Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

A moment. 

The gods only spared Viktor a moment to gain even the slightest comprehension of what was happening. His mind, while lightning quick, barely registered the explosion. To some degree, he felt it before it fully hit him. 

Viktor's eyes forced themselves shut at the excruciating light. His ears rang as his skin felt initial wave of the blast — and then the searing heat that came after.

It was his lungs—his damned, doomed lungs—that roared in pain, letting him know that something terrible was happening. His lungs filled with dirt, grit, and soon enough, smoke. 

Somewhere in his mind, he felt himself flung against a hard surface.  

If Viktor was allowed one more moment, he would have thought about him.

He would have thought about the boy he found on a ledge all those years ago. He would have thought about floating in blue magic with the man who would become his best friend and partner. He would have thought about long nights in the lab, watching day turn into night and sneaking glanced at how the moonlight shone on his eyes. 

If he was luckier, Viktor would have thought about Jayce. He might have even looked for the man in all the chaos.

But Viktor, who has had to earn every minute he was in Piltover since crawling out of the Undercity, was not granted such luck. 

Viktor had spent his life seeking solutions for problems, and it took him all of one moment to know:

I am dying. 

Viktor hated the new cane. He was perfectly fine with his old one, the one he had been using ever since making the treck from the Undercity to Piltover. Loathe as he was to admit it however, walking had become increasingly difficult. Pain was always a constant in his bad leg, but it was pain he had gotten used to since his childhood. After all, pain is an enduring presence in his life—sometimes a friend that lets him know he needs more care, more often a burden that refuses to let go. 

That burden has turned into a beast now, however, and it sunk its teeth into Viktor's legs mercilessly. 

But Jayce presented him with the cane and the matching leg brace so eagerly that Viktor can only smile. 

It was a surprise for him. Jayce had gone behind his back and designed the new cane after he noticed Viktor struggling. He forged the damned thing himself, painting it in the Talis House colors. 

It worked marvelously, but Viktor could not help but feel like he himself had become a burden. Part of him feared that Jayce thought him helpless. The other part of Viktor thought about how he could have done it himself, and likely do it better. 

But there was, for the most part, a swelling of affection in his heart. 

Viktor slept. And then he would dream. It was a select cycle of dreams. Sometimes, it would be fantastical dreams of running in a field with Rio by his side. Other times, it would be memories he long thought buried.

Viktor would dream for so long that he knew, to some degree, that he was dreaming. Perhaps, he resolved, that this was death.

Or more likely, his neurons were firing off and these were the final thoughts flying through the synapses of his brain. His mind was augmenting time for him, making it seem like months have gone by when it was actually the final milliseconds before death takes him. 

He does not remember at what point the dreams turned into nightmares.

In one of them, Viktor never leaves the fissures and he dies together with his family. In another one, Sky stares at him with angry tears in her eyes as the light of the Arcane burns her into dust. 

This, Viktor thought, was probably hell. A hell he deserved for tampering with nature.

Somewhere in his mind, whatever lucid thoughts he had left found their way back to Jayce. Viktor hoped that Jayce would not experience such things when he died. 

And then Viktor's cycle of nightmares was interrupted. 

He felt it change because something about this was painfully vivid. He was swathed in cold, darkness. The darkness carried him, making him float in pure nothingness. 

This was worse than hell. 

He forced his eyes to open. 

To his horror, Viktor found himself in Rio's place, floating in a glass tank. He breathed and his lungs willed with the green fluid he was submerged in but he would not die. A man obsessed with keeping him alive looms around him but he could not see who it was. 

But was he still really alive at this point?

Viktor thrashed against the tank, the tubes attached to his back threatening to tear him open. But he did not stop. He called out to the man who did nothing but stare at him. He tried to scream but nothing, nothing escapes. He desperately willed himself into any other memory or dream or nightmare but he was stuck. He sobbed and shrieked. It was a terrible thing: to drown knowing that death will not save you. Did his short and unfortunate life lead to an eternity of this? 

The darkness eventually took him.

In his mind, he was floating in blue magic again; his hazel eyes beaming with hope as they stare back at him. 

"Jayce?" 

It was the first word that left his lips in what felt like an eternity. 

He stared at his hands. Cold. Metal. Unfeeling.  

If he had any tears left, they would fall. But Viktor felt...almost nothing. An endless cycle of dreams and nightmares has lead him to feel nothing.

"What am I?" 

Chapter Text

The scene kept replaying in Jayce's head. In his waking hours, as he frantically searched through volumes of Viktor's notebooks in their lab, Jayce saw it every time he blinked. It left an imprint on the back of his eyelids. 

A blinding light. The crumbling of stone walls.

He forced his eyes open. Dry and red, he kept straining them, looking for something. Anything. 

Amber, tear-filled eyes. Smoke everywhere. 

The Man of Progress read a sequence of runes and matched them to the part of his body he carved it into. His bruised knuckles grip the pencil as he arranged and rearranged the sequence. He imagined Viktor holding the knife as he carved the runes into himself and Jayce could feel the bile rising from the back of his throat.

He looked away, and then he finally saw it. 

Slack jaws. Split lips. Tattered clothes. The faintest glow of purple. 

Jayce screamed through his teeth and slammed his fists into the table as the memory's floodgates opened. 

He held onto Mel as his mind reeled, connecting the dots in a haze. After checking on Mel, Jayce's mind started to work again. One minute, he was there, in front of the Council, ready to hand Zaun over to Silco. The next... 

The air was knocked out of his lungs and he was on the floor. 

His thoughts came to him in a whir. He saw the dead and reality settled in. Still numb, Jayce's feet carried him to Cassandra Kiramman and he could already feel Cait's heart splintering into pieces along with his own. 

Something pulled his eyes away from Cassandra, screaming at him without forgiveness for not realizing sooner. 

Jayce's eyes landed on Viktor and everything stopped. His thoughts. His lungs. His goddamn heart. Jayce made his way to Viktor in less than a breath but even that took too long.

He moved mechanically with his partner, some higher instinct kicking in and telling Jayce to lose his mind later and do everything he could to save him now. Jayce pressed his ear into Viktor's chest, looking for a heartbeat. He gritted his teeth. 

"Too damn loud here," Jayce thought. That had to be it. It was that or perhaps he fell deaf from the roar of the blast.

Because Viktor's heart could not stop beating. 

Jayce will not accept it. He will not allow it. 

 He laid him flat on the ground and started chest compressions, praying that it would not hurt him. Jayce breathed into Viktor’s mouth. 

He repeated the process again and again until someone attempted to pry him away. Jayce could only scream at them to leave them alone. 

Mel tried to grab his face, her tearful eyes willing Jayce to let Viktor be. To let him go. 

He recoiled from her touch. 

Jayce grabbed Viktor and ran. 

Jayce stood there, letting the memory wash over him. His heart sank deeper into oblivion.

It has been a month since the explosion but he has not allowed himself to even think about what life would be like without Viktor. His naivete has transformed into a desperate hope: the only thing keeping him sane. 

He looked at his partner, suspended in light as the Arcane wrapped itself around him like a cocoon. 

Somehow, Jayce knew that it was working to fix Viktor. 

He thought about the violet glow of Viktor’s limbs among the rubble and dust, of how the Hexcore was all but absorbing itself into the man as if its existence relied on him. Jayce turned to the spot where Viktor researched the Hexcore. It stood empty now. Jayce did not even bother to put away the dead plants that Viktor was experimenting on all those weeks ago. He merely took samples to see if there was anything he could find in them.  

Jayce took a shaky breath. 

Viktor’s heart was beating, and that was all that mattered to him. 

Somewhere, in his mind, he knew he had duties. He was still a member of the Council, after all. With three Council members dead, the city needed him now more than ever. But Jayce could not bear the thought of Viktor waking up alone. 

An attendant would bring up whatever documents he needed to sign. He cared little about what they said. If Mel signed it, it was good enough for him. 

His eyes caught on the mirror he left on his desk whenever he needed to groom himself after staying in the lab for too long. Whatever instinct he had to fix his appearances was long gone. With barely any sleep, the bags under his eyes had doubled in size and his five o’clock shadow had turned into a beard. 

Outside his window, he watched as the city turned grey, the heavy shadow of night enveloping Piltover as homes and street lights began to glow. 

Jayce began to think if Viktor used to see day turn into night from the Undercity. Or was it always a grey mist with neon lights as the only thing to guide him? 

He could feel himself unraveling. Jayce has always had a direction. He looked at the gemstone in his bracelet, the memory of a miracle from long ago flickering in his mind. A boy marveling at magic, and knowing, right there and then, that he must share it with the world. He was so lost when he thought he had failed but no — he was saved, in every way a person could have been saved. Viktor saved him.  

And yet, all of the titles, the accolades that sprung from their shared discovery went to him.

Councilor Talis. 

Defender of Tomorrow. 

Man of Progress. 

They all sounded like a curse now. 

“Jayce?” 

Viktor’s voice broke through his rumination. Jayce rose to his feet, like a deer caught in headlights, or a devotee seeing a saint. He did not know which yet. 

“What am I?” 

Viktor’s eyes, now silver, almost glowed in the gentle darkness of the evening. His body was a mixture of flesh and metal, with a soft purple glow running along his limbs like blood flowing through veins. 

It was the most beautiful thing that Jayce has ever seen. 

“What did you do to me?” 

Chapter Text

Viktor held onto his cane for guidance, but knew, deep within, he no longer needed it. He just needed to feel something familiar. 

His eyes traveled down his own body and he saw a horrifying amalgamation of metal and flesh. There were still clear distinctions where the man ended and where the machine began. His chest was still there, still human. Both of his hands were metal but his left arm, from his wrist to his shoulder, was still human. The other arm was completely metallic. 

He tried to breathe; air entering his lungs without any strain. Oddly enough, it was this new change that made Viktor question if he was still human.  

Viktor looked at Jayce, who was too dumbstruck to speak. Viktor’s heart broke a little at the thought that Jayce thought he was a monster now. A monster made from metal and magic. 

Something foreign in Viktor’s mind, made the connection for him. 

There was an explosion. He was hurt. Jayce wanted to do something. 

Viktor’s eyes flew to where the Hexcore should have been, confirming what he already knew. 

He felt a separation within himself that he could not understand. His head throbbed, as if it was not just his own voice in his head anymore. Viktor was… fragmented. He could barely feel where he ended and the Other started. It was the one doing all of the thinking for him right now, making sense of what has happened, keeping Viktor’s fears at bay. 

“Y-you’re alive!” 

Before Viktor could understand what was happening within him, Jayce locked him within an embrace, and suddenly, the Other fell quiet, leaving Viktor alone.

And everything comes rushing back to him in full force. 

The fire. The pain. The realization that he was about to die. 

Viktor’s hands flew around Jayce as a sob escaped his chest. Jayce, he realized, was shaking as well. He buried his face into his partner's chest as tears that refused to fall at first finally spilled. He felt something wet on the parts of his neck that was still flesh and realized that Jayce was crying too. 

“I, I was so scared of losing you Viktor, I —” Jayce whispered into Viktor’s neck, his breath warm and coming in between hiccups.  

Viktor suddenly longed for the part of him that made cold sense of things, but it seems to have retreated somewhere in his mind. He was alone, and painfully, awfully confused. 

Because Viktor loved Jayce. 

Viktor knew it within himself that he loved Jayce from the moment they met but he was never brave enough to manifest it, even in his thoughts. Thinking about it made it real. Viktor loved every late night, every fight, every failed experiment, every victory, every moment with Jayce. 

So why is it then, that when Viktor was finally willing to admit his love, that he felt betrayed?

Why does Viktor feel like Jayce reached into his chest to tear out his heart? 

He loved him. 

He hated him. 

The paradox of all his emotions overwhelmed Viktor. Was this love? Was this madness? 

It was all too much and Viktor tried to push Jayce away, needing to breathe somehow. But Jayce refused to let go.

He could not decide if he loved Jayce all the more for holding onto him or if he was angry at his partner for being so controlling. 

For all the time they held onto each other, Viktor could have sworn that Jayce’s lips brushed against his neck, testing, impatient. In another timeline, he would have blushed, leaned into his touch and bridged the gap between their lips. 

Viktor broke the embrace once more, with Jayce only relenting a bit, his hands still clinging to Viktor. The sting of rejection was pronounced on Jayce’s face but his eyes still clung to Viktor like he was a miracle. 

Half an arm’s length away from Jayce, Viktor stared at himself once more. He was mutilated. But can Viktor even blame Jayce? He already started the process, after all. His leg was already metal. It worked. It could have worked. But… 

Sky’s angry eyes stared at him. 

Viktor’s lips started to tremble. He wanted to stop. He wanted to give the Hexcore up because it was evil. It corrupted and destroyed. 

But Jayce chose to fuse it into him. 

“You promised to destroy it,” Viktor said, stepping away, his brows knitted in recollection as more memories came back to him. “Jayce —” 

“It saved you,” Jayce said, his voice still scratchy, as if he did not speak for weeks. “You were dying, I can’t —” 

“You promised,” Viktor said with finality, hushing Jayce. His eyes met Jayce’s. “The Hexcore killed Sky, Jayce. And now it’s…” Viktor stares at his hands. “It’s inside of me. I never asked for this,” Viktor said, pleading eyes staring at Jayce. 

I never asked for this. 

In many ways, Viktor was used to being a plaything in the hands of the gods. He was used to making difficult choices because life had dealt him terrible cards, over and over again. He chose to live with his illness. He chose to leave the Undercity. He chose to go to the academy. 

And he chose the man standing in front of him. 

The man who saved him. The man who damned him.  

“Viktor,” Jayce said his name like a prayer. “I love you, Viktor.” 

A fresh set of tears that Viktor did not know he still had in him spilled from his eyes.

Was this love? Was this madness? 

“I can’t do this without you,” Jayce said quietly. “When you were there, bleeding out, I can’t —” He shook his head. “If I had to live a life without you, then I would rather not live at all.” 

Viktor stepped further back. The devotion was too much. He was a monster. Who worshipped a monster?

But his partner did not let him go far. He closed the gap between them and swept Viktor into a deep kiss. He gasped, dropping his cane. Before he knew it, his body moved by itself and kissed him back. 

All of a sudden, they were arsonists setting the city on fire. Ships sailing towards the rocks to crash. Clouds conjuring lightning for a storm. 

Viktor was terrified, delighted. 

Another paradox. 

Viktor cried out and pushed Jayce away, staggering back. Angry eyes flashed in his mind and Viktor held out his hand to stop Jayce from coming any nearer. 

“Stop… Jayce,” Viktor said. 

The sound of his name seemed to have brought some sense back into him. 

“I… you didn’t save me,” Viktor managed to say, the ghost of their kiss still lingering on his lips. “You cursed me.” 

Jayce shook his head rigorously, eyes growing wide. “No, no, I saved you. You were right, the Hexcore works —” 

“Look at me Jayce!” Viktor yelled. “I’m a monster!” 

“No!” he shouted back. “You’re Viktor. My Viktor,” Jayce said, his voice lowering to a whisper. He walked to Viktor slowly, as if he was scared that Viktor would scurry away if he saw any sudden movements. 

“What you did… was selfish, Jayce,” Viktor said, his voice cracking. “This isn't right. This isn’t love.” 

Jayce merely looked at him. He was hurt… but he also knew that Viktor was right. His devotion was self-serving. In many ways, it would have been kinder to let Viktor die as who he was: a man from Zaun who wanted to help his people through science. 

But resolution set itself in Jayce’s eyes as he stared at his partner. 

“I don’t care if you hate me. I would do it again, and again, and again,” Jayce whispered. 

Viktor let out a shuddered breath. He already knew this but hearing Jayce say it did not make it easier. 

The love inside him swelled, but so did the bitter poison of anger and resentment.

Viktor merely shut his eyes, willing all of his emotions away. It was the only way he could move himself away from Jayce.

The Other slowly came back. Viktor's breath evened as he stood upright, the cane long forgotten on the floor. 

And Viktor ran. 

Chapter Text

The refugees in the Firelight Tree have tripled since the bombing. Ekko watched as families set up more campsites. They had taken more and more people in as word began to spread of a secret sanctuary hidden somewhere in the Undercity. With Piltover’s enforcers hammering down on the trenches and chembarons fighting for control, innocent Undercity dwellers were starting to get caught in the crossfire.

While the Enforcers were looking for Jinx, arrests have become more and more frequent. It did not matter if they were poor Shimmer addicts or some poor vendor selling knockoff goods. Enforcers would find a way to apprehend anyone, except those chembarons.

They may be looking for Jinx, but the hatred that Piltover had for the Undercity ran deep. Enforcers did not shy away from random searches, knowing fully well how they were always one word away from goading the suspect to start a fight. Fights would lead to more arrests, and Enforcers could brag about how they were able to stifle crime in the trenches and put the bad guys away. 

Just last week, Scar was stopped while holding his baby. He had to stop Ekko from going after the damned Piltie who did it. 

As much as Silco was the cause of the chaos that engulfed the Undercity, there was still a sense of control. He had an invisible grip that held onto a tight leash until his knuckles bruised and bled. Silco’s iron hand was felt everywhere, from how many Shimmer addicts there were sprawled about in the streets, to how much the grocer had to charge you extra because of the higher protection dues that Sevika collected. Loathe as he was to admit it, Ekko knew there used to be a hierarchy to be followed. No matter how imbalanced that hierarchy was, it still provided some semblance of order. If you knew your place in the hierarchy, you could adapt to it. 

For the Firelights, it used to be clear: fly to the top of the hierarchy to fuck it up. 

But Silco is gone, his kingdom imploded. As much as Ekko took pleasure in watching the chembarons take each other out, none of them could have the grip that Silco had. 

Scar tapped him on the shoulder lightly. Ekko looked up 

“Some enforcers were spotted near one of the secret entrances,” Scar reported. “We were able to keep a low profile but they’re spreading out even further this week.” 

Ekko frowned. Something must have happened to get Piltover on edge again. Did Jinx launch another attack? He balled his hands into fists and sighed at the thought. If he had been stronger, he would have ended her. 

She stares at him, dark lips cracked and bruised, face smeared with dirt and smoke, blue eyes shiney with what almost seemed like tears. 

Pretty, colored fingers pulling the goddamned pin. 

“We’re having capacity issues. As much as we want to help people, we won’t be of any use to anyone if a trigger happy enforcer finds us,” Scar continued. 

“We aren’t turning people away,” Ekko said with finality. “Change the schedule and routes of entry.” 

Scar nodded, as if knowing the Firelight leader would already say this. After helping more families set up a tent, Ekko weaved through the bustling crowd, finding the small, hidden nook in the tree that the tiny professor had called home. It was a the crevice in the tree where there was a makeshift workshop (custom made for a Yordle). 

“Ekko!” Heimerdinger exclaimed when he saw his ‘student’. 

(The Yordle had taken to calling Ekko his student, which was more of a term of endearment rather than a description of their relationship. If anything, it was Ekko who constantly had to teach Heimerdinger things about the Undercity.) 

“Professor,” Ekko greeted back tiredly. “Any luck on the revolving hanging gardens? There are more and more people coming and I’m worried about food —” 

“Ah yes! Don’t you worry about that, my boy. I have already drawn up the improved mechanics,” Heimerdinger replied. 

Ekko smiled in relief. Finally some good new—

“But I have unpleasant information to share,” the professor said, his usually light tone suddenly heavy with worry. 

And there it was, thought Ekko.

The Yordle grabbed a lantern and gestured for Ekko to follow him. He helped Heimerdinger down the makeshift ladder and Ekko let him lead the way. 

"You see, I was looking for spare parts for that bubble machine I was creating for the children's amusement," he began. "I remember you told me that you kept some spare materials somewhere in the tree. Oh Ekko, you should see how it is coming along, the children love it! I was trying to look for another wheel so that it could work without needing to crank the—"

"Professor," Ekko interrupted gently. "Maybe we can get to the bubble machine later?"

"Right!" Heimerdinger said, scurrying faster. The two of them made their way to the darkest part of the tree, towards the spot where the sunlight failed to reach it. 

Even from a few feet away, Ekko could already see the bad news. At the roots of the tree, there was a strange filament scattered about. A sense of dread coiled around Ekko’s stomach. A rush of wind passed through them and Ekko could feel some leaves get tangled in his hair. He took one and the two of them looked at it more closely. 

“I’ve seen this before,” Heimerdinger said gravely. He turned up to look at Ekko. “We need to visit some old pupils of mine.” 

Sneaking into the center of Piltover’s power was not on Ekko’s list of things to do today. But Heimerdinger insisted, even if they could have easily walked into the Academy as long as the former Council member strode in first. 

No one knew that Ekko was a Firelight, and he could have easily stolen a uniform or worn whatever Piltover thinks is fashionable. Heimerdinger seemed enthusiastic about the idea of breaking and entering though, so Ekko relented. 

When Ekko helped Heimerdinger unscrew a panel to complete the said breaking and entering, the last thing he expected was to be staring down the barrel of the Man of Progress’ hammer. While Heimerdinger raised his hands in surrender, Ekko merely raised an eyebrow. 

What a stupid weapon. 

"Professor?" Jayce Talis said. 

When the initial introductions were done, Ekko finally assessed Jayce. The man seemed to be coming undone. He knew of the scientist. Jayce’s pretty face was plastered on the newspaper every other week. The man in front of him however, was a far cry from that bright-eyed and fresh faced man. 

His hair was wild and unkept and his eyes were red, highlighted further by deep eyebags. 

It must have been a tough month for Piltover. 

It’s been a tough life for the Undercity, Ekko thought. 

Still, seeing him in person, something about Jayce was familiar, as if he had seen him before, a couple lifetimes ago. It flashed before him. A younger, skinnier version of Jayce walking into Benzo’s shop. J

“He paid in gold and didn’t even haggle,” Ekko said under his breath as memories from the Lanes came back to him softly. 

“What was that?” Jayce said, looking at the samples they took from the infected tree. 

Ekko shook his head. That was a long time ago. He had other problems now. His eyes wandered around the laboratory until his eyes landed on it. 

“So what did you Pilties do now?” 

Jayce suddenly looked at him, frowning. “Pardon?” 

“The pattern on the leaves and roots,” Ekko said, his eyes pressed forward. “They’re the exact same as that… thing.”

The three of them look at the contraption. Ekko surmised it was some sort of coffin set upright, filled with more of the infected matter. 

Heimerdinger’s eyes grew wide, his mind going a thousand different directions. Ekko grew nervous, he has never seen the professor so... scared. 

“Jayce… what did you do?” Heimerdinger said.

Jayce took a deep breath, shutting his eyes. His hands found their way to a cane that was much to small for him. "I... I needed to save Viktor."

Heimerdinger gasped. "Goodness... what, what happened?" 

Jayce turned away from them suddenly, unable to face them. He gripped the metal cane so tightly that Ekko thought he was going to break it. "We were there, in the Council Room. I took him there, I was the one who..." 

All three of them fell silent. Ekko was at a loss. "Did you... did you use Hextech to save him?" 

"It was something worse," Jayce said silently. 

"The Hexcore... oh my lad, I told you to destroy it," Heimerdinger said softly. 

Jayce only shook his head. "You... you wouldn't understand. You have an eternity, professor. Our lives are so fleeting. And Viktor's life... even more so. I was greedy, I wanted more— I needed more." 

Ekko turned away, as if he was hearing something not meant for him. He could barely imagine concentrating all that love in one person.

Heimerdinger only shut his eyes. All of the sudden, his centuries' worth of life were apparent on his face. He looked old and tired. Understanding, resignation, disappointment all flashed in his eyes. "Where is Viktor?" he asked gravely. 

“Gone. He left,” Jayce said. 

Jayce brought them all the way down to what he called the Hex Vault, explaining to them that they needed to put the Hex Gates’ operating center deep underground. The large power source stared back at Ekko, with more of that infection scattered about. Jayce said that his partner had a theory that there was something called a “wild rune” — a naturally occurring phenomenon of the Arcane when it was overused. 

The dots connected in Ekko’s head. 

The Hexgates. The Hex Vault. Ekko knew enough about machines to know that something as massive as the Hexgates must demand excessive amounts of energy. And the price of that energy needs to be expelled somewhere. 

The Undercity’s waters and ventilation.

Ekko was too young to remember The Grey. But he has heard stories of it, of factor smog being so heavy and dense that it was impossible to breathe in.  He has seen generations poisoned by it. People who would have lived long lives were suddenly lucky if they reached thirty years old.

There was little effort to change anything. They handed the Undercity a ventilation system and called it a day. Nothing changed about the poor living conditions that trenchers endured. They just no longer had the luxury of smog killing them earlier. 

Piltover seemed so intent to destroy the Undercity, whether it meant to or not. 

And now, it was happening again: the Man of Progress leading the charge to leave the Undercity behind. 

“It was you!” Ekko said, pushing Jayce to the ground and pinning him there. 

As large as Jayce was, he was no fighter. He only stared as Ekko grabbed the lapels of his shirt. Every ounce of a fight in Jayce seemed to have gone away. There was only regret. 

“I should have told Viktor… he’s from Zaun, he would have known better…” Jayce’s eyes started to water. 

Ekko frowned further. "If you Pilties wanted to kill us, a gun would have been kinder! You know how many people die from the fumes underground? What do you think this will do?!" 

He shook Jayce. It took every ounce of willpower for Ekko not to punch the man. 

“Any time it rains, it’s Zaun that gets wet!” Ekko shouted.

It was the first time that Ekko called it that. Zaun has always been Silco’s vision, not his. Not the Firelight’s. It was something he had always danced around. The Firelights came first for him but ever since the explosion… more and more people need help. 

His people. 

Ekko was a Firelight. 

But he was a Zaunite too. 

The Man of Progress merely looked at him, tears falling freely now. 

A small hand started patting Ekko’s shoulder and the professor stared at him sadly. Ekko growled, releasing Jayce as he stood up. 

The professor had that same look on his face as every other Piltie who felt guilty that they were stepping on someone from the underground to be where they are. 

Not that it would stop them from walking. 

“Unless you know how to stop this… I’m gonna go look for someone who actually gives a damn about Zaun to help,” Ekko said, leaving the two scientists behind. 

The past few days go by in a haze for him. He has not felt hungry, or thirsty, or tired. He wanders the streets, sticking close to the shadows. He still had some sense in him to take Jayce’s blanket to cover himself before bolting out of the lab. 

He walked far, without a goal in mind. 

In his mind, two voices go back and forth. Viktor tried to make sense of it all. (None of it does). 

Jayce tried to save him. 

But he was cursed now. 

Viktor was alive. 

But he should be dead. 

Jayce loved him. 

But he broke his promise. 

Viktor loved him back. 

But it hurt so, so much.

He did not know when the streets of Piltover turned into those of the Undercity. But they do. 

While he went to Singed a few months back, Viktor has not been to the deeper parts of the Undercity for years. 

The Other seemed to have a better recollection of his old memories. His instinct of avoiding enforcers easily came back to him. His body still remembered where his parents told him to go and which paths he should avoid.

Viktor could barely remember them. He lost them so young. 

He watched his old memories like they were on a projector. It was as if the memories were not his, like he was watching with another pair of eyes. 

In a small, makeshift shanty house, Viktor poured over the secondhand adventure books that his father was able to buy for him with some extra money he made from the mines. The pages were brown and fraying at the ends. They threatened to tear, so Viktor needed to be careful with how he turned them. 

He must have read it a thousand times. 

He was reading to pass the time, as his father should be home any time soon. Viktor had already prepared the ingredients for the stew they were going to make together. 

Hours passed by, and day turned into night. Viktor surmised that his father was working more hours, so he went to work to recreate the stew to the best that he could. 

The end result was … almost the same as how his father made it. Viktor was proud nonetheless. 

He sat by the table and waited. 

More hours went by and the stew was already cold by the time Viktor realized. 

His father will not come back. 

Viktor was swimming so deeply in his thoughts that he did not see the figure in the shadows trailing him. 

Chapter Text

“These missions have turned up nothing,” Caitlyn said through gritted teeth. 

Vi could only sigh, taking her hand in hers. Caitlyn kept her eyes on the map, but her hand tightened around Vi’s regardless. 

Multiple versions of the Undercity’s maps were sprawled in front of them. Vi would like to think that she knew the Undercity like the back of her hand, but the truth was, it was always changing. Roads would close and new paths would open. It would take growing up in the Undercity to know how to navigate it amid all the changed. 

A decade in prison did not help either.

Any efforts to map the Undercity were ultimately futile — it was like a wild animal, constantly moving, breathing hard and fast, evolving. 

You changed too. 

Vi shut the memory away. She was lying. Powder, no, Jinx was lying. She could hardly imagine the little kid she raised being a manipulative, criminal mastermind. She was a clumsy little thing. Eager, impatient, temperamental. She always needed her bigger sister. But her chubby cheeks have hollowed out and hair blue hair nearly touched the floor. 

Silco's corrupted eye flashed in Vi's mind and she imagined how he sunk has his claws into her sister. 

But Vi was still Vi. Every day in that prison was spent imagining finding her sister again. The same rang true outside outside of prison.  

“We’re going to find her,” Vi said, pulling Caitlyn towards her gently. She cupped her face gently and Caitlyn sighed. Her eyes traveled down to where Vi’s hands were and knitted her brows in frustration.

“Your hands seem more bruised than usual,” she said.

Vi shrugged. “One of Smeech’s guys shot the gauntlets. Had to take it off to knock him out.”

“I’ll get Jayce to fix them,” Caitlyn said. 

“You sure he’s up to it? He’s been out of it since his boyfriend left him,” Vi said. 

She has never met Viktor, not officially at least. She only managed a glimpse at him in that…cocoon thing when Caitlyn was checking on Jayce once. A sense of dread overtook her in that lab and she could not look at the cocoon for more than two seconds. 

“He’s still looking for him. Even asked me to send a team just to look for Viktor. I hope they fare better than us,” Caitlyn said, still looking at Vi’s hands.

“Let me rebandage them,” she finally said. It was a gentle command. 

Vi’s hands have seen bloodier days but if it helped Caitlyn focus on anything else, she would happily oblige. 

They made their way to Caitlyn’s room. Vi settled onto her bed with a growing ease. Caitlyn emerged from her bathroom with a fresh set of bandages and sat opposite Vi. She quietly set to work on Vi’s hands, deep in thought. 

“Do you still blame yourself?” Caitlyn whispered. 

Vi looked down, her hands suddenly becoming the most interesting thing on the planet. 

The two of them have talked about this dozens of times before, especially on this bed, where they knew all of their secrets were safe. Vi knew that it was Silco who molded her, but she was still the one to drive her into his arms that night. 

Because you're a Jinx!

Hell, Vi was the one who gave her that name, but she could not find it in herself to say it aloud again. She was the mad scientist that created the monster and now the monster was on the loose.  

Caitlyn has told her every single time that it was not her fault, it was Jinx’s. She always said her sister’s name with such venom that the conversation always ended there. 

“No,” Vi lied. 

Caitlyn only hummed, knowing not to push her. 

“Do you still remember them? Your parents?” she asked. 

Vi’s mind suddenly found itself all the way back on that bridge. She pushed past it this time, willing it to go further. 

“I remember the smell of dirt and rust in the house. I would help my father clean his work boots and gauntlets every weekend while my mother taught Powder how to tinker with whatever gadgets they find in the dumps,” Vi said. 

“My mom loved music. She had an old jukebox she got from Vander and she would play us her favorite song and dance with us,” Vi whispered. 

Before she knew it, Vi was already humming the old tune. 

Our love

Is a bubbling fountain

Our love

That flows into a sea

Our love

Deeper than any ocean

Our love

For eternity

Caitlyn was already done wrapping her hands, her eyes set on Vi’s hands as they started to water. 

“How did you manage being without them? Your parents, Vander….you were so young and yet I can’t…” 

I can’t accept that my mother is gone.

Vi already knew the rest of what Caitlyn had to say before she even said it. 

She could only press her forehead against hers. 

“It never gets easier. I miss them, everyday. My parents… Vander… Milo and Claggor,” Vi sighed, looking cautiously at Caitlyn. “Powder.” 

Caitlyn merely closed her eyes as she let her tears fall. 

“I know I’ll never see them again but some stupid part of me still hopes that if I go to the Last Drop, Vander would still be behind the counter. Or if I sleep, I’ll wake up to my mom playing her favorite song in the morning. It’s a stupid hope,” Vi said. 

“But it keeps them in my mind, so they never really leave me. I’ll always love them, and I know they loved me too. It’s a dumb thing, really. But it keeps me going,” she said. 

Something in Caitlyn seemed to collapse as she leaned into Vi, breaking into silent sobs. Vi was ready to carry her and her grief to the ends of the world. 

Viktor wandered deeper into the Undercity. 

Zaun, they called it now. 

It changed so much since the last time he was here. It was a living thing after all, a wild animal. 

All living things must evolve. 

It was a far cry from Piltover, whose streets never changed. Even as the eye of the Hex gates loomed across the city, Piltover’s society remained largely unchanged: the rich made themselves richer while everyone else tried to stay in their designated place in society.

Even appearances remained the same.

The plants in the sidewalk always remain trimmed and the streets are always swept clean. Ironically, it was Zaunites that labor to keep Piltover clean. After all, the more desperate the workers are, the cheaper you can pay them. For all the progress that Piltover has boasted, many of its practices were certainly backwards. 

Another contradiction.  

His pondering was interrupted by the sound of shuffling around him. All of the sudden. Viktor felt the press of a knife against his back. (‘Felt’ was a loose term. It was more of a charge to Viktor now.) He was always seen as an easy target, whether it was Piltover or Zaun.

“Careful not to scrape up the gear. Won’t sell as well,” a voice said. 

Gear? 

They wish to cut you apart and sell you for parts. 

Ah, Viktor thought lazily in response. 

“Nothing personal friend,” the man said. “We just got needs we can’t ignore."

Viktor took one look at him. He has not seen a Shimmer addict in a long time, especially not one as deeply afflicted as this. He remembered the Shimmer he injected into himself a while ago: a purer version of whatever these poor souls have put inside themselves. With the right testing, Shimmer could have easily been a medical miracle. 

A brilliant innovation used to poison and control a population. 

The knife pressed deeper into Viktor’s back. Perhaps it would be good to let them cut him up so he could still see within himself if he was more machine than man now. 

Before Viktor could even think, his body moved for itself. 

His arm — the one that was entirely mechanical now — grabbed the knife with a speed that Viktor, even at his healthiest could never achieve. The mechanical arm moved entirely by itself, pressing the knife against his attacker’s neck, drawing blood. 

“So much senseless pain,” Viktor said. His voice sounded different to him. He realized that his words did not come from himself, but from the Other. He gasped at the Other voice, dropping the knife. Before Viktor knew it, something hit him hard in the head. 

Viktor barely flinched, as his mechanical arm moved on its own accord again, reaching out to grab the second attacker from behind him. 

The Shimmer addict whimpered as a mechanical arm lifted him by the neck. The rest of the would-be thieves scurried away. 

Viktor’s once golden eyes looked at the person before him. 

Such a pathetic creature. 

Viktor frowned at the cold voice in his head. He knew these thoughts were not his entirely but he was finding it more and more difficult to reel it back in, to shut it away. 

End him.

That was Viktor’s limit, and he hesitated. 

Then he felt the rusty knife pierce his still human chest. The pain was sudden, but brief. He saw it happen. He saw his pale skin bloom with red as blood began to drip from the wound.

The purple glow of his machine parts seemed to sing at the sight of his blood. The metal on his shoulder suddenly moved as if it was liquid, spreading into his right chest, absorbing both his blood and the knife into himself. The attacker's eyes grew wide in fear at the mutation, trying desperately to scurry away. He clawed at Viktor's hand but he could feel nothing. 

Viktor’s iron grip suddenly tightened around the man’s throat until he felt something snap. 

This is mercy.

He dropped the attacker without any ceremony or remorse. 

“What a show!” a female voice suddenly said, coupled with an eager applause and laughter like a hyena. 

There was too much glee in her voice. Still, it seemed to have broken the spell over Viktor as his senses came back to him and the Other surrendered its control over his body.

Before Viktor could understand what he had just done, he saw a flash of violet light before getting pinned to the ground. 

“Heya Metal Fortune Cookie!” Jinx smiled devilishly down at him, her gun pointed right between his eyes.

Chapter Text

A few months ago.

The tea party played itself in a loop inside Jinx’s mind. Albeit, a thousand different versions of it. In one of them, Silco pulls free and shoots Jinx. In another one, he shoots Vi. In another one, she kills all three of them. 

All the while, the voices in her head refuse to fall silent. 

They sang. They cursed. They whispered. They screamed. 

It was not just Mylo’s snide remarks that played in her ear anymore. 

It was Claggor’s doubts. 

Vander’s voice of reason. 

Vi’s moral compass. 

Silco’s resolution. 

Jinx saw them too sometimes, when the voices are too loud. They flash in front of her eyes: sometimes clear, as if they were there in front of her. Sometimes, as neon monsters who laughed at her. Mylo would be a lizard. Claggor would be a big bear. Vander would be a puppy. 

All the while, she slithered through Zaun with ease, dodging both the enforcers and the Noxians. She felt like a robot.  

She used to rage against the voices. Music would rattle her tools and materials in her hideout because of how loud her music was. Silco would get so mad at her when it was too loud but she kept the volume the same. She needed the voices to shut up.

Jinx freely conversed with them now. They were the only people she had left, after all. It never mattered to her how mean Mylo was, or how bad Vi made her feel about what she did to the Council. She needed to keep talking to them.

Otherwise, she would be alone.

“My child, why waste your time wandering aimlessly? Zaun needs you,” Silco gently chided. 

“I’m not the big fat hero you think I am,” Jinx whispered as she walked through the damp alley. 

“You’re a murderer,” Vi spoke from her mind. 

“Don’t listen to her!” Silco hissed at Vi. “You’re perfect.” 

You’re perfect. 

“But where are you? You left,” Jinx whispered back to Silco. 

“My child, I will never leave you,” he said back.

Silco’s voice echoed in Jinx’s head as a bleeding child with brown-haired child with amber eyes fell from the sky and crashed on her. 

Silver eyes met violet as Viktor and Jinx stared at each other. 

Several things registered in Viktor’s mind. One, she was impossibly fast. Even with enhanced senses and the Other lurking like a wolf in the forefront of his mind, this woman somehow pinned him to the ground. 

Two, the woman in question was the criminal mastermind Jinx, whose face was plastered on every wanted poster in Zaun. (Another indicator that topsiders were clueless about the trenches: they made a martyr out of someone they called a terrorist.)

Three, Viktor was staring at the woman who killed him.

And she grinned back happily at him, ready to shoot. 

“Metal? Yes, for the most part. But fortune cookie?” Viktor asked simply. 

Something alighted in Jinx’s eyes, as if this was the right answer. She started laughing. 

“Funny too! We never know what we’re gonna get with you, you fortune cookie!” Jinx said, her gun still held up to his face. 

Viktor sighed, gently pushing the gun away from him as if it was nothing. 

“Miss Jinx, I presume?” Viktor said tiredly. 

Jinx smirked, putting her gun back in her holster. 

“In the flesh. Although,” her eyes looked Viktor up and down. “Can’t say the same about you.” 

She releases him from her grip, not helping him stand. 

“Is there a reason that a wanted woman is attacking me?” Viktor asked. 

Jinx looked him up and down. Viktor stared back. She was a small, slender thing. She must have been no more than seventeen years old. A child. 

A child that was able to bring Piltover to its knees. 

Another contradiction. 

But not an unpleasant one, Viktor added. 

She was a child of Zaun and it showed on every inch of her. Jinx had that look in her eye that looked like she was always ready to either fly or fight. Although, something told Viktor that she would always choose to fight. 

“I was not attacking you, Mister Machine. I was… observing you,” she finally said. The blanket that Viktor wore to cover himself had fallen down to his waist, exposing much of his chest and arms.

More metal had crawled onto his chest after the Shimmer addict stabbed him.   

“Your prosthesis,” Jinx finally said. “It’s like nothing I’ve seen before.” 

Viktor bit his tongue, saying nothing. Prosthesis seemed like a passable excuse for his appearance. 

“There’s no delay in it, like most of the models here in Zaun. It moves like it’s an actual extension of you…” her voice trails off as she stares at his arms. 

Jinx had that same look in her eye as Jayce would when he was deep in discernment. 

Viktor remembered the colorful bomb that he had had to disarm when he was still in Piltover. 

The bomb was likely her design, Viktor realized. She indeed looked like someone who could design an ingenious bomb out of scraps…and then decide to draw on it like a child.

The girl before him was no mere fool, nor was she a jokester. Even if she tried to present herself as one. There is a careful precision behind her eyes that mingled with madness. Viktor could easily imagine another timeline where she was a top student at the Academy. If he had a longer life, he could have taken her under his wings. 

“It's like it's...adapting to you. I have a feeling that it’s not just your limbs that are mechanical,” Jinx finally said.

Something in Viktor stirred when Jinx noticed how it was adapting to him. That has always been the nature of the Hexcore: to adapt. It appeared to be adapting to him, just as Viktor was adapting to it. He could almost hear it purring inside of him. 

“Prosthesis hasn’t advanced yet to the point of replacing anything else other than limbs. So, what are you?” Jinx suddenly asked. 

Viktor still had no clear understanding of what he was, other than a strange combination of man, metal and magic. He had to be careful though. No one knew what the Hexcore was outside of Jayce, him and Heimerdinger. 

Letting his murderer know how such a volatile discovery works is not wise. 

“I would like to know that as well, to be honest,” Viktor said in reply. “Although, I do not believe that you yourself need them.” 

Viktor has never been to the Last Drop, although he had heard of it. Sometimes, his father would come home late from the bar in a better mood than he has in a month. His mother would end up berating his father about it for the week after. He had always imagined that it was a lively place, with friends coming together and sharing a nice drink. 

Silence greeted them as Jinx and Viktor stepped into the bar. 

Empty bottles littered the shelves, as if someone had a particularly bad week and a bar all to themselves. A bad combination. All of the chairs and tables were either overturned or broken. 

Someone was deeply upset here. 

Jinx led Viktor upstairs, to an office. 

There, they found an older, muscular woman tending to a little girl. 

Without approaching, Viktor could already see what was wrong. 

“Everyone, Cookie. Cookie, everyone!” Jinx said. She left Viktor’s side and went up to the little girl, who giddily lept into her arms. 

He smiled at the child when she cast a wary glance at him. Viktor never got along well with children, but he made it a point to be kind to them when he was around them. He was a man of Zaun, after all. The children of the trenches belong to all: regardless of blood. Despite having no siblings, Viktor has had to act as guardian to some of the younger kids in his old neighborhood when their parents were working late in the mines, and during harder times, if they were in protests. 

The older woman regarded him with caution, saying nothing. 

Viktor’s eyes however, were on the child. 

The child happily played with Jinx’s long blue braids, but her struggle was apparent.  

After all, her prosthetic arm was a tad too heavy for her. Viktor approached the pair slowly, regarding them both. The child’s features were too far off from Jinx’s to be of any relation to her, so he already knew that she was likely an orphan that Jinx somehow picked up. 

“Who’s this weirdo?” the child signed to Jinx. 

“He’s gonna help fix you up, kiddo,” Jinx signed back. 

Viktor tried to suppress a smile. Jinx did not need to ask him, but Viktor already knew that he was going to say yes. He extended a hand to the little girl. 

“My name is Viktor,” he signed gently, then extended his metal hand.

The girl’s eyes lit up after seeing that he knew how to sign. 

“Isha,” she signed back. 

Isha looked at his hand with fascination, her mechanical hand finally extending to take his in return. Not in a handshake, no. She was examining his hand with a fierce curiosity that only a child could have. Viktor allowed her to stretch his hand around, even shaking it, as if she expected the thing to pop off. 

All the while, he looked at her more closely. Her face was littered with other cuts that have already long healed. 

“There was an explosion in one of the mines she was forced to work with,” Jinx said quietly, burying her face in Isha’s brown hair.  

Viktor grimaced. Child labor was not new to Zaun. After all, the best education that a child of Zaun could get was learning how to survive. Viktor worked many odd jobs before his illness took his leg. He has even heard of children working in Shimmer factories. 

But the mines were different. 

They were death traps in every conceivable way. Full grown-men used to die there every other week. 

The cold, watery soup with bits of potatoes flashed in Viktor’s mind, but he shut it out as soon as it came. 

He looked at Isha. The practice of sending a child to the mines was frowned upon, but that did not deter chembarons from putting children in their employ. It was cheaper, and they could fit in more crevices. 

With the demands of Piltover’s progress, it was no wonder that they would look to Undercity. The rich happily dealt with a chembaron who disguised themselves as an entrepreneur, never questioning why they charged so cheaply. After all, it was not their hands getting dirty. 

Viktor felt a sudden pang of guilt. In a way, his pursuit of greatness… of progress… also led to this. How many of their “kind” investors cut corners to get their hands on Hextech? How many of them looked the other way when they procured their materials for Jayce and him? 

Progress at the cost of children’s lives. 

Viktor sighed and felt the semblance of a headache begin to pierce through his skull. 

“I’ll help,” he whispered gently, looking at Isha. 

“We’ll fix you up.”

The Other voice in his head was silent. 

Ekko made his way back to the Undercity on his hoverboard. Part of him felt bad for leaving the professor behind but he knew he would be fine, regardless if he stayed in the Academy or went back to the tree. He glided into the Undercity with ease, like an owl honing in on prey.

The air around him got heavier and Ekko welcomed back the familiar press on his lungs. A few yards before he reaches one of the Firelight entrances however, he sees it. 

The rich blue of the enforcer uniform. 

Ekko frowned. 

Why are they hovering around our turf? 

He slid his mask back on and prepared his mace. Ekko could not possibly attack them there and then, it would raise too much suspicion. It was too close to the tree. He needed to lead them away. 

He flew past them a good twenty feet away — close enough to get their attention but far enough to make it seem like a mistake. 

“What was that?” one of the enforcers said. He heard a sudden rush of footsteps coming his way. 

It worked. Ekko zoomed back towards them, already thinking of a route to confuse the enforcers. He was preparing a smoke bomb when he saw the most familiar shock of red hair. 

Vi? 

Something hits his hoverboard and he could feel it malfunction. Ekko makes it a good few yards before he crashes. 

