around her, everywhere with her. How could a person feel so right, when everything else was so wrong?

His words made a crack appear in her heart and Lux knew that she shouldn't do what every pore of hers was screaming to do. But Lux couldn't help it. She was just a woman, and she was so helplessly in love with this man...

"And I love you," she whispered, as she turned around in his embrace, baby blue eyes met with jet black ones, and she was lost.

Lost to the outside world, lost to all reason. All she knew was that she needed him by her side, and nothing else mattered.

Talon's eyes shone with a strange light, something Lux had no idea what to name, but at that moment, nothing else mattered. Only the touch of his big hand, tucking golden locks behind her ear, long fingers travelling down to her back and resting on her waist, pulling her closer to him.

His lips tasted like dust and smoke, and Lux knew hers weren't very far off either, but the moment she felt him, truly felt him, she just wished she could get lost in their own little world, and be captive forever.

After taking a bath, and nothing more, since both of them were too tired, Talon grabbed some clothes to dress her as well as himself, then carried the mage to the bed, where Katarina was currently sleeping. He placed her to the other side, and with a gentle kiss on top of her forehead, he walked to the couch, the only other piece of furniture in the room, and lied down as well. He was still semi-conscious, aware of any movements in the background, but all he could sense were the two most important women of his life sleeping.

It was a wonder that Lux managed to fall asleep as well, but the bath did weaken her a bit, as well as the small moment they shared back there.

Somehow, he managed to fall asleep as well.

The first time he woke up, he felt movement next to him, but that didn't alert Talon, as he knew very well who the intruder was. He felt her snuggle up to his side and cover both of them with a blanket, so the assassin took out his arm from under her to wrap it gently around the small of her body.

Her soft breaths lulled him back to sleep as well.

The next time he woke up, he sensed a presence coming towards the room. And when the person stopped in front of the door, Talon was ready to strike, except, it was not needed to. The guy from outside, he simply knocked on the door.

And Talon was quickly there to open it.

The ninja was almost shocked at the fast response but he quickly gathered himself. "Master Zed is asking you to join him and Mistress Syndra for dinner."

Talon nodded curtly. "We'll be there. When will it be held?"

"In half an hour."

"We will attend," Talon spoke with another nod, then closed the door.

Watching the two women soundly asleep, he almost felt bad for having to wake them.

Walking on the dimly lit corridors, while being led by a ninja, Lux and Talon felt a bit wary about everything, but if anything were to happen, they would be quick to move. They only worried about Katarina, being in the room. Hopefully, nothing was going to happen.

As they were led to a hall, Lux noticed how two familiar figures were seated around a round table, meant for 5. As they walked closer, the Sovereign had a brow lifted, taking in the missing presence. Nevertheless, Lux and Talon took their seats at the table, where Zed and Syndra were already seated.

"Is everything all right with Katarina?" Syndra was the one to ask, despite the fact that her skin was a bit paler than usual, adding to the fact that she hadn't properly healed herself.

"She... needs some time to rest. With everything that happened in Demacia, and witnessing my brother's... death, she's still under shock." Lux responded, despite she wasn't very well herself.

"My most sincere apologies," Syndra then said with a light bow.

Food was being taken in, but it wasn't anything fancy, just basic dishes. Syndra immediately asked one of the servers to take food to Katarina's room as well. And yet, both Lux and Talon were a bit reticent to touch the dishes.

"The food's not poisoned. What would the purpose be in saving you if we were to kill you off afterwards?" Zed was the one to retort and Syndra rolled her eyes slightly.

"Eat up. The reason we acted on our own to save you was because we wish to work together," Syndra began, and her eyes darkened.

Lux frowned, but it was Talon who voiced her confusion. "Why would you do that?"

Putting down her utensils, Syndra leaned back against her chair as she regarded the light mage and the assassin. "Because magic is unstable, and it's breaking up across the continent. What's more, the Void is acting up in trying to destroy the world. In parallel, as if this wasn't enough, the Elders of Ionia are trying to murder Lux." The Sovereign shook her head. "I cannot possibly allow that to happen."

