The K/DA headquarters sat under the orange hue of late evening, the glass panels casting long reflections across the marble floor. Inside, the mood had shifted. Not somber—more like tight. A coiled wire of anticipation hummed between the girls.
Ahri paced near the class table, her tails twitching. Every time her phone vibrated, she froze—then exhaled when it wasn't him.
Kai'Sa sat on the armrest of the couch, highheeled boots tapping a soft rhythm against the hardwood. "He's alive," she said quietly, more to herself than anyone. "He has to be. He's strong."
"Still doesn't mean he's not torn in half somewhere," Evelynn muttered, sprawled across the couch, sunglasses hiding her eyes—but not the tension in her jaw. "That bastard knew what was down there. And he still went alone."
"No. He went because no one else could," Akali said from the corner. Her hoodie was half-zipped, hands taped, like she'd just come back from a sparring session and couldn't stand still since. "You all saw what Kha'Zix did to those people. Cole wasn't just fighting for us. He was making sure that thing didn't crawl out of the dark."
"What he has is a savior complex" Evelynn grumbled
Ahri looked toward the door again.
Then it opened.
He didn't say a word.
Cole stepped into the lounge with the last rays of daylight behind him. His silhouette stretched into the hall, framed by the glow. His bodysuit was torn, the sleeves frayed. His shirt hung in blood-soaked tatters, body covered in grime, dried gore, and the unmistakable red of human blood—and something darker. Not all of it was his.
Scars marred his skin. Across his ribs, shoulder, ugly scars told the story. Scars that hadn't been there hours ago. Scars that had already healed. He felt waves of phantom pain all over.
The girls froze.
Kai'Sa stood first. "Cole?"
He met her eyes. There was no cocky grin this time. No sharp quip on his tongue.
Just him. Breathing. Mental exhaustion blurring his thoughts.
Ahri was the second to move, but she didn't run to him—not right away. She took one step, then another. Her gaze moved over him slowly—his face, the half-dried trail of blood down his neck, Death's dance hung across his back.
Then she asked, voice nearly a whisper, "Did you win?"
He nodded once. "Yeah. Kha'Zix is dead."
"Good," Evelynn said, rising—too quickly. Her voice wavered despite the sharpness. "Because if that bastard was still breathing, I'd be going down there myself."
Cole didn't respond. His body wavered for a moment—then his knees buckled.
Ahri surged forward and caught him halfway down, her arms slipping under his as she guided him to the couch. He didn't resist. Just slumped, breath ragged, eyes half-lidded.
She could feel the heat radiating off him. Not fever. Exhaustion. Like someone who had burned through everything just to stay alive.
"I'm okay," he muttered, almost like a reflex.
"No, you're not," Kai'Sa said, kneeling beside him. Her hand hovered near his side where the deep gouge had been—closed now, but angry and red.
Akali leaned against the wall, arms crossed, her voice quiet. "What was it like?"
Cole opened one eye. "Kha'Zix? Fast. Smart. Arrogant. Thought he was the apex predator."
"And now?" Evelynn asked.
His fingers twitched. "Now he's scattered across a tunnel floor in five pieces."
A long silence followed. Then—Ahri knelt beside him, her fingers brushing a dried smear of black ichor from his jaw.
"Are you okay"
His breath caught. He didn't answer at first.
"I don't know," he admitted. "I was dying. And then I wasn't. I'm only alive because of this"he gestured to the sword "Even then, I underestimated him"
Death's Dance still pulsed faintly against his back—quieter now, like a heartbeat slowing after a sprint.
"Whatever happened down there," Kai'Sa said, "you came back."
"And you're not done," Evelynn added, stepping closer. "That thing said more was coming."
"They are," Cole said. His voice was steady again. Low and calm. "Kha'Zix was a hunter. Maybe a predator, but not the last. What happens when more of them come? Legions? Beings with power beyond sharp slashes and camouflage?"
Ahri's eyes narrowed. "We'll be prepared?"
He looked up at her.
"You're right. There's nothing else we can do but prepare."
Akali let out a low whistle. "Does that mean more sparring matches?"
"Yes" Cole said. "But that won't be enough. There are beings we can't fight with our fists. We need more power."
He looked around the room—at all of them.
" I know my best won't be enough. I'm going to need more people. We need to form a group, prepared for the void's onslaught"
(Author's Note: "we need a league, a league of legends")
That quieted everything.
Even Evelynn.
Ahri pressed her lips into a line, then nodded once. "You've got us."
Kai'Sa's smile was faint, but genuine. "Always."
Akali grinned. "Damn right."
Evelynn rolled her eyes. "Tch. Idiot. Don't do something that stupid again… alone. "
Cole chuckled softly—then winced. "Noted."We have connections–those willing and motivated to fight the void"
He leaned back against the couch, staring at the ceiling. And for a moment, just a moment, the war, the blood, the Void… it all fell away.
And in the silence that followed, for the first time since the system had dropped him into this world—
He didn't feel alone.
Author's note:
I'm sorry for the mix-up in the uploads, this is supposed to be what comes before chapter 20
Hi guys if you want early access to chapters I've written ahead of the upload schedule, here's my patreon.
patreon.com/Sakukira
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