Chapter Text

The gears in the pocket watch were not moving right, Ekko found. Powder was right, his time was off. He vowed to himself never to tell her or else he would never hear the end of it. 

“Are you watching, Little Man?” Vi suddenly asked. 

“Uh, yep!” he squeaked back, hiding the pocket watch behind his back.  

Vi simply rolled her eyes and smiled. “You gotta pay attention. You never know when you’re gonna need this. Some street thug could get you, or worse—”

“Enforcers?” 

She chuckled. “Yep, so listen up.”  

Vi moved with the grace of a deer but struck like a viper. Her fists flew so fast that Ekko could barely see them; they were slicing the air. 

“You gotta move like water but be as hard as a rock,” she said as she threw her punches rhythmically.    

“That’s not possible,” Ekko whined. 

“Takes some getting used to,” Vi said. “You’re gonna get it one day. Then, we’ll show those scummy enforcers who they’re messing with.” 

Ekko veered towards the darker alleyways: a maze so intricate that even trenchers get lost in it. A few feet from the ground, he leapt, bracing himself to dive and roll. He already knew how to fall properly but he was too shocked by what he had seen. When Ekko crashed, he curled up a little too late and a sharp pain shot through his leg: the same one that was mangled on that bridge. He gritted his teeth, biting back a yell. 

Vi? An enforcer? 

Ekko scrambled, grabbing the hoverboard. He was readjusting his mask when he heard them. 

The familiar sound of enforcer boots on the uneven ground grew louder and louder. Hiding himself in the alleyway, he peered through the corner, counting five of them. He recognized the leaders instantly. 

Caitlyn kept her rifle ready. 

“Cait! It was probably a Firelight” he heard Vi say. “They aren’t hurting anyone!” 

Ekko could not believe it. He gripped the hoverboard. Something in him twisted. It might have hurt less to let Jinx kill him. For all her insanity, Jinx never presented herself as anything other than what she was. 

“We don’t know that! Jinx has gained a lot of sympathizers here,” Caitlyn said. 

He felt his eyes water and he gripped his bat. Enforcers no longer scared Ekko as much, but he felt such a deep anger for them, as if it was sketched on his bones by every Zaunite who ever died by their hands. 

From a young age, he already knew that enforcers only saw trenchers as dirty little animals. They were happy to hunt them down. None of them could be trusted.

Seeing Vi in an enforcer’s uniform was the world’s biggest joke. 

“Over there!” a woman’s accented voice said. 

Ekko pulled the pin and threw the smoke bomb. Dark smoke engulfed the alleyways. He timed it in his head. There were only a few seconds to maximize the effects of the bomb. He saw the closest target: a small woman with ginger hair. Ekko raised his bat. 

The woman turned too late. He stepped into her space, side-stepping her gun and hitting the back of her head with the bat. Before she could collect her senses, Ekko slipped back into the smoke. He did the same to another enforcer, banging the butt of his bat against his nose. 

“He knocked Maddie and Steb out!” someone yelled. 

Caitlyn fired a warning shot into the air. “Show yourself!” 

He had his sights on the biggest enforcer when Vi’s voice broke through the chaos. 

“Enough!” 

Ekko heard the whirring of gears and the ground shook. 

Vi just punched the ground, the wind generated from the force successfully clearing the air in her vicinity. 

Ekko sighed. She has always been a force of nature. There was no other way around this. He stepped into the light, looking dead at her. 

“Blue doesn’t suit you, Vi,” Ekko’s voice was distorted by the mask but recognition sparked in Vi’s eyes. 

“Ekko…” Vi said, dropping her fists. Her gauntlets had the same color as her uniform. 

Disgusting . 

Caitlyn did not lower her gun. Vi frowned at her, trying to lower the gun but the other woman did not relent. 

“Cait!”

“He ran! And he attacked. What are you hiding?” she said, raising her gun again at Ekko again. 

Ekko sighed, grabbing his mask and taking it off. 

“I’m not hiding a damn thing, Piltie,” his eyes find their way to Vi. “But you are.” 

“What the hell are you doing, Vi?” Ekko said, his voice cracking at her name. 

“Ekko, I can explain. I need to find Pow…Jinx. I need to find Jinx,” Vi corrected herself. 

“So you threw your lot in with the Topsiders?!” Ekko said through gritted teeth. 

“Ekko, it was their people killed,” Vi said. 

“And how many of their people killed ours?” he shot back. 

“How many of us were never seen again in Stillwater? How many of us were starved to death on the streets? How many of us died early because of the toxic fumes down here,” he said, eyes never leaving Vi’s.

Vi only looked away, but that did not stop Ekko. 

“Vi, they killed your parents,” Ekko whispered. “Enforcers and Topsiders have made more orphans than any of the chembarons ever could.” 

Caitlyn finally lowered her weapon. “Ekko, stop. We can talk about this peacefully at headquarters,” she said. 

“Then after that? What? Stillwater?” Ekko put his mask back on. “Not a chance.” 

Time slowed for Ekko in his mind. He knew that Caitlyn was a quick shot. He had less than a second. 

But it was all he needed. At this range, Caitlyn can only shoot forward. 

Quick as lightning, Ekko stepped towards her, using his club to disarm Caitlyn and take her gun. Ekko swung an easy one at Vi, knowing her instinct would be to dodge it. It worked; Ekko slid past her with ease. The biggest Enforcer tried to grab him but Ekko merely dodged him. He tossed another smoke bomb and fled into the alleyway. 

He heard the click of the gun a millisecond too late. 

The bullet hit his leg and Ekko stumbled. 

“Maddie! Stand down,” Caitlyn shouted. 

Ekko could have sworn that he heard Vi yell too, but he had to keep moving. 

The image of Vi in that enforcers’ uniform flashed in his mind. 

Ekko worshipped her when he was a kid. He wanted so badly to be like her. That was why he started the Firelights. He felt like it was something she would do. 

He ran. He just learned that she was alive. He thought he was finally able to get someone back, instead of losing them. But Vi left the Undercity and someone else wearing her skin came back. 

When he was far enough, he finally let the tears fall. He needed to hide until his scent faded away near the Firelight tree. He also needed to stash the gun he stole from Caitlyn. Ekko's thoughts were coming at him too fast to feel the faint humming of blue energy from the gun. 

He ran until he finally saw it: Benzo’s Shop. 

Viktor looked over the prosthetic closely. Isha watched him work for a few minutes until she got bored and ran off, much to Sevika’s annoyance. 

He had never fancied himself as a specialist in prosthesis but his study of how the Hexcore could be used on the human body was coming in handy. He also mulled getting a prosthetic when his leg was particularly bad. 

The child was having difficulty adjusting to it, he saw. It was too heavy, for one thing. While she played with Jinx, he could see the strain on Isha, to the point that her shoulder would redden and sore. 

The materials were already the lightest ones possible (or rather, available). Viktor was right in assuming that Jinx was smarter than she let on. On an older child, the prosthetic would work incredibly well. 

Given time, Viktor knew she could have adjusted to the arm if she aged a bit more. 

But Vikor could understand wanting better for someone you loved. If the opportunity wandered into your neighborhood, why not jump him and point a gun at him? 

“Is there a private place you know where I could work? I am not particularly fond of doing research in a chembarons’ meeting place,” Viktor said. 

Jinx rolled her eyes. “You Pilities are too fussy,” she said.

“I was born in the trenches too, you know,” Viktor said, turning the prosthetic in his hand. 

She considered this. “Is that why you’re wandering around here naked and surrounded by addicts?” 

Viktor stilled and flushed, putting the arm down suddenly. Of all the emotions he could still barely feel, Viktor did not understand why embarrassment was suddenly pronounced. 

“Absolutely not!” Viktor said. 

The muscular woman, who Viktor learned was named Sevika, chuckled and walked towards one of the closets. 

Viktor flustering seemed to only amuse Jinx. “Oh, yeah? Then what are you doing here, cookie?” 

“I…” Viktor started, suddenly realizing that he did not have an answer. 

You are aimless. Without purpose. 

Viktor flinched, and Jinx’s eyes flew wide, sparking with something that bordered on understanding. 

Sevika suddenly tossed some clothes on the table. 

“Get dressed unless you wanna get robbed again,” she said.

Viktor mumbled a “thank you” and looked at the clothes. 

They were surprisingly fine materials. The silk shirt was a deep shade of red, and the black vest had gold trimmings in it. The pants also looked sleek, and Viktor had a feeling that they were tailormade. 

The expensive material could only belong to someone rich, and the only people who are rich in Zaun are chembarons. Jinx’s shoulders deflated slightly at the sight of the clothes and she looked away. He averted his eyes from her. 

It belonged to Silco then, Viktor quietly concluded. Jayce had told him about Silco while they were preparing to face the Council, of how he seemed hesitant to give up Jinx. Things were going so fast at that time but it only registered in his mind why he could not give her up.   

He simply went back to looking at the arm. “I just want a place to stay, that's all.” 

Sevika and Jinx looked at each other, as if coming to the same conclusion without uttering a single word. 

That was how they ended up in a shop that used to belong to a man named Benzo. 

The three of them left Viktor to his devices, as it was getting late. ‘Late’ in Zaun was relative, as many parts of the Undercity were untouched by the sun. ‘Late’ was when you were finally too tired to stay on your feet. 

The pawn shop was abandoned and empty. The windows were broken and all the shelves were bare. Every item that could be sold for scrap has been taken, but it was a quiet place that has remained dormant for many years. Still, litter was strewn about and there were enough bugs and rats that were enough to give topsiders a cardiac arrest. 

It was perfect for Viktor. 

Viktor looked through the old room and found an old music box that thieves likely thought were useless.. He smiled. It was nothing like the advanced models in Piltover, and he could tell it was made in the Undercity with spare parts. After reworking some of its inner mechanisms, it started churning out a song. The sound was grainy and it skipped some parts but Viktor smiled to himself at the familiar tune.  

Like Sunday, I'll pray our love will always stay pure

Ooh, while the world turns around, he holds me down for sure

Viktor hummed along as he set to work. He has not heard this song in such a long time but it was a classic in the Undercity. He used to hear it playing all the way from his neighbor's house. 

He allowed himself to feel a semblance of pleasure with the simple task of cleaning. For such a large part of his life, he struggled to do what others considered to be menial tasks. 

Simple things such as sweeping or washing the dishes had to be handled with difficulty for a world not built to accommodate him. 

Now, he could lift a huge pile of plywood without breaking a sweat. It weighed like a feather to him. Viktor tossed out most of the debris, but kept anything that he could find that was still metal. Loose screws, metal plates, rusty tools, and more found their way to a wooden crate to properly store later. 

In many ways, Viktor should be worried. He should be in the lab, working to analyze himself, to see if he can still be human. 

But Viktor allowed himself to enjoy his new body, just for a while. 

Helping Jinx and Isha provided him enough purpose and clarity for a moment. But he still needed to know what to do with himself here in the long run. 

A metal gear dropped to the floor. He picked it up and turned it over in his hand slowly. 

The memory of him and Jayce floating in the blue magic of the Arcane came back to him. His partner was beaming at him as he pushed the gear at Viktor. 

So much joy. So much loss. 

Viktor ignored the voice, tossing the metal gear in the heap with a sigh. He looked at the heap of metal and thought back to the knife twisting and melting into him. If Viktor could meld metal on his body, perhaps he could do it outside his body. 

The large, circular window on the pawnshop has been broken into but the metal framework was still there. The purple light in Viktor’s arms hummed as he raised his hands to touch it. He closed his eyes and let the charge flow through his body. 

In his mind, he pictured brown eyes and a gap-toothed smile. 

When he opened his eyes, the window was transformed. The metal swirled into a beautiful web of circles. 

Do you see the great things we can achieve together? 

Viktor frowned, ending whatever sense of enjoyment he had with his new body. His mind started to work out all the ways he could fix his new affliction when his arm moved by itself to stop something from hitting his head. 

Viktor registered the attack, turning his head to see a teenager with snow white hair and the angriest set of eyes he has ever seen. 

“Who are you?” 

Viktor sighed. 

“Believe it or not, you are not the first teenager that attacked me today,” Viktor said. 

“My name is Viktor,” he said simply. “There is no reason for violence.” 

The boy frowned. Viktor could almost see the anger radiating off of him.

“You’re Viktor?” he asked, letting his weapon down. “Jayce’s partner?” 

Viktor raised an eyebrow. It was always Jayce that was recognized in the streets or the hallways of the Academy. The man always made a point to share credit with Viktor but he was hardly the poster boy thay Jayce was. No one in Piltover wanted to acknowledge that someone from Zaun could rise to their ranks: let alone a cripple. 

“Former partner,” Viktor replied. 

“What are you? Some sort of mage?” the boy asked, his eyes wary. 

A mage? Viktor would have scoffed. 

But while he has surmised that much of him was mechanical, it was not a product of scientific process. He had harnessed magic through machinery and paid the price with his body. He was a mage untouched by the Arcane; a scientist saved by the grace of magic. 

The greatest contradiction. 

“I… do not quite know what I am,” Viktor said. 

The boy sighed. “Just what I needed today. What are you doing in Benzo’s shop?” 

Viktor did not answer, suddenly smelling the distinct smell of iron and his eyes followed to where it was. The boy was bleeding. Blood oozed from a haphazard bandage around his leg. 

“Sit down. I will see what I can do with your leg,” Viktor said, setting a chair for the young man. 

It caught the boy off guard. “I can handle myself just fi—” Viktor grabbed the boy by the shoulders and forced him to sit down. 

“Shoot! Come on, man,” he yelled. He remained seated regardless, the pain in his leg undoubtedly doubling by the second. 

Viktor knelt down, looking at the wound as he unwrapped it. He could sense the metal embedded in his flesh. With a wave of Viktor’s hand, the bullet carefully made its way out of the boy’s leg. Viktor held the bloody bullet and eyed it closely. 

“Enforcers?” Viktor asked. 

The boy only looked away and Viktor pretended not to notice the sudden gleam in his eyes as if he was wishing tears away.

“I saw some tape I could sterilize, give me a few minutes—” 

“There’s an emergency kit under the floorboard, behind the counter,” he said. 

Viktor nodded, wordlessly locating the kit. He set to work on the boy’s leg. Eventually, the stranger’s shoulders finally dipped, exhaustion finally winning over his wariness. 

“You never told me your name,” Viktor finally said. 

The boy stared as Viktor cleaned his wound. He sighed, finally figuring he had nothing to lose. 

“Ekko,” he said. “My name is Ekko.” 

Viktor nodded. A strange name for a strange boy. Then again, many of Zaun’s names were strange in the eyes of Piltover. He could still remember the puzzled look on Jayce’s face when he said he did not have a last name. 

“How do you know Jayce? I understand he’s quite famous but I surmise that you don’t know him through the newspapers,” he asked. 

“Well, you wouldn’t believe the day I had,” Ekko answered. 

Chapter Text

The next day, Viktor had set out to gather more metal scraps for Isha’s arm. Luckily, he was not robbed this time. Viktor had successfully transformed more metal into parts and tools he could actually use, testing his limits. He surmised that his powers were limited to metal objects. Although The Other insisted they could do more, Viktor was afraid of entertaining his mind’s passenger. 

He was drawing up plans for the arm when Ekko came back with more samples of the infected tree. 

The idea of a tree in Zaun amazed Viktor at first, imagining what life could have been like for him if there were more greenery in their neighborhood. The wonder turned into horror when Ekko told him about the corruption from the Hexgates. 

Viktor turned over the leaf in his hands and closed his eyes. How could they have gone so wrong? He saw red as he crushed the leaf in his hand. 

Look at your limits without me. 

“Umm… Viktor?” 

“I trusted him…” he whispered. He could feel the cold grip of anger in his stomach: at Jayce, at himself. Mostly himself. 

The longer he was back in Zaun, the more he realized how blind he had been. The progress he desperately sought after was marred by the suffering of his people. He was so desperate to climb up that he could not see who was getting kicked down. 

Ekko looked at the man, still deciding if he could be trusted. 

“You’re from Zaun?” Ekko asked. 

Viktor nodded. 

“I thought going to Piltover would…allow me to help more people. It was a poor excuse. After my family died, I just wanted to prove that I was more than a nameless orphan cripple from the Undercity. I was selfish…” 

He looked at Ekko. 

“When I finally made it to Piltover, I thought that I was better than the trenches. But no. Piltover preaches of progress while leaving Zaun in the dirt. Nothing but a stone to be stepped on as it ascends to a heavenless sky,” he said. 

“ A terrible contradiction of logic,” Viktor said, realizing that he had spoken the Other’s words aloud. 

“Then help us fix this,” the young man said, gently placing a hand on Viktor’s shoulder: the one that was still human. He returned to himself.

“You are correct. We have plenty to do,” Viktor said. 

Ekko smiled at him. It was genuine, this time. It did not raise alarms in his head the way Jinx’s mischievous smile leered at him. Viktor could feel himself smiling back a little. 

“Heya Cookie!” Jinx sang as the door burst open. 

Ekko and Jinx’s eyes met and for a moment, and all was still. A mouse could squeak in Piltover and they would be able to hear it. 

Then, something set ablaze in both of their eyes. The air felt charged: it was the moment before lightning struck the earth.

Viktor had a very bad feeling about this. 

“ You!” they yelled in unison. 

Not one second had passed before the two of them raised their weapons at each other and charged. 

Jayce stared at the outline of Viktor’s body. The corruption at the Hexvault flashed in his mind. He was in no condition to think of solutions at the moment but his mind worked by itself, trying to make the connections anyway. No matter how much he perverted the laws of nature, he was still a scientist. 

Ekko was correct. There was a connection between Viktor and the corruption of the Hexvaults. 

Jayce brought out the plans for the gates. At the bottom, “Jayce Talis” stood solitary, missing the name that was usually next to it. Then again, it was better that this mistake was solely his to bear. 

Regret threatened to overwhelm him again but he forced himself to focus. 

Then he pulled out the logs of the Hexgates, as well as a record of its energy readings. He even checked the energy meter readings for the gauntlets and hammer. He pulled up a blank chalkboard and set to work. After running the numbers in his head again and again, his eyes grew wide. 

“Oh god,” he whispered. 

“Jayce?” Caitlyn’s voice shook him from his thoughts. She walked past the container for Viktor, eyeing it warily. Some of the filaments have turned into a strange fauna that Jayce promised himself he would study.

“Cait! Look at this,” he said, pulling her gently by the arm. 

“Jayce, you look horrible. Have you eaten? Or…bathed?” 

“No, no, look at this,” he pointed to the board. 

Caitlyn stared at the board with eyebrows furrowed. “Am I supposed to understand this as if they were a nursery rhyme?” 

Jayce shook his head, remembering that not everyone was a scientist on the brink of madness. 

“Look, the Hexgates’ energy readings have become more and more unstable the more we use it,” Jayce said, pointing to a haphazard chart he made. 

“Which would make sense because every action has a reaction,” he continued. He brought out the charts for the hammer and the gauntlets. 

“When I fixed up the Atlas Gauntlets, I took down its energy readings — also erratic.” 

“Well, yes, we have been using it on our missions —” 

“Yes, but its levels are identical to the energy readings of the gates,” he said. 

Caitlyn’s eyebrows furrowed. “It could be a coincidence.” 

“That’s true. But then I compared it to the readings on my hammer,” he handed her the chart. 

“Same pattern…” she said. 

“And I haven’t used it in months,” he added. 

Jayce grabbed her by the shoulders. “They’re all connected. Every piece of Hextech is like a hivemind. Every time we used it, every time we demanded from the Arcane, it became more and more unstable.” 

Jayce breathed deeply. “What I did to Viktor…” 

“Viktor wasn’t just hurt, wasn’t he?” Caitlyn said quietly. “He was … dead.” 

“It was the last straw that created the wild rune,” Jayce said. 

After telling Caitlyn about his trip to the Hexvaults and Viktor’s theory about wild runes (leaving out how Ekko called him on his bullshit), she was deep in thought, staring at the filaments. 

“I don’t suppose you’ll get mad when I tell you that a Zaunite stole the Hextech gun you made for me, won’t you?” 

“ What ?”

Caitlyn sighed. “That’s why I came here, to tell you. We had an encounter with Vi’s old friend and it went south. Maddie shot him in the leg. He’s alive but Vi was so mad she broke Maddie’s teeth… and nose. Loris and I had to pry Vi off of her.” 

“Sounds like Vi,” Jayce said humorlessly. 

“Do you… do you think they can use it against us? Vi said it would be alright because she trusted this one but …I remember Jinx and her awful, awful laugh… and how she used Hextech to take my mother,” she said. 

Jayce winced. 

“Cait,” Jayce started but she waved him off. 

“It’s not your fault,” she said. 

“But the things he said… Jayce… I’m so lost,” her shoulders sagged as he wrapped her in a hug. 

“She took my mother, Jayce. I can’t stop. I need to look for Jinx,” she said. “But then I remember everything Vi went through in Stillwater and I… what a mess.” 

“We’ll find Jinx,” he said. “We can fix everything else after, or try to at least. But no one else should get caught in the crossfire,” he said.

Caitlyn nodded, pulling away from him. “What about the wild rune?” 

He pinched the bridge of his nose. “I don’t know. I need to find a way to undo the pollution in the Undercity first. I’m afraid it might involve drastic measures,” Jayce said. 

She nodded. Jayce was glad she did not ask for more details. He did not know how she would react if he told her what he had in mind. 

“Has—” Jayce’s voice broke. “Any news about Viktor?” 

She shook her head. “No, I’m sorry. We are sure that he’s still in the Undercity but all the leads have turned up dead.” 

His shoulders slumped. 

“Do you… do you regret bringing him back?” Caitlyn said, staring at the scattered notes on Jayce’s desk. A sketch of Viktor’s upper body was among the papers. The metal embedded to his waist was a beautiful, intricate, and painful maze. Jayce could imagine how the metal carved into his flesh. He looked at the sketch, eyes lingering where Viktor’s heart was. Jayce knew that even after the transformation, it was still there. His world had turned upside down but he was certain of one thing. 

“No, I don’t regret it,” he said. 

That night, Jayce opted to stay in the lab again. If Jayce had trouble sleeping before Viktor came back, he had even more trouble sleeping since he left. But exhaustion overtook him again. 

Suddenly, Jayce was back in the Shimmer factory with Vi. He felt the thrumming of energy in his hammer as he hit hard and took his shots.  

He has had this nightmare countless times: he was filled with adrenaline, finally feeling that he was taking action until he did the unthinkable. 

Except this time, it was not Renni’s child that he shot. 

It was Viktor. He was younger, but it was unmistakable: the mole below his left eye, his chestnut hair. He looked at Jayce with eyes that screamed: how could you ?

Jayce dropped the hammer and screamed. 

Viktor pinched the bridge of his nose as Ekko and Jinx yelled at each other from the top of their lungs. He had successfully disarmed both of them before Jinx fired any shots but that did not deter them from leaping at each other like animals. 

Jinx fought like a wild cat, wrapping herself around Ekko trying to scratch his eyes out. After thrashing about, the boy proved to be stronger, managing to throw her off. He threw a punch but it never landed, Jinx was abnormally fast. She found a rusty screwdriver and raised it, ready to stab him. Viktor grabbed her arm. 

“Enough! We will sit down and talk about this like adults!” 

That was how Viktor managed to get them to sit down, at least. Their talk however, was less than ideal. 

“You almost killed me on that damn bridge!” Ekko yelled. 

“It was self-defense. You could have killed me too!” Jinx said, feigning innocence. 

“That was your damn fault, freak!” Ekko yelled back. 

From what Viktor could gather, the two have a long history of fighting ever since Jinx joined Silco and Ekko formed the…fireflies? The two were arguing so quickly it was difficult to keep track. Viktor started sketching away at the blueprints again while they fought. 

“If you hadn’t blown up the Council, those enforcers wouldn’t be here!” he yelled. 

“Oh yeah, because you love the Council sooooo much,” she said. 

“Of course I don’t!” 

“Then what are you crying about? At least I did something. All you did was be a pest to Silco and now that he’s gone, you’re useless too!” she said. 

That struck a nerve with Ekko, who stood up and slowly walked to Jinx. Viktor tensed, preparing to step in if he had to. 

“Now that your daddy is dead, I hope you experience even a fraction of the misery that Zaunites do,” Ekko whispered. 

Even Viktor held his breath at the harsh words. However, they did not seem to elicit the reaction that the boy expected. Instead of yelling or attacking him, Jinx got a glazed look in her eye, as if her mind was transported somewhere else suddenly. Her eyes started to water. 

“No, I’m not!” she whispered angrily. 

“You aren’t what?” Ekko asked, likely suspicious that this was some trick. 

But Viktor saw it for what it was: Jinx was not alone in her head. 

Fractured. Just like us. 

Viktor winced. Jinx was furiously whispering to invisible people, hot tears spilling on her cheeks as the two of them watched. He finally stood, walking over to Jinx and carefully placing a hand on her shoulder. She slowly looked up at Viktor and he lowered himself so he could whisper. 

“It’s alright. Don't listen to them. Come back. It’s just us here,” Viktor said in a low voice. 

Jinx’s purple eyes flew wide. A sense of recognition passed between the two of them. Before he could stop himself, Viktor wiped away her tears. She nodded slowly, turning to Ekko. 

“I’m sorry I almost blew you up. There. Happy?” she said, as if she was a petulant child who was forced to apologize for stealing candy from a playmate.

Ekko eyed both of them in disbelief. “No! You killed a bunch of Firelights too, you lunatic!” 

Jinx merely pouted, crossing her arms and turning away. He turned to Viktor. “Are you actually with her?” 

Viktor shrugged. “I am simply here to help as much as I can.” 

Jinx chuckled to herself. “Looks like the Boy Savior found the Man Savior.” 

“Shut. The Fuck. Up,” Ekko hissed. 

“Look, both of you seek my assistance and I can provide it. Whatever happened between you two, I insist you resolve it without killing each other,” Viktor said. “Eh, or at least do it outside the premises.” 

Ekko rolled his eyes and threw his hands in the air. “Unbelievable,” he muttered, rising up to leave. 

“I have some ideas for a filtration system. It’s a temporary fix but it will do for now,” Viktor called out, causing Ekko to pause before reaching for the handle. 

“Come back tomorrow and we could start talking about the parts we need,” he added. 

The boy did not turn to meet his eyes, but he noticed how his shoulders were sagged. He looked like had taken on so much in his short life. Ekko merely nodded at him before leaving the shop. 

When Ekko left, Jinx turned to him. 

“So…” she said, purple eyes appearing to sparkle. “Got voices inside your head too, huh?”

Mel’s heels clicked softly against the cobblestones of the Kirammans’ courtyard as she looked around. Everything was perfectly maintained, every blade of grass was cut neatly and not a wilted leaf was in sight. It was as if the family had not endured an unimaginable loss. 

Caitlyn was already leaning on the doorway. She smiled weakly at Mel. Even in the moonlight, Mel could see the immense weight behind her eyes. 

The two became an unlikely pairing after the attack, often meeting for chats over tea, or, if the occasion called for it, wine. At first, it was to keep track of how Jayce was. He seemed more willing to welcome Caitlyn in his space rather than Mel. In turn, Caitlyn was eager for more information from the Council. The mutually beneficial exchange of information had slowly turned into an easy camaraderie between the two women. 

The sting of loneliness has crept on Mel since that day. Jayce locked himself away in his lab with Viktor. He refused Mel’s invitations to stay at her home, seemingly adverse to her touch ever since the bombing. The way he looked at her when she tried to tell him that Viktor was gone was a mix between betrayal and disbelief. Mel thought he had not quite forgiven her for even implying that his partner was dead (he would prove Mel wrong eventually, but that did not change his state). 

Caitlyn’s father has also become withdrawn since Cassandra died, leaving the poor girl to deal with much of her sorrows alone. 

Both have to deal with the tremendous legacies of their mothers. 

Caitlyn poured Mel a glass of red wine as they sat in the Kiramman living room. 

“How was the Council meeting?” Caitlyn asked. 

“With just the three of us, Salo’s becoming more and more unbearable,” she said. “My mother has already sunk her claws on him. It might as well be her on the Council.” 

She looked at Caitlyn. “You know, your mother’s seat in the Council remains vacant. We can put up a vote to have you there—” 

“We’ve talked about this Mel. I won’t even consider it until we get Jinx,” Caitlyn said with finality. She sighed, looking at her. “What did Ambessa want?” 

“She thinks we need to send more enforcers to the Undercity,” Mel said, taking a sip of wine. 

Caitlyn’s eyes narrowed as she looked at the red in her own glass. 

“What happens if we do?” 

Mel furrowed her eyebrows, looking at Caitlyn carefully. “The more we push them, the more we risk uniting the Undercity against us. They’re already fragmented after Silco died.” 

“But there are already people who are rooting for Jinx. They’re happy she killed my mother. People are dyeing their hair blue!” Caitlyn said with a spite Mel has not seen on her before.

Mel took a deep breath and took Caitlyn’s hand. 

“I understand. You won’t believe how many people would cheer for my mother’s death,” Mel said. “But this is…” she started. It was one of rare occasions where she struggled to find the right words. 

“I’m starting to see how I, too, played a part in all of this,” Mel said, remembering every word Jayce said in the Council room before everything went wrong. “If it wasn’t Jinx, it would have been some other angry kid who grew up in terrible conditions that we could have prevented.” 

“I… I know that,” Caitlyn said, burying her face in her hands. 

“Knowing is different from feeling,” Mel offered gently. “You still endured such a loss. Let yourself grieve.” 

“I-I can’t! Once I start, I’m afraid I won’t be able to stop,” Caitlyn said, eyes beginning to water. 

Mel smiled sadly, remembering her brother. “That’s how grief works.” 

It was midnight by the time they finished their wine. The two women embraced, with Caitlyn telling Mel she would introduce her to her new partner next time. 

When Mel arrived back at her house, she ran a few tasks by Elora before sending her home. 

She took off her accessories, looking forward to the warm bath waiting for her. The work was merciless and the day had gone on for too long. She considered passing by Jayce’s lab but the thought of him looking at her like that again pained her in a way she was not used to. 

They had never taken the time to define what they were to one another but Mel knew when she cared for someone. And she cared deeply for Jayce, so deep that she was ready to give him the space he needed. 

As she settled in bed, Mel did not notice the shadows in her room twisting and spiraling towards her. She heard the faintest whisper before the darkness closed in. 

“Black….rose…” 

Mel did not get the chance to scream.

Chapter Text

Jinx did not shy away from staring at Viktor. He could tell that she was not listening to his explanation of how the new arm would work. The new version became more ambitious than Viktor expected it to be at first. At first, Viktor thought that the only issue was the weight. After more research on mechanical limbs in the Undercity (which largely consisted of incessantly questioning a temperamental Sevika), Viktor learned that the key component was Shimmer. Viktor would have to do more research on what Shimmer is composed of exactly but the thought of going back to Singed made his stomach churn. He looked at the plans. There were a dozen versions of it already. The model has improved but Viktor knew there was a way to perfect it. He drabbled on about the mechanics in a way that he had not done in a long time. He turned to ask Jinx for her opinion, only to find her using a knife to pick out the dirt under her nails. 

“Are you even listening to me?” Viktor said, irate. Annoyance, it would seem, was still a strong emotion for him. 

“Yeah, yeah, you want to make a version of the prosthetic that won’t turn Isha into a dirty little druggie,” Jinx said, rolling her eyes. “Even if I told you a thousand times that it’s clean—” 

“I know about the less potent kind of Shimmer, but…” Viktor thought of the purple vial that Singed gave him. He remembered the fear before the plunge as the glow of substance called to him. He remembered the bite of the needle and the thrill that rushed through his veins. 

In the end, it worked the way it was supposed to, but not without consequences. He could still hear Sky’s screams. 

There was something inside of Shimmer that reacted horribly to the Hexcore. Viktor would not dare mix the two again. Eliminating the possibility of addiction to Shimmer was just an unexpected bonus. 

“The thing powering…this” Viktor said, raising his metal hand. “Is much more dangerous than Shimmer. This new version for Isha could be powered by Hextech.” 

The raw concept was based on the Atlas Gauntlets and the Hexclaw: inventions from a more hopeful time. 

Jinx’s eyes flew wide as she grinned. “Cookie’s onto something now, is he?” 

“Now, there are some parts I still need. Then, there’s the matter of acquiring another Hex crystal. It would be difficult but perhaps I can sneak back —” 

“You mean this thing?” Jinx pulled out the tiny blue orb and all of the sudden, Jayce’s smile illuminated by a blue hue flashed in his mind, completely unbidden. Viktor shut the thought away with a shake of his head. 

“W-where did you…” Viktor said, reaching out for the crystal before Jinx snatched it back. 

“Ah-ah. You gotta tell me something first,” she said. 

“You do know that I am helping you, right?” he said. 

“Exactly,” she said. “I was expecting you would try to get some money out of it and I was ready to lowball you. Then you do it. No questions asked.” 

There it was again. That calculating intellect that sparked in her eyes amid all the delirium. 

“Then you’re helping out Saint Ekko of the Firefucks? And you’re looney too?” 

Viktor smiled gently at the girl. “You have every reason to be doubtful. I suppose there is nothing to hide really.” 

The older man sat down, meeting Jinx’s eyes across the counter. 

“It started when I saved someone I would eventually come to love. And then that someone…tried to save me…” Viktor said, gesturing to his metallic body. “... for love.” 

“I was always sick, you see. Death followed me around like a shadow. I suppose anyone from the trenches could say that as well. But…” Viktor looked at Jinx and remembered the heat on his skin and how he slammed against the hard stone. In the back of his mind, he wondered: what did she look like when she did it? Did she laugh as she killed a total stranger? Or did she scream and rage and cry? 

Viktor sighed, failing to muster any sort of anger or resentment towards her. Jinx pulled the trigger but it was Jayce that destroyed him. 

“I died. He… could not accept it. I… can hardly blame him, I suppose. I already started the process,” Viktor said, staring at his hand. 

In the pursuit of great, we failed to do good.

But Jayce wanted neither virtue nor glory. He had the world at the palm of his hands but he decided it was not enough and wanted his best friend back. Love overruled logic. The stupid man broke his promise, broke the rules of nature, broke Viktor. 

Something in Viktor’s heart ached at the thought of Jayce. Half of him was desperate to see him and the other half never wanted to meet those eyes again. 

Jinx looked at him, purple eyes unreadable. Silence. She looked at him with an inscrutable expression. Then she whistled. “Sounds pretty loaded.” 

She stood up. Something akin to empathy flickered in her eyes but it left as soon as it came. 

“Someone saved me out of love once too,” she said quietly as her purple eyes glowed even brighter.

It only struck Viktor then, how the color of Jinx’s eyes were the exact same shade as Shimmer. A smile dangled on the edge of Viktor’s lips and he sighed, turning his attention to the plans. It was a sleeker version than current models of prosthetics in the Undercity, closer to the human anatomy and definitely more suited for a child. Still, something about them was not quite right yet. His attention turned to his own mechanical arm. 

“Jinx, hand me that scalpel and the pliers,” he said. 

She looked at where he was staring and furrowed her eyebrows, picking up the tool. “Whatever you say, cookie. Don’t expect me to patch you back up.” 

Viktor took the scalpel without saying a word, setting his arm in place. “Look away, if you must.” 

She shrugged. “Go ahead. Let’s see what you’re made of.” 

He shot her an annoyed glance, ignoring the budding sense of affection for the girl. Affection was what turned him into a machine, he reminded himself. 

His body was metal that mimicked flesh. He pressed the knife against his arm and he pushed in with his newfound strength. Metal scraped loudly against metal as he made his way into his arm. There was no pain, but something deep in his head yelled at him to stop: a memento of an old human instinct that tried to prevent self-harm. Not that it stopped him before. 

The metal in his arm did not break, but it did move, as if it knew Viktor did not mean to harm; he simply wanted to look. There was no blood, just malleable metal veins. He glanced at Jinx, whose eyes were wide with curiosity. He hummed in amusement. It was exactly like a person’s anatomy, but void of anything that actually made it human. He plunged into his open arm. Ideas for an arm that was more human-like came to him. Inside of him, something purple glowed.

He prodded at a metal vein. Viktor’s hand reached for the pliers and he snapped the wire. 

A roaring, hot white pain cut through the parts of him that were still human: his head, his chest, his shoulder. 

Viktor knocked his head back and gritted his teeth, but a yell escaped anyway. Jinx stood up, watching the scene, waiting. 

Do not hurt us. 

“I thought… you can’t feel anything anymore…” Viktor said aloud, his mind still feeling like it was set ablaze. 

I am You. But You are still imperfect. We remain fragmented. As long as you still hold onto this shell of a life, you can feel as much pain as you like. 

Viktor held himself steady. The Other’s voice was becoming more and more pronounced. How long was he supposed to keep fighting Them? 

Then he felt manicured fingers flick him between the eyes. 

Viktor blinked. Jinx just flicked him. As if they were children in the playground. The sheer stupidity of the act was able to bring him back to the present.

“Did you just…” he started in disbelief. 

Jinx shrugged, grabbing the plans. “Snap out of it. You’re being weird. Come on, we got some parts to collect.” 

“Now that your daddy is dead, I hope you experience even a fraction of the misery that Zaunites do.”

Jinx stared at her feet as she and Viktor walked through the fissures. Ekko could have specified which father. By her count, she has already lost three. 

“Do not listen to him. We all belong to misery, and you are her favorite daughter,” her father whispered, drawing a hit from his cigar. “Just like I was her favorite son.” 

She did not even need to fight with Ekko, Jinx thought bitterly. If she wanted him dead, all she needed to do was be friends with him again. She loses everyone in the end. Her stomach turned at the thought of losing Isha and she dug her fingernails into her palms until they drew blood. 

Viktor stopped, touching her lightly on the shoulder. She shrugged him off, noticing that they were already near. 

Jinx looked up, beckoning Viktor inside. The old arcade was dormant. Broken glass crunched beneath her boots as she led Viktor down the old playground. In the back of her mind, she could imagine Vi punching away at the boxing machine and Mylo missing all of the easy targets. 

“ What’s a little Jinx doing here? ”
Jinx rolled her eyes at Mylo. The little brat always had the loudest mouth.  

She turned to Viktor, who was taking in the scene. Viktor’s presence helped bring her back a bit. While he was not fun, it was fun to make fun of him. He was still a big, pouty mystery robot and all of that, but she had started to enjoy pressing all of his buttons. She smirked at herself. 

Heh. Pressing his buttons. 

His eyes land on the boxing machine. “Ah, I see now. I’m guessing this is where we get the copper.” 

“Yep,” she said, finding a loose pipe and skipping to the machine, eager to tear it apart for Isha.  

Viktor gingerly approached the machine as she jammed the pipe into its joints, dismantling it. He dug his fingers into some of the panels and started pulling as well. 

“This is…very crude,” he said. 

One of the axels fell to the ground with a large thunk. “Welcome to the playground, Cookie. Everything is crude ,” she said, mimicking his accent. 

Viktor rolled his eyes as he pulled a panel with his bare hands. They likely did not need much material for Isha’s prosthetic but he seemed eager to collect parts for his other projects too. Jinx was about to open her mouth to ask about the Firefucks when she smelled the gas. 

Suddenly, her eyes and lungs were on fire. 

Viktor’s eyes flew wide open, his ivory face turning paler. Before she knew it, he cupped her mouth, grabbing her as he leapt up, hiding the both of them in the rafters. 

The gas was so strong that it crept through Viktor’s metal fingers and invaded her nose. It was seeping everywhere, her nails, her ears, her skin . 

Viktor tore a piece of his sleeve—Silco’s red shirt—and wrapped it around her mouth, allowing her to breathe a bit more. In the green haze, Jinx saw that Viktor’s were turning red, whether it was from rage or the green mist, she was not sure. But he was looking down. 

She followed his eyes and saw them. 

Enforcers . 

Jinx reached for her gun, then she saw the flash of pink hair. 

Even with her face concealed, Jinx already knew who she was. White, soulless eyes glowed in the green mist. Vi stepped into the arcade, gauntlets ready to crush her . Jinx shut her eyes close.  

Suddenly, Jinx was Powder again. 

Her feet hurt. Her boots used to belong to Vi before she outgrew them. But Powder was tiny for her age, so she had to put on two pairs of socks so they would not fall off. She forgot to wear the second pair so she had to dig her toes into the shoes with every step. Her feet ached but she held her tongue because Vi seemed so determined to sneak out of their neighbor’s house. 

Mom and dad were usually out late working but this was different.

Powder already took a nap late in the afternoon but even when she woke up, their parents were not home yet. Her big sister offered to carry her but Powder insisted she was too old to be carried around. 

The two sisters walked so far until they reached the bridge. 

The bridge, usually dark and barely lit at this hour, glowed fiercely as flames danced everywhere. She could barely see anything: just the white glow of those enforcers’ eyes through the smoke. She hid behind Vi. The smell of smoke filled her nose, causing her to sneeze. She looked up at her sister. Powder has never seen her so scared. Violet suddenly pulled her closer and held her face.

“Don’t look. Close your eyes, Powder,” Vi said. 

Powder, who clung to a sister that hated her.

Powder, with her parents murdered on that bridge. 

Powder, who killed Mylo and Claggor. 

Powder, who killed Vander.

Powder, who killed— 

“Jinx,” Viktor whispered. 

He looked at her, his silver eyes tinged with red and something akin to concern. She ignored him, keeping her eyes open as she stared at her pink hair. 

An older instinct took over her, one that told her to scratch, kick, shoot and kill anyone she had to. Her eyes searched frantically and spotted the exit behind the shooting range. She nudged Viktor and pointed. His eyes found where she was pointing and he nodded. The two of them moved in unison silently, climbing down the rafters steadily. They made it on the floor. 

Jinx’s lungs burned in agony but she moved. She had to. She eyed the shooting range’s control panel. 

Vi, as if perfectly attuned to everything her sister did, jerked her head towards their direction. Caitlyn, her deep blue hair distinct even when she was masked, followed suit.  

“There’s someone here,” Vi said, her voice modified by the mask. 

Jinx slammed her fist against the button, igniting the shooting targets. The air came to life with arcade music as the old machine roared. 

“Jinx!” she heard Caitlyn yell. She swung her gun wildly, looking for her amid the moving targets. 

She and Viktor crouched, moving in unison with the targets. 

“ You! ” Caitlyn shouted. 

Jinx heard the distinct pull of the trigger and they ran. A rain of bullets came at them. Jinx shot back, but with eyes blurry and sore, she already knew she was missing her targets. 

She felt a bullet graze her shoulder, throwing her balance off for one second. Viktor dragged her up. At the final stretch, the older man pushed her out of the exit and she was finally able to breathe . She gasped for air desperately as darkness tinged her vision. Through blurry eyes, Jinx watched as Viktor tore off one of the wooden targets from the ground and threw it at them, hitting one of the enforcers. He stood by the doorway, revealing himself in the process. 

Viktor stood still as he met Caitlyn’s eyes. Shock met fury and for a moment, all was still. 

“Viktor,” she said, raising her gun. 

Before anyone could blink, he shut the door, mechanical limbs taking Jinx and running. Her long hair whipped around them. She peered past his shoulders, seeing Vi burst through the doors.

Jinx did the most natural thing in the world to her. The grenade was flying out of her hand before she even knew it. 

She looked away as it went off.  

They finally got to an alleyway far enough when Viktor settled her down. He turned away from her. The man was shaking in anger.

“ The Grey? They’ve unleashed The Grey in the Undercity? Those bastards !” he said. 

Jinx remained silent as the man raged. She hugged her knees as Vi’s face loomed in her mind. 

Vi, who cursed at every enforcer whenever she got the chance.

Vi, who had to cover for her when enforcers were chasing them in the Undercity. 

Vi, who spent years getting her ass kicked by enforcers in Stillwater. 

Her sister? An enforcer? What a joke. The world’s fattest joke. 

A laugh escaped from her throat. It was so, so funny after all. Then another. And then another laugh. Her laughter descended into sobs and shrieks. Everything, everything hurt. Her eyes, her skin, her lungs, her head. 

Suddenly, Jinx felt a pair of hard, unfamiliar arms wrap around her. 

“I-It’s okay,” she heard Viktor say repeatedly. She stiffened. All of the sudden,  Jinx's mind split between different places. She was being hunted in The Grey. She was asked to close her eyes on The Bridge. She was drenched in the rain in that alleyway where she was left behind. 

But it is okay, she repeated to herself. She slowly wrapped her arms around him, allowing herself to relax.  

"It’s okay. We’ll show them," Silco whispered. "We will show them all." 

Chapter Text

“It was him, Jayce,” Caitlyn said, pacing around the floor of his lab. 

“We aren’t sure—” 

“I am sure! We all saw it. I saw it with my own eyes. Viktor was helping Jinx!” Caitlyn yelled, walking towards him. “He’s a traitor !” 

Jayce gripped the handle of Viktor’s cane tightly until his knuckles turned white. He turned away, back towards the filtration machine he was designing for the fissures. 

Why? Why would he go to the person who killed almost killed him?

“M-maybe he doesn’t know who she is!” he argued back, thinking back to all the months he stayed suspended in the Hexcore. 

“We covered the Undercity with wanted posters of Jinx. Unless he walked into Zaun in a blindfold, I’m pretty sure he knows, Jayce!” she said. 

“Why would you side with the woman who killed you?” Caitlyn said to no one in particular, her mind moving at a furious pace. “Unless Viktor’s been working with her this whole time.” 

“No!” Jayce said. “No way. He would never be complicit in anything Jinx would do.” 

“We don't know that. These people are dangerous,” she said venomously. 

A chill ran down his spine at her words. 

“ What difference does that make?” He had sounded so innocent before. 

“What diff—they’re dangerous!” Jayce spat back. 

Viktor rarely got mad at his partner, but in that moment, he fumed. It was a cold, quiet rage that could cut like a knife. “...I’m from the Undercity.”

The shame crept up on Jayce as he recalled his own words. He would give anything to take them back. 

“Caitlyn, I know where you’re coming from. But that’s not a path you want to take. That kind of thinking is dangerous,” he said. 

She turned away from him, her eyes landing on Viktor’s container.

“He was different, Jayce. He was running . He’s stronger, too,” she said. Jayce could practically hear her thoughts. 

What did you do to him? 

Part of him felt elated at the thought of Viktor being able to run. The other part ached at the thought of him running away . Viktor and Caitlyn could hardly be called best friends but they were always courteous when they would meet. Their meetings were often limited to Caitlyn visiting the lab or, upon rarer occasions, when the two were successfully dragged to a party. They would mutually bond over how awful everything and everyone was. 

He could hardly imagine Viktor running away from Caitlyn, let alone trying to hurt her. 

“What if she was forcing him to do something?” he tried. 

Caitlyn shook her head, lost in a memory. “No, no, he looked… so angry at us. He looked like he was stopping himself from hurting me.” 

Jayce frowned. “Why would he be angry at you?” 

She clenched her fists and turned away. “I… I don’t know. Jayce…” she turned, her eyes landing on one of the blackboards with Viktor’s body. She approached it slowly, with Jayce following. He watched her closely, as she took in information. Caitlyn had that same look on her face as she did when she was investigating the Progress Day bombings. She must have seen the diagram dozens of times but she only read it now. Her fingers brushed the outline’s chest. 

“Jayce… how did Viktor get sick again?” she whispered. 

He looked down. “It was the polluted air trapped underground. From the factories,” he sighed. “He’s been inhaling it since he was a kid. It was the kind of thing we wanted to help change with Hextech.” 

Caitlyn swallowed hard. Jayce looked at her, brows knitting in concern. 

“I… I need to go,” she said, turning her back on Jayce and leaving the lab. 

Jayce considered going after her but decided against it. It seemed like everyone was barely keeping it together these days. The Man of Progress looked out of the window, into the night sky. 

In another life, Jayce would have been able to hold himself up high in the Council room and lead the manhunt for Jinx. He could have made sure that the Undercity was never harmed for Piltover’s progress. He would have followed Viktor’s wishes to destroy the Hexcore and make sure Hextech would never be weaponized. 

He would have been the Defender of Tomorrow. 

But no, Jayce was here, stuck in the past as he broke every promise and turned every dream into a nightmare. 

He looked down at the plans once more. He thought of the young boy with golden eyes and moles on his cheek and above his lips. How many others down there were like him? Incredible minds trapped in a place where tomorrow was never promised. 

With a deep sigh, he packed the blueprints along with his notebooks into a satchel. His sight fell on the hammer. He hesitated, fingers brushing against the handle. 

Gold eyes flashed in his mind. 

The thought of Viktor needing his help was enough. Jayce grabbed the hammer, resolution setting in his chest. He braced himself as he left the lab for the first time in weeks, making his way to a certain Yordle who has every right to say “I told you so.”

The smoke from the factory fumes rose from the depths of the Undercity. Caitlyn knew that by the time that the smoke lifted to the Piltover sky, it would merely be a faint cloud of grey. The worst of the fog remained stuck in the Undercity. Many of Piltover’s residents would never even be able to tell that the smoke was even there. 

But Caitlyn could see it now. 

She felt strong arms wrap around her waist as she stared out the window. Vi pressed a kiss to her cheek. 

“Are you still thinking about it?” she asked. 

Caitlyn sighed. 

“I…yes,” she replied. “I’m just confused, that's all.” 

Confused barely scratched the surface. It was like she did not even know left from right anymore. 

The only thing Caityln was certain of was the constant weight on her chest that would crush her lungs if she ever stopped and thought about her mother for too long. It threatened to pull her beneath the surface and never let her go. 

No, she has to keep moving. There was no drowning for Caitlyn until she could drag Jinx down with her. Using The Grey got them so close to getting her. 

It was Viktor who helped her escape.

Anyone who helped Jinx should pay the consequences. 

“We’re hunting for two people now,” Caitlyn said.  Whatever camaraderie she had with Viktor was gone now. 

Vi nodded silently, looking at her feet. “Steb’s still in recovery from the explosion. Maybe we can recruit someone?” 

“And Maddie’s still in the infirmary. Because of you,” Caitlyn said evenly. 

She rolled her eyes. “Are you still gonna bug me about that?” 

Caitlyn sighed, peering at Vi. Finding herself unable to stay mad, she reached out for Vi’s hand and smiled tiredly. Vi closed the final gap between them and kissed her. She deepened the kiss, getting lost in her. For all her bravado and toughness, Vi's lips were soft. 

Vi was the single, golden thread holding her together. She allowed herself these moments of tenderness, even if guilt gnawed at her for feeling anything other than sinking. She pushed Vi back gently. “Go. Get ready. I prepared a shirt for you.” 

Half an hour passed. Caityn prepared the wine at the table as Vi fidgeted in the long-sleeved, white dress shirt she “borrowed” from her father’s closet. It hung just well enough on her frame and tucked neatly into her pants, highlighting the curve of her hips. The light hit her at the right moment and the silhouette of Vi’s toned body could be seen from the loose shirt and Caitlyn, for one wild second, wondered if she could still cancel on Mel just to spend the evening alone with Vi. She could light a fire and they could keep the wine all to themselves. For a moment, Caitlyn would allow herself to forget . 

She shook her head gently. They still had plenty to talk about with Mel. Their meetings were both social and strategic in nature: both women knew that. Caitlyn respected Mel deeply. The woman had a careful intellect to her balanced by an iron will.  

“So this woman is richer than you, right?” 

Caitlyn rolled her eyes, smiling. “Why does that matter, Vi?” 

She shrugged, an easy smile finding its way on her lips. “It always matters. We have to know what we’re dealing with here. The power dynamics, you know.” 

The doorbell suddenly rang. The two women looked at each other quizzically. Mel was too early. She always made it right on time. Ten or five minutes was nothing but an hour? Caitlyn made her way to the door to see who was at the gates. 

Ambessa stood, a solitary figure in the night dripping in red. 

The news of Mel Medarda going missing spread like wildfire. Piltover’s enforcers, the different Houses, and what remained of the Council stood around the Noxian. Vi fidgeted. This was not how her night was supposed to go. She expected anything: from a top secret exchange of information, to downright awkward silence with Mel. 

This was far, far worse. 

The Council Room was silent as Ambessa stood solitary in the middle. 

“The Undercity has struck for a final time. First, those terrorists attacked us. Striking us when we were about to give into their demands. Then, they attack our good enforcers who seek justice for our honorable fallen,” she said. 

Vi’s stomach suddenly twisted at the thought of Ekko. Those eyes used to look up to her. He would copy everything she did. Ekko and Powder were on her tail all the time. 

Now I lost both of them , she thought.

Vi eyed Ambessa’s strong figure as she commanded the room. She was using “us” a lot, as if she was not a foreigner. Her eyes strained, hoping to meet Caitlyn’s. 

Caitlyn stared dead ahead at Ambessa. 

“Those beasts from the Undercity have kidnapped my daughter. Your Councilor,” Ambessa said. Her eyes fell on Vi as she spat the word “beast” out. It took every muscle in her body to keep still. Her blood boiled but she kept her form. 

Ambessa had scars upon scars. War flowed through her veins and Vi had no doubt she wanted it to bleed it into Piltover and Zaun. She turned to Caitlyn. In her mind, she was pleading with her to look back. Vi kept her eyes on Caitlyn. She tuned out the Noxian’s ramblings because she needed Caitlyn to look at her. 

“Wrath must be met with wrath. You must declare martial law. Appoint a general to lead until this threat is vanquished. Someone who will not pale when faced with Zaun’s degeneracy,” Ambessa continued. 

“ Cait ,” she whispered. But she would not look at Vi. She stood only a foot away but it was like Vi was in a different room. 

“Whose conviction never wavers. A pillar of your community whose house has always stood for progress. Who may consider my experience and my entire detachment of Noxian soldiers at their disposal. Until all our families are safe,” Ambessa said, looking at the wealthiest Houses of Piltover. 

Vi looked at the warlord. 

Safe. 

The world stilled for Vi. The only thing Vi ever wanted was for her family to be safe. She felt sick to her stomach as unbidden memories came to her, and she wanted to throw up. Piltover never gave a damn about the safety of families, not if they were in the trenches. Anguish she had pushed back for years came rushing back. Vi saw them all: Vander, Mylo, Claggor, perishing in fear. All because topsiders needed to put a face on the animal they fear. 

Then there was Powder. The one person she swore to keep safe. Everyday, Vi wondered what she could have been like if she had just stayed, if she had not called her a Ji— 

Enough, she pleaded with herself . 

It was never her choice to leave. She was taken away. Silco made Jinx. And the only reason Silco had power was because of the people in this room. 

The memories hit her hard. The long nights without any food. The other kids she used to fight with over scraps. The constant fear of being caught by enforcers even if she did nothing wrong. The anxiety over Powder’s lungs from all the fumes she would inhale in the underground. 

Being safe was a luxury in Zaun. 

Yet Piltover’s elite was here, high in their tower, surrounded by armed guards at their disposal and they worried about being safe. 

Of course Powder went to Silco. Of course she became Jinx. 

The realization hit her and it felt like the floor beneath her gave out. 

Suddenly, the blue uniform she was in felt too tight, too hot. It strangled her.

You changed too. 

“I could only be referring to… Caitlyn Kiramman,” Ambessa finished. Vi’s eyes flew open in shock. 

…What? 

Vi turned to look at Caitlyn one more time, pleading with her to please, please look back. "Cait..." she said, reaching out. 

Before her fingers could reach her, Caitlyn surged forward and joined Ambessa. Even in the middle, Caitlyn stared ahead, as if Vi did not exist. 

Why won’t she look at me?  

Vi felt like her lungs were ripped out of her. She thought of running to Caitlyn but it would only start a fight. She turned away as Noxians and enforcers alike started beating their chests in unison. Angry tears welled in her eyes but she did not look back. After all, Caitlyn never spared her a glance. 

Vi made her way to Jayce’s lab, practically running. If anyone else could make Caitlyn see any sense, it was him. 

But the lab was empty. Not a soul. Viktor’s weird coffin thing was here but no Jayce. How had the man spent months here but the one time there was an emergency, he was nowhere to be found? 

She searched around and noticed that the hammer was missing too. It seemed he left willingly, at least. 

A click of a gun broke the stillness of the air and Vi felt it press against the back of her head. 

“Oh my,” a woman’s accented voice said. “Looks like the Man of Progress is missing.”

Vi gritted her teeth, raising her hands. “Fuck. Really Maddie?” 

“I wonder which dirty Zaunite did it this time?” she said. 

Vi could smile. It was almost laughable that this snooty redhead was trying to kill her. But she was tired and sad and angry.

Beating the shit out of Maddie again would really, really help. 

Viktor stared at the tree in wonder. The sun had already fallen but the lanterns that hung around the tree gave a soft, warm glow that tinged everything the most brilliant shade of orange. 

It was the most beautiful thing Viktor has ever seen. 

Something in him ached deeply. A life he never had flashed before his eyes, one where was here, around a tree with clean air, where he could breathe without any labor or fear. Maybe even one where he could have run on grass. 

A single tear fell from his eyes. 

“Viktor?” Ekko interrupted, uncertain. 

“I’m sorry,” he said, quickly wiping the tear away. “This is incredible, Ekko. This community you built here is outstanding. If only the rest of Undercity could have this,” Viktor said. 

Ekko smiled sadly and shrugged. He gestured to the encampment. Most people were asleep but a few curious onlookers were observing the odd, metal man in a cloak. “In a few days, most of the Undercity will be here. With enforcers everywhere and chembarons fighting turf wars, it’s getting more and more dangerous out there,” Ekko said, gesturing for Viktor to follow him. 

“Tell me more about what’s been happening,” Viktor said, his eyes never leaving the tree. 

“You’ve really been living all high and mighty in Piltover this whole time that you don’t know?” he replied, raising an eyebrow. 

“I was in a coma, actually,” Viktor said simply. Being trapped in a violent cycle of dreams and nightmares was more accurate but he did not feel like recounting that to Ekko. 

“Oh…okay?” Ekko said, unsure how to respond. “Well, the Firelights have been trying to dismantle the chembaron’s remaining ooperations. Enforcers shut down all the major shimmer factories since Silco died but the smaller ones are harder to locate. It’s hard to dodge both Enforcers and chembarons. The rest of the chembarons are fighting to take the top spot in the Undercity. The chaos draws in more Enforcers and people get caught in the crossfire.”   

Viktor nodded, then he was struck by a feeling that he was being watched. He looked around to see a child gawking at him. He tried to smile at them, prompting the child to flee back to their tent. 

“Not good with kids, huh?” Ekko said. 

“Looking like this doesn’t help,” he replied. 

“You don’t look as bad as you think you do,” Ekko said. “A lot of people here have body modifications. You’re just… I don’t know. Kind of …weird? A bit too intense maybe.” 

Viktor rolled his eyes then smiled slightly. It was an odd attempt at making him feel better, but appreciated nonetheless. 

The two made their way to the corrupted part of the roots. He scowled at the sight as guilt started to weigh on his chest. His dream led to this: the corruption of a miracle in Zaun. He knelt down to touch the filaments: they looked exactly like the ones he woke up in. He felt the hum of energy as the Corruption’s tendrils moved towards him.  

It calls us. 

He withdrew his hand suddenly, stepping away from the roots. Viktor backed away, reaching for the plans he stashed in his pockets.

“You good?” Ekko asked, suspicion again filling those eyes. 

Viktor nodded hastily, placing the blueprints on the ground and kneeling next to it. He would not listen to Them. 

Ekko bent down next to him, looking at the plans. The filtration system would be placed along the river that the tree sources water from. With his limited ability to control metals, it should be easier. The boy also said that the Firelights could help. 

He looked at his plans closely. Ekko had the same look in his eye as Jayce would when analyzing a problem.   

“Your math is off. There should be five decimals places there, not four,” Ekko said, pointing to the error. 

Viktor frowned, grabbing the plans and looking at it again. He looked twice, thrice, four times. He was wrong.

The mistake was minimal in the grand scheme of the plan but the fact that Ekko noticed it within minutes of looking at the computation was incredible . 

“Quite sharp, aren’t you?” Viktor said, smiling. 

Ekko merely shrugged. 

“This is a good start. But it won’t solve everything,” he said. 

The older man nodded. “A filtration machine could help purify the water that the tree absorbs but the existing infection of the tree will be more difficult to treat.” 

As a matter of fact, Viktor has killed far more plants during experiments than he would like to admit—and that was before the Hexcore. 

“Unfortunately, we know virtually nothing about the wild rune or its qualities. Then I also have to study how to contain it. If we had more equipment, we could run more tests—”

“What about your lab? The one with Jayce? I’ve seen it. It’s pretty advanced,” Ekko said. 

Viktor fell silent at the sound of his name. The boy frowned, seeing the look on his face. 

“Did you two have a bad breakup? You guys act like sick puppies every time you hear each other’s names,” Ekko said, rolling his eyes. 

“What?” Viktor could feel himself falter. He had been desperate not to think about the man but failed miserably all the time. “H-how was Jayce?” 

Viktor had been too wrapped up about Ekko’s confirmation about the wild rune that he never got around to asking about his partner. 

The boy shrugged. “A mess. Like you. I’m pretty sure he’ll do whatever you ask of him, like, I don’t know, fixing this,” he said, gesturing to the tree. 

Ekko was right. Whatever… feelings he had for Jayce must be set aside. Still, Viktor’s insides twisted at the thought of Jayce being alone and miserable. 

“Let’s go to the lab then,” Viktor said

He looked up at the lanterns, allowing himself one moment to imagine warm skin and desperate lips. 

Breaking into the lab was definitely just for the tree. 

Chapter Text

Isha peered at the odd man as he worked on the arm. The table was too high and all the seats were taken so she could not get a better view of the damn thing. She tried tugging on Jinx’s leg. She had her work goggles on and said that was too busy to play. She walked up to the weird old guy, demanding a seat. He merely shrugged apologetically and continued to work. 

She sighed, pulling out some crayons from her bag. She let her imagination run wild and fantastical images of beasts and aliens were rendered on the wall. It was about time that the machine guy had some good decorations in his place. In her head she conjured images of a wild battle. One of them was a robot and the other was a big lion. There should be bugs everywhere too. 

Blue sparks suddenly flew from the table and Isha ran to the counter, whatever story she had in her mind was quickly forgotten. Some day, she would be tall enough to see and she could do projects like that with Jinx all the time. 

After what felt like forever, Jinx and the old guy finally stood back. They both beamed at each other, and at what they created. 

With the seat finally free, Isha climbed up the table and she finally saw it. 

The arm was small, shiny and white. Isha started jumping up and down, trying to grab the thing. She had waited forever for it. 

“Sit still,” Jinx signed. 

She did. Barely. She was too damn excited. Jinx attached the arm easily to her shoulder. It was light . It was like her own arm! 

Isha frowned. Why can’t it move? 

“One more thing,” Jinx said. She took her gun out and removed the crystal. With a slight press of the hand, a slot opened in the arm and Jinx slipped the crystal in. 

The arm came to life. She absolutely glowed as she tested the arm out. 

She was so happy that she hugged Jinx. She even hugged that weird guy! 

Isha practically flew, pulling Jinx out of the shop so they could finally, finally play. 

“Don’t forget our deal, Jinx!” the man shouted after them as they left. 

Jinx rolled her eyes, smiling. “Yeah, yeah shut your bee trap!”

As Isha dragged Jinx down the street, a weird bat guy gave them an odd look before heading to the old man's shop. 

Ekko had instructed the Firelights to fetch the materials they needed. He and Viktor already accounted for the ones that could likely be scavenged and the ones that needed to be taken directly from the lab. He had three days to collect any materials they could find before they went to the Academy. Whatever they could not find down here, they would have to get from the lab. He also started enlisting the help of anyone with skills remotely related to machinery and mechanics to help with construction.  

Viktor said it was best to disguise themselves as Academy students. Ekko knew he was right but he hated the thought of wearing those dumb things. One of the Firelights happily took on the task of making the fake uniforms, much to Ekko’s dismay. 

Throughout the day, he also racked his mind about possible solutions for the Corruption. Everything from cutting parts of the tree to a different version of Shimmer. 

But the thought of finding Singed sent chills down his spine. Where Silco drew feelings of anger, Singed summoned feelings of such deep disgust within Ekko that he shuddered every time. His reputation in the Undercity bordered on urban legend: the monster behind Shimmer hid in the shadows and feasted on the lives of the young.

Ekko shook thoughts of him away as he made some more adjustments to the blueprint. He heard the sound of sprinting and noticed Scar running towards him. He stood, already anticipating the bad news. 

“We caught some people trying to sneak in,” he said. 

“What? Who was it? Were they followed?” Ekko asked, putting on his mask. 

“You should see this for yourself,” Scar said evenly. 

Ekko followed him, going to the part of the tree that they had somewhat turned into a detainment facility. Two other Firelights stood guard over the intruders but even from afar, Ekko already knew who one of them was just from his size. 

This was the last thing Ekko needed today. 

Jayce Talis and Heimerdinger sat before him, bound and blindfolded. Scar appeared to have added a sack over Jayce’s head. The two were caught trying to sneak in through one of the Firelight’s entrances. In the corner of the room, Scar stood next to Jayce's hammer. Ekko could not stifle his groan. 

“Ekko? My boy? Is that you? You left me behind!” the Yordle accused. 

His shoulders slumped, taking off the Yordle’s blindfold. “What the hell, professor?! Why would you bring him here?”

“Can someone untie me? Or take this sack off my head at least? I’m already blindfolded,” Jayce said.

“No! I don’t trust you, Piltie!” Ekko fired back. "You made a mess and we have to clean it up. Get him out of here,” he told Scar. 

“Wait!” Heimerdinger and Jayce said in unison. 

“We designed a filtration system to help purify the waters, maybe even the tree,” Jayce said quickly. 

Ekko stopped. That’s why they went all the way down here?

He stooped down to take off the sack from Jayce’s head, but he decided to keep the blindfold on.  

“Show me the plans,” Ekko said. 

“They’re in the satchel that your people took,” Jayce huffed. 

Ekko rolled his eyes. One of the Firelights found the blueprint and handed it to him. He quickly looked through them. 

Incredible . 

They were nearly identical to Viktor’s. Even the slight miscalculation was there. Ekko could laugh if it was not so absurd. There were some key differences that warrant a second look but other than that, it was as if the two designed the machine in the same room. He thought about it for one second. As much as he did not trust Jayce, he welcomed any help he could get to save his home. And 

“You and your ex-boyfriend really are peas in a pod,” Ekko muttered. 

“Ex? Wha— wait ! Was Viktor here?” Jayce said, scrambling up and looking wildly around, as if Viktor was in the room with them right now. “Where is he? Please , I need to see him.”  

Ekko pinched the bridge of his nose. Sick puppies, indeed. He cared little for whatever their relationship was. If anything, it annoyed the hell out of him. 

Still, Ekko could see how he could use it to their advantage. 

“Untie them but the two of you stay in this room,” Ekko said. He pulled Scar aside as the two guards started untying Jayce and Heimerdinger. “Go get Viktor. Tell him there’s been some changes to the plan,” he whispered. 

Viktor fidgeted at the helm of his cloak as he sat at the foot of the Firelight tree. If he still had human palms, he was certain they would be working up a disgusting sweat. If he could still throw up, he probably would right now. The last time he felt like this was when he was faced with the prospect of speaking in front of a crowd on Progress Day. 

Except it was not a crowd of rich, stuck up Piltover elites waiting for him. It was Jayce . 

Jayce and Viktor have never been apart for more than a few days before. Viktor lost track of how much time it has been since he left Jayce in the lab but he was certain that it was at least a few weeks. Not counting the time he was in the Hexcore. He felt like spiraling. The voice in his head hummed about how useless these emotions were but Viktor was so caught up in the torrent of his feelings that came with seeing Jayce again that he did not even care. 

He was excited. He was terrified. He was filled with love. He was full of dread. 

Useless contradictions. 

“V-Viktor?” a cracked voice spoke. 

How many nights had Viktor fallen asleep with that voice echoing in his mind? How many mornings did he wake up looking forward to hearing it again? He had memorized every timbre, every pitch, every emotion in that voice.  

He turned around and Jayce was there, accompanied by Ekko and Heimerdinger. The look in his eyes rooted Viktor in place: the sheer adoration, the hurt, the devotion, the love. 

Jayce did not hesitate, crossing the threshold and sweeping Viktor up in an embrace, removing every bit of space between them. 

A gasp escaped him and Viktor’s arms found his way around Jayce without even thinking. 

Time stopped for him. 

There was no Other to call upon and hide behind. All of Their whispering was suddenly quiet in Jayce’s presence. The only thing there was left to Viktor was the man that broke him and made him whole again. He was left alone to deal with the full brunt of everything he felt for Jayce. It was a contradiction, in every sense of the word. They were a hurricane in the middle of a desert, a pocket of heaven in hell. 

He tried to find it inside of him: any semblance of hatred or resentment. Jayce had broken every rule, every promise. It should be so easy to push him away and leave. 

But Viktor could not. He merely looked up at the man. His savior. His damnation. 

Tears escaped his eyes, and he found himself unable to speak. Jayce carefully cupped his face and smiled as tears of his own began flowing down. 

“I’m so sorry for not coming down here sooner,” Jayce whispered, pressing his forehead against Viktor’s. “Are you… are you still mad at me?” 

Viktor’s lips trembled as he shook his head. All this time, he thought Jayce was the foolish one. Yet here he was, a bubbling mess in his arms after spending so much time denying what was written in his soul. He was the fool. He fooled himself into believing he could hate Jayce but there was nothing, nothing in his heart for the man other than love. 

“H-how did you know I was down here?” Viktor finally said, meeting the man’s eyes: they were hazel pools filled with devotion. He could not help it. Viktor’s fingers rose to brush away the tears. Jayce caught his hand immediately, placing Viktor’s hand over his face to keep it there. 

“You made quite a scene with Caitlyn, so I knew you were here,” Jayce whispered back. “I was afraid you might be in trouble. I saw the Corruption that the wild rune caused and how it was affecting the underground. I wanted to help and I…everything pointed me back here. It all just… somehow led me back to you.” 

Without thinking, Viktor’s thumb caressed Jayce’s face carefully. He finally got a good look at Jayce. The man was an even wilder mess than how he left him. 

Gods, he was still beautiful. 

“I-I’m sorry I ran, I—” Viktor stuttered. 

“It’s okay. It’s okay. We… we have a lot to talk about,” Jayce said. 

Suddenly remembering where he was, Viktor looked around. Ekko and Heimerdinger seemed to have left somewhere in between all of it and Viktor felt the slightest sense of embarrassment. Jayce, realizing where his thoughts were, only held Viktor tighter. 

“It’s alright. It’s just us now,” Jayce whispered. 

Jayce’s eyes never left Viktor as they made their way to his place. Ekko looked annoyed when the two asked to have the night to themselves and to meet them again tomorrow. It was Heimerdinger that seemed to understand. He offered to reconcile the two plans himself. 

“Go. Be together,” Heimerdinger said, a knowing look set in his eyes. One that finally looked like he understood them. 

When they finally got to the place Viktor had started calling home, he stopped as the memories came to him. 

Of course he wound up here again somehow. 

“Jayce?” 

His heart sang at the sound of his name leaving his lips. The months spent without hearing Viktor’s voice were agony. 

“I just,” Jayce paused. “This is kinda where it all started.” 

He looked around. It was a small space, with tools organized hastily lining the cabinets. Viktor had set up the counter to be his main table, with a makeshift drawing board right next to it. There was a large wooden plank that acted as a blackboard filled with diagrams and computations for the same machine Jayce was working on above in Piltover. 

Jayce told Viktor everything. How this was the place where he was able to acquire the parts for what would eventually become Hextech. How he thought this kid probably scammed the living daylights out of him. How much money the Kirammans had so he didn’t really care if he was giving more than what the parts were worth. How it all led to the two of them meeting the night he was about to end everything. 

“I wouldn’t say this is where it started,” Viktor said lightly, setting up a chair for Jayce. “Maybe it started with that magic wizard from your boyhood.” 

Jayce shrugged, taking a seat. His hands twitched, desperate to touch Viktor again. But he stilled himself, knowing that if he pushed it too much, he might run away again. 

But gods. He missed him so much. 

“Who’s to say where anything begins and ends?” Jayce mused. 

But Jayce knew. Everything started and ended with Viktor. It was always meant to be like that. He knew it with the same certainty that spring always came back after the snow. 

Viktor stood an arm’s length away from him, leaning on the counter. 

He was desperate to close the gap between them, no matter how small it already was. Jayce already broke the rules of science and magic. No part of him would regret throwing himself at Viktor right now. But he forced himself still, respecting Viktor’s space.  

He looked back at Jayce through hooded eyes with a look he could not fully understand. Was Viktor second guessing him? 

No . 

Viktor had that look in his eyes. The one that Jayce would only get mere glimpses of, when he would catch Viktor looking at him at the lab as they worked deep into the night. He would turn away so quickly that Jayce could never figure out what it was. He would fantasize that there was more weight to that gaze other than curiosity. But he saw it now. 

Hunger. 

Jayce met his gaze head on, hunger meeting hunger. He left his hand open on the table, willing, desperately, for Viktor to take it. His eyes flickered to it and after careful consideration, Viktor slid his hands into his. 

His hands, sleek and metallic, intertwined with Jayce’s. Gently, Viktor picked up Jayce’s hand and pressed a kiss to his palm before putting it on his cheek. His heart hammered wildly against his chest. If Viktor kept looking at him like that he might pass out. .

“Tell me what you need,” he said quietly, silver eyes peering at him. 

Oh. 

Oh. 

A lump formed in Jayce’s throat and he only said one word. “Y-you.” 

Viktor leaned down, pressing his forehead against Jayce’s. “You already have me.” 

There was so much they needed to talk about. There was so much they needed to do. But hazel eyes met silver and there was nothing else in the world. The earth has ceased spinning for them and there they remain, suspended in a place where time cannot touch them. No city needed to be saved. No one’s life was in peril. There were no snowstorms that needed to be weathered, no rubble to climb out of. 

Just them.  

“You have always had me,” Viktor whispered, finally, finally closing the gap between them and kissing Jayce like his life depended on it. For Jayce, it did. 

Every nerve in his body was on fire. From the kiss. From the way Viktor’s hands were traveling across his body. From Viktor telling him that he’s always wanted him. 

Jayce was a moth diving right into the flame. His hands wrapped around Viktor’s curious, desperate. 

But when Jayce began unbuttoning his shirt, Viktor tensed. 

“Wait—” Viktor said, pulling away. Jayce’s lips chased after him but he turned away. The sudden separation cut so deeply that a whine escaped Jayce’s lips. 

No, no, no, no —  

He stood up, ready to chase after Viktor but the man only turned away from him, shaking. Jayce waited carefully, holding out a hand to him. 

“Vik—”

“I’m not like I used to be, Jayce,” Viktor said, voice heavy and raspy. Beneath the thin cloth of his shirt. Jayce could see the hard outline of metal on his shoulder. 

Understanding immediately flooded him. Jayce merely held the man closer to him, kissing him more slowly this time. His kisses traveled from Viktor’s lips, to his chin, lower, and lower until he reached his shoulders, taking off the rest of his shirt. 

Jayce’s throat was suddenly dry at the sight. He was exactly as he did when he ran away, but some of the Hexcore has also expanded to part of his chest.  

Another rush of desire, unbidden yet welcome, coiled at the pit of his stomach. 

Jayce took him all in and knew he wanted every last bit. 

“Do you think that would make me want you less?” Jayce finally managed.  

Viktor let out a breath he had been holding. Jayce kissed him again, desperately, every part of him, man and machine. 

“Wait!” Viktor said, separating them one more aching time. 

“ What ?” Jayce rasped. 

Viktor smiled mischievously. “I don’t have a bed,” he said lightly, knowing damn well he could destroy Jayce with one touch.  

Jayce picked the smaller man up, wrapping his legs around his. He kissed Viktor once more, needy and impatient. 

“We’ll make it work.” 

It was beautiful. Possibly the most beautiful thing that Viktor had ever seen. The crystal was perfectly round. It almost looked like a tiny planet on the palm of his hand. He placed it on the slab gently. 

So much power contained in such a small, innocent thing. 

“Do you think it will work?” Jayce asked, the blue glow of the crystal illuminating his face. 

“It will. Otherwise, we’re fucked,” Viktor replied. 

“Yeah, yeah of course. But can you imagine if it does work?” he grinned. “Can you see how many people we could help with this?” 

Jayce looked wonderful like this: hopeful, curious, joyful.

“Yes,” Viktor chuckled. He imagined the people in fissures. The brownouts, the poor ventilation systems, the hazardous working conditions. 

They could fix that. Viktor and Jayce could finally help the people of the Undercity. 

“Welp, here goes everything,” he raised his hammer, ready to strike the Hex crystal. If all went well, then the crystal should absorb the force as if it was nothing. 

Viktor did not wear goggles, did not feel the need to keep his distance. He was certain it would work. He trusted his partner completely. 

Jayce brought the hammer down and Viktor felt himself flung against stone and rubble. 

“W-what?” he thought as the cool stillness of the lab turned into blistering heat. 

Everything was too hot. Everything was hurting. Pain and heat like he has never known before tore through his body. He forced his eyes open and recognition struck him like an iron rod. He was no longer in the lab with Jayce. 

He was in the Council Room on the day he died. 

“No, no, no, no, no,” he thought. 

His eyes were open but to his horror, he could not move. His body has always been useless but this was different. He could not even feel his own heart. 

Then he saw him. 

Jayce ran to him, panicked tears spilling from his eyes. The look in his face was worse than any sort of pain Viktor could endure. 

“I can’t see him like this please,” Viktor pleaded in his mind. But there was no one to hear him. He was there and Jayce poured his grief onto him like blood out of an open wound. 

“Viktor, please. Stay with me!” Jayce begged as he started chest compressions on Viktor. 

The man was desperate. He felt the full force of Jayce pressing down on his chest and it was agonizing. But Viktor could do nothing. He was seeing through the eyes of a dead man. They both fell apart at the seams. 

Then darkness finally, mercifully took him. 

When Viktor came to, he was floating. His eyes flew wide at the familiar, horrifying sensation. 

He was in Singed’s tank again. Panic flooded him as water rushed into his lungs. He looked at his hands: uselessly human. 

Viktor cried out into the freezing darkness. 

The man looming around the tank was back. Viktor rushed to reach the glass. He banged against the tank and screamed. 

After what felt like ages, the man finally, finally noticed him. Viktor screamed for help as he stepped into the light. 

He saw him and Viktor felt his heart break again and again, a thousand times over until nothing was left. Jayce stared at him: a broken man’s eyes gazing into another . 

Viktor desperately wished to become unfeeling once more. 

Viktor sat up, breathing hard as tears ran down his face. Jayce woke up immediately beside him. The two sat on the makeshift bed they haphazardly threw together from cardboard and blankets. 

“V-Viktor?” Jayce said, reaching out for him. 

Viktor stood up abruptly, the remnants of the dream still dancing in his mind. Morning had already come, with sunlight peeking through the shop’s windows. Viktor breathed hard, wiping his own tears away.

“W-we should go back to the tree. We can get something to eat for you on the way,” Viktor said as he picked up his clothes from the floor. 

Jayce stood. “Please, Viktor. I need you to know that I’m here. We figure this out together. We're not...losing each other again.” He held a hand out to him.

"I love you," Jayce whispered. 

How? How could those words flow out him so easily? 

Viktor gazed at the outstretched hand. He remained still, unable to leave Jayce, unable to stay with him. 

This man will be the death of you. 

He took Jayce’s hand anyway. 

Because Viktor was wrong again, it seemed. 

Both of them were fools. Jayce was a fool for still loving him. Viktor was a fool for loving him back. 

For one crazy day, Viktor would allow himself three things: to forgive, to hope, and to trust. All of it for a man who broke his promise. 

Chapter Text

Jayce and Viktor moved with a strange synchronization as they worked on assembling the filtration machine. Ekko watched them and he could have sworn that there were times when one of them would hold out a hand without speaking, and the other would just know what tool or part they needed and laid it on the outstretched palm. It was like they were in their own world. 

“They always worked wonders when they were together,” Heimerdinger chirped happily next to him. 

Ekko shook his head, not meaning to stare. He turned his attention back to the engine he was calibrating. 

“I don’t know how I didn’t see it before. When you live as long as I do, you forget that human lives are so fleeting, so everything is felt more briefly. More intensely. You hold onto whatever…or whoever you can,” Heimerdinger said. “I thought the boy was acting out of pride before. Going against every warning, breaking rules.” 

The night before, Heimerdinger already talked Ekko’s ear off about Jayce and Viktor’s history. It only made Ekko dislike Jayce all the more, especially after finding out that he had the professor kicked out of the Council.

“It’s a rare, wonderous thing, when respect and admiration blossom into love,” he said. The Yordle’s eyes grew wide in curiosity. “Would you happen to have someone? Perhaps your own lab partner?”

Blue hair and blue eyes flashed before him. Powder and Ekko were attached by the hip when they were kids. They would tinker with whatever junk Benzo thought was too useless to sell and try to make new things. They would ride Ekko’s monowheel across the Lanes and people always hated the noise it made. He would try to come up with jokes or make himself look silly to make Powder laugh because the girl was so anxious about everything. 

A million lifetimes have passed since then but Ekko often still wondered what it could have been like if he had gotten her away from Silco when he had a chance. He tried so hard to get her back. 

“I told you to stay away!” 

Ekko tightened his fists at the memory, willing it away. 

“Viktor, that’s incredible!” Jayce yelled. 

Ekko turned to see that Viktor had turned some metal scrap into usable cogs. The bigger man stared at a piece and then back to Viktor, beaming with pride. 

The smaller man reddened a bit before smiling back warmly. Ekko averted his eyes when the two stared at each other. It felt like he was invading something deeply private. 

Part of him ached, feeling as if he had a connection like that a long time ago, or perhaps, even in another life. 

“She died,” Ekko said, turning his attention back to the engine. 

Heimerdinger’s ears drooped. “Oh, I’m so sorry, my boy.” 

The day went on and progress on the filtration machine was fast with Jayce, Viktor, Heimerdinger, and Ekko all working together. They worked on the different mechanisms separately to transport it more easily. Once assembled, it would be enough to stretch across the river to filter the water. It was Viktor who thought of capacitating the machine with an incredibly advanced purifier. If it worked, the filtration machine would not just filter out Corruption, but other toxins and trash as well.  

The only problem was that the machine was so large, it required more parts. 

Viktor and Heimerdinger volunteered to go scavenging with Scar. They only had until today before they returned to the lab to retrieve more materials, so it was all hands on deck. 

Once the two left, Jayce and Ekko looked over the reconciled designs.

The older man ran through the numbers again and frowned. 

“We might be short on Hex crystals for the power source. I’m afraid of what will happen if we overload one. I think we need at least three,” he said. 

“Wait a minute,” Ekko said, suddenly remembering. “I have exactly what we need.” 

A few moments later, Ekko returned to Jayce. At the sight of Caitlyn’s gun, the man paled. 

“Where did you get this?” Jayce whispered, taking the gun. 

Ekko frowned, remembering the encounter with Vi. “Ran into enforcers.” 

“You mean Caitlyn. And Vi,” he said. Jayce’s shoulders slumped. “You’re Vi’s friend. Caitlyn said something about Vi beating up the enforcer who shot you,” he said, his eyes flickering to the bandage around Ekko’s leg. 

Ekko raised his eyebrows. Vi beat them up? 

It was the least she could do. 

“Can you…” Jayce said as he extracted the crystal from the gun. “...not tell Viktor about this? I should tell him.”

“He doesn’t know about this?” he replied, frowning. 

“Just… let me handle this. Please,” Ekko looked at Jayce, thinking hard. 

He trusted neither Jayce or Viktor. When it came down to it, Viktor was a Zaunite. He chose to help them, even if none of the mess was his fault. 

But at the same time, he could not have either of them derail the mission. Regardless of how many crystals they have, they still need more sophisticated parts that were in their lab. 

Ekko sighed. “You sort this out with him. I don’t want any part of it. Just make sure we finish this mission.” 

When Viktor and Heimerdinger returned, Ekko saw the way the two men lit up at the sight of either. 

He looked away again, turning his gaze towards the blue sky. 

“I absolutely hate this,” Ekko said as he looked at his clothes. 

Viktor paused from the device he was working on and smiled as he looked at the boy. Jayce and Viktor spent the night at the tree’s detainment room but he awoke earlier, wanting to make last minute checks and preparations.  Most of the encampment was still asleep but Viktor was surprised to see Ekko up and about. He caught the boy trying the suit out while most of the camp was asleep. 

“You would do wonders if you were really a student. Perhaps Heimerdinger could pull some strings,” Viktor said. 

“With those stuck-up topsiders? No way. I wonder how you survived,” Ekko said, shrugging. “Anyway, I don’t have time. People need me here,” he said. 

Viktor nodded solemnly. In another life, Viktor could have easily been one of the refugees here—if he lived that long. 

As much as he said he loathed it, Viktor thought that Ekko looked perfect as a Piltover Academy student. He could have easily topped his class. But Ekko would never willingly go to the stuffy halls of the Academy. As much as it boasted to have some of the best minds in the city, it did not have the most compassionate hearts. 

Many of his Academy days were spent learning how to endure insults and slurs from his richer classmates. Heimerdinger shielded him from more shame after he discovered that Viktor was never really enrolled in the school. If word had gotten out that a Zaunite secretly went to Piltover Academy classes unenrolled, it would have been the end for Viktor.

“If there’s any project you need help with, I’d be happy to help. Or if you have any queries. I see great potential in you,” Viktor said. The man was never one to dole out compliments but with Ekko, Viktor found it easy. 

The boy looked at him, as if he was still a puzzle that needed solving. He ended up shrugging. “I’ll keep it in mind. Let’s just focus on getting through today,” said Ekko.  

The plan was simple enough: Jayce, Heimerdinger, and Ekko travel through the bridge and make their way to the lab. After all, Jayce and Heimerdinger were beloved Piltover figures. And there were no wanted posters for Ekko. Yet. 

Viktor would stay here. After all, he had been missing for several weeks, and enforcers had already been told to look for him. 

If the three of them do not return by nightfall, Viktor would go after him.He had another contingency in mind but he hoped he would not have to use it. 

Jayce stepped into the open, having cleaned himself up for the first time in what seemed like months. He looked almost exactly the way he did before the bombing. But Viktor could see in his eyes that the man had been aged by heartache. Heartache that Viktor took part in. 

He grabbed Jayce’s hand and smiled at him. 

“You don’t look half bad,” Viktor said. 

“I try my best for you,” Jayce shrugged.

He shrugged. “I liked the beard.” 

Jayce chuckled, pulling Viktor closer. “I’ll grow it back for you.”  

Viktor saw Ekko roll his eyes and he could not help but blush. Being together like this was both strange and familiar at the same time. Something about Jayce always had always felt inevitable. He was a planet caught up in Jayce’s orbit. Being pulled into the sun’s gravity was unavoidable and catastrophic. 

When Heimerdinger emerged from the tree donning his Council clothes, it was time for the three of them to go. Viktor pulled Jayce into an easy embrace, as if it was something they have done for years. 

“Stay safe out there,” Viktor said, pressing his last minute device into Jayce’s hand. 

Jayce took the cylinder and looked at it quizzically. 

“It’s a signal. Light it up and I’ll know where to find you,” Viktor said. 

Jayce smiled, leaning down to kiss Viktor. “Thank you. I’ll make sure we won’t need it,” he said, eyes catching the light of the sun. 

Viktor thought it was unfair for anyone to be as beautiful as him.

Something inside him rallied against the love hammering in his chest but Viktor ignored it— the lingering sense of doubt and hurt. After all, he had wanted this for so long. 

They had the rest of their days to figure it out. 

At the sight of the line on the bridge, alarms went off in Ekko’s head. 

Great. A fucking blockade. 

The air was heavy. The stillness felt like the moment before sparks kickstarted a forest fire. Every Zaunite seemed quiet, fully knowing that one wrong word could trigger an enforcer’s wrath. But as Ekko took in more of the scene, he realized that it was not just enforcers manning the checkpoint. Unnaturally tall soldiers in red were with them. 

Noxians, he realized. 

“Why the fuck are Noxians here?” Ekko whispered to Jayce. 

The man frowned, gripping his hammer. “Something’s wrong. Maybe we should—” 

Before Jayce could finish the sentence, Heimerdinger already forged ahead of the line.

“Prof—” Ekko started but an enforcer had immediately reacted to the Yordle. 

“Sir! I’m going to need you to get back in line,” he said. A fellow enforcer stepped in, raising a hand to stop the younger enforcer. 

“Hold up,” she said, stepping in. “Councilor Heimerdinger. I’m Captain Clarion. It’s an honor to meet one of Piltover’s founders, but it’s strange to see you here. You haven’t been seen in months. Where have you been?” 

“Ah yes! Hello there. That would be former , Councilor, yes,” he said. 

Besides Ekko, Jayce stiffened and looked away. 

Ekko cursed silently. The plan had barely begun but things are already going wrong. Jayce was supposed to talk to any enforcers. 

“I and former Councilor Talis traveled to the Undercity to do some field research. W-with my new prodégé Ek— I mean Ellison,” Heimerdinger said. 

Ekko groaned internally. 

“It was off the records, you see. We are studying the possibility of using a specific species of flower to purify the air in the trenches. We need to get to our laboratory in the Academy to test this,” Heimerdinger said, remembering their cover story, at least. 

“We understand, sir, but you see, Piltover is under a state of emergency. Since Jinx’s attack and Councilor Medarda going missing—” 

“Mel’s missing?” Jayce said, stepping forward as panic stirred in his eyes.  

“Yes, sir. We have to get you two to safety immediately,” Clarion said. 

“Was it Jinx ?” Jayce asked. 

“We believe so,” she said. 

Ekko cursed silently. Another one of Jinx’s attacks putting Piltover on edge was the last thing he needed. He already thought of ways to slip away when a hulking Noxian suddenly stepped into their view. Ekko stared at the massive man. He was riddled with scars but half of his face was covered with a beard. 

He said nothing, merely handing a note to Clarion. The woman frowned. 

Ekko’s fingers twitched. The only weapon he had was a smoke bomb. 

The Noxian stared down at the captain and it was clear who had the final say. She waved the three of them through. 

“Welcome back to Piltover,” she said. 

“Something is wrong, Jayce,” Ekko whispered angrily. 

The three of them made their way up to the Academy, where both of them were welcomed back as if they were icons. But Jayce was too wrapped up in the thought of Mel missing.

He cursed himself. Jayce had just gotten Viktor back. Was he to lose Mel now? 

He was never quite sure what they were, but Jayce cared for her deeply. Guilt seeped into his thoughts as he recalled all the times he pushed her away since the explosion. 

Now, Jinx likely has her. 

Caitlyn’s encounter with Viktor came into mind, unbidden. 

“Why would you side with the woman who killed you?” 

“Unless Viktor’s been working with her this whole time.” 

He shook the thought away. No. Viktor would never work with that terrorist. 

“Jayce! Are you even listening?” 

“I am sure it will be alright, Ekko. The most difficult part is over,” Heimerdinger said. 

“No, no. This is too easy,” he replied. 

Jayce forced himself to focus. 

Right after they finish this mission, he was going to ask Viktor for help to look for Mel. The two never got along but Viktor would always choose to do the right thing. 

Jayce moved on autopilot. It was only when he opened the doors to the lab when something struck him as odd. Jayce has walked through these doors countless of times. 

He was struck by the feeling that they were not alone. 

“ Jayce ,” a familiar voice said. “Where have you been?” 

Viktor watched the skyline. Technically, he was not following the plan. But he would never be able to see Jayce’s signal from the Undercity. So there he was, on the roofs of Piltover’s houses, his eyes trained towards the direction of the Academy as the day went by. 

“Jeez, you couldn’t pick a vantage point with a roof. It’s too bright here,” Jinx said. 

“You’ll live,” Viktor said, smirking. The sun should set any time soon but he supposed a few hours of daylight could be jarring to those who spent most of their days underground. In his hands, he fiddled with Ekko’s bat. He brought it, just in case things went south. Viktor knew for all his new strength, he was not a trained fighter. But Jinx and Ekko had it in them to kick and scratch until the end.  

“Why don’t you trust your boyfriend to get a few things unscathed? Why do you need my help babysitting?” 

Jinx was always meant to be the only one tailing them to step in if trouble arose. With Jayce and Heimerdinger showing up, a simpler plan was formed that required less sneaking around. 

“It’s best if I stay away for now. Enforcers might know my face after our… previous encounter, ” he said. 

Jinx merely looked away. Viktor heard the light thud of boots and felt her sit next to him. Neither of them have spoken about the incident at the arcade. He never wanted to pry. But now, he looked at her gently, an open invite to speak to him about it if she wished. She met his eyes and sighed. 

“Vi was my sister, you know. She’s one of them. The one with pink hair,” Jinx said silently. 

Viktor stilled. “What happened between the two of you?” he asked. 

The girl merely shrugged.  

“She joined the Piltigoons to hunt me down and kill me, I’m guessing.” 

Viktor nodded solemnly. In a strange way, he could understand Vi. What Jinx did was terrible—but not without reason. 

He remembered the bomb in his hand as Jayce and Mel discussed the possibility of weaponizing Hextech. For one wild nanosecond, he thought about it. Letting the bomb go off, taking out a Councilor and the only people in the world with the technical knowledge to make Hextech weapons. To end all possibilities of weaponizing hextech. 

His stomach twisted at the memory. He could never hurt Jayce but the thought of his life’s work being used to destroy lives made his blood boil. 

“I can’t quite say that what you did was right. But, with all the suffering in the Underground, it was bound to happen at some point. You can only add so much fuel to the fire before things…explode,” he said, shrugging. 

Jinx looked out into the open, hugging her knees to her chest. 

Silence settled comfortably between them as Jinx turned to the setting sun. It colored the world a splendid violet. Viktor gazed at the sunset next to her. She closed her eyes and sighed. 

“I should have brought Isha. This is boring,” she said, laying down. 

Viktor rolled his eyes and smiled. He checked the pocket watch that Ekko lent him. They should be passing by the alleyway beneath them in a few minutes. He watched as the hands of the clock moved. 

Any second now. 

He eyed the clock carefully. At any moment, they should pass underneath them and he would be able to send Jinx her way and Jayce would be none the wiser. 

Ten minutes passed. 

Viktor finally turned his gaze towards the darkening sky, searching frantically for purple smoke. 

Then he saw it. 

The smoke was coming from their lab. 

“Jinx,” he started. 

“I see it,” she said, already making her way down the tiled roof to leap to the next one.

Viktor was moving right next to her. 

As Jinx and Viktor leapt roof to roof, the smoke had already run out. It did not matter. He already knew where to go. He would know his way to the Academy with his eyes closed. 

When they arrived through the window of the lab, the sun had already fallen. The lab was dark and deathly still.

It was achingly familiar and foreign, all at once. Old inventions greeted him. Prototypes of the hammer were still here. Viktor could even make out the outline of the Hexclaw, peaking at him from the end of the room.

His best and worst days were spent here, with Jayce. For better or for worse, this was home. 

On Jayce’s desk, Viktor saw his old cane. Never before had it felt more alien to him.   

Jinx drew her gun. Having no other weapon other than Ekko’s bat, Viktor raised it, having no clue how to use it. 

“Jayce!” Viktor called out, already sensing someone else in the dark room. 

“Viktor?” Jayce stepped into the moonlight with his hammer in hand, disbelief written all over his face. “You’re working with Jinx?”

The two men stared at each other, too many words unspoken between them. Viktor looked at him. Jayce’s eyes flickered between Viktor and Jinx. The man’s finger twitched as he gripped the hammer. Viktor has never seen Jayce fight, but he recognized the look in his eyes: he was getting ready for a battle. 

Viktor instinctively stepped in front of Jinx, whose wary eyes are still locked on Jayce as she pointed her gun at him. 

“Jayce? What is this? I thought you were in trouble?” Viktor asked, brow furrowing. 

The lights in the lab suddenly came on. 

Caitlyn Kiramman emerged from the shadows, gun trained on both of them. 

“ You ,” she hissed. 

“Caitlyn, put the gun down. You said you only wanted to talk to him,” Jayce said. 

“That was before he came here with this terrorist! Viktor, step away from her now. I don’t want to have to hurt you!”

“Caitlyn!” Jayce said, his hammer lighting up. “Calm down! We don’t need to fight.”  

In the back of his head, Viktor registered that Caitlyn did not have her usual sniper gun. She looked to be holding a more standard issue, short range gun for enforcers. Viktor slowly stepped back closer to Jinx. “On my signal, run ,” he whispered. 

“Don’t. Move,” Caitlyn said. She switched something on her gun and it suddenly glowed an overwhelmingly familiar shade of blue. 

Anger spread through him like blood dropping in water. 

“Is that… hextech ?” Viktor said. 

“Something isn’t right,” Ekko found himself saying again for the nth as they neared the bridge. Behind him, he dragged a wagon with the needed parts. 

Heimerdinger toyed with some of the smaller tools that they were able to get. 

“It’s best to leave Jayce to his own devices. I’m sure he and Caitlyn have much they need to speak about,” Heimerdinger said. “Besides, we were able to get everything we needed for the filtration machine.” 

Caitlyn said nothing to Ekko when she found them in the lab, offering nothing but an icy glare. She said they would not intervene with what they were doing—only that she wanted to speak with Jayce alone. 

They got all of the equipment and more. They even got five hex crystals. The two of them were told to go ahead as Jayce spoke to Commander Caitlyn. 

In all honesty, Ekko could do without Jayce. He had both Viktor and Heimerdinger working with them anyway. Jayce could stay here in Piltover and it would make no difference. Besides, it was not like he was being forced to stay there against his will. 

Scar waited for them on the other side of the bridge: a familiar sight for sore eyes after going through Piltover’s posh streets. He took some of the load they brought. Ekko kept the crystals in his pocket. 

“Your metal friend left by the way. He said he was going to wait for you by the outskirts,” Scar said. 

“What?!” So no one was following the plan now? 

Ekko had lived his whole life toeing the line, being careful and knowing when to fight. He was never one to start a fight he could not end. 

He stopped at the threshold of the bridge. Months ago, Ekko barely made it out of here alive

He really could just head back to the tree and leave them all be. 

“Lend me your hoverboard and take the professor back. I need to make sure everything is okay,” Ekko said.

Scar looked at him with uncertainty. Knowing better than to argue, he wordlessly handed him his hoverboard.  

“Ekko!” Heimerdinger shouted at the boy but Ekko was already barreling forward towards whatever danger likely awaited him. 

“Did you make this?” Viktor stared dead at Jayce. Inside of him, he pleaded for Jayce to say no. 

“Yes,” Jayce said, his shoulders slumping. 

Viktor felt him splintering. How could he do this again?  

He will fool you again. He will break you again. He will betray you again. 

“This isn’t what we built Hextech for,” Viktor managed to choke out through the lump in his throat. 

Fools. 

Fools. 

Fools.  

The voice in his head turned into a chorus. Viktor gripped the bat, bending metal. 

“Viktor, please,” Jayce said, stepping forward. “Whatever she's forcing you to do, you’re safe now. You can let us handle her,” Jayce said. 

“You… you tricked me!” Jinx accused him, her gun now moving towards Viktor, Jayce, and Caitlyn. 

“I didn’t!” Viktor said, his back still turned to Jinx. 

“I only made those weapons because she used Hextech to kill you in that explosion! We need to end this, now!” Jayce yelled, raising his hammer. 

“Y-you were there? Is that why you died?” 

Everything was happening all at once yet something in Jinx’s voice made Viktor turn to her. Her gun was still raised but the look in her eyes had the unmistakable look of fear in them as her tears threatened to spill.  

“It’s okay,” he whispered, reaching out to her. 

“It’s alright—” he heard the faintest sound of the blade cutting through the air and he moved instinctively, shoving Jinx out of the way.

Time seemed to slow once more and Viktor watched as a large blade sliced through his right arm. Metal stretched and groaned as it tore apart like muscle and bone. 

Broken. 

Broken. 

Broken. 

Viktor could have sworn he heard Jayce scream but it sounded so distant that it felt like it came from a distant dream.Pain ripped through him as he registered the attack. 

He fell to the floor with a thud. His vision tinged with blackness but he forced himself to focus. He looked around wildly and saw his metallic arm uselessly discarded, its ends sparking and sputtering purple energy through loose wires. From the edge of his vision, he saw that Jinx was already poised to shoot the new attacker. He followed her gaze to see a large, Noxian man emerge from the dark side of the room. How had he not noticed the man before? 

Jinx shot him, but for a man his size, he was fast. The girl was not deterred, knowing fully well that she was faster. 

“Viktor!” Jayce said, kneeling by his side to pick him up. 

Traitor. 

Traitor. 

Traitor. 

“Do not touch me, Jayce!” Viktor said, batting away the man’s hand. Behind Jayce, he saw Caitlyn move to take a shot at Jinx as she fought the Noxian. Viktor shoved Jayce to the side. With his only arm left, he threw Ekko’s bat at the same moment Caitlyn pulled the trigger.  

The bat hit her hand, throwing the shot off. Viktor managed to stand up, meeting Caitlyn’s eyes as she readied another shot. 

“Caitlyn! Stop this!” Jayce said, stepping in front of Viktor as his hammer came to life. 

“Pick a side Jayce! You can’t defend him anymore! He’s a traitor!” Caitlyn yelled back. 

The door suddenly opened as more Noxian guards flanked them. A woman in red led them, and Viktor had the sinking feeling that the real danger had just entered the room now.   

“Jinx!” Viktor called out. Within moments, they stood back to back as the lab filled with Noxian guards, surrounding them. 

Let us end them. 

A surge of pain wracked through his head. “No,” he said through gritted teeth. He forced himself to focus.

“You know,” Viktor managed. “It would have been easier if you had just gassed us with The Grey again, Kiramman.” 

Caitlyn glowered at him behind her gun. 

Jayce stood between Caitlyn and Viktor, the hammer in his hands still humming with energy. He looked at her, realization flooding his features. 

“Caitlyn… you did what?” Jayce said quietly. The man looked like he was in pain but Viktor could do nothing for him now.  

“Do not listen to him, General,” the Noxian woman said. “You did what you had to do. It was mercy.”  

“Ambessa, call off your men, right now,” Jayce said, raising his hammer once more. 

The woman ignored him, her predatorial eyes set on Viktor.  

“The two of you have caused enough atrocities in this wonderful city. You are nothing but mere blights. Pests that need to be destroyed. Although I must admit, the work you did infiltrating these hallowed halls is almost impressive, Viktor. Years of working alongside Heimerdinger, seducing our esteemed Councilor Talis. Zaun is much more capable than we thought to be, is it not, General Kiramman?” Ambessa said.  

Caitlyn said nothing. For the briefest of moments, Viktor thought he could almost see the doubt in her eyes. But it did not matter. Viktor had no intention of being at the mercy of a Piltover brat. He thought of all the years he wasted climbing to Piltover. All of it for him to be reduced to a spy and a prostitute in the eyes of topsiders. He already knew that every one of Ambessa’s words will be the story told in Piltover’s history books. 

Viktor could still recall a time when he was desperate to be remembered. He wanted a legacy so badly that he was willing to throw his whole damn body on the line. His eyes fell on the place where his arm used to be and he nearly laughed. 

He was a broken, traitorous, fool indeed.

Viktor saw the smoke bomb fly through the window. He already knew who it belonged to. 

Smoke filled the lab within seconds. 

“Jinx, run!” Viktor screamed, making his way to Caitlyn. Jinx made her way up to the window, bringing her gun out to provide cover fire. Viktor looked around as the smoke burned his eyes. Amid the chaos, he found her easily, as she was still adjusting to the smoke without her mask. 

He tackled her as he grabbed her gun, pinning her to the ground.  

“Go after the Underground again and I will kill you,” he said through gritted teeth. 

Viktor sprinted towards the window to join Jinx. The smoke was already starting to clear out.

From the window, Viktor saw who was responsible for the smoke bomb. 

“Get out of there!” Ekko said as he stood on his hoverboard. 

The chain wrapped around his leg before he realized it. Viktor fell to the floor as the chains tightened around his leg. Before he realized what he was doing, Viktor threw the Hextech gun towards Jinx. 

Ambessa held up her hand to stop the Noxian guards from intervening. The woman had shed off her red cloak, revealing the bold, Noxian armor. Her strong arms were riddled with scars, mementos that no doubt came from countless battles. 

The smoke cleared completely in time for Viktor to see her yank at the chain to pull him towards her. 

She wanted to tear him apart, he realized. 

Perched from the lab window, Jinx fired the Hextech gun at Ambessa. But the massive, silent man was by her side, shielding her with his arm with some sort of enchantment. 

Let us end them. 

Let us end them.  

Let us end them. 

Viktor tried grasping at the chain with his only hand when another drakehound wrapped around his waist, pinning his arm to his chest. Panic filled him as the realization set that he may not leave alive. 

End them. 

End them. 

End them. 

He heard Jayce roar as his hammer shattered the chains. He looked at Viktor pleadingly, a thousand, unspoken apologies written in his eyes. 

“Run!” Jayce yelled. 

Love, for all its foolishness, returned to Viktor one more time. His best days have always been here at the lab, with Jayce. It struck Viktor that this may be his last chance to see the man.  Viktor stared at Jayce, his gaze rooting him to the ground for a second too long. 

The spear hurdled towards him faster than he could blink. 

Jayce let out another horrified yell as Noxian guards moved to constrict him. Before Viktor realized what was happening, he was already falling to the ground again. 

It was his leg, he realized. 

His leg was gone. 

The world fell silent for Viktor and he could only see everything in flashes. 

Jayce screaming as he was pinned to the ground by Noxians. 

Ambessa being handed another spear. 

Ekko entering through the window and zooming towards his bat. 

Caitlyn picking up another gun to shoot at Jinx. 

Jinx readying to shoot Ambessa. 

Somewhere above it all, he heard humming. 

Moving on some ancient instinct, Viktor crawled towards it, leaving behind him a trail of blood and metal. He watched as the rest of the Hexcore slowly consumed his human arm. He felt himself numb as he dragged his whole body towards their old inventions. Jayce’s face flashed before him, but he shut it away, once and for all. 

Enough.

The Other welcomed Viktor back like a lost child returning to the home he ran away from. 

How could everything have gone so deeply wrong? 

Ekko rolled on the ground from the hoverboard and grabbed the bat as Caitlyn Kiramman positioned her shot. He lept at her. Seeing Ekko, she used the sniper rifle to shield herself from his bat. The two tangled as their weapons locked on each other. Ekko knew fully well that if she could break the lock, she would not hesitate to shoot him. 

From the corner of his eyes, he saw Jinx shooting at the two Noxians.

“Ekko! Get Viktor out of here!” 

“A little busy here!” he said as he grappled with Caitlyn. 

“You’re all traitors!” Caitlyn hissed. “This didn’t need to happen, Ekko!” 

“You should have thought of that when you unleashed your dogs on Zaun!” 

“Vi would be ashamed of you if she could see you now,” she spat back. 

That did it for Ekko. He yelled, anger powering him as he finally wrestled the gun from Caitlyn. Ekko ran, jumping back on his board. As large as it was, the lab was not built for flying. Some of the lights had been destroyed, leaving dark spots all around. He could not see where Viktor was. 

The man was in terrible shape by the time Ekko got here. Even worse after getting hit with that spear. 

A burst of purple light suddenly filled the room. 

“Jinx! No bombs,” Ekko yelled, shielding his eyes. 

“That wasn’t me!” she said as she kept shooting, keeping the two Noxians pinned down. To his horror, he saw the larger man suddenly charge towards Jinx. He readied to dive towards them when it happened. 

A beam of light so strong that it cut through the man’s chest. 

Everyone fell silent as blood spewed from the Noxian’s mouth.

Ekko dropped to the ground as he searched frantically where it came from. From the dark corners of the room, he emerged. Despite losing a leg, Viktor stood upright, leaning on a cane as if it was an extension of his own self. From his back, a third, mechanical arm was attached: its claws opening like a three-petal flower, whirring and moving as if it was looking at them.

He turned to him. Viktor’s eyes were vacant: two, silver orbs with nothing inside of them. They were like endless voids. 

This was not Viktor. 

“Viktor!” Jayce screamed as he was pinned to the ground by more guards. He said his name over and over but his eyes remained vacant. Tears sprang from the Jayce's eyes as he called out to Viktor but the man was gone. Caitlyn watched the scene horrified, staying rooted to her spot.

Viktor raised his remaining hand, and Ekko felt something shift in his pocket. A hex crystal flew out of his pocket, with the claw grabbing it and attaching it to its center. A surge of energy ran through the third arm and the rest of Viktor's body. 

He them moved mechanically, the thud of his cane marking each step. He walked until Jinx and Ekko were behind him. Viktor's blank eyes stared at the Noxians, and for a moment, all was still. 

"Seize them!" the Noxian leader screamed. Noxian guards ran towards them and Ekko raised his bat and Jinx prepared to shoot. 

The third arm came to life again, unleashing an even stronger beam of light that cut through more soldiers. More tried to fight back but the arm moved so fast that it tore through anyone that dared to come close. 

No one else moved as bodies fell, save for Jinx, who went down from the window sill to run to Viktor. 

“Hey Cookie, you gotta come back to us now,” she said, grabbing his face. Viktor dully looked back at her, some semblance of recognition finally sparking in his eyes. His third arm kept guard of the three of them, training its aim at any other Noxians that dared to move.  

Ekko watched as the woman knelt down to the first man that Viktor killed, the undeniable look of grief setting on her features. 

“We need to go,” Ekko said. 

“Go, take him somewhere safe,” Jinx said, her gun raised at the Noxians. 

He nodded, easily picking up the slight man and taking him on his hoverboard. Viktor did not fight Ekko, allowing the younger man to carry him. But somehow, his third arm was still alive, even if Viktor's mind was barely there. The Noxians did not move, weary as the new weapon kept its singular eye trained on them even as Ekko took Viktor on the hoverboard.

Ekko rushed out from the window. He glanced back at the sound of an explosion, just in time to see blue smoke surge out of the lab. 

As he flew back, a new sense of dread filled him. One that told him that the final string that barely held everything together had finally broken. 

No where in Piltover or Zaun was safe now. 

Chapter Text

Viktor stared at the stew as he swung his feet on the chair. In a few months, he knew he would finally be tall enough so that he could reach the chair easily. His stomach grumbled, desperate for the food that was right there in front of him. He tried to focus on his book but his tummy hurt so much that he could not get through the words with the same ease.   

He stared at the door. 

Any moment now, his father would be home and he could say how good the stew was, even if it was cold. 

The door cranked open. 

Viktor nearly stumbled as he ran towards it. 

“Father, father, look, I made you your favorite stew!” Viktor’s eyes looked up excitedly and he stilled. Eyes that looked exactly like his stared back at him but he saw that his eyes were not gold like his, but silver. 

The man looked almost exactly like his father. 

“You did not deserve this,” the man whispered. “Come, let us eat. You’re starving by now.” 

He said it with no sense of pity. It did not sound like an adult finding a child all alone at home. The man said this as the fact that it was: Viktor was hungry. He starved everyday. It was a part of life in the trenches. 

The boy settled down at the table again, staring at the man who had his father’s face. 

“Who are you?” he asked. 

The older man simply smiled as he poured some stew into the boy’s bowl and placed it gently in front of the boy. 

“I’m not quite sure,” he said. “But you can call me Viktor, for now.” 

The little boy perked up. “That’s my name too! Are you my uncle?” 

The older Viktor stared at him sadly. “You know very well that you do not have  family other than your father.” 

The boy merely stared at the strange man, unable to decide if he was cruel or kind. The soup was an odd mess of onions, carrots and water. The older man poured himself a bowl and chuckled softly. 

“We never did get to taste this, didn’t we? It smells terrible” he said. The boy shied away, turning red, but the older man only smiled and ruffled his hair. “You did what you could.” He turned his gaze towards the door. 

“He’s gone now,” the older Viktor said. “You don’t need to wait for him anymore.” 

The boy’s features fell. He already knew that. People disappeared in the Undercity all the time. Still, his tears fell anyway as he choked out a sob. The older man arose from his seat, gathering the young boy in his arms and cooing softly.  

The boy kept crying. He just wanted his dad back. He wanted him back, so, so desperately. Was he not good enough? Why did his father leave? 

“It’s okay. It’s going to be okay,” he whispered. 

“It’s going to be okay,” a girl’s voice suddenly broke through his thoughts. 

He tried to open his eyes, only to be met with a harsh light, forcing his eyes close. He tried to raise a hand to shield his vision but…nothing was there. There was nothing to move. “W-what—” 

“Oh! He’s awake!” Jinx said. 

“Fuck… this might hurt if he’s awake. Jinx, are we sure about this?” he heard another woman say. Sevika, he was able to place. 

“Oh pfft,” Jinx said in reply, raising a pair of pliers. “He’ll be fine.” 

Viktor willed himself to stay awake but he felt so, so tired. Before he knew it, he was taken by slumber again. 

The young man shifted in his seat nervously. Of all the professors to call him, why would Councilor Heimerdinger want him in his office? 

He was caught. He already knew it. This is the end of him. Studying in the Academy was some of the best days of his life but was it really worth the shame of having every professor and student know that he was a low-life trencher? 

What if he ended up going to Stillwater over this? 

Viktor grasped his wooden cane so tightly he swore that if he was strong enough, he could snap it in half. 

Maybe it would be for the best if it broke. The old thing was a dead giveaway that he did not belong here. 

Viktor heard the door behind him start open. 

“P-professor, I mean, Councilor Heimerdinger. Please, let me explain —” he stood and turned towards the door, expecting to see the small Yordle. His gaze unexpectedly landed on a man’s knees. 

Definitely not Heimerdinger.

His eyes traveled upwards to meet the other man’s gaze. 

Only to see a mirror image of him. 

The shock of seeing himself caused him to back up to the desk. 

“W-what…” he started.  

The other Viktor raised a hand, a sign of peace. He looked exactly like him except… this Viktor was older. His hair was longer and more unkempt. There was an air of exhaustion to him. He did not think it would be possible for him to look more… worn down than he already was. 

“I remember this,” the other Viktor said, circling the younger version of himself. “I was so…scared.” 

The older man reached the other side of the table, seating himself in Heimerdinger’s chair. “He takes you on as his student. You even become his assistant.” 

“R-really? You mean I won’t get kicked out?” the young man said as he sat back down, eyes suddenly becoming hopeful. 

“Yes,” Viktor said. “But soon, that will not be enough for you.” His silver eyes shone at him. “You have always been hungry, haven’t you? You have always wanted to become more.”

“Give me some more screws—Isha, quit messing around and put down that damn blowtorch!” Jinx said.  

Through blurry eyes, Viktor saw sparks flying from his right side. He felt the steady hum of gentle electricity running through him and it was almost soothing. 

Isha’s large, amber eyes suddenly came to view, her face mere inches from him.

Viktor tried to grumble out a hello, only managing to moan. 

“Alright kid, that’s enough,” Sevika said, easily pulling Isha away from him and lifting her up with one arm. Out of his view, Viktor could make out that the woman was holding something else.  

“You’re awake. Your new leg’s here. You could use some local Zaun tech,” she said. 

Viktor tried his best to muster up words, but sleep seemed determined to drag him back into his dreams. 

He gave in silently. 

Viktor had never been happier than the moment his feet lifted from the ground as the magic of the Hex crystal filled the room. 

It was their only chance: to make Hextech work, to prove themselves, to make something that will last. 

And they did it! 

This changed everything. The possibilities suddenly became endless. This could transform energy, transportation, economics, hell, throw agriculture in there too. 

He stared at the growing distance between him and the ground. For once, he did not have to think about the constant pain in his leg. 

“Jayce, Jayce, it worked!” he said. He lifted his eyes to the man floating across the room: the one who made it all possible. 

But it was not Jayce floating across him. 

It was him. 

Viktor stared at himself. 

“W-what? Did Hextech do this? Can it create… alternative versions of ourselves?” Viktor said, trying to glide closer to himself. 

“No,” the other man said. The blue light highlighted the hollows in his cheeks, as well as deeper eyebags. Still, he did not look too far off from how he looked right now. This was an older version of himself, he realized. He concluded that it was a time anomaly then. 

“This is one of the happiest moments of your life. You don’t get very many, do you?” 

The younger Viktor looked at him, deep in thought. “Will we not get many more?” 

The older man looked away for a moment, smiling slightly as if he was lost in a daydream whose details could no longer recall. 

“No, we won’t,” he said. “You will live your life in the shadows, desperate to make something of yourself before death takes you early like it does every other child born from the Underground.” 

“But this… this can help them! They won’t have to live in fear and sorrow anymore,” he said. 

The other Viktor averted his gaze.

“This invention will be used by Topsiders to make themselves even richer,” the older man said. 

“N-no… Jayce will not allow it,” the younger Viktor said, already pledging his loyalty to a man he barely knew. 

The older man smiled sadly. 

“He is the reason you’re dying,” the older man said. 

And suddenly, the blue magic was gone and Viktor was falling to the ground. 

Pain surged through his body. His heart started hammering so wildly that Viktor could have sworn that it would leap out of his chest. 

“No, no, no, he was fine! What happened?!” Ekko said frantically. Viktor tried to open his eyes but he could not. 

“Shit! He’s bleeding out again. We stitched everything up, what the hell?” Jinx said. 

“It’s the Hexcore…it’s moving across the prosthetics,” Ekko whispered. 

“It’s adapting,” Jinx said, pressing her ear to his heart. “But I don’t know if Viktor’s human body could take it.” 

He faintly heard the sound of metal tools being jumbled around, as if she was in search of something. 

“Hang on, wait—” he heard the boy say. Viktor finally opened his eyes just enough to see Ekko try to stop Jinx’s raised arm as it poised to plunge a syringe into him. 

“Jinx?” Viktor managed to say before she stabbed a syringe of Shimmer into his human chest. 

Viktor screamed. 

“Why are you showing me these?” Viktor said, staring at himself as he remained suspended in the Hexcore in the lab. 

“So that you can understand,” They said. “All of your sorrow, all of your anxiety, all of your joy. It all leads to the same thing: pain. Even the mere presence of happiness is just there to remind you that pain will come again: a mere reprive from the torture. And what for? So that humans can keep crying into the void? Nothing but mere tears lost to the ocean.”

“All of this pain. It all comes from the same place. Your precious… humanity,” They said. 

Viktor reached out to himself in the Hexcore. The filaments danced around his fingers… calling out for him to surrender. 

“What will be left of us, if we are not human? If we do not suffer?” Viktor said, the light of the Hexcore hungrily wrapping around his fingertips. 

They fell silent. A thousand memories danced across Viktor’s eyes: good and bad. He wondered, for one wild moment, what it would be like. To let it all go. 

The voice finally answered him. 

“Evolution.” 

“Did you know I wasn’t always Jinx?” she said, sitting on the floor and leaning against the counter. 

They had turned Viktor’s shop into a makeshift infirmary. His counter was turned into a bed as Jinx and Ekko tried to save… or fix him. They turned everything into a mess of tools and parts. She has been so focused trying to salvage Viktor that none of the usual voices in her head have spoken. Even after they did everything they could, they simply refused to speak to her. 

It was so, so quiet. So she kept talking, just to fill the silence. “I used to be a little kid named Powder,” she whispered. 

“I had a stupid brother who called me a jinx all the time because I was… well, I messed up a lot,” she said. She did not bother looking at him. The man has stayed in his strange stasis for three days now since his scare. 

“One time, one of my paint bombs accidentally blew up near the kitchen and even my old pop got mad at me. Vander never got mad but I could see it in his eyes. He had to buy more food, but things were already crazy expensive so we didn’t have much to eat for a week. I felt so bad. I couldn’t eat much because of the looks I got from Mylo,” she said. She stared blankly at the drywall in front of her. 

“Vi would stare right back at him until he stopped,” she whispered. 

Jinx kept talking. Years of unspoken memories spilled out of her. That time Vi punched one of the neighborhood kids for stealing her boots. That time Claggor put her on his shoulders when she sprained her ankle after she tripped. 

She even told Viktor about the special drink that Vander would make her, which she eventually realized was actually just orange juice with some crushed cranberries in it. It did not matter though, because he made it for her . 

Silco never wanted her to talk about them. At first, she thought it was because it made him angry. 

She realized, while she was talking in Viktor’s shop, that the man was probably just scared she would run away to a family that was not there anymore. She tried so hard to forget them for his sake. But they were all still dancing in her head and Silco had finally joined them too. 

Jinx kept telling him stories. A comatose man made for a good listener, it seemed. 

“Violet was always there. She always had my back, no matter how bad I messed up, and then one day, I messed up so, fucking , bad,” Jinx said, speaking about that night in the Shimmer Factory for the first time in years.  

“It was so bad that even she couldn’t … she left me,” Jinx whispered. 

“Everyone that I care about… ends up either leaving or dying,” she said, tears starting to fall. She finally stood up to face him, leaning on the counter to look at him.  

Viktor slept steadily on his side. Even his third arm seemed to have powered down, as if joining him in slumber. Jinx has never seen him sleep. She was never even sure if he needed to.

I only made the weapons because she used Hextech to kill you in that explosion! 

She raised her hand and slowly, gingerly taking his hand, the one that the Hexcore consumed. 

“But you… you kept helping us even after what I did to you,” she whispered shakily. “The only other person who did that is gone.” 

Viktor has experienced the worst of her. But he chose to save her, again and again. He chose to reach out to her. The memory was seared in her brain: Viktor about to tell her it was okay. 

Then the Noxian blade slicing through him like it was nothing. 

She grasped his hand tighter. 

“Don’t tell anyone I said this but I think… you’re good for me. You, Isha… hell, let’s throw in Sevika there too. Just please… stay. Stay for a bit and let’s just see what happens, yeah?” 

Jinx waited, unsure of what she expected. Did she think her little speech would wake him up? 

“This is stupid.” Feeling silly, she started to pull her hand away.

Only for a metallic hand to grab her wrist. Jinx turned to him, eyes growing wide. 

“I’m here,” he rasped, silver eyes straining towards her. “I-I’ll stay.”

Chapter Text

“Why are you still working? I thought you closed up shop hours ago,” Jayce said as he swung through the door. 

The light on Viktor’s little shop in Zaun was still on, and the sign on the door was still turned to ‘open’. Jayce rolled his eyes, flipping the sign. Luckily, there were no customers to shoo away. His husband had gotten the habit of taking request after request, even well after closing time. Once, a little boy had even brought his whole toy chest to Viktor so they could fix all the playthings together. 

For that, Viktor earned a nice, half-eaten cookie from the child. 

“Jayce! You wouldn’t believe this!” Jayce’s heart always flipped whenever his husband would say his name that. For all the breakthroughs and discoveries that Viktor had over the years, hearing him gleefully present another finding to him always made Jayce happy. 

The man put down his bag, research papers and books well-forgotten so that he could listen to whatever Viktor had to say. 

“I invented a small device that could play music! It’s like a portable record player! Jinx said I couldn’t do it, so now I had to.” 

“What?! No way, show me,” Jayce said, smiling. 

Viktor produced a small, rectangular device that was the shape of a book. Inside of it was a smaller version of a record. He pressed one of his buttons and the tiny thing began playing an upbeat song. 

“That’s incredible!” Jayce exclaimed. Without thinking, he offered a hand to Viktor. He bowed, pretending to be a grand duke at the ball. Viktor laughed and rolled his eyes but took Jayce’s hand anyway,  Jayce made sure to be careful with Viktor’s leg, letting his husband lean on him as they swayed. 

Mais ma meilleure ennemie, c'est toi

Fuis-moi, le pire, c'est toi et moi

Mais si tu cherches encore ma voix

Oublie-moi, le pire, c'est toi et moi

Viktor looked warmly at him, holding his face. Jayce could not resist him anymore, closing the gap between them and kissing him deeply. It never mattered how often they kissed: it exhilarated him every time. 

After a while, Viktor finally broke the kiss, but kept his hand on Jayce’s face. 

But his expression had changed. The song in their background turned into an empty silence.   His face, just beaming with light and joy a moment ago, suddenly became void of any emotion. His eyes were dull. It changed colors, flickering gold, silver and then, to Jayce’s utter horror, pure white. 

“V-Viktor? Are you alright?” Jayce managed, grasping the hand on his cheek. 

“Why did you do it?” Viktor’s voice came out deeper and morphed with… something else. 

“Do what?” Jayce pleaded as his eyes started to water. Something in him remembered his sins even before his mind caught up. 

Viktor kept staring at him. His face suddenly began splitting into two, revealing wires, screws and cogs underneath. The hand that Jayce grasped on his cheek suddenly went limp and to his horror, he realized that it was no longer attached to Viktor. 

“Why did you destroy me?” he finally said. 

Viktor began stumbling back. Jayce tried to catch him but he was rooted to his spot and he was forced to watch as Viktor’s leg detached by itself. 

Jayce screamed, trying, desperately, to reach his partner but an invisible force held him back. 

“VIKTOR!” 

But he could do nothing as his partner fell to the ground, collapsing like a ragdoll.

“Please,” Jayce begged, still straining to reach him. “Don’t leave me!” 

“You… already… had… me…” Viktor whispered before his eyes went dark. 

Jayce woke up screaming. He sat up, trying to catch a breath that was not there. Bile started rising from his throat and he heaved to his side, uncaring of the mess he would make. He heard panicked footsteps rushing towards his room and the lights flickered on. Ximena gasped, stifling a cry as she rushed to Jayce's side. 

“Oh, my baby,” she whispered as she gathered Jayce in her arms. It did not matter if the man was thrice her size: he wept on his mother’s lap like he was a child again. 

“Oh god, what if he’s de—I, I can’t—” Jayce said between sobs. 

“What have I done,” he repeated to himself, over and over again. His mother only held him tighter. 

“Jayce, sweetheart, you must not blame yourself,” she whispered. 

“They tore him apart!” he shouted. “And I couldn’t, I couldn’t save him…” he hiccupped, a fresh set of tears running down his face. His body hurt from the crying but he could not stop himself. 

Jayce’s ribs were cracked in several places from the Noxian guards holding him down, and his voice was still hoarse from screaming after Viktor.

He saw it, for the briefest moment. Viktor looked at Jayce once more the way he always did: with love. And for that love, Ambessa tore him to pieces. 

But it was the moment that Viktor hit the floor that kept replying in his mind. The confusion in his eyes, the quiet realization and the horror. 

“It’s all my fault,” Jayce said, barely above a whisper. 

Ximena ran her hand down her son’s back, letting him cry. 

“You had ten soldiers pinning you down. There wasn’t anything you could have done,” she said. 

“No, it’s not just that,” he choked out as he pulled away. 

“The only reason he was there in the lab was because of me,” he said. 

He was there, he handed Caitlyn the signal and watched her set it off. He foolishly thought there was a way for things to end peacefully. 

“And the only reason he got hurt in that explosion was because I brought him to the Council Room,” he said.

His mind flashed back to that day. He could have brought Viktor there countless times to speak for Zaun. Jayce had to bring him on the day where everything went wrong.   

“I keep hurting him,” he sobbed. “And now he’s gone. Him, Mel, and, shit… Caitlyn... it’s like she’s a complete stranger now. I don’t know what to do.” 

“Jayce, my sweet,” his mother held his tear-stained face. “You have always tried to help. You’ve had so much rest on your shoulders these past few years that you gave, and gave, and gave. I beg you, for once, find it in yourself to give yourself a bit of mercy,” she said. “Do not lose yourself to despair.” 

“I need to make sure he’s okay,” he croaked.  

Viktor’s lifeless eyes flashed in his mind as the Hexcore consumed him. Something about it felt perverse: a corruption of who he was. It was another sin in a long list with his name on it.

Ximena looked away. “You know they won’t let us leave,” she said. 

Jayce stood, walking towards the window of his childhood bedroom. Outside, several Noxian guards kept watch. 

Ambessa, or Cait, he was not so sure anymore, decided to place him under house arrest. 

It was mercy, Ambessa said. If he was not the famed Man of Progress, Jayce was certain that they would have thrown him into Stillwater and never seen again.

“If I could just… talk some sense into Caitlyn,” he said. “Gods… I should have been there for her after her mother died.” 

“Jayce, you have your own grief to deal with too,” she said. “Be gentle with yourself, please.” 

He let out another shaky breath. 

Gentle, like the way Viktor looked at him that night he saved his life all those years ago. Gentle, like how Viktor held him in Zaun. Jayce’s hands tightened against the window sill as he stared at the Noxian guards. 

There was nothing gentle with what they did to Viktor. 

Fury quickly superseded despair. His mother was right. Wallowing here will do no one good. It will not save anyone. 

“Can I use dad’s old forge?” 

Ekko stared at the wanted posters plastered all over the alleyway. More accurately, he stared back at the wanted poster of himself . 

There he was, his face clear as day. It was right next to wanted posters of Jinx and Viktor. 

He groaned, his breath coming out hot against the owl mask. 

“They got you pretty well,” she suddenly said. 

Ekko jumped at the sound of Jinx’s voice, stepping away from her. For someone so loud, she knew how to sneak up on someone. Some old instinct in him said he should prepare to fight but he had just spent the last week with her trying to save Viktor. They never spoke about anything outside what was necessary: looking for the needed parts, handing each other tools, or, trying to stop Jinx from injecting the man with gods know what. 

But Ekko could hardly argue. In the end, it worked. Ekko had walked into Benzo’s old shop to check on him once more after his scare, expecting Viktor to either still be asleep or dead, only to find Jinx leaning into the barely conscious man and whispering to him. Even if he was barely awake, Viktor seemed to be clinging onto every word she said. Jinx merely glanced at Ekko before turning her eyes back to the dying man, the world outside ceasing to exist for them. 

The two of them heeded him no mind, wrapped up in a dialogue no one else is meant to hear. Again, Ekko felt like an intruder, slipping out of the shop unnoticed. 

He walked away, feeling uneasy but uncertain why. It has been a week since he last saw either of them. 

Jinx now looked at him expectantly, as if nothing had happened. 

“I can’t believe they finally got my face now. I was doing so well,” he finally said, frowning. 

He spent years under that mask. Now, Topside has his face everywhere in the Undercity. 

“Hey, don’t look at me that way,” she shrugged. “You chose to be the hero that day.” 

“Yeah, and now every Firelight is at risk!” he said. 

“Well,” Jinx said, uncertainty flickering in her eyes. “Do you regret it? Helping us?” 

Ekko opened his mouth to speak, already used to contradicting everything Jinx had to say. He found that there was no snarky remark to be said this time. 

“No. I don’t regret it. I just hate that other people might get hurt now because of me,” he said, shoulders slumping. 

“The Boy Savior, always running around and worrying about everyone else other than himself. Well, I don’t know about the Firefucks but I do have a gift for you that might just fix your problems,” Jinx said with a wicked grin on her face. 

Ekko already knew that he was not going to like whatever her gift was. 

Ekko stared at the scene in front of him. He could only muster the deepest groan of his life. 

“What the fuck , Jinx?” he said. 

“What?! I thought you wanted this?” she shot back. 

Three people tied up with sacks on their heads were laid out before him in The Last Drop. One of them was a heavy set man, one was a woman in provocative clothing, and the other was a strange, deformed Yordle. Jinx even took the liberty of drawing faces on the sacks. 

When Jinx took Ekko to the old bar, he expected a range of things: from Viktor finally being up and about or maybe Jinx finally deciding to kill him for fun. Having three captives was not part of the list. 

“Who are these people?!” he yelled. 

Jinx paused, as if suddenly realizing something. 

“Ohhhhhhhhhh!” she said. “I guess bringing you here and presenting you with these bozos and yelling ‘ta-dah’ doesn’t give you much context.”

“No, it doesn’t,” he said through gritted teeth. “You have five seconds to explain.” 

“Yeesh, tough crowd,” she said. 

“Five…” he started. 

“ Okay, okay Mister Savior sir,” she said with a mock salute. She walked up to one of the hostages. “These are the chembarons, silly.” 

She yanked off the sack of the man in the suit. Ekko did not recognize him but the suit suggested that he was Chross. That would mean that the last two were Margot and Smeech. 

Ekko fell silent, staring at the three of them. He still understood nothing. 

“ What… ” 

Jinx rolled her eyes. “They’re a peace offering, dumb-dumb. I know you’ve been trying to end their operations so…” She gestured to them. “Here you go.” 

“But…why?” Ekko managed, still in disbelief. She spent weeks in hiding while the chembarons planted chaos across the Undercity. “This is some sort of trap, right?” 

Jinx pouted. “No? I don’t know. This is just… a ‘thank you’ for helping me save Viktor,” she said. “Got rid of their Shimmer supplies too.” 

Ekko raised an eyebrow, his mind starting to think of the thousand ways this could backfire. “How?” 

“Destroying things is my specialty,” she said with a mocking bow. 

“What about their crews, huh?” Ekko asked. “They’re going to go after their bosses.” 

Jinx furrowed her brows. “I-I don’t know…” 

“Did Viktor tell you to do this?” Ekko said, remembering how he told the man about the Fireflies’ mission.  

“No!” 

“Of course he did. You’ve always got someone whispering in your ear to tell you what you need to do. First, it was Silco, now you got Viktor, is that it?” Ekko asked, voice starting to rise. 

Jinx just stared at him, her large eyes wide open, and her fists clenched. She looked like she was on the edge of saying something but she held her tongue. 

She pushed past him silently and walked towards the door. 

Ekko heard the door open, resting on its old hinges. He turned slowly, expecting Jinx to hurl an insult or some other snarky remark. 

But by the time he looked, Jinx was already gone.

Something rooted Ekko to his spot. Confusion, anger, whatever it was, he failed to understand the sudden pang in his chest after she left. 

“You’re doing pretty well,” Sevika said. She watched as Viktor was testing out his new limbs. 

Viktor took several more tentative steps. It was not perfect, but with extra care, he was getting used to the imbalance between his old leg and his new one. 

His new limbs were more similar to most of the prosthetics found in Zaun. It was a mix of repurposed brass and copper, clunkier than the sleek, metallic limbs that the Hexcore made for him. The Hexcore had stretched across the joints of where his new limbs were attached to him, like roots spreading across the ground. 

Jinx and him agreed that it was a result of the Hexcore’s adaptive qualities. 

Performing more intricate tasks has been difficult. His motion was clunky, and his strength was not the same. The body parts that the Hexcore consumed were beyond the strength of an average human. The new Zaunite limbs were still strong, but he did not have the same level of control over them yet. 

Nonetheless, he embraced the new arm and leg fully, and had no intention of creating limbs for himself like he did for Isha. 

Besides, Jinx and Isha seemed to have selflessly taken the liberty of decorating them for him while he was asleep. Bright sketches of animals and faces decorated his arm and leg. A lightning bolt now ran down his leg while little monkeys dotted across his arm. There were more purple, blue and pink doodles but Viktor has yet to fully account for them.  

It was the new limb that was the most foreign to him. Oftentimes, he had control over it. But sometimes, the thing came to life on its own and he questioned if it was Someone else in control of it. 

There is no Other. We are you. You are Us. 

“You don’t make any sense,” he whispered. 

“What’d you say?” Sevika said suddenly. 

It startled Viktor so much that he tripped on his own feet again and fell on the floor of his shop. 

“Well, it was good while it lasted,” Sevika said, offering no help for the man. 

Viktor groaned, picking himself up. He felt around for the cane on his desk and used it to stand all the way up. 

He leaned on the cane with the same ease as breathing. In a way, he felt a little more human for it. On his new mechanical palm, Isha had scribbled on what looked like her and Jinx. A smile, unbidden, found its way to his lips as he looked at it. 

As if being summoned, Isha and Jinx sprang through the doors, determined to make sure that everyone in the shop knew that they had arrived. 

“And here comes the new champion!” Jinx yelled. 

A little mechanical insect flew around the shop while a little machine slug was sitting comfortably on Isha’s shoulders. The child's hair, Viktor noticed, was now colored blue. 

The little girl ran up to Viktor and gave him a hug, putting the slug in his hand. She had warmed up to him more and more since he gave her the new arm. 

“Ah yes, a well-deserved win, my champion,” Viktoe said, observing the little toy on his palm—no doubt, a product of Jinx’s teachings. 

Viktor patted Isha's head, accidentally getting blue hair dye on his hands. He looked across the room to meet Jinx’s eyes and realized that they were never without a trace of mischief. He smiled at her warmly. Jinx rolled her eyes but ended up smiling back anyway. 

In the backdrop, he heard Sevika trying to shoo the flying bug away. 

Viktor decided then that he could get used to this. 

“Evolution,” they said. 

Evolution. The idea that in order to improve, you must adapt. Traits that are deemed unnecessary for improvement and survival must be eliminated. 

To evolve means to become more than what you ever were by letting go of the things that weighed you down. 

Like hazel eyes and a devastating smile.

Viktor’s hand reached out to his face suspended by the light of the Hexcore. 

“Did you know I wasn’t always Jinx?”

He stopped. 

It was a different voice this time. Even The Other seemed to have paused to listen. 

He suddenly saw a surge of memories that did not belong to him. One moment, he was in the lab staring at himself in the cocoon. 

Suddenly, he was on a burning bridge. He recognized it immediately. It was the bridge connecting Piltover to Zaun. Bodies and flames covered the bridge and Viktor could smell the flesh burning. He knew that this was no terrible vision of the future: this happened. A few of his friends died here. 

From the smoke, he saw two, small figures emerge. 

“I used to be a little kid named Powder,” the voice spoke. 

Powder. The smaller girl had her eyes closed so that she would not see the carnage. Viktor knew that even if she could not see, her young mind could never comprehend the horrors that laid before her. 

“Violet was always there,” she said. His eyes turned to the older girl with pink hair. 

Viktor watched helplessly as the two girls walked through the ruins. Violet had to keep her sister close to make sure she did not bump into any of the bodies. Viktor realized that whatever childhood that Violet might have had was dead and gone as well. 

He saw a large man —Vander, he somehow knew — looking at them with pity and heartache. 

“One day, I messed up so, fucking, bad,” she said, voice cracking. 

The vision changed once more. The heat on Viktor’s skin was dulled by rain. He was in an alleyway as the building in front of him was set ablaze. 