"Why is that? What do I have anything to do with the Elders of Ionia? I am just a pawn in all this big game." Lux said with narrowed eyes, a confused look on her face.

"You alone mean nothing. But together with him, you can either doom the world or save it," much to everyone's surprise, it was Zed who spoke. And he wasn't one known to be a very vocal person.

"What does that mean?" Talon made no sense of this whole conversation either.

Sighing, Zed glanced towards Syndra, for her to answer everything.

"It is very rare, when two of the purest elements, which are polar opposites, merge together to give life to something new. But when Light and Darkness meet, the power these two elements have together, it can change the future of a world. The reason the Elders are after you is because they're afraid. They think that if light and darkness merge, the power born from these two elements will destroy the world." Syndra waved her hand in a swift gesture. "That is a wrong belief. They fear the Twilight of the Gods, the moment when such a strong creature is born, out of two primary elements, he or she will cast the current balance into chaos. What they fail to notice, instead, is that balance needs chaos, in order to make itself noticed. Just as darkness needs light and fire needs water. They think that the Ruler of the Twilight of the Gods will ruin this world. So, instead of working together with everyone else in order to protect the world from the Void, they decide to target you, Lux." Syndra had a frown on her face, which darkened her features.

Lux couldn't help but frown as well, and Talon remained silent, taking in the words the Sovereign had just spoken, minutes ago. His black eyes then fell upon Zed's figure, who was quietly eating, and couldn't help but sigh in amazement. For the first time in his life, Talon saw Zed without his mask.

Short, silver hair was ruffled up, as the Master of Shadows was quietly enjoying his meal, with two scars covering his face, one from his temple, across his nose and his jaw, while the other, the smaller one, starting over his mouth and ending under his jaw as well. They looked like claw marks, or who knows. And yet, the aura around him was filled with mystery and deadliness.

"What do you exactly mean by merging?" Talon asked with a frown, as he ran long fingers through messy hair. Lux stilled in her place, an action neither Syndra nor Zed failed to notice. "I mean, what exactly is going on? Why are they after her? What did she do?"

Syndra casted a quick glance in Lux's direction but the light mage was toying with the food. The Sovereign then guessed that she knew what was going on, and that Lux had a general idea of the situation, but Talon did not.

This made things a lot more complicated.

"Well, the things is, the Twin Serpents disappeared from the temple, and since they are the guardians of the Twilight of the Gods, you can consider this a warning sign for it to happen..." Syndra began awkwardly, having no idea how to explain.

Even though it had to do with all of them, it was all up to Lux to inform Talon of her current state.

With an annoyed sigh, Zed put down the fork and groaned. "For fuck's sake, so much hesitation." He rolled his eyes then looked at Talon. "Lux is pregnant."

And something happened inside of Talon, cracks appeared in the dark, where light went through. He stared at Zed for a good few seconds, wondering whether he heard well, or if everything was a sick joke. But then, he looked to his side, and taking in Lux's appearance, he knew it was all true. The blonde was not even able to face him, instead she was staring at her plate, looking somewhat afraid. Why, Talon couldn't explain.

"Is... is it true?" He mouthed, his throat suddenly dry, and mind devoid of words.

It was so sudden, he was not mentally prepared.

He yearned to have her baby blue eyes staring back into his, yearned to hear her confirm this, yearned to pull her in his arms and run away with her to a different world, where nothing would harm them.

Talon only received a shy nod, as the mage did not have the strength to look at him. How could she? A couple of hours prior, they were confessing their love for each other, all the while Lux tried to come up with scenarios to push him away from her, for what she considered to be for his own sake. And now, the truth was spoken so easily, as though it meant nothing. Lux was not ready for this, so she had no idea how to respond.

And then, came another question, one Lux dreaded even more. "Is it mine...?" Hushed, scared, weak, but having the power to blow her to pieces.

