"Jinx, get in here already."
Logan lifted the tent flap, and outside he saw Jinx and Janna standing there while a group of tribal children crowded around them, staring, along with a woman beside Jinx who had her head lowered slightly as she nervously looked around.
She was a little taller than Jinx, though because Jinx's legs were so long, the two of them looked about the same height.
Black hair, purple hardened carapace covering her body, yeah, that really was Kai'Sa, the Roach Lady...
Then Logan's eyes met Kai'Sa's.
The funny part was that Kai'Sa's expression looked a little blank and adorable. As for why someone who looked so cold on the outside and was so strong on the inside would make that kind of face, it was because too many things had happened too fast, and her brain had simply stalled trying to process all of it.
At this point, she finally understood what kind of person Jinx really was.
So the earlier upheaval in Shurima, all those dramatic changes in the outside world while she had been tunneling her way up, had all been connected to Jinx and her people.
There was no way Kai'Sa could not be shocked, and the thought she had briefly entertained about protecting Jinx had quietly vanished.
Protect Jinx?
Was that a joke?
Even the bird following her around was stronger than Kai'Sa by an absurd margin.
Kai'Sa was confident she could kill ordinary Void creatures like the Xer'Sai, and not just one or two. Even if ten or more came at once, as long as she used her abilities properly and fired her Void missiles well, she could kill them all easily enough. But kill Rek'Sai?
Come on.
With Rek'Sai's size and defenses, even if Kai'Sa completely drained every bit of energy in her body and fired hundreds or even thousands of projectiles, she still would not be able to kill her.
At most, she could hurt her a little.
So now that Kai'Sa had learned Jinx and her group had killed Rek'Sai, and had even encountered something called a Void Empress, she was honestly a little dizzy.
A Void Empress?
What kind of creature was that supposed to be? Kai'Sa had never seen anything like that, had never even heard of it.
So her mindset had shifted.
Earlier, when Jinx had forcibly dragged her onto this ride, Kai'Sa had actually been a little unhappy about it, because she still had something very important she needed to do. The reason she had fought so hard to survive until now was to fight on behalf of those who never came back. She wanted to protect the people of Shurima from the Void, to keep them from ever suffering that kind of invasion again.
But now, it seemed she was not fighting the Void alone at all.
Jinx's husband was already committed to fighting the Void, and he was far stronger than she was.
No, it was not just Jinx and her husband. Even the city behind them was devoted to opposing the Void.
That left Kai'Sa with a strange, indescribable feeling.
So she had not been fighting alone after all.
"Welcome, Kai'Sa," Logan said, greeting her.
Kai'Sa looked up at him in surprise. Jinx had been calling her a big cockroach the entire way. She had never told Logan her name, so how did he know it?
"How do you know my name?"
"That's not strange at all." Logan smiled, lifting the flap higher. "Come in first. We can talk inside."
"Soraka, you don't mind, do you?"
"Of course not. The more friends, the better," Soraka said with a smile from where she sat at the little wooden table, drinking tea. She set down her teacup and looked up at Logan.
Then Jinx led Kai'Sa inside. Janna, meanwhile, nestled herself back into Jinx's hair. With two tiny claws, she gently pushed aside the strands and made herself a soft little nest in Jinx's ridiculously thick hair, then curled up there and started dozing again.
Recently, the goddess had been eating a bit too much faith power, and it had left her slightly overstuffed. So she had been getting sleepy a lot.
As soon as Jinx came in, she ran straight to Logan's side. Jax, reading the room perfectly, gave up his spot before Jinx even said anything and quietly moved aside to keep drinking tea. His injuries were pretty much healed now. He was just exhausted and still did not have much strength left.
But Jax figured that once he got back to Zaun, rested a few days, and ate some food, he would be fine.
After Jinx sat down, she blinked and openly stared at Soraka, not even trying to hide how curious she was.
"Hey, are the horns on your head real?" Jinx asked.
"They are. They are the source of my power," Soraka answered, looking at Jinx with her beautiful golden eyes.
There was a flicker of surprise in Soraka's gaze.
This girl...
Soraka could see a great many things on her. The path Jinx should have walked had once been a shattered one, one where everything would have been destroyed because of her. But now...
Soraka cast a doubtful glance at Logan and thought, Was it because of him?
Foreseeing the future was a rare power, but in the Celestial Realm, there were many beings who possessed it. The most obvious example was Aurelion Sol. Yet even a being as lofty as he was could not truly foresee the future in a perfect way.
Otherwise, how could he possibly have ended up captured by the celestial host?
So-called future sight was never fixed. The future one saw could always be changed by outside interference.
Soraka herself could usually only foresee fragments, and even the scenes she saw could shift because of sudden developments.
So it was less like seeing the future and more like calculating one possible outcome.
In this girl, Soraka saw the other path Jinx should have taken, and she also saw things Jinx might one day do in the future.
And what kind of scene was that?
Blue-glowing butterflies swirled around Jinx in the air by the thousands. She only lifted a finger, and the cloud of butterflies surged forward, sparks flashing as they instantly destroyed the energy shield of an enormous Void creature. Drone swarms, long-range Hextech missiles, enormous cannons created by magic and chemtech, even a creature like Rek'Sai could not withstand it. But what made Soraka truly go blank was the sight of Jinx raising her left hand, holding a button. The moment she pressed it...
A force comparable to the power of a constellation erupted outward and destroyed a star in an instant.
"Hey?"
"You zoned out. Are you listening to me?"
Soraka came back to herself. The future she had seen on Jinx had taken her from surprise to genuine alarm.
What was that?
Could an ordinary human really wield that kind of power?
"I asked if I can touch your horn," Jinx said, having no idea what Soraka had been thinking. As she asked, her hand was already reaching out.
The moment Logan saw that, he was about to stop her.
Come on, from the way things looked now, Soraka's strength was probably on Ornn's level. Lissandra had practically admitted she was no match for Soraka, and now Jinx wanted to touch her horns?
Sure, Soraka really was gentle and kind, but Logan still felt like this was the same as going over to pat a tiger on the rear or grab a fox by the tail. Soraka herself had said those horns were the source of her power, so they obviously were not something you just touched.
But Soraka only looked at Jinx quietly, and then, right in front of Logan, she actually lowered her head slightly to make it easier for Jinx to touch her horns.
"The texture... wow, it's really smooth! I thought they'd feel rough. Kind of like that big roa..."
"Ahem!" Kai'Sa coughed loudly, quickly cutting Jinx off before she could finish.
Seeing everyone turn to look at her, Kai'Sa forced herself to push through the awkwardness and looked at Logan.
"Jinx told me you're fighting the Void. I want to join you. I can help."
Then Kai'Sa began explaining her situation and listing what she could do.
For example, she explained that the skin on her body could sharply detect the presence of Void creatures.
"Of course you can. We happen to need someone exactly like you, Kai'Sa. Welcome to the Twin Cities Federation."
Kai'Sa nodded. She had no idea what the Twin Cities Federation actually was. After all, less than an hour ago, she had still been sticking her rear in the air and digging her way through dirt.
Naturally, Logan was more than happy to accept Kai'Sa joining.
Was he supposed to say no?
Sure, Kai'Sa was not equal to a demigod in combat power, but among extraordinary fighters, she was absolutely top-tier.
And Logan remembered very clearly that Kai'Sa had gotten an upgrade in the lore later on, specifically after Bel'Veth came out, at which point the writers clearly started favoring her.
She went from a champion who had accidentally obtained what was basically the most low-level kind of Void skin to someone mutated into a kind of "Void cancer," just like Bel'Veth.
Yes, Kai'Sa was like Bel'Veth in that regard, but in another sense, she surpassed Bel'Veth by far. Not in raw power, but in her special relationship to the Void. Bel'Veth had rebelled against the Void, gained self-awareness, and even sought to devour the Void itself. Because of that, the Void was wary of Bel'Veth. But Kai'Sa was different.
In Bel'Veth's lore, there was a long exchange where Bel'Veth essentially believed Kai'Sa's unique nature would let her enter the Void without drawing the Watchers' attention. They would treat Kai'Sa as a Void creature, as part of themselves. That was why Bel'Veth wanted to cooperate with Kai'Sa and kill the Watchers.
So from that, could he draw a possible conclusion?
That in the future war against the Void... Kai'Sa would play a critically important role?
Soraka leaned back a little, no longer letting Jinx touch her horns. Then she looked at Logan and said, "Logan, there is something I would like your help with."
"Go ahead. If it's within my power, I'll do my best," Logan said after thinking it over.
Hopefully Soraka's request would not be too troublesome. As one of the three strongest beings on Runeterra right now, Logan truly needed Soraka's strength on his side. If she asked him for help, then after thinking about it, he really was inclined to agree.
Because he would need Soraka's power in the future.
The Twin Cities were about to reveal the existence of the Void to the entire world, and the timeline of the wider world had already entered the year 990. In the future, demigods and all kinds of powerful entities would appear one after another to stand in the Twin Cities' way.
Azir and Xerath leading Shurima's Darkin drama, Mordekaiser in the Realm of Death preparing to return to Runeterra at any time, and the Ruined King lurking in the Black Mist with his little hammer, always ready to cause trouble.
Runeterra really was a disaster magnet.
And now that the Twin Cities had become the core city linking the world together, Logan, as one of its central figures, could not help feeling a growing sense of responsibility.
If he had to sum it up in one sentence, it would probably be, This is my planet. I'm Runeterra's planetary governor, Logan.
"Don't worry. What I need your help with isn't troublesome," Soraka said with a faint smile. She raised one hand, and on her elegant fingers, above the soft pink tips, a tiny soul leaped into view. It was only a few inches tall, clad in knightly armor, with a greatsword and a cross shield in hand.
Yes, it was Cecilia, the Aspect of Battle.
"Cecilia's strength is no less than Pantheon's, Logan. This is not me looking down on you, but the main reason you were able to kill Pantheon was because Runeterra restricted his power. And secondly, the former Ascended, Aatrox, helped you greatly."
Logan nodded. He agreed with that himself. Right now, if he spent one Spirit Blossom point and activated his Spirit Blossom transformation, then his combat strength could indeed reach demigod level. But compared to an old monster like Pantheon, Logan was obviously still quite a bit behind.
Pantheon's Aspect was war itself. He was, by nature, an Aspect meant for battle and valor. If they had been outside the stars, Logan and Aatrox together still would not have been able to do anything to Pantheon. Most likely, the moment they saw him, they would have turned and run.
A trace of satisfaction appeared in Soraka's eyes. She gave Logan some praise for not being arrogant, then continued.
"You know many things, so I imagine you should know about the Moon goddess, yes?"
"Do you mean the lunar Aspect, or her vessel, Diana?" Logan asked.
Soraka smiled. "There is no lunar Aspect among the celestial host. Diana misunderstood the inheritance she received. When Runeterra was first discovered by the celestial host, it was governed by the Aspect of the Sun and Black Moon. But a change occurred, and the Aspect of the Sun and Black Moon turned against each other.
"Black Moon lost that battle and disappeared into the stars.
"The Aspect of the Sun emerged victorious, and afterward gave the order that the Rakkor were forbidden from worshiping moonlight. From then on, the Lunari vanished from Mount Targon, and Black Moon became a legendary Aspect.
"In these ten thousand years, Black Moon has never appeared even once. So within the celestial host, she was marked as dead. But in truth, she is still alive. Diana is the best proof of that."
Logan nodded. This really was something he had not known. The official lore had definitely never written any of this out.
Soraka continued, "Cecilia and Black Moon were extremely close, as close as sisters. Back then, it was the two of them together who fought Pantheon and the Aspect of the Sun. So if you can help find Diana, and... uncover information from her about Black Moon, Cecilia may become your person."
Logan's eyes lit up.
This... was a buy one, get two free deal?
Recruit Cecilia, and get Black Moon and Diana thrown in on top?
Three demigods at once?!
Sure, Logan already had plenty of demigod friends. In the Freljord alone, he could call in at least four or five. And in Spirit Blossom, there were more than twenty waiting for him to win over.
But who would ever complain about having too many powerful allies?
One more demigod meant one more chance against the heavens in the future.
"Understood. Leave this to me," Logan said, accepting Soraka's request. Then he thought for a moment, looked at her, and added, "But Soraka, why don't you just find Diana yourself? With your strength... it shouldn't be hard."
Soraka gave a helpless smile and pointed lightly at her own face. "Because Diana would not trust me. Influenced by Black Moon, she already rejects and resists the Aspects. She has hidden her trail with moonlight. Even I cannot find her."
"I understand. Then when I have the time, I'll look into Diana's whereabouts."
"Good."
That was the end of it. Soraka finished the tea in her cup, and when Logan saw that, he understood what she meant.
"Then we're heading out. If I get the chance, I'll come see you again."
Soraka looked up and said gently, "I'll be looking forward to it."
With Kai'Sa, Jax, and later Taliyah, whom they picked up near the Bone Sea where she had been left behind during the trip, Logan's group returned to Zaun.
When Kai'Sa saw the Twin Cities, her eyes went impossibly wide.
She had never seen a city like that before.
And Logan?
What he was thinking was this.
At last.
It was finally time to reveal the Void to the whole world.
He had been preparing for this for many years.
So now...
It was time to begin.
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