Before him, Vander’s mutilated body was deathly still as the two girls stood, trying to make sense of the senseless. 

Powder wanted so badly to help. 

“Because you’re a Jinx!” Vi screamed. Viktor flinched, aching for both girls. She was just a child herself. 

He watched as Violet walked away from her sister. Powder screamed and cried next to Vander’s mutated body. 

Viktor desperately wanted to move towards her. Something in him needed to soothe the child’s crying, but he knew this memory did not belong to him and he could do nothing. 

Viktor made the connection in the back of my mind that he was in Piltover around this time, trying to become more than a street rat from the Undercity. 

From the darkness, he saw him. Silco. 

This, he realized, was when Jinx was created. 

Other memories danced before his eyes: the happy memories few and far between. Everything else screamed of chaos, meddled with feelings of confusion, pain, anger. 

But threaded through all of these things were love: both the devastating loss of it and its overabundance when it is found.  

All of those moments lead to her. 

Evolution. 

“Just please… stay. Stay for a bit and let’s just see what happens, yeah?” 

With that, the connection was severed and Viktor found himself back in his own mind, before his own body in the Hexcore. 

“Your affection for the girl is… strange. You see her suffering, and her sins but you still have compassion for her,” They asked. 

“Why?” 

It was the first time that The Other asked him a genuine question. It was not made as a challenge, as most of Their questions are. 

“I see who she is. In another life, if things were just the slightest bit different, our roles would easily be reversed and it would have been me losing my mind in the Undercity,” Viktor said. 

“She could have thrived in Piltover. Within weeks of being in Zaun, I was able to encounter two of the brightest minds in the city. And yet, they are here, deeply aware of the fact that their life could end at any moment,” he continued. 

“A mere product of humanity’s flaws. Logic would dictate that the wisest must lead and yet Piltover is governed by those who steal and cheat others under the guise of progress,” They replied.

“It is a contradiction,” Viktor conceded. “But I think you felt it as well when we were in the lab: a shift in the imbalance. Do you not think it best to see the natural progression of evolution first? The girl is proof that humans evolve on their own,” Viktor asked. 

“And what about Jayce?” 

Viktor stilled at the name. The thought of him was enough to make Viktor want to give in to The Other, to surrender every piece of himself. 

But Viktor remembered those hazel eyes, full of sorrow and regret as he told him to flee while he still could.

“He…changed too,” Viktor said quietly. 

The Other was silent, as if in contemplation. 

“I believe you are attempting to persuade me to retain your… humanity. To keep us separate for now,” They said. 

“But I must admit. I am curious as well.” 

Chapter Text

Isha tugged at Jinx’s braids to get her attention. 

“For the gajillionth time, no,” Jinx said, leaning on her chair with her eyes closed and her feet resting on her table. 

Isha clambered on top of her lap, her fist crumpling the paper she was holding. The small girl unfurled the paper, shoving the wanted poster to Jinx’s face. The older girl merely shut her eyes, pretending to be asleep. 

On the poster was a code to a time and place, one that only those raised in the Underground would understand. 

“She’s right, you know,” Sevika said, her footsteps growing louder as she drew closer. 

“Just because you know where I live, doesn’t mean you’re welcome here!” Jinx said, her eyes still closed.

In all honesty, the girl was in no mood. Jinx would not admit it now, but Ekko’s words had stung. It took a lot of work to kidnap those losers. And! She did it with no help, too. 

“They’re expecting you there,” Sevika said. “You started something that day you showed those Councilor assholes. You showed everyone that we have a chance to fight back,” Sevika said. 

“She’s right,” Silco purred in her ears. Even with her eyes closed, Jinx saw him on his desk, smoking his cigar. “Finish what you started, Jinx. Zaun is waiting.” 

You’ve always got someone whispering in your ear to tell you what you need to do!

Jinx frowned, chasing away Silco’s image in her mind. 

“I said, I don’t want to,” Jinx said through gritted teeth. 

Suddenly, Jinx’s chair was pushed back. She opened her eyes to see Sevika’s face mere inches away from her. 

“Enforcers are coming down hard on Zaun ever since your little stunt in the lab. You’re lucky that the gangs are all blaming each other for their bosses’ disappearance. Hell, you even lucked out that the turf wars have kept the pigs busy. But you know it won’t last,” Sevika said, her brows knotting together in anger. 

“Where did you put them anyway?” the older woman asked. 

“I don’t knoooow,” Jinx said. “Ask the Boy Savior. I don’t care anymore.”

This set the woman off. She pushed Jinx away, the wheels on her chair spinning her across the room. 

“You were raised by Vander and Silco but you’re nothing like them,” Sevika said. “And yet, it’s your face that people are painting on walls. People are calling themselves Jinxers and painting their hair blue because you did what Vander and Silco couldn’t. You actually did it,” Sevika said. 

Jinx looked away. “I’m not that person. And I’m not a fucking hero, either,” she said. 

Sevika sighed, turning her heel. “They don’t need a hero. Vander was a diplomat and Silco was a kingpin. They need you: someone who can take action and show them all what we’re made of, ” she said. 

“We’ll show them. We will show them all.” 

Jinx turned to look at her but the older woman was already headed out. Isha looked at Jinx with a sad smile, letting her know that she was still expecting her there. She waited until she heard the exit close before groaning. 

She never wanted to be a symbol or hero or whatever. That was Silco’s dream. She had spent countless hours listening to his speeches about respect and power but Jinx wanted neither. 

Of course Zaun would call her their symbol: everyone here was batshit crazy, she thought. 

“You’re still perfect,” he whispered in her ear. 

“Stop. Saying. That,” she said, standing up to face him. Silco stood as he always did: with the pride and dignity of a king. 

But kings have the choice of benevolence. After all, power was given to them by virtue of birth and blood. The real kings were the fat cats in Piltover. 

No, for Silco to gain even an ounce of power, he had to be cruel in every way possible. 

He could have had it all if it was not for her. 

“Someone who was perfect , wouldn’t fuck up as much as me, okay?” she said, her voice starting to rise. “Someone, who was perfect, wouldn’t kill every goddamn thing she touches!” 

“Oh, but I am not dead,” Silco whispered as he looked at her. “With Zaun rising, I’m more alive than ever.”  

Jinx huffed as she sat back. She stared at the high ceiling as she leaned back on her chair. She raised her finger gun, pointing towards the sky. In her mind, she fired a shot with no clear target. 

“Was it you?” Viktor heard Ekko as he approached him, the clanking of junk and trash growing louder with each step. 

Viktor used his cane to poke through some of the materials in the scrapyard, his third arm tossing usable items into the wheelbarrow he made. He was scouring for more metals and parts he could use for other projects; Scar had taught him the best places to look for scrap when they were designing the filtration machine.

There were many ways that the Undercity could be changed for the better, Viktor decided. Donning a cloak, he began practicing to walk on his new leg along the Lanes, where he would observe things that were defective; things that could be better. For one, the Undercity could have an automatic cleaning machine of sorts. Or perhaps something that could combat The Grey. 

“Hello Ekko,” he greeted as he looked over a broken carburetor in his hand. “I am surprised to see you here.” 

“I asked you a question,” Ekko said. 

Viktor raised a brow. The boy meant business, it seemed. “I’m afraid I do not know what you mean.” 

“Did you tell Jinx to capture the chembarons?” Ekko asked. 

“She did what? ” Viktor asked, his mind already trying to figure out how she could have done it in a span of one week. “Absolutely not. I have no idea what this is about.” 

The third arm whirred as the two spoke, continuing the task of looking for metal. 

Ekko knitted his brows, staring at Viktor and the arm with a strange mix of anger and confusion. 

Jinx’s ability to surprise people was not just limited to Viktor, it seemed. But something else seemed to be bothering the boy. 

“Would you like to talk about it?” Viktor asked. 

Ekko seemed intent to say no at first, but his shoulders sagged and he sighed, recounting Jinx’s “surprise” to the older man. 

Viktor was touched that Jinx deeply appreciated Ekko’s help to save his life, so much so that she committed another felony. He was concerned as well, of course, but he was getting used to Jinx’s whims. 

Ekko explained that the Fireflies had temporarily imprisoned the chembarons but he has not decided what to do with them yet. 

“Sevika’s going to hold a rally at Vander’s statue later to try to get folks together now that the chembarons are gone," Ekko said.

“Will you go?” Viktor asked. 

“Scar told me to lay low first. He and a few others are going though. Zaunites aren't snitches but we could never be sure how desperate people could get down here,” he said.

Viktor nodded. If trenchers knew one thing, it was that trusting each other was better than trusting a topsider. 

“Zaun’s just too… fragmented. We’re too busy fighting over scraps all the time,” Ekko said.

“We don’t see the high table where the scraps are tossed from,” Viktor said. “There’s plenty to go around. Medarda’s money alone is already enough to feed all of Zaun for years.” 

“You got that right. A lot of Firelights are already floating the possibility of… stealing from Piltover. We’re still building the filtration machine but there’s just too many people to feed back at base,” Ekko said.

“And what do you think?” 

Ekko closed his eyes. “The last time I helped out with a heist, it ended in a disaster. Ain't happening.” 

Viktor shrugged, remembering the glittering gold Pilties adorned themselves with. In the few galas he attended with Jayce, he often wondered how anyone could be so obscenely rich that they would waste so much money to decorate themselves with treasures. All while people beneath their feet starved. Selling a single necklace could already feed a family.  “I don’t find the idea unappealing. If ever you need help, you know where to find me.” 

Ekko looked at him, raising an eyebrow. “You’re not too bad, metal man. But stealing won’t solve anything in the long run.”

"That is true. But your people have very real needs in the moment. Planning in the long run won't be possible if you're starving right now," Viktor said.

The two fell silent, allowing the truth to settle them: their home city was a violent and messy place, and no amount of money could fix it overnight. And yet, when can any sort of mending begin anyway?  

“Do you think Zaun could change?” Ekko asked. 

“The only thing humans are always certain to do is to change,” Viktor replied.  

Evolution. All things must keep changing to keep existing. 

“But what about people like her ?” Ekko asked. 

Viktor smiled sadly, knowing what Ekko meant. He recalled memories that were not his. In them, he saw a bright-eyed boy with white hair who was always by Powder’s side. It was not too far off from his own memories of tailing Jayce all the time, following him right to his own death that day in the Council Room. 

“Something else weighs on you” he said as he started walking. He motioned for Ekko to walk with him. 

Ekko looked down. “She used to be my friend when we were kids, then she… she turned into…” he trailed off, uncertain of what to say next. 

“Turned into?” Viktor prompted.

“I… don’t really know,” Ekko said. 

“Perhaps that’s the problem. You don’t really know who she is right now,” the older man said. 

“Can you blame me? She almost killed me!” Ekko said. 

“And yet, you still went back and saved our lives,” Viktor said. “I never did get to thank you properly for that. We would not have made it out alive.” 

Ekko shrugged. “Consider it as payback for the filtration machine. Besides, I had a gut feeling that something was off. My instincts are usually right.” 

“And what does your gut say about Jinx?” he asked. 

Ekko stared ahead, saying nothing at first. “I don’t know. Seems like I’m always wrong about her. There was a moment where I could have… ended her. I had a chance to prevent that damn explosion.” 

Viktor stared ahead as the memory of the explosion came to him, the heat on his skin and the deafening blast slowly becoming less vivid in his mind. 

"There is little use to play that game with yourself, Ekko. You should not take blame that is not yours," Viktor said. 

The boy nodded, considering this. 

“I just think… I’m gonna find it hard to get to know someone who doesn’t know herself,” Ekko said. 

Viktor hummed in agreement. The boy was indeed wise beyond his years. The two walked in comfortable silence for a bit, with Ekko picking out parts that Viktor could use. 

“If it’s any help, the man I love almost got me killed a few times,” Viktor offered, half a joke, half an attempt to comfort Ekko. 

Ekko merely rolled his eyes, but then he cracked a mischievous smile upon realizing something.

“Present tense ‘love’, huh?” 

Viktor stilled. He questioned himself if he still loved the man, already knowing the answer. He began to doubt, for the briefest second, if there were some things that were impossible to change: like how gravity inevitably pulls everything back to earth or how, inexplicably, he still loved the man who had broken his heart so many times now.  

Denying that he still loved Jayce was like denying that the earth is round. 

But perhaps, that too, could change. 

Viktor turned to Ekko, ignoring the sudden rush of thoughts about Jayce. The kid was a little too sharp sometimes. “At least I don’t have a girlfriend that kidnaps kingpins as a token of love.” 

“She is not my girlfriend!” Ekko said, his voice slightly higher than it usually is. “Just because I may have had the tiniest crush—” 

“Hang on,” Viktor said suddenly. He sensed…something nearby. 

Something sentient is beneath these rubbles. 

The man ran as fast as he could on a new leg. Ekko followed him instinctively. 

Beneath broken pipes and engines, Viktor saw the glint of gold and knew that it was what he was looking for. 

Still weakened from the lab, Viktor used all three arms to pull away at the scraps. Ekko helped him, sensing the man’s urgency. 

Then he reached them. 

“What the hell is that…” Ekko asked, looking at the creature. 

Viktor did not answer, staring hard at them. He could sense it, somehow. Locked within titanium bolts and copper plates, there was something in there, a potential or a charge of sorts. 

“Ekko, may I have one of the Hextech crystals?” 

Caitlyn stared hard at the empty space on her bed where Vi usually slept. She has not touched her bed since she became commander. The night that Vi went missing. 

“That Undercity rat abandoned you. Good riddance,” Ambessa told her. 

But Caitlyn knew better. 

Even as she stared at Vi’s back when she turned and walked away from her in the Council Room, Caitlyn knew the truth the way she knew how to pull a trigger. 

Vi was captured. 

And there was little doubt as to who did it. Jinx already kidnapped Vi and Caitlyn before. They were fools to think she would not do it again. 

She already had a squadron looking for Vi but Caitlyn has lost count of how many times she yelled at them. When she asked them for a report, they said that they had already scoured all of Piltover. Caitlyn nearly tore her hair out. 

For crying out loud, she already found Vi laying around in a drunken haze on the city streets once! If she was still in Piltover, Caitlyn could have found her within hours. 

Which only meant that she was in Zaun. 

But the Undercity was still in chaos. The chembaron’s turf wars seemed to have fallen to more violence and every enforcer sent to the trenches always ran into trouble with goons. There was not enough manpower to look for Vi in the Undercity. 

“I’m going down there to look for her myself!” Caitlyn yelled.

“Commander, your people need you here,” Ambessa said, resolute to keep her topside. “You have my soldiers at your disposal. They may look for her in Zaun,” the Noxian said. 

“No! They know nothing about the trenches. It could only escalate the violence,” Caitlyn replied. 

Caitlyn stilled, fingers digging into the palm of her hands as her knuckles turned white. 

That was before Jinx attacked them again, with Viktor and Ekko in toe. 

Viktor’s empty eyes flashed in her mind. He turned himself into a monster now. 

She had no chance against that thing if she did not have her Hextech sniper gun. But Jayce would never make her another one, especially not after the way he defended that monstrous traitor. She could not bear to look at the man right now. He was safer at home right now so he could think .

First, Mel went missing. Now, it was Violet. All of this felt deliberate to Caitlyn. 

Her mother would know what to do, she thought. But her mother was dead and gone, and if she did not act soon, so will Mel and Vi. 

All her roads lead back to Zaun. 

The doorbell rang and she already knew that Ambessa would be waiting for her. 

She tore her gaze away from the bed and had one of the house servants let Ambessa in.

Caitlyn went down the stairs, Ambessa already waiting for her in the living room. The Noxian looked even larger in her house. Besides her was another male Noxian soldier, one that, Caitlyn assumed, replaced Rictus after Viktor killed him in the lab. 

“Commander Kiramman. We have information that there is a gathering of insurgents in the Undercity later in the afternoon,” Ambessa said. 

“How did you get this information?” she asked. 

Caitlyn did not miss how the soldier’s fist tensed. Her sharp eyes saw his hands bruised and bloodied and knew there was only one way they could have ended up that way. She saw it: the blood of a faceless Zaunite spilled on the floor. 

“Does it matter?” Ambessa asked, knowing that Caitlyn already had her answer, 

“ Go after the Underground again and I will kill you.”

An image, unbidden, came to Caitlyn’s mind: Vi staring into the eye of that damn third arm as it started charging to shoot again.  

Her own life, Caitlyn could not care less about. But Vi’s? 

Could Caitlyn stand above another casket? The image of red and white rose petals adorning Vi’s corpse sprang to her mind and Caitlyn felt herself begin to spiral. 

“No,” Caitlyn finally choked out. “Send a squad. But make sure no one gets hurt.” 

“It's no secret we got history. Blood spilt on all sides,” Sevika said, eyeing the crowd from Vander’s statue. It was a good mix of all the groups in the Lanes. She recognized a good number of them. Some of them were goons she had fought alongside with and some she had to teach a lesson or two. 

The word had spread through the code and word of mouth. Rumors of Jinx making an appearance were enough to draw in a crowd.  

“But we grew up on the same streets. Ate the same scraps. Like it or not, we're in this mess together,” she said. 

She scanned the crowd. Isha stood with the Jinxers. She also spotted Scar and other Firelights. Part of her wished Ekko would make an appearance too but the boy was probably told not to come after his face was finally exposed to topside. 

Her eyes caught on a bald man. Singed, she realized. While she has already met the man a few times while working for Silco, it was not familiarity that drew her eyes to him, but a deep sense of unease. 

“Enforcers raiding our homes,” she continued, choosing to ignore Singed. “Noxians down our throats. Innocents getting carted off to Stillwater. We gotta choose right now whether we're gonna throw in the towel or make a stand together. Not as Firelights or Jinxers or washed-up goons,” she said. 

“As Zaunites,” Sevika finished. 

Murmurs erupted from the crowd as people remained uncertain of what to do. Sevika sighed. She was never one to give speeches — or talk much at all — but she had spoken from her heart. 

Vander and Silco’s dream for Zaun was hers too, after all. People called her a traitor but she had always had one loyalty: the vision of a city free from Piltover. 

“What chance do we have against both Pilties and Noxians?” a woman suddenly yelled. 

“We can’t just lay down and surrender either!” another voice replied. 

“Where’s Jinx?” another shouted. 

“Jinx and Ekko made everything worse!” 

The crowd started yelling and Sevika finally understood why Silco wanted to operate from the shadows. 

Suddenly, Isha sprang from the crowd. The kid clambered on top of Vander’s statue and lit a blue flare. Silence fell upon the crowd as they stared at the blue smoke, as if a veil had been lifted. Sevika was not sure if this was her intention. Perhaps Isha had been trying to signal Jinx one more time. 

Either way, the kid has always been brave, braver than most people here. 

Sevika stared at the blue smoke and thought of Jinx. Was she ready for this? She has always been too caught up in her own head for her own good. 

“You are all under arrest!” a voice yelled with the painfully recognizable tone of an enforcer. 

A Noxian spear tore through Sevika’s mechanical arm and all hell broke loose.

The iron golem’s eyes glowed against the setting sun’s light peeking through Viktor’s shop. Ekko and Viktor waited with bated breaths, staring at the gold-plated giant. 

 Viktor had to use his limited abilities to break down the door and the wall so the large creature could fit, then fix them again after. The counter was also pushed to the side to make space. The afternoon was spent fixing up the poor thing’s inner workings. They were a mess. 

Every scrap Viktor picked up from the yard was reshaped and molded into the golem’s innards. Ekko retrieved an extra crystal from the Firelight base after Viktor told him what the machine's original intention was — and what Viktor saw it could do. He had barely noticed the boy enter the shop when he returned: all three hands were working overtime to fix them. Things went by quicker when Ekko started to help. 

The afternoon went by in a zip and it was starting to get dark. By then, they had done everything they could. Viktor placed the crystal in the golem’s open chest.. He checked for its energy levels. When everything seemed right, the only thing left was to wait. 

A few minutes passed and Viktor was about to give up. 

Give them a moment. 

As if on cue, the giant moved . Sparks flew from its joints, littering his shop with little lights. For the splittest second, he was worried about a fire spreading. Their eyes flickered and glowed as energy coursed through its body. 

Ekko gasped as a rare smile found its way on Viktor’s face. In some ways, it felt like he was in the lab again, on the verge of another breakthrough. 

Life flickered in its eyes, something akin to thought running through their circuits. Slowly, they began to turn their head around, curious of its surroundings. 

Ekko smiled, looking at the creature with a cautious smile. “Congrats, you’re a dad now,” he said.  

Viktor was too busy feeling the thrill of invention to make a retort. There were many moments in his life he could be proud of. The invention of Hextech with Jayce would always take the top spot but he also remembered the joy he felt when he invented the Hexclaw. With the thought of the Hexclaw, he felt the thing swirl, as if in appreciation. 

For this creature, it was different. Viktor collected them from scraps in his own home: where he thought nothing could ever flourish. Yet, there they were. His own creation. 

“So… what’re you gonna name them?” Ekko asked. 

The bell in his shop suddenly rang, breaking the spell Viktor was under. 

“They took them!” Sevika said as she and Jinx tore through the shop, panic and anger written all over their faces. “They took half of Zaun!” she said through breaths as Jinx supported her. 

The joy of creation was replaced with the crushing weight of reality. They need not say more: Viktor and Ekko already knew that the rally had gone wrong and Enforcers came to tear everything down.  

Ekko helped Sevika onto the counter and Viktor saw the Shimmer dripping out of her cloak. 

Her arm was missing. Viktor cursed in his native language and started taking out his tools to make sure the broken mechanical prosthetics did not damage her body. 

Sevika was in a terrible state: multiple fresh bruises littering her face. There was a cut above Sevika’s eye, causing blood to run down her face. With the way she was breathing, Viktor knew she probably broke a few ribs.

“Tell us what happened,” Ekko said, the emergency kit he kept under the floorboards already open as he took out bandages and ointments. 

“It’s those fucking Noxians,” she hissed as Ekko pressed bandages to her cuts. “They’re beasts.” 

“They’ve sent the Noxians past the borders?!” Ekko said, voice rising as he patched up Sevika. “Did they get any Fireflies?” 

“They got Scar and a few others,” she said through gritted teeth. Ekko cursed as he wrapped another bandage around Sevika’s torso. 

Viktor worked to remove the damaged metal shards from Sevika’s shoulders. The broken mechanisms already burrowed into her skin, drawing blood. He could already imagine the spear tearing through her like it did him. 

As he worked, Viktor saw Jinx staring into blank space, fists clenched so tightly that her knuckles were white. 

“Jinx,” he called out calmly. “Are you alright? Are you hurt?” 

She shook her head gingerly. “I-I wasn’t there…” Jinx turned to him, eyes blurry with tears. “They took Isha.” 

Viktor paused and looked at her. Before he could say anything to comfort her, it was Ekko who spoke. 

“We’ll get her back,” he said, resolute. He met Jinx’s eyes without any caution or resentment. “We’ll get them all back.” 

Isha was shoved into one of the jail cells at the back. She ran to the prison bars, slipping her hand in between to give the guard the middle finger as he left. 

To some extent, she was relieved to finally be away from that old creepy guy. Still, she was a bit concerned for him. He seemed to have gotten hurt, with all that blood leaking out of him. 

She could not believe she was caught. That was the one thing that Jinx told her to do: not get caught (like a dummy!)

Isha looked around the jail cell. It was dark and shadowy and as far as she could see, she was alone. 

The cold, dim cell felt familiar… 

Tears sprang to her eyes as memories she wanted to forget came back. 

In her head, she was suddenly in those dirty, narrow mines that they forced her into before she met Jinx. The memory came back so suddenly that she sat down to hug her knees, something akin to a whimper escaping her throat. 

Something shifted in the darkness, as if summoned by Isha’s distress. The girl looked up, wanting to see what it was. 

A moment of silence passed. 

“P-powder?” a woman’s voice croaked. 

From the shadows, a woman with messy pink hair emerged, her eyes looking at Isha as if they had seen a ghost. 

Chapter Text

“Powder?” 

Vi called out for her sister in their shared bedroom. She flicked on the lights to see that it was empty. Dinner was ready but Powder was nowhere to be seen. Vi rolled her eyes. If Mylo said some stupid shit to Powder that upset her again, Vi swore that she was gonna smack some sense into—

“I’m here,” she heard her sister softly say between sniffles. 

Her heart ached at the sound of her sister crying. Vi knelt down, peeking under the bed. Powder was curled up into a little ball, holding her hand. 

“Powder? Are you okay?” 

She sniffled, and Vi wanted so badly to crawl underneath with her but she had already gotten too big to fit. 

“I..I tried to make something that could help us if we got cornered again…” Powder said through sniffles. “I messed up again. It blew up.”

Vi squinted her eyes, trying to see her sister better but it was too dark under the bed. She clambered to turn on the bedside lamp and brought it down to see her sister better. 

“Powder?” 

To her horror, there was a trail of blood leading to where Powder was as she clutched her wounded hand. 

“I-I’m sorry,” her sister whimpered. 

“Powder!” Vi yelled, terrified. 

“P-Powder?” Vi said, squinting at the blue-haired child. She shook off the vestiges of the dream…or memory? She could not tell anymore.  

She gathered her thoughts, realizing fairly quickly that she was not at home back in the Undercity: she was still in prison again. That was her waking world. Someone had snuck up from behind on her after she beat Maddie unconscious. Her uniform was in tatters and she could not remember the last time she ate. 

Nothing new, Vi thought bitterly. Nothing she has not experienced before. 

Except for the little blue-haired child who was holding herself in a little ball in front of her. 

Of course Piltover would not hesitate to imprison a child from the Undercity. 

But god forbid those spoiled topside kids even get a smudge of dirt on them, right? 

Vi approached the child slowly, kneeling in front of her. 

“Sorry about that. I was just a little confused,” she said with a softness she thought she lost a long time ago. 

Looking closely, she realized that blue was not the child’s real hair color. Even without the blue hair though, the kid still reminded her of Powder. From the way her eyes burned with curiosity to the way she would wrinkled her nose because she was trying to hide that she was scared. 

“I’m Vi. What’s your name?” she said. 

The child merely looked at her, not saying anything, only holding herself tighter. 

“Not much of a talker huh?” Vi shrugged. “That’s alright. We have a whole lot of time to get to know each other.” 

She stopped, suddenly registering that the jail cells have gotten a lot noisier. Vi ran to look through the jail bars. 

The other cells were full . Vi quickly realized that these were Zaunites. She was even able to place some of their faces. Many of them were Jinxers yelling at the guards, throwing a whole range of colorful expletives and demanding to be released. 

“You’re dead, Piltigoons!” 

“Fuck you, pigs!” 

“Jinx is coming for us!’ 

Vi’s hands tightened around the jail bars. These were her people. She tried to shake the prison bars for the nth time to no avail. 

God, she had her. Maddie was already unconscious but some asshole snuck up on her and knocked her out. The next thing she knew, she was back in Stillwater. 

“Vi?” a familiar voice called out. 

Vi looked around wildly, spotting Scar in the cell right in front of her. His hands wrapped around the bars, looking at her with apprehension. 

“Scar! What happened?” 

Scar looked like he was about to answer when he saw the uniform she was wearing. His expression further soured. 

“Looks like joining them didn’t do you any good in the end, huh?” 

She looked down at her torn, Enforcer clothes and she felt the shame bubble up from her stomach again. Even when she tried to be like them, she ended up in the same, goddamn place with the rest of the trenches. They kicked her aside and tossed her out like she was nothing. 

“Please… I just need to know what happened. W-where’s Ekko? Is he alright?” she said, remembering the rogue shot that Maddie fired. 

“I’m not telling you a damn thing about the Firelights, especially Ekko. As far as I’m concerned, they probably planted you here to get more intel on us,” Scar said, leaning on the wall of his cell. 

“I’m not! I would never do anything—” 

“Like how you would have never used The Grey on us?” another voice said. Gert, Vi was able to identify. She was in the cell next to Scar’s, but still within Vi’s sight. 

Gert used to be one of the neighborhood kids Vi and her siblings would occasionally run jobs with. Her hair was a startling shade of blue now, just like hers . 

“Hey, we used that to clear the streets—” 

“I was sick for weeks after that! What do you think will happen to people who are already sick?!” Gert shouted back, drawing other Zaunites’ eyes to them. 

“My grandma’s still sick from that gas!” another person from a different cell yelled. Other angry voices started to join, recounting all the horrors that Piltover has hurt them through Enforcers. 

“Those fucking Enforcers planted Shimmer on my dad!” one yelled. 

“They broke my mom’s teeth!” said another.  

“They destroyed my shop!” 

Vi fell silent, remorse pulling her somewhere deeper than the Underground. She felt tears sting her eyes and she started to step back from the bars. She remembered those weeks of scouring the Undercity for Jinx. She was so set to help Caitlyn find Jinx that she just accepted whatever measures they needed to make. 

“Ease up on her,” a familiar voice called out, gentle but firm. Everyone seemed to recognize the voice. They all held a certain respect to it, and they let her speak. 

Vi looked up. It was Babette, emerging from behind Scar. “They carted her off when she was just a kid. Of course she’d be a little confused,” she said. 

“Confused? Was she confused when she put on that uniform?” one of the Zaunites yelled, causing others to shout in agreement. 

Babette merely raised her hand, silencing the crowd once more. 

“She is still one of us,” Babette said, resolute. 

Scar merely rolled his eyes and looked away. Gert kept staring daggers at her until she decided Vi was not worth the effort anymore. 

While Vi still bore the venomous glares of her fellow Zaunites, they had stopped taunting her. Everyone in Zaun had a good story with Babette. Whether it was helping them get out of a really bad loan or hiding runaways from Enforcers. She was always there. 

Babette had always looked out for Vi and her siblings, ever since they were kids. Vi still remembered Babette bringing them some candy when she passed by the Last Drop. 

Those days were long, long gone. Especially now, with all of Zaun hating her for turning her back on them. 

“Am I? Am I still one of you?” Vi said, her voice barely a whisper as she looked down at the pavement. 

Vi was so lost in her thoughts that it took a few moments before she realized that the little girl was tugging at her shirt. 

“My name is Isha,” the girl signed. 

Vi smirked slightly. No wonder the kid was so quiet. She signed her name back, noticing that one of the kid’s arms was a prosthetic. 

“Are we getting out of here soon?” the child said, peaking at the dark parts of the cell, obviously scared. 

Vi breathed hard. She has been here for weeks. She had little hope that Caitlyn actually knew where she was. 

No, not Caitlyn. Commander Kiramman. The memory of her back turned to her as she walked towards Ambessa made her shudder. It has left an indelible mark on her mind. She pushed the image of it away regardless. 

Vi sighed, kneeling down to meet Isha’s eyes again. “I don’t know when we can leave,” Vi said, recounting all the years she spent here. 

“But I’ll protect you all the same, okay?” Vi said. 

Isha looked at her, uncertain. Deciding that it was better than nothing, the girl finally nodded. 

“Stick to the fucking plan this time, okay?” Ekko said, eyeing them both carefully. Jinx and Viktor looked at each other before nodding. 

Ekko did his best to stifle another groan. For the one time he worked a job with Viktor, he did not stick to the plan and it ended in a disaster. Then there was Jinx, who probably believed that plans were very loose guidelines more than anything. 

“I told you, I can still go,” Sevika said as she laid on the counter. 

“Not in the state you are in,” Viktor said calmly. Sevika merely glowered at him, but did not protest as the painkillers sedated her. 

“Yeah, Lefty, we’re gonna be fine,” Jinx said, walking towards the giant mechanical golem. The initial worry she had seemed to have gone away, replaced with a renewed sense of determination. “Run it through me again why can't we use this thingamabob?” 

Viktor walked to the iron golem, who looked at his creator with curious eyes. He placed his metal hand on them, giving Blitzcrank a reassuring pat.  

“Blitzcrank is very new. We don’t know their full capabilities yet. For all we know, they could be a cleaning device, not a fighting machine,” Viktor said. 

“What kind of a dumbass name is Blitzcrank?” Jinx asked. “We should name him Vicky Junior, like his dad!” 

“Absolutely not!” 

Ekko did not fight the groan this time. 

“Can we move ? People are in trouble,” Ekko said suddenly. Jinx gave him another mock salute and he rolled his eyes.  

“Don’t worry, Ekko. I have complete faith in you and Jinx,” Viktor said. 

“I mean it this time. You’re the backup,” Ekko said, reaching into his pocket for the extra watch he kept there. It was smaller than the one he usually used but they were aligned perfectly. He handed the extra to Viktor. 

“Six hours. If we aren’t back in six hours, you come after us,” Ekko said. While Viktor was likely the strongest among the three of them, Ekko saw what he turned to in the heat of a fight. It was not even Viktor in control anymore. 

The older man seemed to understand this completely. He was not eager for a fight either. 

Viktor took the watch and nodded, eyeing Jinx and Ekko. 

“Stay safe on your date, alright?” Viktor said, trying to lighten the mood. 

“Ewwweeeeeeeeee…” Jinx said as Ekko felt his cheeks go hot. Jinx merely rolled her eyes. 

“Another thing, Viktor,” Ekko said. He dug through his satchel and pulled out an Ionian mask; a trinket he had kept from Benzo’s shop. It was a simple, ceramic mask, with the center bisected by a large T-shape and no other decoration. “If you need to come after us, wear this and try to hide your…uhhh… extra arm.” 

Viktor looked at the mask and smiled gently. “I will. Thank you, Ekko.” 

The boy nodded. Jinx made her way back to Viktor, her hands hidden behind her back, hesitating. 

“Come here,” Viktor said, holding an arm out. Jinx threw her arms around him and Ekko looked away again, something brewing in his stomach that he did not want to give a name to. 

“Take care of each other,” Viktor whispered as she pulled away. He looked at both of them, expression turning grim. 

“Now, go. The clock is running,” Viktor said. 

Ekko and Jinx stared as the last of the cable cars filled with prisoners were lifted away. He looked at his watch. Five hours and thirty minutes till their deadline. 

“Shit, we’re too late,” Ekko muttered as they hid behind cargo boxes. The plan was already going awry. They needed to reach them at the liftoff before they got transported to Stillwater. Ekko thought of Scar and his baby waiting for him at home and cursed to himself. He should have gone with them to the rally. To hell with all the wanted posters. 

“We would have made it in time if you didn’t have to go check on your precious Firefucks in your ultra-secret lair,” Jinx muttered. 

“Shut up,” Ekko hissed. “You wouldn’t know what it’s like to need to take care of people.” 

Jinx frowned. “Whatever, Saint Ekko. I don’t see your face in graffiti in Zaun.” 

“I’m not after that shit,” Ekko said. Jinx turned to him, considering this. He looked back at her. Her purple eyes seemed to glow. She never looked at him for long and unease started to creep into his stomach. He had to look away. 

The moment was broken by footsteps coming their way. An Enforcer, they quickly saw. 

“Welp, it looks like we gotta do this the fun way,” Jinx said, leaving Ekko’s side. 

“ Wait —”

“Ha! It's me!” she said as she sprang up. Ekko tensed, grabbing his club. “Your vile villainess. The author of your nightmares. The, uh, dread of your…”

“Who are you?” the Enforcer asked.  

Ekko raised an eyebrow. This was less violent than he thought it would be. 

“It’s me. Jinx,” she said, rolling her eyes. 

For someone who liked to slip through shadows, Jinx seemed to hate not being recognized, Ekko thought. 

“Yeah, never heard that before,” the Enforcer said. 

“You're not gonna haul me in? Claim the prize? Be the big hero?” Jinx said. “You expect me to believe Jinx, the master criminal, wears pants like that?” the Enforcer said. Ekko snickered silently. The girl almost looked cute when she was irate.  

“What's wrong with my pants?” Jinx said, her voice an octave higher. Ekko shook his head as he drew his bat.   

“You look like a half-eaten circus tent,” she said right before Ekko knocked her out from the side of her head. As entertaining as that conversation was, they were running short on time.   

“I am Jinx!” she said. 

“Looks like having your face in graffiti doesn’t mean shit up here,” Ekko said, tucking away his bat. 

Jinx stared daggers at him while she started stripping the Enforcer of their uniform. 

Ekko stifled a laugh as “Enforcer” Jinx loaded her prisoner onto the gondola.

“Shut the fuck up,”  she hissed under the mask.

“You’re just mad that you have circus pants,” he whispered as the lift whirred to life and began to make its way to Stillwater. 

Jinx elbowed him in the ribcage, knocking the air out of him. “You dirty Zaunites better know your place!” she said in a deeper voice. 

The sudden act of aggression earned whoops from other Enforcers in the gondola. Ekko merely glowered at the Enforcers and somehow, even if she was wearing a mask, he knew that Jinx was doing the same. His hands were in cuffs to make their act all the more convincing but it did not lessen his desire to teach these goons a lesson. 

Ekko peered outside the window. The island loomed ahead of them and they should be there in a few minutes. He had hoped he would never have to go here, and he would not even wish this fate to the worst of his enemies. Even Silco. 

Picturing Scar and the other Firelights inside was enough to quell whatever fear he had.  

They made it off the gondola with the other Enforcers. Ekko tried not to pay too much heed to how her small hands grabbed onto his arms the entire time, trying to keep her “prisoner” under control. 

Get it together, Ekko. Those hands tried to kill you. 

“Looks like they got you quick,” the warden said. Ekko’s head snapped towards him. He could not tell what species he was but distrust settled in his gut all the same. The man looked slimy in every conceivable way. 

“How did you get this one?” the warden asked. 

“I gave him a choice between this and a swim in the harbor,” she said. The two laughed and Ekko did everything he could not to roll his eyes. He turned his eyes to the side, just enough to catch a glimpse of her . 

The Noxian war beast, surrounded by her soldiers. 

Jinx must have felt Ekko tense because she looked at where he was looking and saw her. The two looked away as soon as they could but it was too late. Ambessa had locked in on Ekko and was making her way towards him. 

Four hours and twenty-five minutes, Ekko counted in his head. 

No, no, no, no. no .

Jinx’s fingers twitched, aching for her gun: the same gun she had just used to shoot Ambessa and her goons just a few weeks ago. Ekko must have seen her, and he gave her the slightest shake of his head. 

“Cell Block C. Carry on, officer,” the warden suddenly said. 

Jinx gave him a salute and started to take Ekko away, only to nearly run into Ambessa. 

“Officer,” Ambessa started. “Marvelous work getting this rat. We’ll take over from here. I’ll make sure to put in a good word for you to your supervisor.” 

Jinx breathed hard against her mask, her eyes darting between Ekko and Ambessa. Ekko gave her the slightest perception of a nod. She did not understand how, but she understood him. 

Get our people out first. 

Jinx mustered another salute to Ambessa as they carted Ekko away. 

Shit! She needed to hurry. How could Ekko be so calm right now? It took awhile but Jinx was finally able to find the cell block where they kept the Zaunites. After figuring out the panels, she pressed down the final button and all the doors to their cells sprang free. 

She breathed a sigh of relief. Jinx ran to the block entrance as the confused prisoners began walking outside. 

“Here I am, your big fat hero,” she said, finally ditching that stupid mask. 

All of her fans, her Jinxers, looked at her with awe. Jinx fought the urge to roll her eyes. It was Gert who moved first. She raised her hand and Jinx moved instinctively, recoiling. But slowly, she gently placed her hand on Jinx’s shoulders. 

Gert said nothing, but her eyes looked at Jinx with something akin to hope and gratitude. 

She could not remember the last time someone else other than Silco looked at her like that. 

Anger and hatred Jinx was used to, but this felt… strange. Strange but not unwelcome, she decided. More and more people filtered out of their cells, thanking Jinx wordlessly. Even some of the Firelights smiled at her. 

“The armory is down the hall to the left. Two guards. You guys can take them,” Jinx said. “Raid it and take the next gondola out,” she added. 

“What about you?” asked Gert. 

Jinx shrugged. “The Boy Savior needs some saving. We’ll catch the next one out,” she said. Gert and other other Jinxers kept staring at her.  

“Come on people, move your asses!” 

The Jinxers and other Zaunites finally ran, save for one Chirean man. Jinx felt like she had met him before, but her instinct told her that they did not meet under friendly circumstances. She tensed as he neared her. 

“Ekko is in trouble?” he said. 

“Yeah. Are you one of his Firefuck pals?” she said. 

The man rolled his eyes. “Name’s Scar, and yes. I am. Where is he?” 

“I don’t know. But that crazy Noxian lady has him,” Jinx said. 

Scar nodded. “I’ll go get Ekko,” he said as he turned to leave. He paused, looking over his shoulder. “Maybe you’re not too bad, Jinx.” 

She said nothing, staring at him for a moment as he left. 

Weird. This felt weird, she thought. Jinx shook her head. She needed to focus. Where was Isha? 

Another punch. 

This was the third one, Ekko counted. Well, the ones that came after the initial beating at least. Ekko knew how to take a punch. Kids from Zaun learned how to take a beating before they learned how to write. 

The Noxians had bound his arms and legs to a chair in a small interrogation room that has likely seen many other beatings like the one he was enduring now. All Zaunites, probably. 

“You will tell us the whereabouts of your colleagues so that we can end this little squabble,” Ambessa said. The Noxian guard next to her massaged his knuckles, readying another strike. Ekko did not care. He spat out some blood. 

They were getting nothing out of him. 

“We aren’t even from the same city. Who the fuck do you think you are?” Ekko hissed, looking up. 

The Noxian soldier raised his fist, ready to strike again but Ambessa stopped him. She stepped closer to him and leaned down, her face mere inches away from him. 

“I will tell you who I am, little boy,” she whispered. 

“I am a woman from a nation where only the strong have the right to breathe . I am a general who has torn through my enemies with no hesitation and remorse. I am a mother whose daughter was stolen—” 

“And you think we have something to do with it? We don’t give a shit about your daughter,” he said. 

It was true. Zaun could not be asked to care less about any of their lords above in Piltover. To them, they were faceless deities who shuffled power over them like some game. It made no difference to the people down below. The powerful keep themselves in power so that they never have to look down. 

“I know who you are, Ekko. I know you’re one of the few people in Zaun with some semblance of sanity left. So I urge you to see the reason,” Ambessa said. 

“There is nothing reasonable about anything that you’ve done,” Ekko hissed. 

“I’ve only done what is necessary to protect my people,” Ambessa said. 

“How is meddling with Piltover and Zaun protecting Noxians?” Ekko asked. “All you’ve done is kill my people!” 

It was Ambessa’s hand that met his cheek 

“Your people kidnapped my daughter,” Ambessa said.  

“I’m pretty fucking sure we didn’t,” Ekko said, spewing blood out of his mouth. He looked at the war machine as something flickered in her eyes. Did she believe him? No, it did not matter. But something in Ekko’s instincts stirred. 

“But you…” he said before he could stop himself. “You know what happened to her, don’t you? You’re using us.” 

Another smack. 

The alarms rang all of the sudden. For a moment, Ekko thought it was all in his head and that the beatings had finally taken their toll, but he saw Ambessa look up and frown. 

“Keep him here. We can kill him later,” she said as she donned a golden mask. 

Two hours and thirteen minutes. 

Vi shook the railings as hard as she could after she watched the rest of the cells empty out. She and Isha were stuck in the oldest jail cell so it was still manually operated. She heard the sounds of footsteps getting closer. 

“Hey!” Vi yelled 

The footsteps stopped. Then she heard the click of the gun. 

“Shit,” she whispered under her breath. Vi felt around for Isha, grabbing the girl and shielding her against whoever was coming. 

Jinx stepped into view and Vi was certain that she was seeing a ghost this time. 

Time froze for them for a bit. Every unspoken word between them begged to be brought to the light but there were too many of them, buried under layers of grief and regret that neither could even bear to feel.  

She had spent so long trying to look for her sister. First, she searched for Powder. Then, she hunted Jinx down. 

Something was caught in Vi’s throat and she could not speak. For all the time Vi spent searching for Jinx, she never allowed herself to fully think about what she would do if she was to find her. 

Now, it was Jinx who found Vi. 

Before Vi could even fully register what was happening, Isha ran to the rails, desperate to leave. Jinx began to aim her gun. 

“Wait!” Vi yelled, reaching out for Isha. Jinx would not dare hurt a child, would she? 

Before Vi could even touch Isha, the locking mechanism in their jail was shot open. Isha ran into Jinx’s arms. 

Vi found herself unable to move: stuck between wanting to punch her sister or to hug her. 

Jinx on the other hand, seemed completely unaffected by her estranged sister. Her eyes were closed as she held Isha, as if they were happily stuck in a place of their own. 

Something in Vi ached at the familiar image. 

The prison alarms blared to life and the heavy beating of metal broke through the air. The emergency lights switched on, coloring everything red. 

Looks like the guards have caught on their prison break, Vi thought. 

The three of them ran on instinct towards the exit, with Jinx swooping Isha into her arms. 

Then the screaming began, coupled with an inhuman roar.
Something is terribly wrong. 

The three of them paused just short of the exit, trying to search for the source of the threat. Jinx looked at Vi, her eyes flickering to her bare hands.

“You wouldn’t happen to have your fugly, overdesigned gauntlets in that cell, would you?” Jinx said. 

Vi only frowned, shaking her head. 

“Great,” she said sarcastically, loading her gun with a Hextech crystal. 

“Where did you get—” 

“Relax, ham hands. We can settle this later. We gotta get out of here first,” Jinx said, putting Isha in Vi’s arms. “Get her out of here. I’ll give you some time before the guards come.” 

Vi was about to protest when Jinx shoved the two of them past the exit with an inhuman speed and strength that she had never seen before. Her eyes glowed an unnatural shade of purple as she took aim at the control panel and pulled the trigger. 

The gates came crashing down between them. Jinx short-circuited the panel, Vi realized it must have been an emergency shutdown mechanism. 

“For fuck’s sake Powder!” Vi yelled, running to the gate and grabbing the bar with one hand, the other hand carrying Isha. “I’m not leaving you here!” 

Not again.  

The words weighed heavily between the two of them, a world of broken promises and unspoken regrets locked into a few words. 

For all the things she has said and done, Vi still loved her sister, even if the woman was no longer the little girl from her memory. 

But it was her. It has always been her. There was never a separation between Jinx and Powder. They were two sides of the same coin and Vi knew that whatever way it landed, she was still her sister. 