Syndra, however, decided to tactfully step in, before things took a turn for the worse. "At any rate, the Elders want to kill Lux because they believe that her child will bring forth the Twilight of the Gods, which is a state where all elements coexist. They are afraid of this unborn child, because they think he will cast the world into chaos, destroy everything and everyone. They can only consider the fact that whatever is unknown to them or different from them is evil. And we believe the opposite, that things unravelled the way they did with a purpose. So we want to protect you, Lux, and your baby, making sure that nothing will happen to either of you. The Twin Serpents are the guardians of the Twilight of the Gods, so they will try to protect you two as well." Syndra finished in one breath, trying to give away as little information as possible, deciding that it was better for Lux to talk things through with Talon in private.

But what she didn't know was that the Twin Serpents have already visited Lux and Talon, and, as realisation struck, the light mage shared a look with the assassin as if out of reflex, both of them having their eyes widened.

At the same time, given the current circumstances, Lux doubted that Syndra paid attention to a small detail, or if she even knew about it. There can only be one light mage, that was her blessing and her curse. So even if they tried to protect both of them, at one point...

"Syndra," Lux whispered, making 3 sets of eyes rest on her frame. She shivered slightly. "Even if you wanted to help us, what is the point in involving everyone? Isn't this something I should deal with, on my own? What's the point in endangering so many lives, for the sake of just one?" This, she didn't understand, no matter how hard she thought about it.

Zed heaved out another sigh, crossing his arms in front of his chest. As a response to that, Talon placed his hand atop of Lux's, making her jump slightly, but soothing her worries altogether.

"The Twilight of the Gods is the only thing that can stop any catastrophes. And if the Void will keep doing what it's doing now, soon it will swallow up this world. The people will not unite, to fight against the same enemy. Demacia had fallen within a few hours, Noxus is probably next. They target the stronger states first, making sure they will remove any potential troubles. Then, they will take over this world. So, under such circumstances, the only chance we got is your child." Zed spoke harshly, but not with hatred, and not directed towards Lux. He simply stated the cold, blunt truth.

Syndra looked over at Zed with a gentle expression, then faced Lux and Talon, her pale features turning paler with worry.

"I know that we are the bad guys, but first and foremost, you are my friend, Lux. And I would never harm you." The Sovereign then spoke with honesty. "We'll go into detail about the whole situation in the next few days while we prepare a plan, but what I mean to say, is, that I ask you Lux is to trust me, to trust us. And if saving the word means protecting you and your baby, I am willing to risk my life to accomplish this."

Lux believed her, and she was about to respond, when hurried steps echoed in the hallway, and all 4 of them looked towards the direction from where the noise was coming, only to reveal a distressed Katarina appearing from the shadows. The expression on her face was distorted, confused and hurt.

"The child, your child cannot be born." Katarina then said with a shaky voice.

Well, hello.

It's been like what, a year? I know that I didn't update this story for a year and I hope you'll forgive me for this but many things happened with my life, and I couldn't write for a while. It's a bit hard to put my ideas into words right now as well, which is why this chapter is a bit shorter than the rest but I'm trying my best and I hope you're not disappointed by the results so far.

If you are, well, my apologies. Writing is a bit difficult still, but it's not fair to leave you hanging either and there is so much more that has to happen in the story so yeah, if it's a bit forced, don't be too harsh, since this is the only way I can get back to writing again :(

Either way feel free to share your thoughts, be it positive or negative and also do excuse any typos. I did proof read what I wrote but there must've been some errors sneaking in.

I don't know when the next update is going to come, but I'll work on it as soon as I can, I promise.

Oh and, on a side note, what do you think about the Kindred (Lamb) x Jhin pairing? It's aching me to write something about them but I don't know xD Would you read it?

At any rate, I'd like to thank you guys for following this story and not giving up on me! Until next time we meet, Merry Christmas and have a Happy New Year! c: