Chapter 14

“Kai,” Akali said, feeling hesitant around him and frozen in place. She just seduced this Summoner for the key that led into the vaults, and she imagined it would come at a great personal cost to him as well. However, she calculated whether or not Kai could be an ally or not in this scenario. He was a Summoner after all, he was aligned with the very people who kept peoples’ corpses from previous matches and made clones for newer bodies.

“I thought you were up to something, Thresh,” Kai said, looking to Thresh and then Akali. “But I wear that I haven’t been in on this at all.”

“Do you think that we can trust you, a Summoner?” Akali said in a chilling voice. “Do you think that we’re that naive that you didn’t know anything at all about this? Explain yourself, or I might just kill you.”

Kai held his hands for mercy. “I’ll tell you everything that I know, just…don’t kill me, please. Akali, I’m genuinely worried about you. Even if our date wasn’t real, it still made me really happy! But in all seroiusness, what’re you going to do about the exit plan. They just recently discovered something suspicious about the entire thing, and I’m under a lot of pressure right now. So please…escape while you can, and then don’t tell anybody else about this. They could…”

Kai bit his lip.

Akali pressed him on. “What could possibly be wore than the stuff that they’re doing right now?”

“There is no more time,” Kai said. “You’ve got to escape…quickly, quickly now! I think that some Summoners are heading to this area right now! I’ll try to stall them as best as I can.”

“Why are you helping us?” Akali said.

“Because…I feel that’s the just thing to do,” Kai said, before he ushered Thresh and Akali out of the room. “Now hide!”

Akali and Thresh went to their respective hiding places somewhere outside the room, though AKali could feel her heart thump inside her throat when she heard footsteps. Maybe this wasn’t such a great idea after all. She found out the truth, but for what? It’s not like she’ll probably be able to tell theother champions about It, and if she ddi, would they believe her? Even if they did believe her, then would they really be able to stand a chance against the Summoners who had powers beyond their imagining?

She could hear a group of Summoners approach Kai.

“It’s been reported that some Champion broke into the vault,” one of teh Summoners said.

“I haven’t been able to find them, unfortunately,” Kai said.

“Well keep searching,” the other Summoner said. “We’ll find them eventually…they can’t have gone very far.”

AKali blended in with the shadows and swiftly made her way through the darkened corridor unseen. He heart continued to pump furiously, and Akali willed her heartbeat to slow down or she felt she might throw up. Poor Kai was put under pressure now, and he was risking everything to help them, even though Akali used him to be able to get teh key into the vaults in the first place. She would genuinely thank him later; if any of them came back alive out of this.

“Do you know which Champions are the ones who broke into the vault,” the Summoner asked Kai, and Kai shook his head furiously.

“I don’t know, Sir,” Kai said, though his voice trembled a little. “I would tell you if I knew.”

The other Summoners spread throughout the morgue and clone room. Akali moved through the shadows to get a better investigation. This was fooldhardy, she knew, but she couldn’t leave Thresh behind. A Summoner was approaching THresh’s hiding place.

Akali’s heart leapt into her throat. Thresh would be caught! She couldn’t let this happen! He wan’t as good at stealth as she was, and Akali knew she had to go back and help him. Slipping through the shadows with the utmost ease, Akali then thres a smokebomb to obscure the area. The Summoner that approached Thresh coughed, and Thresh slipped through teh smoke and followed Akali out.

“They’re here!” The summoner choked out through the shroud.

“So,” teh Summoner said to Kai, who’s eyes widened in fear.”Were you covering for them, I wonder, Kai?”

“No Sir,” Kai said, trying to keep a poker face, though his green eyes glinted with fear.

Akali almost cursed. She knew that it was a way t osve Thresh, to allow him to escape vision, but it was at the expense of Kai. She would do something about that, at least. “No, it was all my doing,” Akali said as she ushered Thresh far away and let him escape on his own.

The SUmmoner looked towards Akali’s direction, before his eyes widened in recognition. “Ah, Akali. IT was you after all, wasn’t it?”

“Kai has no responsibility for this,” Akali said, her heart thumping in her throat.

The Summoners eye glinted. “Was there anyone else with you?”

“It was just me,” Akali said. “Remember, a ninja works alone.”

“That is true,” the SUmmoner said, before he frowned. “Bring her to Master Thanatos. We will see what we shall do with her.”

The otherSummoners rounded around Akali and restrained he so that seh wouldn’t be able to escape. The ytook Kai along as well, and Akali wondered if she did help any at all. Kai didn’t make eye contact with her the entire time, and Akali made sure that shedidn’t gaze directly at them either, unless if their cover would be blown.

When Master Thanatos arrived, Akali’s heart leapt into her throat. Here was the head Summoner, a Summoner with unimaginable power. She was in his presence, and she didn’t know what he would do to her. Akali put on a brave face and stared directly at him, glaring at him. Thanatos merely smield at her sgesture of strong will, before saying, “Welcome to the game, Akali. You’ve just entered the deeper levels of the dungeon. Now…how shall we proceed?