Jinx sighed, looking at Vi as if she was a petulant child. She smiled gently for one moment. 

“Yeah,” Jinx said as she turned away. “You will.” 

Ekko strained against the ropes that bound him to the chair. A deeper, more pervading pain racked through his head as soon as the beatings subsided, and it was getting difficult to breathe. 

Still, Ekko glared at the guard as he started to feel his eyes swelling. 

The Noxian soldier stared back at him, as if daring him to escape. 

Ekko saw the slightest shifting of shadows. 

“Hey war dog!” 

The Noxian said nothing, tightening his grip around his spear, waiting for an excuse to use it. 

“You got seven seconds to walk away before you get hurt,” Ekko said through labored breaths as he twisted against the ropes. He felt the ropes at his leg loosen a bit. 

“Seven… six….five…” Ekko saw the glint of someone’s eyes before the steel pipe smashed into the soldier’s head. Scar stepped into the light as the soldier fell. The soldier groaned and the Firelight brought down the pipe again, silencing him. 

Ekko breathed hard. “Four.” 

“Shit, what did they do to you?” Scar said, rushing to undo Ekko’s ties.

“I’m fine. Thanks for the save. Did everyone get out?” Ekko said as one hand came free. He started undoing his other bonds as well. 

“Yeah, everyone got out thanks to the blue devil. She’s still inside though. Still looking for someone,” Scar said, undoing the final knot. 

“Isha,” Ekko realized, standing up. “Get the Zaunites into the cable cars and go! I need to get them. We’ll get the next carriage out.” 

Scar looked hard at Ekko, as if he was about to protest. But the man knew Ekko well enough to know that it would not matter. The Firelight leader would always put everyone else before him. 

“You better make sure I see you back at base,” Scar said, handing Ekko the pipe. 

Ekko nodded, giving Scar’s shoulder a tight squeeze. 

Something in Ekko's gut told him that bad had gone to worse. Those alarms could have just been for the escaped prisoners but Ekko had a feeling that it was something else.

The two parted ways and Ekko headed towards the prison. 

One hour and five minutes. 

Suddenly, with Vi, she was Powder again. 

Powder, who destroyed everything she touched. 

Powder, who ruined every plan. 

Powder, who killed everyone she loved. 

She closed her eyes as she turned from them. None of that mattered now. 

She was Jinx now. Jinx could actually do something right for once.

The beating of metal and the screams grew louder and she took a deep breath. 

Vi cursed out loud, finally turning around and taking Isha out of the cell. Jinx closed her eyes and pretended not to hear Isha's cries.

Even if she knew that Vi hated her, Jinx did not want to watch her sister leave her again. 

There was growling now, followed by more screams. There was something terrible out there.

Whatever that thing was, Jinx needed to hold it off. 

She could only hope that Ekko could wait until Viktor could come rescue him from Ambessa and whatever… this thing was. 

Jinx walked down the hall of cells when she heard one of the jail cells close. She turned her head towards the noise and saw a familiar man. She squinted her eyes. 

“Singed…” she said as she started making her way to his cell. “What the fuck are you doing here, old man?” 

“Silco’s daughter, in the flesh,” he said. “You might want to run while you can.” 

“Why?” Jinx said. “What is this thing?” 

“A marvel of nature, some would say. But nature’s imagination is hardly as... violent,” he said. 

“What the hell are you saying, you crazy old coot?” Jinx replied. 

Singed approached the jail bars, his eyes steadily gazing into Jinx’s. Suddenly, the girl was grateful that they were separated by the jail cell. “You have recovered marvelously from the treatment. Evolved, even,” he said. 

Jinx’s hand tightened around her gun. Her memories of that day came in nightmarish flashes and snippets. She remembered some of the twisted delusions she had of Vi and Caitlyn. She remembered seeing Singed’s bloody tools cut into her. 

Most of all, Jinx remembered the pain. 

She stepped forward, brows twisting as she was able to make out the trail of blood leading to his cell. Her mind flashed to the twisted experiments she would catch glimpses of when she would run shipments of shimmer for Silco. “ What did you do? ” 

The man simply stared at her, backing away from the jail bars. Was he scared of her? No. He was scared of whatever he created that came to get him. 

Metal screeched as it tore open, stopping Jinx in her tracks.

A beast unlike anything she has ever seen before roared as if it was cursing the world. 

“Shit,” Jinx said as she made aim, readying her bombs. 

The beast charged.

Viktor breathed against the mask as he stared as the Zaunites unloaded onto the harbor. Upon Ekko’s advice, he wore a cloak to conceal his third arm, making him look larger than he was. Scar was doing an excellent job at keeping people organized. 

Viktor had used some of the crystal bombs that the Firelights used to disable any enforcers that guarded the gondola’s controls. He checked the watch. Ekko and Jinx were early. 

But as seconds stretched into minutes, Viktor looked on nervously as the carriage emptied out; he saw neither Jinx nor Ekko. He saw the smallest flash of blue before Isha crashed into him, sobbing. Viktor kneeled down to hug the child immediately, cooing at her to calm her down. The child was losing it. Isha was always tough and seeing her like this terrified Viktor. He pulled back a bit so Isha could see him sign. 

“What happened? Where’s Jinx and Ekko?” he signed. 

“They got left behind. Something bad was chasing Jinx. You need to save her!” she signed back frantically. 

“Are you Isha’s dad?” a woman with pink hair suddenly asked as she approached him.  

“What? No, no,” Viktor said, the idea of having a child to him was as foreign to him as the land of Demacia. He stared at the woman in tattered enforcer clothing and realized who she was from Jinx’s memories. 

“Violet,” Viktor said. 

She frowned, distrustful. The mask had kept her from recognizing him, it seemed. 

“How do you know who I am?” she said, her fists clenching. 

“I am a friend of your sister,” Viktor said, checking the time again. 

Forty-five minutes. 

“Looks like I’ll be a little early,” he muttered, looking at Violet. “Take care of her for a while, will you?” 

Viktor turned, staring at the metal ropes that the gondolas traveled through. Viktor looked through at the cart’s control panel and pulled the lever for the one that takes prisoners in. 

“Are you going to get Jinx?” Vi said, pulling Viktor’s arm. 

“Yes,” Viktor said, pulling his arm away from her. 

“I’m coming with you,” she said, leaving no room for debate. 

“No, you won’t. Your sister just risked her life to save you. I won’t have it be wasted,” Viktor said. 

“Listen, I—” 

Viktor heard the rapid whistling of metal pulling against steel ropes and his third arm moved on instinct, pushing Vi away and giving him a moment to jump back before a broken carriage came barraging down the harbor, destroying the control panel, just a few feet from where they were. Luckily, no one else was nearby. 

Viktor scrambled to gather his bearings and ran to inspect the broken carriage. It was a crumpled heap of metal now after that it crashed into the platform.  

There was no way it could be used now. 

Viktor squinted at the damage and frowned. There was something wrong. These gondolas were working fine mere moments ago. Then he saw it. The carriage’s metal doors had scratch marks. The thing smelled awful too. 

Something horrible is loose in Stillwater.  

Vi appeared by his side, staring at the ruined carriage. 

“Unless you can fly, I suggest you stay here,” Viktor said as he stared at the lake that separated the harbor and the prison. He removed his cloak and his third arm came to life, revealing his lithe body. He donned another one of Silco’s shirts, this time a deep red with golden lapels. It was too flashy for him but it was the one on top of the stack of clothes Jinx gave him. 

Vi looked at the man with a raised eyebrow. 

“What are you gonna do? Don’t tell me that thing is a tiny propeller and you’re about to lift off,” she said, crossing her arms. 

Viktor frowned at her, although he considered the suggestion for one wild moment as a possible modification in the future—if they survived. He wordlessly climbed atop the broken cable car and his third arm fired a beam into the joints connecting the wagon, severing it. Viktor looked at the claw and sighed. 

“Don’t you dare fail on me now,” he said as the claw connected onto the iron grip. Viktor took a deep breath and leaped. 

The beast chased Jinx down the hall. She looked back as she ran, firing one shot after the other. 

The thing was not going down. It did not matter how many shots Jinx got in. It was like the thing was indestructible. The only thing Jinx could do was run.  

She could hardly register the dead enforcers that littered the floor and the blood that painted the walls. They were playing tag and Jinx was it; there was no time to hesitate. She saw a pillar, and climbed it. The beast tried to stop but its momentum pushed it forward, letting Jinx throw a bomb at it from the top of the pillar. 

She slid down the post, running fast enough to hide behind a wall just as the grenade went off.

Jinx breathed hard; her lungs felt like they were on fire. 

For a moment, silence. Jinx peered from behind the wall. The cavernous hall had turned into rubble and she could barely see anything. 

Was it finally fucking dead?  

“Jinx!” she heard Ekko yell. 

She looked up, looking for his voice. The Boy Savior emerged from one of the connecting hallways and Jinx breathed a sigh of relief. He was safe. For one moment, Jinx felt the knot in her stomach go away because Ekko was alive. 

The girl paused for a moment too long, as the beast leapt through the ruins and took her as it ran. 

“NO!” Ekko screamed. 

When he arrived at the platform, Viktor found himself staring at a massacre. 

Noxian soldiers and enforcers alike were dead at his feet. Something tore through them like they were mere puppets. 

A monster was here. Not a monster like Viktor. Whatever it was, it was strong enough to tear men into two. 

He spotted the golden decorations afforded only to a general and for a moment, he felt a sense of sick enjoyment. Was the war machine dead? Viktor made his way to her and kneeled down to feel a pulse. 

Ambessa was injured but sadly, still alive. 

His third arm raised itself, charging, ready to end her.

This will only earn you more ire. Let the beast take responsibility for this mess. 

As if on cue, the roars of the beast suddenly rang across the yard. 

He wanted to. So, so badly. But it was as if the claw had a mind of its own and it would not obey him. He looked at the watch; there was no time. He needed to get to them.

Viktor ran. 

Jinx was slammed onto the walls by the beast’s giant’s claws. She yelled as she struggled against the vice grip but it was no use. Jinx breathed hard: she was out of grenades and the stupid thing had both her hands pinned in a single claw. 

Death was coming for her, it seemed. 

The voices in her head had all fallen silent for once. Maybe they knew she was about to join them. A few months ago, Jinx would have welcomed her end with open arms. She would even ask death what took her so long. 

Now that the end was near however, Jinx could not help but be a little greedy and wish for some more time. 

Isha’s face came to mind. 

And Vi’s. 

And Viktor’s. 

And Sevika’s. 

And then Ekko’s.  

Jinx closed her eyes as she felt the beast’s hot breath on her face. She readied herself for sharp teeth and claws to tear her apart. A few moments passed however, and they did not come. 

“P-pooowdeeeeeer…” the beast moaned. 

Jinx's eyes flew open at the voice. She must have imagined it, but it sounded so much like him. There were too many details about the voice that told her it was real. The struggle to form a single word, the uneven timbre of his voice. It sounded scratched and heavy but it was him. She looked him in his eyes and it felt like coming home. It was him. He was different but it was him. It was his eyes. 

Tears sprang to her eyes and she relived every moment of joy and pain with him. 

“Vander…” she said. 

A beam of light hit the beast’s hand and he let her go. 

“NO!” she screamed. 

The beast roared and she tried to go after him but she felt someone grab her arm.  

“Jinx! We need to go!” Ekko yelled as he locked her in an iron grip. 

“No, no, no, you don’t understand! It’s him!” she yelled. Ekko stared at her as if she lost her head. 

The beast roared as his hand recovered from Viktor’s beam. Viktor’s eyes were trained on the beast as his third arm charged another beam, ready to end him. Vander started running on all fours. Jinx pushed Ekko aside with a strength she did not know she had and ran to Viktor, tackling him and taking him out of the beast’s path. The beam was still unleashed but it hit the ceiling instead, breaking the lights and causing them to flicker violently. 

“Jinx!” Viktor struggled as she pinned him down. 

“Don’t shoot!” she yelled, her eyes glowing, ignited by the Shimmer running through her veins. “Please! I know him! We need to help him.”

Viktor stared at her incredulously. He had little time to reply as Vander roared, ready to charge again. 

“JINX!” Ekko yelled as he climbed onto Vander’s back and held his head back with a steel pipe. 

“Ekko it’s him! It’s Vander!” she yelled. 

“ARE YOU CRAZY?!” he yelled. Vander roared and threw Ekko off his back. He fell to the ground and groaned. 

“I’m sorry Jinx,” Viktor said, standing in front of her and raising his third arm again. The creature saw Viktor readying to hurt him again and it roared, baring his teeth. 

“No!” she said, grabbing Viktor's face and turning it down to meet her eyes. “Please…trust me.” 

Vander growled and ran, his claws still healing itself from the blast. Viktor's eyes flickered between her and the beast. His typically passive face was now deep in thought and panic. He closed his eyes and the third arm powered down. 

Jinx smiled and took a deep breath. She walked a few steps forward and stood her ground as Vander charged. 

Chapter Text

Viktor stared at the scene in front of him as he sat on the ground. The creature was too large for The Last Drop and Blitzcrank already filled up half the space in his shop so there they were, in a clearing in the middle of a junkyard. 

Escaping had drained him and he had little energy left. It took all of Viktor’s powers to maneuver a cable cart for all four of them to escape Stillwater. All the while, the beast stared warrily at him after their battle. Jinx seemed not to notice, holding onto the creature’s arm as they moved. 

It was nothing short of a miracle. Viktor was not sure if he still had a heart but if he did, it would have leapt out of his chest with how terrified he was of that creature hurting Jinx. 

The flickering lights still flashed in his mind. One moment, the beast raged against them as it charged. The next, it stared at Jinx as if a veil had been lifted from its eyes. 

Now, in the junkyard, the beast sat placidly on the ground as Jinx spoke to it excitedly. 

“Okay, but do you remember the time Ekko smashed into The Last Drop with his monowheel?” Jinx said. 

The beast—Vander—merely grumbled, looking at the boy. 

“I don’t think that’s an emotional memory for him unless you count him being annoyed,” Ekko said. Ekko stared back at Vander, still not fully believing it was him. The beast stared back, sniffing Ekko. 

“Ehhhhh…..kohh…….” he groaned. 

The boy took a sharp intake of breath and his eyes shone with tears. 

“What did they do to you, Vander?” he whispered as he touched the beast’s arm. 

Viktor had the same exact question. There was metal embedded into the creature's claws, and large glass tubes with green liquid were stuck to his back. He was a mutation, and Viktor had a feeling he knew who was behind this. 

“You look ugly, Boy Savior. You sure you don’t need a nurse?” Jinx asked as she stroked Vander’s mane. 

Viktor walked gently towards them, careful not to alarm the beast. 

“She’s right, Ekko,” Viktor said. The beast growled as Viktor neared. He raised his hands gently, hopefully it conveyed that he meant no harm. The beast sniffed and looked down. The man turned to Ekko warily. 

“Do you need assistance?” Viktor asked. 

Ekko shook his head and sighed. “I’m gonna head back to base.  Are you guys gonna be alright?” 

Jinx kept her eyes on Vander and nodded. “Yeah, we will,” she said, slowly turning towards Ekko. Something heavy and unspoken laid heavy between the two of them but neither could begin to understand what it was. Viktor could only avert his gaze.  

“Thanks for saving everyone’s butts, Owl face,” she whispered. 

“Owl face? That’s new,” he said with a slight chuckle. 

There was no laughter in return, only a heavy hearted gaze. 

“Take care, okay?” she said. 

Ekko paused, unsure of how to reply. He always had a steady stream of responses for any one of her quick-witted insults but this was different. Silence passed laden between the two teenagers and for the first time, the boy seemed almost nervous. 

Young love was certainly something. 

The day had already started to break. All of them had been awake the whole night and it was starting to weigh on them. The exhaustion on Ekko and Jinx’s faces were apparent. Ekko, even more so. The poor boy looked like he was dragged through hell. 

Viktor gently placed a hand on Ekko’s shoulders. “You did good, Ekko. Now go get some rest,” he said. 

Ekko’s shoulders sagged and he tossed them both a lazy salute before turning away and leaving. 

The poor thing was too tired to even speak. 

Viktor turned to Jinx. With all the excitement of the night, they hardly had the time to catch up.
“I met your sister on her way out,” Viktor finally said. 

Jinx stilled as she was caressing Vander’s face. “Yeah… I figured. Do you know where she went?” 

“Scar said she took Isha to The Last Drop. I think she’s waiting for you,” Viktor said. He had tried to look for them when they almost crashed onto the harbor again but Scar already told every Zaunite to clear out before any backup came. 

Jinx sighed. “She should know about this too, huh?” she said as she turned to Viktor. “‘Hey sis! Our dad is a dog now! But look! He’s alive!’” Jinx said mockingly. Her hands traveled gently down the creature’s fur and they lingered at the rough patches of skin. Vander was riddled with scars, signs of unimaginable torture. 

“It was a guy called Singed,” Jinx whispered, as if following Viktor’s thoughts. 

“I…know who he is,” Viktor said quietly. 

Her eyes broke away from Vander for a moment, sensing the weight behind Viktor’s response. She waited if he was going to tell her more but he did not. The girl nodded silently, not pushing him to share. For all her curiosity, Jinx was starting to learn when to let certain things be when it came to Viktor. 

“He was there, in the prison, waiting for Vander,” she said.

The mutation must survive. 

Viktor balled his hands into fists and sighed. It came to no surprise to him that his old master would do this to someone. 

Jinx pressed her forehead gently onto the beast’s arm. “Can you… help me fix him?” 

Yes, we can. 

“Jinx,” he said gently. “I am not a physician. My background is in techmaturgy yes, but I can hardly be called an expert in biotech.” 

Viktor could still recall how he mutilated his own body as he experimented with the Hexcore. If he recalled his old lessons correctly, he had broken quite a number of rules in both the biotech and pharmatech fields. But that was his own body; if he died, it would have been on him. 

Having the life of his friend’s father in his hands was too much. 

“Please…” she said as tears sprung to her eyes. “It’s my fault he’s like this,” Jinx whispered. 

“No, no, do not do this to yourself,” Viktor said. “I know Singed. He likes playing god when it comes to other people’s lives.” 

“But Singed wouldn’t have gotten Vander if—”

“Jinx,” Viktor said firmly. “Your unkindness to yourself will only bring more suffering. You are stuck in a past that can no longer be changed. Your father needs you now .” 

The beast finally seemed to take a gentler recognition of Viktor as he stared at the man, as if he understood him. Jinx stared at her feet as she leaned on Vander. 

We can help them. 

Viktor stilled. Something inside of him stirred, distrusting of the Hexcore. Before he could think about it, Viktor gently raised his hand and gently pressed it on Vander’s forehead. 

He could sense the metal embedded into the creature’s body. It was practically melded into his bones and claws. The fluid injected into him kept him alive—but also put him under a tremendous amount of pain. 

The beast’s entire existence was embedded in agony. 

“I will do what I can for your father. But I make no promises,” he said. 

Jinx threw her arms around Viktor. “Thank you…” she whispered. 

“Would you like me to come with you when you talk to Vi?” Viktor asked. 

Jinx shook her head as they parted. “No, I should talk to her alone. Can you uhm…” she glanced at Vander. “Watch him while I get her?” 

Viktor and Vander made eye contact and he looked away immediately.

What a strange pair. 

When Vi went to The Last Drop looking for Powder all those months ago, she hated what Silco did to it. What used to be a place for community was transformed to a club for profit filled with goons and addicts. 

Now, the bar was void of any life. It was completely abandoned, likely since Silco died.

Isha led Vi down to the counter and the two sat down. 

She sighed, looking down at her tattered clothing. Vi stripped off the blue jacket and tossed it to the side, leaving her in a dirty, white, tank top. She had weeks in that prison to think about what happened to her but she was no closer to figuring anything out. 

She watched Isha get bored and jump down the bar stool to go around. 

Vi’s first instinct was to go back to Caitlyn but the rational side of her reasoned that she might have actually known where Vi was this whole time and did nothing. If she stayed here in Zaun, then she would live in a city that hated her for her betrayal. 

Vi felt hopelessly alone. She stared at the empty shelves and cursed. Maybe Silco had a stash somewhere. 

The sound of a crash broke Vi from her gloomy thoughts and she looked up to see Isha knocking over a stack of tables and chairs. Surmising that she must have bumped into them in the bar’s dim lighting, Vii moved silently to check on the child, helping her up. Apart from a slight bruising on her arm, she was fine. Isha yawned and rubbed her eyes. Vi smirked. 

“Time for bed, kid,” she said. For all her energy, Isha was still a child. Vi picked her up with ease and looked around, finding a booth with decent cushions. 

Isha was already asleep when Vi settled her down, gently placing her head on her lap. She gently tucked Isha’s unkempt hair behind her ear and sighed. 

“Can’t help it, huh?” Jinx whispered in her ear. 

Vi sighed. Thinking about how she felt about her sister was already enough to send Vi in a drinking binge. 

She slid across the bench across Vi. 

The silence stretched between the two heavily. 

It was painfully awkward. 

Jinx, despite all her quirks, also looked uncomfortable. 

Vi had been set: Jinx was evil. Vi was the one who held Caitlyn every night as she cried over her mother. The heartache Caitlyn had was enough to last several lifetimes. 

What made it worse was that Jinx stole her sister’s face. She wore it as a mask as she destroyed everything. 

But then Vi looked down at Isha sleeping soundly on her lap. She gently tucked a loose lock of blue hair behind Isha’s ear. 

“Still thinking if you should kill me or not?” Jinx said. 

Vi balled her hands into fists. 

“Why did you do it?” she finally said. It was the only thing she has thought of for the past few months. The one question she never had an answer for, no matter how hard she looked. 

“Because I’m an evil Jinx ,” she said mockingly with a smirk. “Is that what you wanna hear?” 

“Pow—” 

“Don’t,” Jinx said tightly, her mood immediately souring. She looked at her hands. 

“I had nothing left to lose,” Jinx whispered. 

Vi took a sharp breath. 

The tea party flashed in her mind and Vi could recall the grief on Jinx’s face when she accidentally killed Silco. The way she looked at Vi after. 

I thought maybe you could love me like you used to, even though I'm different, but you changed too.

The two said nothing again for a while. How come Vi had thought about nothing but capturing Jinx for the past few months but now that she was here, Vi could hardly even form a coherent thought? 

It was this moment that told Vi that she knew absolutely nothing about this girl in front of her. She used to be Powder, yes. But after all her years in prison, followed by her months as an Enforcer, she knew nothing about Jinx. 

Jinx, or Powder, had spent half her life away from Vi. 

They were sisters by blood but that was where it ended. 

They were strangers . 

All the anger and bitter resentment that had festered inside of her just made her so, damn, tired. Vi thought of everything that could have been and everyone she lost. The weight of loss only grew. 

Vi had no energy left to carry anyone else’s grief but her own. 

“You were right,” Vi finally whispered shakily. “I can’t love you like I used to.” 

Jinx looked down, her eyes quickly getting wet. 

“But that doesn’t mean I don’t love you at all,” Vi said quietly. 

It was true, Vi realized as she said it. She could not find it in herself to keep hating her sister. 

Jinx looked at her, tears flowing freely from her eyes. Vi also felt her own eyes start to water. Neither of them moved, allowing the moment to sit with them. A silent understanding passed between the two sisters: things would never be the same between them. Every happy moment from their childhood would remain in the past, but that did not mean that they were lost. They could never hope to replicate them, but they could have more moments together now: good and bad. 

Jinx wiped away her tears quickly, as if suddenly remembering herself. 

“Y-you should know something,” she said quickly. 

As if on cue, there was a loud crash at the bar. Isha woke up with a start and looked up with tired eyes, curious. For a fleeting moment, it reminded Vi of the time Ekko broke through The Last Drop’s walls with his monowheel. But there was no time for reminiscing as Vi feared another attack. 

When the debris settled and dust cleared, a hulking beast that resembled a wolf stood in the middle of the bar and Vi immediately moved in front of Jinx and Isha. 

“Sorry!” The long-haired man with the third arm came stumbling through the hole that the creature made. It seemed like he was chasing the thing.

“Viktor! I told you to watch him!” Jinx yelled from behind Vi. 

What the fuck ?

“I could hardly do anything if he suddenly decided to bolt away. He caught your scent and followed you here,” Viktor said, eyes finally registering that Vi was right there. “Ah, I am interrupting. Carry on. I shall leave him here. Have a good heart to heart.”

The man—Viktor—promptly left through the giant hole that the creature made, with his arms neatly tucked behind him. 

Jinx rolled her eyes as if a monster accompanied by a metal man had not just crashed into their bar. Sensing Vi’s thoughts, Jinx looked at her. 

“So… funny story—” Before Jinx could even finish her sentence, the beast lugged towards them, as if catching their scent. Vi recoiled, raising her bare fists but Jinx held her arm gently. 

“Look at his eyes,” Jinx whispered. 

“ What ?” Vi shook her head, finally lowering her arms when she realized that the creature was not attacking. 

Hesitating, Vi looked up, meeting the creature’s eyes and stopping dead in her tracks. 

He was… familiar. It felt like she had dreamed, desperately, of staring into those eyes again. 

You've got a good heart. Don't ever lose it, no matter how the world tries to break you.

No. 

It was impossible. 

She had been over this so many times. He was gone . She could still remember all the nights she spent, curled up on the damp floors of Stillwater as she silently cried, forcing herself to accept that he was gone and that he could not rescue her. 

But if she could suddenly accept that she still loved Jinx, then Vi could accept that he was still alive. 

“Vander…” she choked out. 

Vi did not know who moved first. Before she knew it, she was in his arms and Vi was nothing but a babbling mess of a child again. She buried her face in his chest and Vi could think of nothing else but every moment she lost. 

And every moment she could still have. 

Vi peered at Jinx and silently held out her hand. “What are you waiting for?” she whispered. 

Her sister whimpered as she finally ran into their arms. She felt a pair of small arms try to wrap around them as well when Isha joined their embrace. 

For the first time in years, Vi felt like she was home.

Caitlyn walked through the massacre. Enforcers were working to pile bodies together and she fought every urge to vomit. Cadavers were being dragged and stacked on wagons as if they were no longer human. The scent of iron permeated the air and dread q

She was no stranger to death, but death at this scale was unlike anything she has ever seen before. 

She had already read the reports of what happened. On the way to Stillwater, Ambessa had already told her of the beast. But now she was here: the smell of blood filled her nostrils and she could hear the thud of bodies being stacked on top of each other. 

“It was unlike anything I have ever seen before. The Zaunites grow bolder,” the general said evenly next to her. Ambessa’s arm was in a sling after fighting the creature. 

“How are we sure that Zaun was behind this?” Caitlyn replied evenly, trying to appear unaffected. 

“Because we found the man that the beast came for,” Ambessa said. 

Caitlyn was led down the deeper parts of the prison, the ones that never see the light of day. The air grew heavier and more stale as they descended. As they descended the stairs, Caitlyn’s mind started to wander, and her thoughts found her way back to Vi.

The image of Vi being one of the bodies being piled on the carts struck Caitlyn like a gutpunch. 

Caitlyn stilled: could Vi have been in Stillwater?  

Suddenly, it made too much sense. Vi would have found a way to escape Zaun if she was there, and Caitlyn already dismissed the possibility of her being somewhere in Piltover. 

But how would she have ever ended up in Stillwater again? 

“Commander?” Ambessa said. Caitlyn realized that she had stopped mid-step. 

“Y-yes. Let us carry on,” Caitlyn said, staring at Ambessa. 

Something roared in Caitlyn’s instincts, the same gut feeling she had when she started investigating the Progress Day attack. 

Ambessa glared at her, as if she could read Caitlyn’s mind like a neon sign in the dark. However, she said nothing.

They arrived at the interrogation room. One frail, old man sat in the middle, shackled to his chair. A single glance from him was enough to send shivers down Caitlyn’s spine. 

It was not all his scars, per se. Caitlyn had seen enough to know that scars can rarely tell the entire sum of a person. 

It was the man’s predatory glare that made the alarms go off in Caitlyn’s head. 

“They call him Singed,” Ambessa said. 

The sun was already out by the time Ekko woke up, a rare occurrence. He cursed silently.  The boy was usually able to do with just a few hours of sleep, but the prison break had taken its toll on him. Ekko tried to get up but pain seized his body immediately. They had wrapped his torso in a bandage and he figured it must be for his cracked ribs. 

He looked at his pocket watch to see that it was already well past noon. 

“Shit,” he said. He sighed, feeling the cool ointment on his face to ease the bruising. Someone must have put it on him while he was asleep. 

He was really out of it. 

Ekko forced himself up, hissing through the ache. He quickly realized that he was not in his own chambers. It was the makeshift medical bay tent they had set up for newcomers. 

“Ekko! You’re awake! My boy, you should really keep resting.”

Heimerdinger walked to him carefully. 

“Professor?” Ekko had not seen the Piltovan in awhile. Aside from being knee-deep in building the filtration machine, Heimerdinger seemed to keep to himself more often since things have soured between Piltover and Zaun. 

“I’m here, Ekko. You were in a very bad state last night. How are you feeling?” 

“Like I fell twenty feet from the air,” Ekko muttered. It was not too far from the truth: Vander did throw him to the ground hard. 

Still, he could not help but smile: Vander was alive. 

And as far as Scar could tell him last night, no Zaunite had been left behind. Everyone was accounted for and then some. Still, Ekko figured he should double check. 

“I should go check on the Firelights who were captured,” Ekko said. 

“Ekko! You were tortured. Please, lay back down,” Heimerdinger said.  

“I—ahhh fuck, okay,” he said. The adrenaline from yesterday had worn off and he was left to deal with his pain. Ekko looked around him. There were around twelve beds. There were only two other beds occupied, one by an old man and the other was a boy who seemed to have sprained his ankle. 

Then there was Ekko. 

“It was the Noxian who did this to you, yes?” Heimerdinger said. His typically jolly exterior was replaced with that of grave concern. It was this face that reminded Ekko that the professor was a couple of centuries old: he had seen the rise and fall of societies. 

“Yeah,” Ekko said. “What do you know about her?” 

“The Medarda House is a relatively young clan in Noxus, and a very thin bloodline at that. Nonetheless, it had established itself as an integral force in the fractured empire. Ambessa is as ruthless as she is cunning,” Heimerdinger said. “She would do anything to secure power.” 

Including using her golden daughter to turn a bunch of rich assholes against the Undercity.  

“I don’t understand why she’s here though,” Ekko said. 

“Noxus has annexed independent nations before, Ekko. I have seen it happen. They would use anything and everything to increase their might, whether it was magic or machine,” Heimerdinger said. 

“I fear that the same is being done here,” Heimerdinger said. 

“Ambessa saw the opportunity ripe for the taking. All she did was pick the fruit,” Ekko said. “But for what?” 

Caitlyn’s Hextech gun flashed in his mind. 

Ekko stood, ignoring the screaming in his body, as well as Heimerdinger’s pleas for him to lay back down.

He needed to talk to Viktor. 

“Veeeeektoooooor,” Blitzcrank whined. 

Viktor smiled. “Yes, Blitzcrank, that would ve me.” 

The good news was that Blitzcrank had figured out how to walk around on his own while Viktor was away. The iron golum had even started talking. 

The not so good news was 1.) that the shop was a mess when Viktor got back and 2.) Blitzcrank only knew how to say his creator’s name. 

But progress was progress, no matter how many “Veektors” Blitzcrank would throw out. 

Viktor would never admit it, but he needed someone with him and the only people who could have accompanied him were either very injured or were in the midst of a family reunion. He reasoned that he needed someone there to help carry materials he may find. But the truth was that he needed a reminder of his present. 

Because as he stared into the cave leading to Singed’s lair, he felt like a child again. 

He still remembered the days he spent in this lab. His time here was something he actively tried to erase in his mind. Try as he might, Rio’s dying moans would still echo in his mind. When he came back to Singed all those months ago, he wished, desperately, to end the poor creature’s suffering. The only thing Viktor dreaded more, however, was coming face to face with his old master. 

Would he look at Viktor and figure that after all this time, he truly was right? 

Perhaps Singed already saw the monster he could turn to from the moment they met. 

He looked to Blitzcrank and realized, sullenly, that he needed to do this on his own. 

“Stay here, alright?” Viktor said. 

“Veeektor,” they replied. 

Viktor turned away from the machine. He took a deep breath and stepped into the cave. 

The same, heavy, damp air that he had gotten used to as a child greeted him. He still remembered every turn. When he arrived at the lab proper, Viktor held his breath as he pushed the door open. 

Only to find it empty. His old teacher was nowhere to be seen.

He should be glad. Viktor thought of all the possible scenarios if he went to his old master. He wanted to know more about what he did to Vander, and how he could possibly begin to reverse it. 

But Viktor was no fool; he knew that his old master was a monster. He needed no mutation to become one. If Singed could create something like Vander, there was no telling what other creature he could sic on him. 

They were both lucky then, that his old teacher was not here. 

The lab was dark, illuminated only by the dull, green glow of Rio’s container.

The creature was still there, floating in that green fluid: a poor thing denied the mercy and dignity of death.

His relief at Singed’s absence was finally overtaken by pity. Viktor looked away. 

Viktor looked through the labs. Endless rows of tubes and bottles filled with assortments of chemicals lined the tables and walls. He found that Singed still kept his journals and notes in the same place. Then he found: the plans and diagrams for Vander. All three arms worked to gather anything that would be useful for Vander. He also found several volumes of biotech books he could review. 

Viktor ventured deeper into the lab, sensing that there was more to be found. 

He brushed his hands against the walls and then paused. A section of the lab walls looked…misshapen, as if they were broken and remade. 

Something alive lies inside. 

Viktor raised his hand, sensing the metal mechanisms keeping it locked. With a wave, it opened. 

The room was drastically different from the dark, damp labs. It seemed like Singed did everything he could to make it comfortable. In the middle of the room was a metal pod that reminded Viktor of a coffin. 

He walked slowly to the pod and saw a young girl suspended in the same liquid that Rio was in. 

It was a tomb, Viktor thought. 

Not a tomb, a final, desperate prayer for life. 

Viktor put two and two together. All the horrifying experiments, toying with life and death. All of it was to save this girl, likely his daughter. 

“Loneliness is often the byproduct of a gifted mind,” Singed told him once. 

“And yet you are terrified of being alone,” Viktor replied quietly, gently laying a hand on the glass of the mechanical casket. 

His mind automatically went to Jayce. In his thoughts, he pictured Jayce watching him as he was suspended in the Hexcore’s magic, going through a torrential cycle of dreams and nightmares. Did Jayce observe him like one of Singed’s experiments? Like Rio? Viktor pondered dimly, if he was worth all of this for Jayce; if it was worth throwing away everything he once was. 

Was love worth the defiance of death? The mutilation of life?

Was this where love inevitably led?

Love will destroy you. 

He shook his head, looking around the room. His eyes land on the leatherbound notebook tossed on top of the armchair. Singed would likely sit there, observe his daughter, take notes, and toss the journal onto the chair haphazardly. His old teacher likely thought that no one would ever be here other than him. Viktor retrieved the journal and thumbed through the pages, sneaking glances at the girl, whom he figured out was named Orianna. 

Viktor shook his head as he read. If Viktor broke the rules of biotech, Singed was trying to rewrite them.

He snapped the notebook shut. For one moment, he considered burning it. He could burn this entire lab to put an end to Singed’s terrible experiments. But as long as the mad scientist was alive, Viktor knew it was no use. 

We may need this knowledge. 

Viktor sighed and walked away from the poor girl, the notebook firmly in his hands. 

During Viktor’s search through the lab, he found more tools: some rusty and covered in dried blood while others were pristine and well-kept. Viktor  chose to take the latter. There were shelves filled with preserved specimens of different kinds, as well as several human heads. Viktor ignored those as well. 

His master had grown more gruesome since Viktor left. Or had he simply hid these from him when he was just a child? 

It was odd, Viktor realized. He could hardly conjure his father’s face anymore but Singed’s countenance would always stay with Viktor. 

As Viktor finished loading books and other materials to the bags he attached to Blitzcrank, he knew that there was one thing left he needed to do. 

He made his way to the glass tank once more. 

Viktor looked at Rio’s still eyes one last time. His horrid dreams flashed in his mind again and Viktor’s decision became all the more resolute. 

“I’m sorry I could not save you, Rio,” Viktor said as his third arm powered up.

“Rest now,” he whispered, the blue glow of the Hexclaw illuminating his face.

Chapter Text

Ekko paced around Benzo’s old shop. His thoughts ran amok. He was used to pondering hundreds of possibilities before they could happen; it was an integral part of watching out for his people. The boy’s mind worked like clockwork as he pondered every scenario. 

It was Ambessa’s eyes that ticked him off. When she had started talking about her daughter, Ekko knew that she cared deeply for her. 

But there was something else. 

Ambessa saw an opportunity in Mel’s disappearance, Ekko realized. 

It sent his thoughts spiraling the moment he could finally think straight enough to realize what this whole mess was about. The creation of Hextech, the discontent that stewed over the years and the inevitable spark that lit the fire: it was like a siren call for the warmonger. 

And Piltover was more than happy to hide under their skirt if it meant keeping Zaun under its feet. 

His ribs still ached as he paced but this was too important to ignore. Ekko tried looking everywhere for Viktor but he was not in his usual spot in the junkyard either. Blitzcrank was also gone. For a moment, Ekko feared that the man had decided to leave and never return. 

The door (now reshaped to fit Blitzcrank) swung open and the pair walked in. 

“Ekko, how are you fe—” 

“Where have you been?” Ekko said, his voice higher than intended. 

Viktor paused in his tracks, raising his arms in surrender, oblivious to why Ekko was frantic.”I’m sorry, I wasn't aware we had a conference,” he said sarcastically. Viktor unloaded the packs that Blitzcrank carried and started laying it on the floor. 

Ekko rolled his eyes and sighed. “I need to talk to you. About Hextech.” 

Viktor paused as he was unpacking, waiting for Ekko to continue. The boy rushed to his side, grabbing his own sack to unload from Blitzcrank. 

“Weapons, Viktor. Noxus is using Piltover. They wanna build more Hextech weapons. ” Ekko said as he helped take out volumes of books out of the bags and onto the counter. 

The man was silent as he arranged the books and tools. “I know, Ekko. I’ve encountered them.” 

“It’s not just that, Viktor,” he said impatiently, wondering how a genius like him has not figured it out. “Noxus saw Piltover and Zaun on the brink of civil war and they saw an opening. Ambessa wants Hextech weapons from Piltover,” he said. 

It was here that Viktor finally paused. Ekko could almost see the gears shift in the man’s mind. 

“Add a rich population terrified of their servants rising up and you have a recipe for disaster,” Viktor whispered, his mind headed towards the same conclusion as Ekko’s. 

“They already have a few out, what more if the entire Noxian army has them?” Ekko said. 

“It would be the end of Zaun,” Viktor finished. 

“Zaun… Ionia, fuck it, even Demacia if they want,” Ekko said, taking a deep breath. “We need to nip this in the bud, Viktor.” 

The older man pinched the bridge of his nose. He could have sworn that he heard Viktor mutter Jayce’s name and something else in a language he did not understand. He searched through his pile of papers and books until he found what he was looking for: a map of Piltover. 

“Jayce and I kept most of it in a secure location in the lab, we can get it there,” he said.  

“I figured. The two of us can—” 

“We need Jinx,” Viktor said. 

“No—” 

“There are already some Enforcers who have them, Ekko. We need to get the weapons from Enforcers so that they could not simulate the technology. It needs to happen simultaneously in one night, otherwise, you tip Piltover off.” 

“She’s gonna blow shit up!” Ekko said. 

“Not untrue. However, Jinx has pulled off many successful heists with explosions. Let’s see what they can do now that they have their leader,” Viktor said, a glimpse of mischief twinkling in his eye. 

Viktor has been spending way too much time with Jinx, Ekko decided. He made a mental note to invite the man back to the tree to help finish the filtration machines once they complete this mission. 

The boy relented though. 

“I have a very important question to you though, Ekko,” Viktor said, his eyes turning grim. 

Ekko raised an eyebrow, waiting for the question. 

“What do you propose we do with the crystals once we have it?” Viktor asked. 

Ekko frowned. “Well… we should destroy them. No one should have that power.” 

It was Viktor’s turn to look at Ekko sternly, challenging him to think more carefully.

“That is a waste, don’t you think?” Viktor said. 

“You’re just saying that because it’s your invention,” Ekko replied.

“Yes… but I am also a practical person,” Viktor smiled gently, his eyes turning to Blitzcrank. “Look at what we’ve done with Hextech, Ekko.”    

“Veeeeektor,” the machine said. 

“A big robot that says your name?” Ekko said, half-smiling. 

“A sentient being,” Viktor corrected. “And of course, a cleaning machine that will save your tree. There is also Isha’s prosthetic arm. But what if we do not stop there? If we had more Hextech, we could build air filtration machines. Automatic waste disposals. Tools to build a proper city.” 

“Clean energy sources,” Ekko said. 

“No more need to beg for slave wages from rich factory owners in Piltover,” Viktor said. 

“People could have real jobs here. Zaun could be completely self-sufficient,” Ekko whispered. He looked at Viktor. “Why didn’t you do it before?” 

The man’s eyes turn downcast. “Hextech was always meant to help people in need. Our people. But our… dream… . needed funding. It always needed to fit the parameters of our generous patrons. That’s why our initial Hextech inventions were the Hexclaw and the Atlas Gauntlets. They were easy to sell to patrons because it made work down here more…efficient. Less costly.”  

Ekko raised an eyebrow. “Really? People are dying in the mines and we can’t breathe clean air but sure, give them some gloves and an extra hand so they can turn in more labor. ‘Make them work even harder so we can make more money’, is that it?” Ekko asked, growing more irate. 

“I will not try to defend my old position. I was much more… hopeful before. I thought that could be the beginning, at least. That Hextech could bridge the gap between our people, not widen it.” 

Ekko said nothing. He could understand Viktor to some extent but he could hardly recall ever having the same naivety as Viktor did. 

“But how do we know that Hextech stays in the right hands here?” Ekko said. 

“Well, it won’t hurt if only a few of us know where it is, hmm?” Viktor said, offering a hand to Ekko. 

Ekko thought hard. There were too many risks if they kept it. Then again, if they were going to steal it, Piltover and Noxus would inevitably pin it on them anyway.
This was dangerous and batshit crazy. 

But for the first time in a long time, a better Zaun finally felt possible. 

Ekko took Viktor’s hand and shook it. 

“You think we can trust her?” 

Jinx was already frowning before she opened her eyes. “I saved your life, dumbass—” 

“Not you,” Ekko said. Jinx’s eyes opened, her face still buried in Vander’s fur as she held Isha. She turned, only to see Ekko and Viktor standing inside The Last Drop with them. 

Ekko was staring at Vi as she sat on the ground. It almost looked like he was trying to read Vi’s mind with how he was looking at her. Vander was awake, but he seemed calm enough to keep lying down. 

The four of them had fallen asleep in the bar proper, with Vander holding the three girls. Jinx’s back ached and she slept on her arm wrong. The floor was hard and cold and every breath she took filled her dust with lungs. 

It was the best sleep Jinx had in years. 

The said sleep has been interrupted by Ekko and Viktor. 

“What the hell are you talking about?” Jinx said, sitting up slowly. Isha awoke as well. 

“I know we just got out of jail but we… need to do something,” Ekko said, his eyes not leaving Vi, as if she was the one that needed guarding. 

A few months ago, it was Jinx that Ekko distrusted. Having her sister be the one meeting Ekko’s suspicion this time was strange. Silence fell between the three of them, too many things left unspoken. 

Viktor faked a cough to break the silence. “Ekko has brought up an urgent matter that needs our attendance, Jinx.” 

Ekko and Vi kept their gaze on each other. The Boy Savior kept his arms closed, while Vi looked like she was keeping herself from sweeping him into an embrace. 

Jinx frowned. “Can’t it wait? We’re having a moment here.” 

“I’m afraid not,” he said, eyeing Vander and Vi. “Walk with us, Jinx.” 

She looked at her family and sighed. Vi nodded slightly. Duty calls, she supposed. 

As the three of them walked down the alley outside the bar, Ekko explained their grand plan. To Jinx’s ears, it was a bunch of who’s who and what’s what that she couldn't care less about. Especially now that she had her family back. 

“Stealing one of those things again? You said it was important,” she said, rolling her eyes.  

“I just explained why it was important!” Ekko said. 

“You just said a bunch of stuff Silco would say if he was a little nicer,” Jinx muttered. 

“Oh, fuck you,” Ekko said. 

“And you just got your ass beaten and you want trouble again,” Jinx huffed. 

“Jinx,” Viktor said gently. “Hextech may help your father recover some of his old self, wouldn’t you think?” 

She paused and smiled. “Now we’re talking.”  

Ekko sighed, likely realizing that that should have been his first point. 

As the three of them walked, a plan was formed. 

The hammer struck iron again and again until it obeyed Jayce’s will. He was building a mere chair, but it did enough to make it seem like he was building something harmless. They had already taken the Mercury Hammer away and they would always inspect anything he made if it was a weapon. For the first few days, Noxian soldiers and Enforcers would watch him. Only to see him work on a small music box. After that, it was a cane, and after that, a small engine. They left him to his own devices when they concluded he was only using the forge to pass the time. 

 His arms were sore and every move ached—unusual for such a strong man. Jayce did not care about the ache though. He thought he deserved it. Most of his days in house arrest were spent here, in his father’s old forge. As he was striking metal, Jayce eyed the two Enforcers stationed to watch him. They had their backs turned to him and it seemed like they were deep in conversation. He put down his hammer gently so as to not make any noise. He grabbed the “music box”, a small handheld device similar to the one he saw in his nightmare, and flipped it on. 

“...they’re moving my unit again. To fucking Stillwater this time,” he heard the first guard, a man, say. 

“What?! You were supposed to be here with me for the week! Those Noxians creep me out,” the female Enforcer replied. 

The past week has been like this. Jayce used the recorder device to amplify conversation even several feet away. Noxians rarely spoke but when Enforcers were the ones stationed, they talked. A lot. 

From what Jayce was able to gather, they have been hunting down Jinx, Ekko and Viktor. But they have not found them yet due to the turf wars in Zaun. 

Which told Jayce that Viktor was still probably alive. 

“That prison break was massive,” the male Enforcers said. “They don’t even know what happened. Some monster came in and killed everyone.” 

Jayce held his breath as that image of Viktor half-dead flashed in his mind again, the Hexclaw glowing blue 

“I heard. My buddy Kigo was one of the poor bastards they killed. The Unholy Trinity broke everyone out, right? Jinx, that Firelight and that three-arm freak” she said. 

Jayce’s breath hitched. 

He was alive. 

“So many lives lost and for what? A bunch of sumprats,” the Enforcer said. 

“Yeah. Looks like they’re prepping more people to go down there too. About fucking time we take control,” she said. 

“Yeah. Screw tho— oh shit! That general is here.” 

Jayce scrambled to hide the recorder and picked his hammer up again to start hitting the metal. He tried to keep himself from shaking after the confirmation that Viktor was alive. Not a few minutes later, the metal door to the forge opened. 

Ambessa walked in as if this was her property. 

“Your father built quite an impressive home,” she said.  home,” she purred. 

Jayce sighed and lifted his eyes from the metalwork. He paused when he saw the state that Ambessa was in. Her arm was in a sling and her skin was bruised in several places. She showed her injuries off proudly, as if she earned them. 

She deserved them, Jayce thought bitterly.

“What do you want?” Jayce said, refusing to acknowledge her wounds. 

Ambessa seemed to find this perfectly acceptable. “You’re bold in the face of your imprisonment. I should remind you that the only reason you aren’t in Stillwater is because of Commander Kiramman.” 

Jayce’s grip on the hammer tightened at the mention of Caitlyn’s name. Another person that Jayce failed. 

“Don’t pout, boy. She saved your life. You should see what those savages did to the prison,” she said. 

“Why? What happened?” he said, trying to keep his voice even. 

Ambessa watched him carefully, measuring how much information she should feed him. 

“Your partner and his band of heathens tore through the prison and massacred our brave peacekeepers. They had with them a beast unlike anything we have seen before. They grow more powerful everyday,” she said, walking around Jayce and his anvil. 

“We think that your partner made this beast, together with his old mentor,” she said. 

You’re lying! Jayce wanted to scream at her. He said nothing. With the short amount of time he was a Councilor, Jayce knew there were moments where he needed to stay quiet, to know more before he acted. Mel had taught him that: to be patient. 

“The mentor wanted to heal a good man. But his student, Viktor, corrupted his creation and turned it against us,” she said. 

Viktor had made mention of an old teacher, but when Jayce had asked about them, his partner would become aloof and withdrawn. It was one of the few things that Jayce knew not to bring up with Viktor. 

Still, Jayce knew better now than to question Viktor.
“Luckily, this teacher has agreed to help us take control of Zaun again. We share the same vision, you see. We desire progress,” Ambessa said, her eyes boring into Jayce. “All the more we need the Man of Progress with us now, more than ever.” 

Progress at the cost of what?

“What are you getting at, Ambessa?” Jayce said, already hating whatever she was about to say. 

“I have found you a new partner, Jayce,” Ambessa said. It took every fiber of Jayce’s being not to scream at her for violating the word. 

“Bring him in,” Ambessa called. 

The forge’s door opened. Two Noxian soldiers and another man in chains walked in. Despite being much larger than the average Piltovan, the Noxians were not the ones Jayce feared. 

The man in chains, riddled with ugly scars, stirred a deep foreboding within Jayce; one that made him feel like he was lost in a snowstorm again. He stared at Jayce, not as if he was a person but as if he was an equation that needed to be solved. 

No, not an equation. 

A specimen . 

“This is Singed. You will be working with him from now on. The two of you will use Hextech to build anything we may need to defend ourselves from Zaun,” Ambessa said. 

The image of the child from the Shimmer factor flashed in his mind again and he could feel the bile rising from the back of his throat again. 

“No!” Jayce yelled before he could stop himself. “I won’t do shit for you,” he hissed. 

Ambessa merely raised an eyebrow at the man, as if he was a petulant child. 

“I already expected you would be difficult. Let me go speak to Ximena and see what she thinks,” Ambessa said, her words measured and calm, but not without venom. 

“Don’t,” Jayce hissed. “Don’t you dare fucking touch her.” 

Ximena was the only person Jayce had left. He could hardly remember his father. Every time he tried to conjure an image of his father, the only memory he could evoke was one where Ximena would console him because he did not have a dad like other kids. 

“I wouldn’t dream of it. Although, I cannot protect her should… accidents happen.” 

Jayce could feel his heart sink and he looked away. Ambessa did not need to speak of the threat aloud, she knew that Jayce had no bargaining chip, especially not when it came to his mother. He took a deep breath as his mind raced, thinking of any way he could get out of this without hurting anyone else.   

Right now, there was only one move for him. 

He glanced at Singed, he felt the pit in his stomach grow deeper. He took a deep breath before turning his eyes towards Ambessa again. 

“Alright,” he said. “I’ll do it. I just need to go back to the lab, one last time.” 

It did not take long for Vander to take a liking to Isha. Vi watched them carefully as Isha tried to give him water. Vander would sniff it and look away, disinterested.  Jinx had returned briefly from her walk with Viktor and Ekko to tell them that she was going to be away for the night. 

Part of Vi wondered if she should try to find out more, if her sister was up to something again. But she looked at Vander and all of those thoughts went away. Piltover was done with her, discarded her like she was nothing. Vi needed to be here for her family now, and part of that was learning to trust her sister again.

Vander seemed calm at The Last Drop. As Vi looked around the ruined bar, she decided to put herself to use at least. She started picking up the broken furniture, separating the ones that were beyond repair and the ones that could still be saved. She looked around the large hole in the wall the Vander made and made a mental note to look for tools to fix that up. 

After the furniture, Vi looked through the bar, trashing empty bottles and other scraps. She was ducked under the counter, reaching for another dusty bottle when she suddenly heard another pair of footsteps enter the bar. 

Vi sprang up, raising the glass bottle above her head. 

“Relax, kid,” a woman’s voice said. 

Sevika stood a few feet away from Vander. Isha stood firmly by Vander’s leg, watching the two adults. He remained suspiciously still, staring at Sevika with caution, as if he was figuring out what to do with her. Vi could hardly decipher the look in her eyes—if it was pity or regret. Both, most likely.

“This is Vander, isn’t it?” Sevika said. 

Vi lowered the bottle and she clenched her fist, still remembering her last encounter with Sevika. “Yeah. What? Are you gonna betray him again?”

“Oh, grow up,” the older woman said, her eyes still locked on Vander. “At least I never betrayed Zaun.” 

Vi scowled. “Leave.” 

Sevika ignored Vi, stepping towards Vander. Vi jumped over the bar and started marching towards her. 

“If you want a rematch—”

The older woman reached out to touch Vander’s head. Vi stayed still when Vander leaned forward to Sevika’s touch. 

Sevika’s eyes watered slightly. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry this happened to you, old man.” 

“Do you know what happened to him? Was it Silco?” Vi asked, feeling her temper rising. The relief that her father was alive was starting to wear down and logic was returning to her. Someone did this to him. 

“No. We all thought he was dead,” Sevika said simply. “We all left that factory as a different person, kid. Not just you.”

Vi’s eyes flickered to the place where Sevika’s arm should have been and looked away. 

You changed too, Jinx had told her once. 

She was right again, it seemed. Perhaps it was time for Vi to accept that nothing would remain the same. Jinx had told her that Viktor promised to try to help heal Vander but Vi already accepted that her father was forever changed, one way or another. 

“Come on,” Sevika finally said, sniffling once. “I’ll help you clean this dump.” 

“Three guards. Two of them are Enforcers. One Noxian,” Ekko said as he put down the telescope. 

The three of them stood on the rooftop — the same one Jinx and Vikor watched the sunset from before that first mission went wrong. The girl seemed to have taken a liking to this particular spot, Viktor noticed. The sun was already down this time, however. They needed the cover of night now more than ever, especially with Piltover and Noxus on high alert. 

“Are you sure about this, Jinx?” Ekko asked. 

“Oh. Yeah, I’ve done this tons of times,” she said. 

“ I know ,” Ekko said, rolling his eyes. 

“Then relax, queasy,” Jinx said as she raised a remote control. “All of our other missions are resounding successes!” 

With a press of a button, a massive, green smoke bomb erupted in the east quadrant of the city.

“Are you sure it's harmless?” Ekko asked, his eyes skeptical as he watched the green mushroom cloud. The sound of sirens and yells following suite. 

“Why? I would never hurt anyone,” Jinx said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. 

Ekko glowered. Even Viktor raised an eyebrow at Jinx. The girl sighed.  

“Yes, genius. People will get colored powder on them but they’ll live,” she said.

She took the telescope from Ekko and peered through it. The three guards took the bait it seemed, as they scrambled to leave the lab. 

Jinx turned to Viktor. “They’re gone. I’ll set off the second one in a while. The Boy Savior and I will meet you later.”  

Viktor nodded, giving her a squeeze on the shoulder and nodding at Ekko before making his way to the lab again. 

As he jumped from roof to roof, he heard another bomb go off; this time from the west quadrant. It meant that Ekko and Jinx were on their way to the Enforcers’ headquarters for the Hextech weapons that Jayce had already built for Caitlyn’s unit. Beneath him, he could see people scramble, with Enforcers and Noxians alike trying to restore order. 

The plan was quite simple in hindsight: send everyone scrambling so no one would notice a few missing weapons and a couple of break ins. 

It had been a few weeks now since Viktor had lost two of his limbs. Not even more than two days since they had set half of Zaun free from Stillwater. Retaliation from Piltover was bound to arrive soon and they needed to move. 

He meant every word he said to Ekko when it came to Hextech: that it could be used to develop Zaun. But he was not naive, either. Viktor had no plans to weaponize Hextech but he no longer trusted Jayce enough to say the same for him.

In truth, there were many Shurima crystals available for Piltover to use. Anyone could make an order to the desert nation and have a cargo filled with crystals delivered within the month. It was the processing of the crystals into Hextech that was worrisome to Viktor. The schematics and technology were only available to the two of them, hidden in a secret compartment in the lab. If Viktor’s math was correct, there should still be four Hexcrystals left. 

The plan was simple: take the crystals and the schematics, then destroy the lab. Make it impossible for anyone to replicate what they did, even Jayce. 

Especially Jayce. 

When Viktor finally arrived in the lab, the place was eerily still. Except this time, everything was in disarray, and almost every crevice of the room was covered in blue powder from Jinx’s smoke bomb. Volumes of research papers and blueprints rendered unreadable and unsalvageable. 

Viktor smiled. She already did half the job for him without even her knowing. His eyes immediately fell on the Atlas Gauntlets. He thought of Vi. 

“You think we can trust her?” Ekko had asked him. 

“We might not have a choice soon,” Viktor would have replied had Jinx not awoken. Viktor made a mental note to take the gauntlets before he left. 

The man sighed as he looked around. He walked towards his old desk and started grabbing the most important notebooks and schematics. His eyes finally landed on a framed photo of him and Jayce winning in the Innovator’s Competition stood, smeared with blue powder. Viktor picked it up and sighed. 

Somewhere in Piltover, Viktor had an apartment. It was the first one he ever bought for himself. Hextech was on the rise and the money started to pour in. Not a lot of money by Piltover’s standards, but more money than Viktor ever had. He was proud to finally purchase a decent living space for himself. 

But as the years went by, Viktor would spend little time in that apartment. Most of his days and nights were spent in the lab. This was where he felt most alive. 

His old things in that apartment have probably been tossed out already to make space for a new tenant. But Viktor could not find it in himself to care about his old things, his old life.  

For years, the lab was his home. He was his home. 

No more. 

Viktor’s metal hand cracked the glass of the picture frame, crumpling the photo. He turned the frame around to retrieve the flat, hexagon-shaped key taped to the back of the photo. He let the photo fall to the floor. 

He walked across to Jayce’s desk. Traces of their years together littered his table: their journals, some more photos, and shared notes.

Viktor’s eyes were not on them however. 

He knelt down, finding the slight hitch on the floor that blended into the floor pattern: invisible to the named eye. He pressed the missing piece into the hexagon gap and pushed down. 

It released a plain, metal box. Viktor took it, holding his breath as he opened it. 

“No, no, no…” Viktor whispered as he counted the crystals. Three Hextech crystals stared back at him. There was one missing. He did the math in his head again, accounting for how many Hextech weapons that Ekko saw and the ones they had back in Zaun. It was impossible. Did Jayce make more? Was he using it already? 

“Am I interrupting?” Jayce said. 

Viktor stood abruptly, hiding the box behind him like a child caught stealing candy from a jar. 

He breathed hard. There was no time for any of the pain he felt, the one he has been hiding since the last time Jayce betrayed him. 

“What are you doing here?” Viktor said without thinking. 

“I’m… technically a prisoner. I just asked to be here alone for a while to get some things,” Jayce said automatically, as if he was still registering that Viktor was in front of him. Viktor’s eyes flickered to Jayce’s hand. 

The final Hextech crystal flowed faintly in his hand

His third arm was raised and charged before he realized it. 

“Give it to me,” Viktor demanded. Pain and fury bubbled in his chest and Viktor had half his mind to rip his own heart out to stop feeling so much when Jayce was near. 

The man just stood there, looking at Viktor like he had seen a ghost. 

A beautiful, miraculous, cursed, ghost. 

Viktor’s eyes watered before he could stop them. He fought every base instinct inside of him that told him to walk to Jayce and hold the man in his arms again. 

Always the fool. 

Viktor shook his head. He raised his third arm. 

“Jayce,” his name bled through Viktor’s lips like a prayer and a curse. “ Please . Hand it over and leave.” 

No more questions. No more conversations. Viktor had to leave because he did not know which part of him would win this time: man or machine. He did not know which part of him he wanted to win. 

Jayce was unfazed by the mechanical limb that threatened to kill him. He looked at Viktor like the sun had finally risen after a thousand year dark spell.  

“I will… I just… let me look at you,” Jayce said, his golden eyes glistened with tears. 

Don’t listen to him. Not again. Kill him now. End everything. 

It made every bit of sense to kill Jayce. He was the only other person who could recreate Hextech without fail. Really, it was for everyone’s sake if Viktor ended it all now. 

“I’m so, so sorry Viktor. I didn’t know that Ambessa was there I—” 

“ Don’t! ” Viktor yelled. “I’m done letting you lie to me. You betrayed our dream, Jayce. You betrayed everything we stood for. You betrayed me .”

Viktor could not handle it. He did so well when he was away from Jayce but the moment they were in the same room again, in their lab of all places, every bit of hurt and love came back and Viktor felt excruciatingly human again. 

“I know,” Jayce said as tears fell from his face. “I want to fix this, Viktor. Please.” 

“Fix this? Like how you fixed me? Because I was broken —” 

“Broken? No, no. You’re wrong. You were never broken,” Jayce said, his voice lowering. “I was broken. I broke and fell apart when I lost you. And I keep… I keep losing you. I’m so, so sorry.” 

“No, no more. I hate you!” Viktor spat out with every bit of anger he could. 

There was no shift in Jayce’s expressions; he still looked like a sad, lovesick puppy. He merely took a few steps forward and Viktor instinctively backed up until he hit Jayce’s desk. 

“You really should hate me,” Jayce whispered. His eyes were molten now and Viktor felt like he forgot how to move, how to breathe. “But then you would be the liar.” 

Jayce was suddenly close. Too close. From here, Viktor could see the deep circles around his eyes and the peach fuzz growing on his face. It took every bit of willpower not to reach out and touch his face.  

“I… I mean it,” Viktor said weakly, his voice fooling no one. “I really, fucking, hate you.” 

“Say it one more time, and I’ll believe you. I’ll leave you alone,” Jayce’s voice cracked. He was a mere breath away now. 

I hate you. 

I hate you. 

I hate you. 

“Oh, fuck you,” Viktor grabbed Jayce by the back of his neck and their lips collided. All the Hextech crystals clattered to the floor. Jayce moaned into his lips as his strong arms quickly wrapped around Viktor’s lithe body. He lifted him up, making him sit on his desk. Jayce’s kisses traveled down Viktor’s neck and the smaller man gasped. His eyes flew open at the sensation as his hands started to roam around Jayce’s torso. 

Viktor’s gaze inadvertently landed on the empty container that held him as he was merging with the Hexcore. 

He cried out, shoving Jayce away. “Shit ,” he hissed at himself, averting his gaze from the man and quickly picking up the crystals, one of them rolling back to Jayce and hitting his foot gently. He picked it up and looked at it. 

Jayce breathed hard, staring at Viktor carefully. “You’re taking every bit of Hextech away, aren’t you?”   

“Yes,” Viktor said, still refusing to meet Jayce’s eyes. 

“And you’re gonna destroy all our research about it?” Jayce asked. 

Viktor finally turned to meet the man’s gaze. He nodded once. 

Jayce merely smiled sadly, offering the last crystal to Viktor. “Good. It’s yours. It’s always been yours, Viktor. I’m sorry.” 

Jayce did not have to elaborate for Viktor to understand what he meant. He had always been the face of their creation. Viktor never cared about that. All he cared about was Hextech finally reaching his people, even if it meant letting Jayce take the spotlight and curry favor from patrons. 

Viktor thought of all his nights alone in the lab as the Man of Progress stood in Piltover's golden spotlight. 

And here Viktor was, moving in the shadows of Zaun to save his city. 

Viktor took the crystal and gingerly placed it inside the box. 

“You should leave, Jayce,” Viktor said, his voice raw. He turned away from Jayce and made his way to the Atlas Gauntlets. He tied the gauntlets’ straps together and hoisted them over his shoulders. He slowly walked to the broken window. 

“Will I see you again?” Jayce said.

From the distance, Viktor heard another color bomb go off. He looked at Jayce, and then at the lab. Rio’s rotten corpse flashed in his mind again and his decision could no longer be delayed. 

It was time for him to leave this place. To leave this man. 

“No,” Viktor finally said, unclasping from his belt the monkey bomb that Jinx gave him. “Now leave.” 

Viktor pulled the pin. 

Chapter Text

“These guns are suh-weet,” Jinx said as she stared at them. “Overdesigned though.” 

“Says the girl who literally draws on everything,” Ekko said. The three of them were back on the same roof again. None of Piltover the wiser. 

For once, the plan seemed to finally work, Ekko thought. 

There were only three more Hextech weapons with the Enforcers. Stealing them was almost too easy. Jinx already knew where their units would be deployed in emergencies and stealing from them in the middle of a messy, panicked mob was almost unfair.  

“We should get going before something goes wrong, right Viktor?” he turned to the man. 

Viktor stared silently at the Academy. Black smoke erupted from where his lab was burning. Ekko and Jinx looked at each other before turning their gaze to Viktor. 

“Hey, Cookie, I know it sucks bombing your life’s work like that and all but, hey, at least you left with all your limbs!” Jinx said. 

“What the fuck?” Ekko mouthed as he shot her a sharp look. She merely shrugged. 

Ekko looked at Viktor. In some ways, he supposed this was akin to him watching the Firelight tree burn. He would be every bit devastated as well. 

“Hey uhm… that wasn’t easy to do,” Ekko said, shrugging. “But you did the right thing. The right thing to do and the easy thing are rarely the same.”

Vikor said nothing as he watched the smoke dissipate into the night sky. While the mission was successful, Ekko could not help but feel like something was amiss anyway. Jinx took Viktor’s hand as they made their escape. The three of them wordlessly made their way back to Zaun. Ekko and Jinx dropped Viktor and the Hextech off at the shop. Even then, he said nothing. He merely nodded at the two of them. Ekko heard Blitzcrank happily greet Viktor as he shut the door. 

Jinx was deep in thought, silent for once. 

“Worried about him?” Ekko asked as they walked. 

“Of course I am,” she said. “I think he’s…sad. I’ve never seen him sad before.” 

“Everyone gets sad. He’s still a human being, despite everything.” 

“Yeah? What do you get sad about, Savior?” she said. 

“You,” he said. It slipped out of him before he realized it. 

Jinx stopped walking, too stunned to move.

“I—I don’t mean that, I—”

“What do you mean?” she suddenly asked. “I can’t make you sad, I’m… I shouldn’t mean that much to you for you to be sad, I—” 

“What?” he suddenly said, temper rising. 

Stay away!

The memory sprang to his mind before he could stop it. 

News of Vander’s death spread throughout the Undercity like wildfire. Ekko had just lost Benzo. Now, all of his friends are gone too. Vi was no longer there to protect him, and neither were Mylo and Claggor. 

And Powder… his best friend was gone too. He had never felt so alone. 

The would-be Boy Savior ran to the deeper part of the trenches to hide his tears where no one could see them. He cried his lungs out until they were sore and he could barely breathe, let alone speak. 

He wandered aimlessly the streets of Zaun, surviving off scraps from trash heaps. He had no desire to eat; it was pure instinct that kept him alive in those days. 

Then he heard whispers that a blue-haired girl was hidden in Silco’s headquarters. 

It felt like he had a reason to live again. 

Ekko started planning, gathering anything that could be used to help rescue her. The only weapon he could find was a metal rod that he could swing around. 

It took a lot of time and effort, but Ekko was able to find her by sneaking through the vents.  

“Pssst! Powder?” he whispered softly. 

She was tinkering with something, her back turned against him. She just couldn’t hear him, he thought. After looking around to confirm if she was alone, Ekko used the metal rod to push the ventilation cover open. He jumped down.  

“Hey,” he said. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you! I’m so happy you’re alive Powder!” 

Powder kept her back turned to him, as if he did not exist. Has she gone deaf? Ekko wondered. 

“Stay away, Ekko,” Powder said in a low voice, the metal toy she was playing with dropping to the ground. 

“W-what?” the boy asked, a lump growing in his throat. 

“I told you to stay away!” Powder finally turned around to push him. Ekko fell to the ground, unprepared to have his best friend treat him like this after he had looked for her for so long. 

“Powder! I’m trying to save you!” 

The girl grabbed his face. He had never seen her like this, so angry. What could he have done to cause her to hate him so much? 

“My name is Jinx! Powder is gone.” 

He felt a hand rest on his shoulder and Ekko blinked the memory away, his mind forcing itself back to the present. Jinx looked at him, equal parts sad and confused. 

“You’re right. You don’t make me sad,” Ekko said, walking away from Jinx. “Powder does.” 

There was no sleep for Viktor that night, not when he could still feel the ghost of Jayce’s lips, when he could still taste the salt of their tears. Feelings of longing and loss flowed through him like poisoned wine in his veins and he wished, desperately, to be unfeeling. 

For one moment, he let himself imagine it: Jayce’s head on his chest as they slept late into the morning, the smell of burnt coffee because his partner forgot about it, books and notes scrambled across the living room. 

All of it was gone like a dream forgotten in the morning. 

He twirled the blue gem around his metal fingers. 

“ It’s always been yours, Viktor ,” Jayce told him. 

For all the pain it caused Viktor, Hextech was still one of his greatest creations. His hands closed around the crystal. Flashes of the lab burning played in front of his eyes again. The lab was always where he felt the happiest. Now, he could imagine Enforcers ravaging its burnt carcass like parasites in the morning, searching, in vein, for any clues. 

He thought of his old apartment, which probably has a new tenant. Perhaps even a young, happy family with a new baby or a refugee seeking a new start in Piltover.  

He looked around Benzo’s old shop. Ekko had told him about his years here while they were working on the filtration machine, when he was still a child. No matter how many years Ekko has spent away from this place, this was still his home. Viktor was merely a guest. 

Let us begin again. 

Viktor grabbed Singed’s notes and his cane and headed out, Blitzcrank eagerly following his master. The moon still hung prettily in the sky as Viktor made his way to the scrapyard. 

Viktor stared up at the silver crescent in the skies. It almost seemed like it was smiling at him. 

Standing in the middle of the scrapyard, Viktor could sense every piece of metal, every piece of machinery. 

Was this the only way that the Arcane could reach him? Through molded metal? Mechanisms? Viktor never desired his strange abilities, but if there was a way for magic to speak to him, it would have used the language he spoke best: creating machinery. 

“What…Veektor….doing?” Blitzcrank asked. 

Viktor chuckled. “You’re learning more words, Blitzcrank. I’m proud.” He turned to the trash heap in front of him. 

“It’s about time we create a new home, noh? I didn’t expect to have such a large roommate.” 

“Ho…ome?” the mechanical golem asked. 

“Yes, Blitzcrank,” Viktor said, his hands moving on their own as he settled Singed’s notes gently on the ground. He held the Hextech crystal in one hand and his old cane in the other. 

The Other seemed to embrace Viktor gently now, no longer at war with him. 

“ Home .”

His cane began to warp, metal flowing as if it was water, with the top swirling itself as if creating space for something to hold. Viktor watched, fascinated. He already knew what needed to be done. Viktor opened his palm, caressing the gem once more before placing it in the middle of the top piece. Energy surged through Viktor and it felt like his body was dipped in ice. 

Accept this. Take it. 

It is yours. 

Viktor’s eyes suddenly glowed silver. He raised his staff, feeling all the metal in the scrapyard ready to move to his will. 

Home . 

“Home, Blitzcrank,” he told the machine. “A place to rest. A place to heal. A place to be oneself.”

Metal and silver light flew around Viktor and Blitzcrank. The giant merely watched his creator with curiosity. 

“Hooome,” Blitzcrank repeated slowly, glowing eyes watching the new structure grow from discarded metal. 

“These heathens are out of control!” Salo yelled. 

Piltover’s most powerful families sat around the Council room, with Caitlyn standing in the middle. As Salo and the rest of Piltover’s elite prattled on about security, Caitlyn went over the facts. Jinx’s color bombs were ultimately harmless and appeared to have been a prank. Knowing that she was working with Viktor and Ekko, there had to be another reason. 

It wasn’t a prank, she realized. 

While no one was hurt in the color bombings, it still shook Piltover’s elite to the core

What was supposed to be a consultation was, as Caitlyn suspected, an ambush. 

“We need to flood Zaun with more Enforcers,” one of the members of the Ferros clan. 

“I’m afraid the Enforcers are already stretched thin,” Ambessa said calmly. The Noxian general was standing next to her, yet it felt like only Caitlyn was under trial.  

“Then send the Noxians,” Salo said grimly. 

“No!” Caitlyn said, speaking before she could think. “We sent them in to disperse the rally and look at what happened! Forty-six of my Enforcers are dead!” 

“It was an illegal assembly. The Enforcers are enforcing the law. Are you afraid, Kirraman?” Salo said, eyes narrowing. He had been particularly venomous ever since Caitlyn assumed commandership. 

Afraid? Caitlyn was terrified. She was terrified that she would never find her mother’s killer, terrified that she had lost both Vi and Jayce. That every move she made would only endanger them further.  

Most of all, Caitlyn was terrified that she had made a mistake: that she would keep making mistakes. 

“Yes, I am afraid,” Caitlyn said, eyes grim. “But so are you. Every one of you is afraid but none of you are on the frontlines so I suggest keeping your mouths shut!” 

“You dullard! Need we remind you of who funds your Enforcers’ weapons? You’re rich Kirraman but your gold can’t buy all of those artillery,” he said. 

Caitlyn turned to glare at Salo. She sensed an edge to his voice that was not there before. Something about him had… changed. The bags under his eyes were deeper and his hair was barely kept. 

Salo seemed to have lost every sensibility, every instinct for negotiations. Rumors had already circulated that he had grown a Shimmer addiction following the loss of his mobility. Caitlyn could see it all the more clearly now. It was not the Shimmer addiction that was the problem. 

The man was in withdrawal. 

And if a rich man like Salo could not get his hands on Shimmer, it could only mean one thing. 

“Shimmer’s off the streets,” she thought. 

“Are you paying attention Kirraman?” Salo barked. 

“Yes,” she said through gritted teeth, marching towards the man. “I’m paying attention to a rich brat who’s afraid he can’t get his narcotics fix.” 

Gasps filled the room. 

Caitlyn towered above Salo. The man seemed to have shrunk in his wheelchair as she came closer. She leaned in slowly, eyes like two daggers as she gripped the armrests on Salo’s wheelchair. 

“Watch yourself, Salo. Shimmer is still illegal, Piltover is still under Martial Law and you are still not the one in control,” she whispered, voice dripping with poison. 

She stood back up and watched a terrified Salo stare at the ground. 

“Withdraw your donations. Stop paying taxes. Evacuate Piltover if you don’t feel safe. I don’t care. This city is under my control and I expect my decisions to be respected,” Caitlyn turned on her heel and walked out of the room. It felt as if the rug had been pulled from underneath her and she was spiraling now, more than ever. 

The more rational side of her knew that they needed resources to keep peace. The overwhelming part of her wanted to find Vi and apologize for taking so long to search for her. 

Because Caitlyn needed her. Vi had been the water that soothed her edges but without her, Caitlyn felt so painfully jagged and broken.

In her mind’s eye, she could almost imagine it: Vi being taken away. 

The rain poured as Caitlyn walked out of the building. A pair of heavy footsteps followed her and Ambessa was by her side within a few strides, flanked by a Noxian soldier with a large umbrella. 

“I have a proposed plan, Commander. One that does not require either of us to endanger our people in the Undercity,” she said as a soldier handed her a blueprint. 

Caitlyn kept walking across the courtyard but accepted the scroll anyway. As she read through the schematics, her eyes grew wide and she stopped dead in her tracks. 

“That prisoner has designed a device that—”

“No!” Caitlyn said as she crumpled the paper and threw it to the wet ground and started walking away again, back into the rain. “This is horrendous. I absolutely forbid it!”  

Ambessa grabbed Caitlyn’s wrist and she gasped. Aside from their time in sparring matches, Ambessa had always treated Caitlyn gently. 

“Child, do you love your city? Do you want it to remain standing?” Ambessa said, her voice cold and distant. 

“Let go of me, General,” Caitlyn snarled, the rain soaking through her clothes. 

For the first time, Caitlyn could see something dark dance across Ambessa’s predatory eyes. It was like staring into the eyes of a beast. After several heartbeats, Ambessa let Caitlyn’s arm go.

“Amazing to me that you’re losing several battles, all at once, Caitlyn.” 

Caitlyn’s fingers twitched, ever so slightly, wishing that she had her gun again. Instead, she stepped closer to the Noxian general. 

“It’s Commander Kiramman. You forget yourself, Ambessa,” she hissed as she walked away. 

“Keep getting your men killed, Commander . Let’s see how obedient they’ll be after the Zaunites wipe them all out,” Ambessa said. 

Caitlyn kept walking away as Ambessa stared at her. She was not able to see Ambessa’s eyes narrow as she picked up the plans. She did not see the way Ambessa’s eyes narrow. She did not see Ambessa walk back to the Council Room. 

Thoughts of Vi being locked away in prison again drowned her as she walked under the rain. The cold of the water seeped into her bones, but Caitlyn no longer cared.  

After talking to Singed, Caitlyn looked around Stillwater on her own, long after Ambessa had left. The prison records were a mess. She could not even get consistent numbers on how many Zaunites were imprisoned from the rally. 

So she traced the creature’s steps, looking at every cell. She found nothing of importance but it felt like her instincts were screaming at her to see something her eyes could not spot. 

Those horrid schematics seemed to only confirm her suspicions. If her hunch was correct, it could only mean one thing. 

Caitlyn did make a terrible mistake. 

Jinx, Vi, Vander and Isha stood in awe of the new structures. Every piece of trash in the scrapyard had been cleared, with Jinx quickly realizing that Viktor had transformed them all into…this. 

The main structure was made completely from metal but it carved itself into a globe outfitted with stained glass. It was surrounded by a bunch of smaller structures with curved roofs, made from blended metals. 

It had smaller, circular metallic structures around it. The metal stretched in the same pattern that the Hexcore embraced Viktor’s body. 

Part of Jinx started worrying but as Isha led Vander towards Viktor’s new home, she put those thoughts away. 

“How’d you meet this guy?” Vi murmured. 

Jinx shrugged. “Ambushed him and pointed a gun at him. The usual.” 

Viktor was standing on top of Blitzcrank’s shoulders, organizing volumes of books and journals on a sprawling bookcase when the sisters walked in. A larger table has been set up as well, with several other workstations scattered across the space. 

“Hello Jinx, Violet,” Viktor said as he climbed off Blitzcrank’s body. 

“Heya cookie. Nice new place. My pops is roaming around your new mansion, hope you don’t mind,” Jinx said. 

“It’s hardly a mansion, Jinx,” he said, smiling brightly. Viktor pulled out a journal and started flipping through it. 

There was something different about Viktor. He carried himself differently, with a certain grace that he did not before. 

“Woah, looks like someone’s in a good mood. Found a rebound?” 

Viktor rolled his eyes and shook his head gently. Instead, he thumbed through the journal. 

“Don’t worry about your father. One of these edifices was built to accommodate him. I’ve been researching your father’s case. I went through Singed’s lab and I found this,” Viktor said as he handed Jinx the journal. As she looked through the notes, her eyes grew wide. 

They were about Vander. Diagrams and notes about his body and his eventual mutation. In one of them, it detailed how to open him up and infuse him with animals, using medicine and metal to bind them. 

Rage bubbled in her chest. Her fingers tightened around the pages, slightly tearing the edges. 

“What’s wrong?” Vi asked. She looked at the pages, the imagery of Vander being opened up and sewn back up again greeting her. “Fuck… what did he do?” 

“That…asshole,” Jinx hissed through gritted teeth. “I’m gonna kill him.” 

Viktor grabbed the notes and sighed. “I’m no doctor. I am not a madman like Singed was either. I don’t think I can fully reverse what happened to Vander but I think I can remove the mechanisms in his body that make him so—” 

“Beastly?” Jinx said. 

“—Aggressive,” Viktor finished, walking out of his new lab. As he left through the door, he grabbed what used to be his cane. 

“Looks like you got an upgrade,” Jinx said, eyeing the new contraption as the Hextech crystal they just stole glowed gently inside of it. 

Viktor merely smiled. The three of them went outside to Vander and Isha. The girl had been bringing different scraps to Vander so he could smell it. Viktor looked at Vander cautiously, raising his hand and closing his eyes. 

“What’s your friend doing?” Vi whispered. 

“He has metal powers or some shit. Best not to dwell on it,” Jinx said. 

Viktor’s eyes suddenly glowed silver as energy flowed from the cane and into him. 

“Okay. Maybe we can dwell on it a little,” Jinx said. 

Vander remained passive, even if the man in front of him glowed. He merely stared at Viktor, almost as if he was curious. 

Viktor’s eyes returned to normal. “There’s metal embedded in his spine. It probably administers a more…aggressive variant of Shimmer.” 

“Is he in pain?” Vi asked, looking at Vander. 

Viktor took a deep breath and finally nodded. “I doubt my old teacher cared to make sure he was free from suffering during the process. The pain and anger in his body feed into each other, making each other worse.  It’s a vicious cycle.” 

Jinx grabbed the journal from Viktor’s hands again, her eyes rapidly moving across the pages. “Will he live without the metal implants?” Jinx asked, her fingers quickly slipping through the pages. 

“If these notes are correct, Vander has regenerative abilities. It looks like we can reorganize the metal in his body at least,” Viktor said, shrugging. “Maybe replace Shimmer with a more calming substance.” 

Vi looked to Jinx, who was deep in thought. “What do you think?” 

Jinx thought of the many nights she spent alone, thinking about how she killed her family. Now, in a span of a few months, she had most of her family back and a bunch of other people to worry about. 

“You’re right. You don’t make me sad. Powder does.” 

“Do what you gotta do Doc. I’ll be your nurse,” she said. 

Vi merely smiled, placing a hand on Jinx’s shoulders. She still had to get used to her sister being back but they were starting to have some semblance of harmony now, at least. 

“I’m gonna go get some stuff from my place,” Jinx said, turning to Viktor. “Make me a bed in one of these metal eggs. Looks like I’m staying here for some time.” 

Viktor merely smirked and nodded.  

Jinx left alone as she headed back to her own base. Isha seemed content, alternating between playing with Vander and playing with Blitzcrank. The sun trickled down onto the Undercity, painting everything in a dusty quality. She weaved through the busy streets of Zaun with the same ease as breathing. 

“Jinx.” 

Jinx paused. The voices had not come for her in weeks. Hearing them again jarred her. What was even more puzzling was that she could not place whose voice it was. 

“Jinx!” 

Or perhaps it was not in her head. 

It was Gert. She ducked through some people and made her way to Jinx. The girl merely scowled. She has not given much thought about her “fans” but she was not exactly excited to talk to them either. 

“Uhmm… hey?” 

“Hey boss,” Gert said smiling. “Got a sec?” 

Jayce’s fingers traced his lips, lost in a memory. Replaying that kiss in his head was the only thing that gave him any sense of sanity. He could still feel how Viktor’s hair felt between his fingers, he could still hear the way he moaned. 

He sighed, staring at the ceiling of the new lab they shoved him in. Notes, materials and schematics laid in front of him, all untouched. 

“How does the Man of Progress…define progress?” his new labmate asked from behind him. 

Jayce groaned. “I’m still not talking to you, Singed.” 

With the “terrorists” destroying his lab and his research, Jayce had an excuse to take his time to research with Hextech again. He had time to delay that madman, to delay Ambessa.  

Luckily, Viktor destroyed the lab. His old teacher had no Hextech to research and recreate.

Singed had far exceeded even the worst of Jayce’s expectations. He was dread incarnate. Within a few days, his corner of the lab was decorated with jars filled with different monstrosities: limbs, organs, heads. All of different creatures. Every glance at those things made Jayce want to burn the lab. 

Jayce had only spoken to him twice this week and every interaction left him even more and more terrified of the man. This third meeting was not going well either. 

“Turning Shurima crystals into an energy source was inspired. But what have you worked on beyond Hextech?” he asked. 

Jayce merely shook his head, keeping his back to the madman. He still needed to think of ways to keep Ximena safe from all of this, from everything he needed to do. 

Jayce cared little for his own safety. If it was up to him, he would have fled to Zaun and searched for Viktor. He did not care who he could have hurt. But his mother could not get caught up in all of this.

Singed shrugged, getting used to Jayce ignoring him. “I’m sure Viktor contributed a great deal. He was always a bright child. Soft, but brilliant.” 

It took every bit of control in Jayce’s body not to reply. How dare the man speak of his partner as if he knew Viktor so well? 

“How has his disease progressed? Has the Hexcore healed him?” 

Jayce stilled, holding his breath. “He… he went to you for help? When?” The question flew out of his mouth before he could stop himself. 

“Ah. The Man of Progress speaks. Yes, he came to me many months ago. It looked as if he was barely clinging to life. I gave him something that could help with his experimentation.” 

“I was consulting a friend about our quandary.” 

Jayce could feel the wind get knocked out of his lungs. It made sense, but Jayce felt a wave of nausea at the idea of Viktor being around a man that held so little regard for ethics. 

Then again, Jayce did revive Viktor against his will. 

"What did you give him?" Jayce finally asked. 

Singed looked at him, curious. "Shimmer. He said you would understand." 

A Noxian soldier blissfully took Singed away for a meeting before he could ask Jayce another question. 

Jayce sat back. In his mind, he could see it: Viktor impaling himself with Shimmer to withstand the power of the Hexcore. Shimmer was the missing link. It helped him live. 

As much as Singed repulsed Jayce, he was the reason Viktor was alive. 

His eyes landed on Singed’s desk. Singed only spoke to Jayce for the occasional questions, which suggested to Jayce that he was not just working on Hextech that much, despite Ambessa’s wishes. 

What was he doing?

He stared at Singed’s workstation sitting idly across the room from him. Jayce looked at the door. It has only been a few minutes since a Noxian whisked Singed away for some meeting. 

He made his way to the old man’s desk. There was a notepad on top of the desk with the top paper torn off. Jayce took a pencil and shaded the paper, revealing the outline of a sketch. He looked at the diagram, trying to figure out what he was looking at. 

The door started to open and Jayce all but scrambled to his desk as he hid the paper. 

“Jayce,” she said. 

Jayce stopped dead in his tracks. He has not heard that voice for too long. 

“Caitlyn…” he said, walking towards her, ready to sweep her into his arms. Despite everything that happened, he still missed her terribly. 

Caitlyn grabbed his outstretched arm instead, clearly in a rush. 

“There’s no time. We need to go. Now .” 

“I want to, Cait, but they have my mom,” he said. 

“ What? ” she said, shocked. 

“You… you didn’t know about it. Thank goodness,” he said. 

Caitlyn merely gaped at him. “How… you think I would blackmail you with your mother?’ 

“I don’t know, Cait. I didn’t think you’d shoot my partner either but here we are.” 

“He was with Jinx! For fuck’s sake, we don’t have time. I’ll arrange for your mom to be safe. We need to leave now,” she said as she walked out. 

“Caitlyn…” Jayce said. “What happened?” 

“I… I think I’m about to be overthrown,” she said. 

The Anomaly’s corruption is barely visible in the river water, but Ekko could see it when the light hit it right. It was like a web made from a spectrum of light. It was beautiful, in a strange way. 

The sound of the filtration machine coming to life stole his attention away from the corrupted matter. 

It has been a week since they stole all the Hextech. Ekko focused all his energy on finishing the filtration machine, forcing his mind away from violet and blue eyes. 

The machine was composed of several large tanks on both sides of the river, with two main tubes for each tank. Polluted water goes into one pipe and clean water exited the other. 

Scar and a bunch of Firelights whooped as it came to life. They will have to monitor it for a week to see how well it works but it seemed like everything was going according to plan for once. 

Heimerdinger happily trotted to Ekko. “Everything is set, my boy. We just have to cut off the corrupted tree roots,” he said. 

That was the part that saddened Ekko the most but it had to be done. 

The group was making their way back to the Firelight tree when Ekko’s senses told him they were being followed. But he already had a sense of who it was. 

“Scar, go ahead. I’m gonna get some fried mudfish at Jericho’s,” Ekko called out. 

Scar shot him a look, immediately understanding the code and walking ahead. Heimerdinger looked confused but decided to follow Scar back to the tree anyway. 

Ekko walked in an unfamiliar pattern until he reached a deadend. He sighed. 

“You can come out now,” he called out. 

“Still hate mudfish, huh?” she said from the shadows. 

Ekko rolled his eyes. “What do you want?” 

She came forward with a sly smile on her face. “I’ve been making friends recently,” she said. 

Ekko raised an eyebrow. “Congrats? You stalked me for that?” 

She pouted at him. “No, dumb-dumb. Gert and the other Jinxers started following me around. Turns out, they ain’t too bad. They wanna celebrate their prison break or some shit.” 

Ekko looked at Jinx, waiting for her to make her point. Likewise, it seemed as if Jinx was also waiting for Ekko to understand hers. 

The girl finally threw her hands up in the air. 

“A party. Genius. We want the Firelights to go to our party. At The Last Drop. Tonight.” 

Ekko frowned. “You want people to be around Vander the way he is now?” 

Jinx smiled. “Viktor has a new place set up where my dad can stay. Plus, Vi and a bunch of other Jinxers helped fix up the place.” 

“Okay…?” Ekko said blankly, still marveling at the absurdity of it. Going to a party with Jinx seemed several levels of wrong. Going to a party where Piltover could attack them any day now seemed worse. 

“Okay?” she said, surprised. “You’re going? Good!” she chirped, shoving a wanted poster of him in his hands. Ekko’s drawn face stared back at him, but Jinx had taken the liberty of doodling a mustache on him.  

“Wait, that’s not what I mean—” Ekko started as he looked at the code on the poster, but Jinx was already gone.

“A party? At a time like this? What is she thinking?” the boy exclaimed as he paced around Viktor’s new workshop. 

Vander took another bite of the giant octopus tentacle that Viktor had bought from Jericho’s especially for him. He seemed to like Viktor a lot more after he started feeding him consistently. Vi had also taught Viktor what food he liked in particular. She would often bring in large amounts of food just for Vander. 

The first week had been focused on gaining Vander’s trust, Viktor told Ekko. The way that the metal twisted grotesquely inside his body told Viktor a story of torture and pain. It was no wonder why he was so angry. 

“I think she just wants to celebrate. Aren’t you glad she has more people around her now?” Viktor asked, throwing another tentacle towards Vander. He snatched it up in the air instinctively. Blitzcrank, who was holding the large platter of food, merely observed how his master fed the beast. 

“Yeah, but the Jinxers? Being friends with your own fans is kind of…vain,” Ekko said. 

Viktor merely shrugged. “Your Scar’s leader. But you are also his friend, yes?” 

“It’s different,” Ekko argued, getting some food and offering it to Vander. He took a sniff before taking a bite. 

Viktor shrugged. “Maybe it’s not. She seems to be trying, Ekko, noh? The most that anyone can do is to try.” 

Vander suddenly yawned, walking away from them and sitting down under one of the curved huts. He set himself down gently on the floor and started to sleep.  

“Is he… alright?” Ekko asked. 

Viktor smiled gently. “Yes. I’ve put a heavy sedative in this food. I don’t want him to feel any pain when we start removing his metal implants.” 

“Oh, okay. Do you need any help?” Ekko asked, raising an eyebrow. 

He merely shook his head as he looked overhead, seeing the sun about to set. “Vi and Blitzcrank will help me tonight. Go, get ready. You go enjoy the party. You’re still so young, Ekko. It would do you some good to remember that you deserve to have some fun too, every now and then.” 

Ekko chuckled. “Like you were the life of a party before.” 

The older man shrugged. “Piltover’s parties were boring. Now, do me a favor and let go a little in Zaun.”  

It was Scar that finally convinced Ekko to go. The man told Ekko it would have been good to establish allies with other Zaun factions, especially with Piltover cracking down on the Undercity. Scar made Ekko use one of his old shirts: a plain, off-white long sleeved cropped shirt. He thought he looked good at first. 

But as the two of them stood in front of The Last Drop, Ekko felt too exposed, even if he was wearing one of his oversized, dark green jackets. It was far from how Vander had built it. It was more similar to how Silco styled it yet The Last Drop now screamed of her . There were doodles and graffiti everywhere, along with multicolored lights decorating the building as if there was a holiday. 

“Couldn’t we establish alliances some other way?” Ekko asked, crossing his arms over his exposed belly. 

People were already going in and out of the club and he could hear the music from a good twenty feet away. 

Scar smiled devilishly. “Can’t. Some Firelights are already there, desperately awaiting your rescue, boss.” 

Ekko rolled his eyes. 

The truth of the matter was: Ekko had never been to a party. He simply never had the time nor money. Time could be spent helping his people. Money should be for food and other resources. 

Scar dragged Ekko by the arm and the music only got louder. When the door swung open, Zaunites of different factions greeted them as they drank and danced. He saw Firelights mixed into the crowd. Many of them were Jinxers and there were a bunch of former gang members too. It was a strange sight to see them all together like this. 

In this gothic underground city

We all sin

If I bring a couple rounds with me

Then we all win

I came back and brought the crown with me

The king's den

Break your nexus and your neck 'cause

Everybody's on your head

Despite the overflow of the crowd in the bar, people stopped and stared when Ekko came in. Even the music stopped. 

Ekko’s instincts suddenly told him to run, as if a fight was imminent and they were hopelessly outnumbered. 

“There’s our Savior!” someone yelled. The bar erupted into cheers and hollers. Ekko could feel blood rush to his face as he smiled awkwardly and waved. Most of the people here, Ekko realized, were the people they rescued from Stillwater. Jinx had not been lying; this was a party for their prison break. Someone shoved a drink in his hand and everyone watched him in anticipation. 

“Bottom’s up,” Scar said, getting handed a drink of his own. Ekko smiled awkwardly, raising the glass to the crowd before downing the drink. 

Another round of cheers broke through the bar and the music played again. 

It tasted horrible, Ekko thought. 

He drank more anyway. The alcohol became sweeter the more he drank and for the first time in years, he felt his nerves unfurl and his worries melt away. His body moved to the music on its own. The more he drank, the more that his thoughts and feelings fell deeper into disarray. Ekko had spent years learning how to control his emotions and thoughts. Some of his thoughts were too dangerous. Thoughts like how angry Jinx made him, how every piece of logic flew out of his head when she was around. He wanted to give her a piece of his mind about how she treated him all those years ago and every goddamn fight they had ever since. 

Suddenly, it made so much sense for him to want to see her now . He needed to tell her so she knew how mad she made him. 

His eyes scanned the crowd but the flashing, colored lights made it harder and harder to see blue. Ekko waded through the crowd, away from Scar, who was in the middle of a drinking contest. 

Where was she? 

As he moved through the crowd, he got handed more drinks. Ekko could not possibly say no, it would jeopardize the diplomatic relations between the Zaun factions. What if he pissed off a Jinxer? Then Jinx would get mad at him and he would not be able to see her again. 

The thought of not seeing Jinx again suddenly panicked Ekko. He had been a bit mean to her when they spoke last week. Was she avoiding him? 

“I can’t make you sad, I’m… I shouldn’t mean that much to you,” she said to him.  

“But you mean so much to me,” he slurred out loud. 

The music shifted to something even more upbeat somehow and the bodies surrounding Ekko started jumping and dancing. He felt like the floor was moving under his feet. Was there an earthquake? 

Taste what fell from grace

Wanna taste what fell from grace?

Run away from the faith

Let's race if you wanna taste, ha

You wanna mess around?

They gonna take you down, down, down

Ekko tripped on his own feet and he braced himself for impact with the ground but it never came. He looked at who caught his arm and felt his throat run dry. How could he have drank so much and suddenly feel thirsty again all of the sudden? 

Jinx stared at him as she grasped his arm, her eyes low and dangerous. Something danced in her eyes and they trailed down his body but Ekko could not bring himself to feel conscious anymore. Let her look, he decided. 

Wanna slide and turn

Such a lovely way to burn, burn, burn

I never felt like this before

I think I might just want some more

I never felt like this before

Ekko stared back. Jinx had never been one to shy away from displaying her toned, lean body but tonight was different. She was only wearing a leather piece across her chest. Only that. 

Ekko inched closer, already forgetting why he was so angry, so confused. Everything suddenly felt clear to him. She was right there, all along. 

I think I might just

Slide, shake your bones out if you wanna ride

Throw your head back, make you feel alive

The kind of bad that make you feel good, good

Jinx pulled him closer, her hands trailing up his arms as they locked around his neck as she swayed to the music. His hands moved on their own, finding their way around her waist. The two of them swayed to the music and Ekko could feel himself smiling. 

God, the kinda wrong that make you feel right

The little death that make you feel alive

The kinda shouldn't that mean that you should, should, should

Everything moved wildly around the two of them but Ekko could only see her, could only feel her. She pulled his head closer as their foreheads pressed against each other. He could almost feel the heat of her breath on his cheeks.  

It makes your blood run hot

It makes your spit taste sweet

It makes you feel more alive

Than you have ever been

His heart hammered wildly against his chest, afraid of all the feelings running loose. Pain and joy mixed together and he could no longer tell the difference. He kept his eyes on her and he could have sworn that she kept looking at his lips.  

Throw it into your mouth

Gets stuck between your teeth

Why would you die up there

When you can live underneath?

He felt her arms tighten around his neck, pulling him closer. She pressed her body against his and his arms squeezed around her waist. Holding her felt right . 

Dirty little animals

Beautiful cannibals

“Fuck,” he muttered, untangling himself from her. His thoughts spiraled out of control. The boy was at war with himself, with one side wanting to forget the past and the other refusing to let it go. One thing was for sure for Ekko: he did not know which side he wanted to win. 

He grabbed another drink from someone else’s hand and downed it in one gulp. 

When it hit him in a way that the other drinks have not, he looked at the cup. 

It was a painfully familiar shade of purple. 

“Fuck,” he whispered again as he dropped the cup. Suddenly, it felt like his head had flown away from his body. He felt himself falling again and yet, once more, Ekko did not hit the ground. 

Purple eyes stared at him as his vision faded to black. 

Humming. Ekko awakened to gentle humming. His head hurt so badly but at least it was on something soft. Someone was stroking his hair softly too, he realized. That helped a lot.  He could still feel the thumping of the music but it seemed more faraway now. Ekko was being held, he realized. His eyes opened, just a fraction. 

Only to see Jinx mindlessly running her fingers through his hair. She stared blankly ahead outside the window, the moonlight illuminating her pale skin. 

Beautiful, he thought. 

He did not have it in him to move, with so much alcohol in his system. He felt so nice here, after all. Instead, he listened as Jinx hummed. He knew the tune, and in his head, he sang along. 

There's a girl in town and word's gone around she's just fine

So I don't worry my head 'cause I know her heart is tied to mine

The life that we live and the love that I give to her

Each day it grows more and more I'm sure, it shows

Chapter Text

In one of the sprawling rooms of the Kirraman estate, Jayce recreated Singed’s plans as best as he could. It was a rough outline, an initial draft, so it was not too detailed yet. Caitlyn paced quietly behind him. She gave a loose description of what she saw in the blueprints that Ambessa gave to her, but could not name what contraption Singed had built. 

As Jayce completed the sketch, it took a few moments for him to understand what it was. 

“Fuck,” he whispered through gritted teeth. 

Caitlyn rushed to his side, staring at Jayce’s recreation. 

“How bad is it?” she said. 

“Up here? People could still recover because of the open air. Down there?” Jayce stared at the machine design and shook his head, unable to say it out loud. It glared back, cold and uncaring. He cursed himself for not noticing Singed working on this. 

Caitlyn shook her head. “What have I done?” 

He sighed. “You did what you thought was right at the time. That’s the only thing anyone could do. The only thing we could do now is make sure this doesn’t reach the manufacturing stage.” 

She nodded, her brows knitting in a mix of frustration and determination. 

Jayce has had little time to process seeing Caitlyn again after she had refused to meet with him for so long after that day. He still felt the sting of betrayal from having Ambessa ambush them but as Caitlyn stood in front of him now, he could only see the young girl he had come to love as a sister throughout the years. He wordlessly wrapped his arms around her. She sighed and hugged him back. 

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. 

“It’s alright, sprout. I’m sorry too,” he said as they parted. 

Her eyes flickered to the clock. “It’s time Jayce. Are you ready?” 

He sighed and wordlessly nodded. 

The two boarded an automobile and made their way to the harbor. Jayce watched the streets of Piltover as Caitlyn drove. 

He had spent his life here. Jayce spotted the cafe where he would get coffee for him and Viktor during late nights in the lab. He saw the restaurant where he took Mel out on a date once. 

Jayce closed his eyes. That was a lifetime ago. When the sea came into view, he prepared himself. The sun was about to rise any time soon. A small, solitary white steamboat sat by the calm waters, with three figures waiting. As Caitlyn and Jayce got out of the car, he ran straight into his mother’s arms. 

“Jayce!” she said as they embraced. From the corner of his eye, he saw Steb and Loris salute to Caitlyn. Next to her was a large luggage case. 

Jayce could still remember that snowstorm they were stuck in all those years ago as they made their way to Piltover. He could hardly remember the land they came from before they made the dangerous trek to the City of Progress. His mother barely talked about it as well. When they left, they only had the bare essentials. 

“Where are your things?” Ximena said as they parted, as if her thoughts were in a similar place. “These Enforcers just told me to pack and to meet you here.” 

Jayce smiled sadly, tears threatening to spill from his eyes. “Things… things are gonna get really dangerous up here, Ma.”

Her hand laid gently on his cheek.“I know, son. That’s why we need to leave.” 

Jayce looked away, unable to disguise the hurt. “I’m not coming with you, Ma. I need to face what I’ve done here.” 

Ximena looked at her son, confusion turning into a sorrowful understanding. 

“A smart man would have run,” Ximena said, pulling Jayce into an embrace. “But not an honorable one.” 

She held him so tightly, Jayce almost felt like he was going to dissolve into the embrace. Part of Jayce wanted to. 

“Let me stay with you,” she whispered into his ear.

Jayce merely shook his head as they pulled apart. “Don’t make me carry you into the boat.” 

Ximena sighed, looking at Jayce. 

“We came from a land riddled with poverty and violence,” Ximena said. Jayce looked at her eagerly. She never spoke of the country they hailed from. It was as if she was desperate to scrub their family clean of the place.  

“We had to fight over food constantly. I lost my father in a riot after a peacekeeper got too trigger happy. I never wanted you to go through what I did. That’s why we left when you were so young. But here you are, running towards the same problem because you want to fix it,” Ximena said, tears freely flowing down her cheeks. 

Jayce was crying too. He never knew the depth of the sacrifice his mother made just to bring him to Piltover. 

All of his life, Jayce had only thought of the mage who saved their lives. He almost forgot that his mother was saving him first. 

It was his turn to save her now. 

Ximena spotted Caitlyn lurking in the background and opened her arms for her. She was hesitant but Ximena pulled her in. 

“I’m so sorry for your loss, sweetheart. Have you been taking care of yourself?” Ximena said. 

Caitlyn looked away, her eyes downcast. “I’m trying.” 

Ximena only held her tighter. As they parted, she looked at the two of them. 

“Whatever happens, I need you both to look after each other,” Ximena said. 

Jayce and Caitlyn looked at each other. They had a lot to talk about but neither had a clue on where to begin. He took her hand and squeezed it to let her know that no matter what it was, he would be there for her. Caitlyn seemed to understand. 

As the sun started to rise, it was time to go. Ximena boarded the ship, after much more reassurance from Jayce that he would stay safe and that he would always write to her. 

Jayce watched as his mother stared at him from the boat. He could hear the engines roar to life and the boat parted from the docks. 

They kept their eyes on each other as long as they could, even when her figure grew smaller and smaller as she sailed into the horizon. 

Jayce did not want to think about it, but he knew, somehow, that this could be the last time he saw his mother. 

Caitlyn placed a hand on Jayce’s shoulder. “We should go. We don’t know what Ambessa might do next,” she said. 

As if speaking a curse out loud, the sound of sirens filled the morning air. In the distance, the flash of blue and red Enforcer lights grew brighter. 

“Well shit,” Jayce said. Caitlyn had told him that there might be retaliation if she set him and his mother free. 

“Your hammer’s in the back of the mobile,” Caitlyn said as they rushed to the vehicle. She turned to her two officers. “Go. I’ll hold them off.” 

“I’m not leaving you,” Jayce said, grabbing the hammer. Steb handed Caitlyn her gun wordlessly and nodded. As the Enforcers and Noxians came closer, the four of them braced for a fight. Jayce gripped his hammer, still remembering the last time he fought with it. 

This time, Jayce was certain he was fighting on the right side. 

But then the vehicles stopped several yards away. No officers, no soldiers appeared. 

Caitlyn and Jayce looked at each other, uncertain. 

They only caught the merest glimpse of the poison bomb before it went off. 

Suddenly, Jayce’s eyes and lungs were on fire. 

They were drowning in a putrid, green smoke. Jayce saw Caitlyn collapse to the ground, wheezing. Loris and Steb were also curled up, coughing. 

He tried to reach Caitlyn but his body acted against his will, and Jayce bent over in pain. The poison creeping through his body brought Jayce to his knees as he dropped his hammer. 

He fought, desperate to stay awake as his body screamed in pain. 

From the green smoke, Jayce saw Ambessa emerge. She wore a gas mask but Jayce could still feel her eyes piercing into him. 

As his vision turned black, Jayce could only think of Viktor. 

Vi watched as Viktor detached the vials of green liquid from Vander’s back. The whole night before had been spent prepping for today: the day they start trying to heal Vander. Viktor had made himself clear that he would only be able to help ease Vander out of the constant pain he was in, and perhaps, eventually, help him gain control over himself again. 

If it meant getting her father out of pain and rage, Vi was all for it. 

She absentmindedly stroked Vander’s head on her lap; her father was sleeping blissfully, his breath even and steady. Whatever concoction Viktor had created to sedate him, it was very strong. 

Blitzcrank carried the sharp, jagged pieces back inside the main house. They returned, carrying smooth, white metallic disks that resembled Isha’s prosthetics. They were not flat disks though, Vi realized. They were thick, and Vi could make out the purple fluid that flowed inside of them. It was Shimmer, Viktor had told her: a purified version that Jinx made for medicinal purposes. With a wave of his hand, one of the disks flew to Viktor and he worked to attach them to Vander’s back. 

“They call you The Machine Herald now, you know,” Vi said absentmindedly, watching metal float. As she made her way to Viktor’s house earlier that day, she passed by more graffiti art of Jinx. Only now, she was joined by Ekko and Viktor. In one of the walls, the three of them stood triumphantly over a bunch of dead Enforcers. 

Jinx was the Loose Cannon of Zaun. Ekko was The Boy Savior. Viktor was The Machine Herald. 

“The machine part I understand,” Viktor said evenly, unimpressed at his new alias. His eyes were trained on securing the metal plates on Vander’s back. “Herald seems out of place.”

Vi merely shrugged. “Wanna guess what they call me?” 

Piltigoon.

Pig. 

Traitor.

“It doesn’t matter to me what they call you, Violet. And it shouldn’t matter to you,” he said as he pushed down the disk, sealing it. 

“You don’t strike me as the type to be conscious of how people see you” 

Vi merely shrugged. “I don’t usually care.” 

“Continue not caring. We would all be driven mad if we tried to measure ourselves according to everyone else’s standards.” 

Vi said nothing, merely smirking. The two fell into a comfortable silence as they worked. 

After removing the tubes on Vander’s back, Viktor told Vi to help lay out his claws properly. His claws were coated in metal, as if Singed forged it there himself to make sure Vander could inflict as much pain as possible. 

Vi felt her fingers twitch. How could anyone do this? Why on earth did Singed need to torture Vander like this? Vander’s final, lucid moments were spent trying to save her. Yet every moment after that night had been agony for him. 

Viktor took a deep breath as he held out his hand. Carefully, the metal joints in Vander’s hands flowed away as if it was fluid, revealing natural black claws; one that looked more like it belonged to a wolf. 

Vi checked on Vander to see if they were hurting him: luckily, he was still fast asleep. For once, everything was going smoothly. Viktor was about to start on Vander’s other claw when he paused. 

Something also stirred within Vi’s stomach; a well-oiled instinct telling her that something was amiss. She looked around, her heart suddenly hammering, as if it knew that there was a fight waiting to happen. 

“Something’s wrong…” she whispered, unable to place where the danger was. Her eyes scanned the vicinity, but she saw nothing. 

Viktor’s eyes turned skyward and he grew pale. She tried to look for what he was seeing but everything looked clear to her. 

Viktor’s metal hand grasped her arm all of the sudden. “The Atlas Gauntlets are in the lab. Get them. Find something to cover your eyes and mouth. We need to go.” 

Ekko’s head felt like it was split open and put together again. The sound of a chainsaw hacking away at Firelights tree roots did not help. He curled into himself in bed. The Firelight had awoken the time that he usually did but Scar took one look at him and sent him off to bed again. For once, Ekko did not protest being asked to rest some more. As much as his head hurt however, he could not get his mind off of what happened at the party—whatever he could remember at least. 

He saw glimpses of it; as if he was flickering through snapshots. Everything was a blur but the only thing that was clear to him was her . The way her eyes shone in the dim colored lights. The way her skin felt underneath his fingertips. 

Ekko woke up to the morning light streaming down the window inside of Silco’s old office. What struck him as odd was not that he woke up in his old enemy’s office, but that he had woken up alone. 

Alone and without a jacket, it would seem. Jinx had left him. But not without a gift. 

Ekko woke up to a journal next to him with Silco’s insignia. Except, Jinx had doodled all over it. At the corner of the page, however, was a clear “For the Boy Savior”. 

The same journal was under his pillow right now, but he was way too hungover to read anything. 

Half of him felt embarrassed about how he acted that night. The other half wanted to do it all over again. 

His eyes were still shut on his cot when he heard shuffling enter his chamber. He peered through his eyes to see Heimerdinger trot onto his bedside to leave something. 

“Professor…?” he groaned. 

 “Ah, you’re awake, my boy. I got you some tea. My special brew. It should help with the hangover!” the professor said. 

Ekko could not help but smile, even if his head felt like it was spun around a hundred or so times. He got up slowly to drink the tea. 

It took every muscle in Ekko’s body not to spit it out.

“Thanks… professor,” he said, managing to smile. 

Heimerdinger beamed, looking at Ekko eagerly, waiting for him to down the drink. 

Ekko stifled a groan. He was about to take a second drink when he heard it: 

The sound of screaming. 

Jinx played with the sleeves of Ekko’s jacket. It made a nice addition to her new look. Isha and Gert had even braided her hair into loops. She tried to keep her mind on the Jinxers, who finally convinced her to teach them some of her “tricks”. 

She was 100% focused and definitely not thinking about how Ekko held her last night. 

Jinx peered around her room, where some fifteen or so Jinxers surrounded her. She has never had so many people here all at once. Today’s lesson was how to make a smoke bomb. It should be easy. It was the first thing she taught Isha. 

That was, until, a loud bang broke out and everyone was covered in black soot. 

One of the Jinxers, Keena, yelped, desperately looking around as if she was caught in trouble. 

“No, no, no! That’s now how you do it,” Jinx said, walking over to her. Her rabbit ears poked through the hair she dyed blue. They twitched nervously as Jinx drew near and she looked at her bomb. She smirked reassuringly at Keena. “It’s all good, kid. Just make sure not to overload the thing with powder next time.” 

Keena’s eyes shifted from worry to relief. 

The door to her hideout swung open, and Sevika barged in, her eyes red. She fell to her knees, coughing. Jinx and Isha ran to her. 

“What the fuck happened?!” Jinx yelled. 

Sevika wheezed, struggling to find her breath. 

“Topside… The Grey….” Sevika said through coughing fits. 

It was the only thing Jinx needed to hear. Gert sprang to action, helping Jinx carry Sevika over to the couch. Keena and another Jinxer started looking after her. 

“Make sure she’s okay,” Jinx told Keena. She looked for gas masks among her tools, grabbing her gun and a few more bombs. 

She saw Isha grabbing some of her own things as well. 

“Woah there, kiddo,” Jinx said, grabbing Isha. “I need you to stay here, okay?”  

Isha merely frowned, shaking her head. 

“I only have two gas masks and neither fit you. Look after the others. They ain’t as sharp as you yet,” she said. “That’s an order.” 

Isha pouted but nodded. 

Jinx sighed and looked at Gert, tossing her a gas mask. “Let’s see what you got.” 

“Don’t touch anything!” Jinx told the Jinxers as she put on the mask and walked out of the door. 

Chaos was no stranger in the streets of Zaun. It was the spirit that brought life to the Lanes. The people of the Underground thrived on it; it manifested in their music, they painted it on their bodies. 

What was happening right now was not chaos. 

It was evil. 

Viktor and Vi had one moment to understand the scene that played out before them. 

People ran amok in the streets, screaming as a veil of green smoke blanketed all of Zaun. Even without stepping into the thick of the green cloud, the poison stung Viktor’s eyes and he could feel a familiar ache in his lungs. Viktor searched for the source. It was coming from above .

“There!” Vi yelled through her gas mask, pointing at a small object zooming across Zaun. Before Viktor could act, Vi sprinted, climbing a streetlight and leaping into the air, catching whatever it was. Vi landed back next to him, handing Viktor the device. 

It was a small contraption emitting a green gas. It had several propellers that allowed it to fly. On its back were green vials, similar to the liquid Vander was being infected with. 

Singed . 

Overhead, Viktor could make out several other poison drones. 

It was The Grey, but tainted, made more potent. Singed had found a way to turn the gas even more poisonous. Even worse, he found a way to diffuse it into the air with ruthless efficiency.  

“Get everyone out of here! Go to the creek!” Viktor said. She wordlessly ran off in the opposite direction. 

In the midst of the chaos, Viktor saw Ekko and the other Firelights on their hoverboards, trying to hurdle people towards safety. 

“Ekko!” Viktor yelled through his gas mask. The boy flew to him. 

“What the hell is happening?!” Ekko yelled through his Firelight mask. 

“Biochemical warfare,” Viktor said coldly. “The creek in the outskirts of town. It’s open air there. People will be safer. Take as many drones out as possible on your way out. Go!” 

Ekko nodded wordlessly, taking out his bat, barking orders to the Firelights. 

Viktor heard shooting and saw Jinx and Gert take down the drones with the Hextech guns. A bunch of others who were fortunate to have gas masks also started shooting the drones down as well. His third arm came to life, shooting at as many drones as he could. 

In a few hours, Viktor would have the time to contemplate the full ramifications of what was happening. In a few hours, they would gather the sick, dying and the dead. Soon enough, Jinx, Viktor, Ekko and a bunch of others would stand around and figure out what happened and how to stop it from happening again. Viktor already knew the inevitable conclusion: Ambessa and Singed were working together to make weapons. 

But now, as Viktor stared at the streets of Zaun, as people stumbled over each other to get to safety, as people collapsed on the ground from the poison, he could only think of one thing: 

Topside’s cruelty knew no bounds. 

Humanity’s cruelty knew no bounds. 

No more. 

There were too many of them. His third arm powered down as Viktor raised his cane and he felt all the metal on the streets bend to his will: pipes, shop signs, window panes. They flew according to his will, targeting the drones. They fell one by one. But it was not over yet. More drones arrived. 

He extended himself, trying to reach the metal in the drones themselves but they were too high. 

Viktor felt The Other surge through his body once more. Viktor surrendered himself, willingly, unable to face the sheer cruelty of it all. He felt himself scream, his eyes glowing. Viktor could feel himself be split apart and put together again. 

No more. 

Vi ran through the streets, breathing hard against her gas mask. 

A few months ago, she wore a similar gas mask as she waded through The Grey. Now, she was doing it again. 

But everything was different now. Vi was different. 

She shoved down all the guilt she felt in her chest as she screamed at people to go to the creek. Despite her reputation, a handful of people started following her, carrying on the message to other people. 

The screaming did not stop. Every corner of the streets were filled with coughing and yelling. Above it all, the screaming of a child stopped Vi dead in her tracks. She followed it, allowing the flow of the crowd to carry itself towards the creek. 

In an alley, Vi found the source. 

Two boys, not more than ten years old, were clawing at their poisoned eyes, desperately. A woman’s body laid terrifyingly still next to them. Vi quickly took off her gauntlets, tearing her sleeves quickly to tie them around the boys’ eyes. It did not stop their crying but Vi hoped that it would keep them from damaging their eyes any more than the poison already has. 

She already knew the answer, but Vi checked for a pulse on the woman anyway. 

When she felt nothing, Vi did everything she could to keep herself from screaming. She put on the gauntlets again, carrying the two boys more easily as she ran. They cried and kicked for their mother but Vi kept her eyes steadily ahead, even if tears flowed freely from them now. 

Someday, she would scream about this day from the top of her lungs. 

Someday, she would remember this moment and drink so much until Jinx had to pick her up from the floor. 

Maybe someday, Vi could make amends. 

Today was not that day. 

As the day went on, the putrid scent of the toxin was still everywhere. But most of the Zaunites were able to head towards the creek, any area where the air was not restricted by the depth of the Underground. Jinxers, Firelights and every other Zaunite that had a gas mask gathered up the broken poison drones. Viktor watched as the devices mounted in piles on the streets of Zaun. There must have been hundreds of them. 

Viktor and a handful of others took it upon themselves to gather the dead. He had never seen death in such a scale. Once, a long time ago, he was a scientist that wanted to prevent death. 

He found a middle-aged man leaning on a post, curled up. His lungs likely caved in. Viktor sighed and picked him up. 

As he worked, he thought of how an attack like this was horrendous for the people of Zaun. Many of the population were malnourished and vulnerable to illnesses. The toxic fumes from the factories and coal mines were already there to inflict a myriad of illnesses on people. They were already dying much faster than an average Piltovan would. The average, human Piltover citizen could live up to one hundred years old. In Zaun, a human that reached seventy years old was already ancient.  

Piltover just wanted them dead faster, it would seem. Unleashing a poison like this to a population that was starving and sick was new level of cruelty that was shocking even from Noxus. 

As he walked, Viktor also found a dead woman in an alley. She was frighteningly thin. He surmised that whether it was the poison gas or the illness ravaging her body, she was going to be dead either way. He carried her gingerly, placing her in a line with the other bodies in the streets. 

He spotted Scar a few meters away, dutifully covering the bodies with sheets. Viktor estimated that they had at least twenty people dead for this street alone. They would have to burn most of these bodies. 

Truly, bombing them would have been kinder, in a way. 

Viktor imagined the scene at the creek. For those who survived a direct hit, Viktor could already see their future: a life filled with constant pain in their lungs, unable to breathe normally for the rest of their lives. 

If anything proved to you that humanity is a lost cause, it should be this. 

“But the Zaunites did not choose this. It was done to them,” Viktor whispered angrily. “We must destroy the source.” 

With all of his efforts to take away Hextech from Piltover, Viktor forgot all the other ways that evil could present itself in technology. Vander alone should have been proof of that. 

Destroy the source.

Viktor already imagined blowing a hole in Singed's head. His mind already drew a map of where in Piltover Singed could be so that he could hunt him down. 

“Viktor,” Jinx said quietly from behind him. 

He turned around slowly. She breathed hard, her shoulders rising and falling unevenly. Even when she was wearing a gas mask, Viktor could tell she was trying to stop herself from crying. She ran into his arms. Viktor held onto her, burying his face into her blue hair. 

“I never wanted this for Zaun. Is… is this my fault?” she whispered into his chest. Viktor could already see the memory in her mind, and he could imagine what it felt like pulling the trigger that day she bombed the Council. 

“No,” he said with finality. “This war started long before you, Jinx. It was a war waged against the sick and the destitute. You just started fighting back.” 

Viktor expected Jinx to keep crying. Instead, she parted from him gently. Her eyes turned downcast. He could almost see the gears in her head shifting and turning. 

“I wanna hurt them back again,” Jinx whispered angrily. She looked at him, purple eyes filled with a resolution Viktor has not seen before. “Are you with me?” 

“You already know the answer,” Viktor said. 

The sound of coughing and moaning filled the creek. It has been several hours since the first wave of drone attacks. Ekko was in several places at once, helping the injured and getting people sorted. The Firelights and some others poured water into the eyes of those who were poisoned. Several of the younger Jinxers also helped the injured, those who were trampled upon in the panic.  

The people whose eyes were afflicted were the ones who got off easy. In another part of the creek, an infirmary of sorts was set up. A makeshift tent with some cots, blankets and mattresses that could alleviate some of the discomfort. They housed the worst of the injured, the ones whose lungs collapsed. 

Ekko stood over one of them, an elderly man who had the misfortune of being unable to run away fast enough from the gas. The old man coughed violently, his eyes red and sore. 

There were barely any doctors in Zaun. It was the only reason that Zaunites would travel to Topside: once they finally pinched enough pennies, they would finally try to get a real medical consultation in Piltover. 

There were no doctors to help them now. Not when Piltover was the one to do this.

Ekko poured water into the old man’s eyes. 

“Hey Savior,” Jinx said quietly, approaching the old man. She sighed, seeing him. She wordlessly brought out a syringe filled with purple liquid from her bag.

“Shimmer?” Ekko murmured. 

“The medicinal kind. It’ll ease the pain while…” Jinx said, her voice trailing off. 

Neither of them said it, but they knew what was to come. With no doctors and with the swaths of people injured and poisoned, death was inevitable. 

Most of the people in the infirmary were the sick and the old: the people who would not survive something like this. 

For the able-bodied people like Jinx and Ekko, the poison would hurt. A direct hit would knock them out for a few hours. 

But for many Zaunites, the sick, the old: those whose lungs were already suffering damage from the polluted air in the Underground; it was only a matter of time before death claimed them. 

Jinx injected the old man. Slowly, his wheezing subsided and he closed his eyes. 

Ekko blinked away his tears. The rage and pain in his chest threatened to overwhelm him. But he could not. He tore his eyes away from the old man as his chest stopped rising and falling. 

Ekko needed to focus. 

He wordlessly left Jinx at the infirmary tent. A bunch of the other Jinxers were there now as well, offering water and aid. Some of them went into the tent; presumably to administer Shimmer to the dying. Ekko went to where he was needed. His own eyes burned. His mask protected him for a bit but it was not a gas mask and he could feel some of the poison's effects. He powered through it, adrenaline and rage kept him moving.  

“Give me your eyes,” she said, prepping a tin canister filled with water. 

“I’m fine,” he said, trying to shoo her away. 

She rolled her eyes and grabbed his face, colored nails digging into his cheeks. Jinx dumped the water on his eyes. 

“Fuck!” he yelled. But relief, while temporary, finally came for his eyes. 

He shook off the excess water. “What’s happening down in The Lanes?” 

“Viktor had another magic machine moment. He helped destroy most of the poison drones,” she said. 

“But the gas is still there?” Ekko said. 

“It’ll take some time to clear up,” Jinx said. “Gases tend to stay trapped down here longer.” 

“I know,” Ekko said, closing his eyes. He tried, desperately, to keep it together, to save all his grief for another day. But it was too overwhelming. In a few hours, they need to start taking a death toll. Ekko already counted at least seventeen, just in the camp. They still needed to look for the people who died on the streets, the ones who did not get a chance to run. He felt Jinx’s hand slip into his. 

“I don’t need you to tell me everything will be alright,” Ekko muttered, but he gripped her fingers anyway. 

“I wasn’t gonna say that. To hell with all of that. None of this is alright,” Jinx said, squeezing his hand. “I was gonna say let’s fuck them up.”  

Ekko looked at her, eyebrows knitted together. 

“We’ll show them,” she said, chaos and anger brewing behind her purple eyes. “We will show them all.” 

“You have a plan already, don’t you?” Ekko asked. 

She said nothing, her eyes only looking at the crowd until they caught on something. Ekko’s eyes landed where hers were. 

Viktor stood just on the edge of the encampment, watching everything from a distance. He already knew that whatever plan Jinx had proposed to him, Viktor was already in agreement. 

A few months ago, he would never dare consider any of Jinx’s plans. Yesterday, he would have listened to her but he would have still contested it, whatever it was. 

Today was different. 

His people were hurt. His people were killed . 

Ekko’s eyes shifted between the two of them. Then he looked at the sick and dying before him. All of the hurt in his chest spilled like a storm breaking a dam. 

Wordlessly, he nodded. Viktor walked over to the two of them, his expression dour. 

As Jinx told them of her new plan, Ekko merely nodded. He gestured to Scar and other Firelights to come closer. Jinx did the same for Gert and the other Jinxers. The two of them started issuing orders, setting a direction to the two groups. Viktor watched on silently. 

Scar looked at Ekko grimly as he issued orders, but he did not disagree. Everyone in Zaun had a bone to pick. 

There was nothing to lose now. 

Chapter Text

As the moon rose, the dead were laid in rows in front of Vander’s statue. They were covered with sheets of different colors, whatever they could find. With death being so commonplace in the Underground, there was very little in terms of common cultural practices for the dead. A cadaver would be lucky if they get cremated. This was the means that they decided upon for the bodies that no one claimed. There were about thirty of them that were unclaimed, Jinx counted. Jury was still out for the final death toll: there was bound to be people trapped in other crevices they have not reached. 

Sevika, Scar, Gert and many others dutifully threw fuel and tinder on the bodies. They tossed jerry cans of fuel back and forth as if they were watering a garden. 

Dozens of Zaunites showed up, many of them still bearing symptoms of poisoning, their eyes swollen and red. Some of them were still coughing. 

Jinx stood solemnly with Vi, Viktor and Isha. Not too far from him was Ekko and the other Firelights. Jinx stepped forward when Sevika and the rest were done. Her face appeared passive but there was a storm dancing behind her purple eyes. 

A memory, frighteningly clear, came to her: one that she had hidden deep within her. 

Her mother’s face, staring at the smoke-filled sky as life drained out of her. 

What would she have been like, if her mother raised her? She saw it, for the briefest moments: her face, with eyes bright and curious and cheeks fuller and rounder. 

That was a different life. 

Jinx wordlessly looked up at Vander’s statue, a thousand memories playing in her mind, and a million more what-ifs. Her eyes never left Vander’s, even as she ignited the torch. It sparked a blue flame. She held it up for a few seconds before throwing it to the bodies. 

The torch hit the first body and within seconds, blue flames consumed the flesh of the fallen Zaunites. Jinx stood above the bodies. 

Silence fell like a veil upon the trenchers. Ekko walked to where Jinx was, and Viktor followed suit. The boy held her hand, and Viktor placed a mechanical hand on Jinx’s shoulder. The flames painted everyone’s faces blue. The flames danced into the sky, and they only seemed to grow stronger. Jinx turned away from the bodies, facing the Zaunites in the crowd, the gentle winds fanning the blue flames behind her. Among them, she could have sworn that an orange eye was watching her. 

“It burns, doesn’t it?” she said, her voice even. Everyone’s eyes landed on her expectantly, not knowing what to expect. So many in Zaun had waited to see her, to decide if there was any credence to her legend. 

“It burns when they starve us. It burns when they beat us,” her eyes landed on Vi. “It burns when they steal away the people that you love.” 

Vi looked hard at Jinx, her eyes watering. 

“Well I say,” Jinx said, voice rising as she met the crowds’ eyes. “Let it burn! Then they’ll fucking see us.” 

That earned a chorus of whoops and hollers. 

“I don’t know about you but I’m tired of letting those rich assholes walk all over us. I don’t give a fuck if you’re a Firelight or a Jinxer. I don’t give a fuck if you were a gang member. We fight back because we’ve all had enough! We fight back because we deserve to live!”  

The crowd grew louder. Even Sevika and Scar had begun yelling as well. 

“We fight, because those bastards need to know who they’re dealing with! Let’s light those fuckers up!”   

“Let it burn!” the crowd started chanting. 

Jinx stared at the Zaunites. And she could see him, his orange eye alight like fire. 

She had never seen him so proud. 

“Let it burn!”

“Let it burn!”

“Let it burn!”

Vander sniffed his paw calmly, almost as if he was examining it. The moon hung gently above the sky as they stayed in the huts. Violet watched him carefully. He woke up a day after the poison attack and the change was already apparent. He still looked like a wolf, albeit smaller. He was much closer to being a very large man now. Bigger than Vander was, but still, more human. 

Whatever Shimmer concoction Viktor and Jinx came up with, it was working. It was regulating his emotions. 

The ugly metal work on his chest, back and claws were gone as well. The only indication of Singed’s torture was the metal that lined his spine. Viktor said that changing that part too much was too dangerous. 

“Vioolet…” he murmured. 

“Vander?” Vi said, standing up quickly, walking over to the man and placing a hand on his thick arm. 

“Why… why…you… sad?”  

Vi let out a small, disbelieving laugh. She felt like crying. “You can finally form a full sentence and you’re checking on me?” 

Vi threw her hands around his neck. He gently wrapped her in an embrace. 

Suddenly, she could no longer stop herself. The tears finally fell. So much has happened since Jinx broke her out of prison. She felt like a part of herself had come alive again now that she was back with Vander and Jinx. She had Isha to protect now too. 

But then the poison drones came and Vi remembered how easily she could lose it all again. How many times can her heart be torn apart and healed again, only for it to be broken once more? 

She held onto Vander’s face, desperate to see eyes. One of his large hands gently wiped away a tear from her cheek. Vi held onto his hand, her entire hand only grasping one of his fingers. 

“What happened to you?” Vi whispered. 

Vander’s mood immediately soured. He turned away from Vi, lugging away from her and sitting down on the large mattress Jinx found for him. 

“Y-you don’t have to talk about it,” Vi said immediately. “You’re here now. You’re safe. That’s all that matters.” 

Vander only nodded, but his eyes were still pained, remembering a horrible past. 

“Where… Powder…?” he asked. 

“She…” Vi said, voice trailing off. “She goes by Jinx now.” 

“Jiinx?” Vander said, frowning. It was as if he was trying to remember something. 

Vi already knew which memories he was looking for: all the times Powder ran crying to him because Milo called her a jinx.
“She has something important to do,” Vi said. 

Viktor, Jinx and Ekko had flat out banned Vi from whatever mission they had in mind. Jinx had welcomed her back to Zaun but that did not mean they trusted her. Not when Enforcers were the ones to send the drones. 

Vi knew it was Piltover because the drones had the Enforcer’s crest. 

She was still trying to accept that Caitlyn could have done something like this. Part of her knew it could not have been the woman she loved. But the other part saw the wrath she was capable of when they were looking for Jinx in Zaun. 

Part of Vi wanted to go back to Piltover to see for herself if it was Caitlyn. Part of her did not want to know. 

Mostly, she was afraid that if she left Vander’s side for too long, he would disappear again. 

“Do you wanna test out those new legs? ” Vi quipped. 

Vander perked up a bit, nodding. Vi held onto his arm as they left the hut. 

“The Lanes are different from what you remember, so try not to be too surprised. Some things stay the same though,” she said. 

“Jeeericho’s?” he said. 

Vi chuckled, trying to hold back her tears. “Yep. Good guess. Come on, let’s get something to eat.” 

Years after he faced trial for experimenting with Hextech, Jayce found himself in the same holding room again, waiting to be judged once more. The moon shone through the high windows and Jayce hoped, once more, that Viktor was safe from all of this. 

Caitlyn paced around while in handcuffs, thinking. No doubt, she was kicking herself for allowing any of this to happen. 

“Caitlyn,” Jayce said softly. 

“How could I have been so stupid?” she whispered angrily. 

“Cait.” 

“How long has she been using me?” 

Jayce got up, stopping right in front of Caitlyn. She crashed into him, too deep inside of her self-despair to notice him. He caught her effortlessly and grabbed her shoulders. 

“Listen to me. This is every bit of my fault as it is yours. But we can’t… we need to find a way to get away from this. We need to get to Zaun to fix this.” 

“They poisoned Zaun! I’m pretty sure Zaun is coming here soon enough. And good grief, I can’t even blame them,” she said, eyes brimming with tears. “They didn’t even bother to check if they killed anyone. The Enforcers were happy that they didn’t need to go down there anymore.” 

Jayce let out a deep breath. 

Viktor was right, again. In all their years together, Viktor had spoken about all the ways Zaun had been disadvantaged but Jayce never fully understood it until now. Jayce’s chest ached: he wanted so badly to see him again, to make sure he was not hurt. 

They had been read their crimes a few days ago: Jayce was busted for escaping detention while Caitlyn was being tried for helping him, a crime she did not deny. 

To make matters worse, it was enough ammunition for Ambessa to convince Piltover’s elite that Caitlyn was no longer fit to be commander but for some reason, that spineless bastard Salo was qualified for the job. Jayce was not prone to violent thoughts, but that man was quickly becoming the only exception. 

Salo being in charge meant that Ambessa was the real one in control. 

The door suddenly opened. 

As if summoning a devil with his thoughts, Ambessa walked into the room, her entire body concealed in a blood red cloak. 

“You bitch!” Caitlyn said, marching up to her. Jayce, his own hands in handcuffs, held her back. 

“Easy, girl,” Ambessa said. 

“How dare you go behind my back like this?” she hissed. 

“You were losing your grip, Kiramman. You no longer have what is necessary to take control of your city,” she said evenly. 

“Cruelty? My mother tried to get rid of The Grey!” 

“And yet between the two of us, I am not the first one to use it against Zaun,” Ambessa said. 

Whatever words Caitlyn had next died in her throat. 

“I hope that you find that edge within you soon, Caitlyn. This may be exactly what you need,” Ambessa said. She turned towards Jayce, something dangerous playing behind her eyes. 

“And you promised to help us take Hextech further,” Ambessa said. “Instead, we lose every Hextech weapon we have during the attacks. And all your research conveniently gets destroyed during your visit to the lab.” 

“Good luck trying to recreate it,” Jayce said dryly. 

To some extent, Jayce was relieved. He did not have to worry about his mother’s safety anymore. Should Ambessa choose to kill him or let him rot in prison, Hextech would die with him. 

“Oh, I know you think we lost our only bargaining chip when your mother sailed away,” Ambessa said, looking down at the man. As if on cue, the door opened once more. 

Two Noxian soldiers walked in and to Jayce’s horror, one of them carried the Mercury Hammer. The shorter soldier handed it to Ambessa. Something was off about the soldier but Jayce could not place what it was. His attention was solely held by Ambessa as she carried the hammer; she handled it with ease, perhaps even more grace than Jayce did. After all, she was a seasoned soldier. 

“How well do you think this will do against that mechanical beast with the third arm? What was his name again? Oh, yes. Viktor,” Ambessa said as the hammer lit up. 

The image of Viktor laying lifeless on the ground as the world burned around him flashed in Jayce’s mind. 

“No!” Jayce said, surging forward. But the other Noxian soldier held him back. 

“Don’t hurt him!” Jayce yelled. 

Ambessa merely smiled, as if she had already gotten what she wanted from the visit. 

“Both of you are being tried for treason. I suggest you focus on that first,” she said.

She left, carrying the hammer with her. 

Jayce’s knees gave out, and Caitlyn rushed to his side to embrace him.  

“ Dear friend across the river. My hands are cold and bare. Dear friend across the river. I'll take what you can spare. I ask of you a penny, my fortune it will be. I ask you without envy. We raise no mighty towers. Our homes are built of stone. So come across the river, and find the world below, ” Jinx sang quietly, running her fingers gently along Isha’s hair as she laid on the couch. It was returning to normal now, the blue dye fading. Jinx would not tell her this however. She was never a fan of people copying her look. 

The two of them were back in Jinx's hideout. She had convinced the girl that there was no grand plan for revenge, at least not so soon. It was a lie, of course. The window for revenge was small. If tonight was successful, Isha was bound to throw a tantrum at Jinx for not bringing her along. She would have to endure it: the thought of losing Isha was too much to bear. 

The smell of cigarette smoke filled her nose and she already knew who was here. 

“Are you ready for tonight?” he purred. 

“Haven’t heard from you in awhile,” she whispered. 

In Jinx’s eyes, Silco sat at the other end of the couch, at Isha's feet. Absent-mindedly, she thought of what it would have been like if Isha met Silco. His eyes gently looked at Isha, as if deep in a soft remembrance. 

He would have loved Isha to bits, Jinx decided. 

“I saw you out there today,” Jinx whispered. 

“I never left you,” Silco said warmly. “You are magnificent. But…you’re different now, Jinx. You’re terrified.”  

“Think I’m weaker now? That I should have stormed Topside with Hextech by now?” she said. 

Silco took another hit of his cigar, looking at her and Isha softly. “I think you’re stronger than you’ve ever been.”

There were many things worse than death. Caitlyn knew this. Losing Vi was on top of the list, right up there with the death of her mother. 

Salo becoming the new de facto Martial Law leader was definitely in the top five, Caitlyn thought bitterly as she and Jayce were marched into the Council Room. 

From what she was able to piece together in the past few days, Caitlyn was ousted behind her back, just after she rejected the poison drone plans. Money and patrons had won out after all. 

It was simple, on paper: the poison drones were a suitable alternative to sending peacekeepers to the Underground. Lesser chances of injuries and death. It would be cheaper in the long run too: not as many salaries to pay. 

Ambessa had convinced the rich families that they were better off replacing Caitlyn. 

“If it isn’t the great Commander Kiramman—oh, sorry. That would just be Caitlyn now,” Salo said. 

Jayce and Caitlyn were led to the center of the room as they waited for judgement. Despite Salo being the new commander, he was still surrounded by the rich family heads of Piltover as “advisers”. Shoola was back, her expression grim as she stared at Caitlyn and Jayce. Around fifty Noxians and Enforcers were in the room as well, likely there to protect the aristocracy. 

The room turned to black and a single light from the ceiling shone on the two of them. 

“Caitlyn, you are being accused of crimes of — well, don’t need to do that now, don’t we? After all, we’re in Martial Law.” 

Ambessa stood behind the two of them, watching the proceedings silently and with mild interest. Caitlyn surmised that she had little care as to what Salo wanted to do with them. They had largely exhausted their purpose to her. Ambessa wanted war and she was about to get it. 

“The little Kiramman girl tried to play grownup and pretend to be her mommy. Cassandra would be ashamed —” 

“Hey man, easy on her,” a painfully familiar voice called out. “After all, someone killed her mom!” 

Caitlyn could feel her heart stop. She wanted to scream. She looked around wildly; she had agonizingly searched for that voice for months and it was here , mocking her.  

She laughed. “I wonder who did that?” 

“Show yourself!” Caitlyn screamed. 

“I-is this Jinx?” Jayce whispered loudly. Caitlyn did not answer, still trying to look for her. 

“Turn on the lights!” Salo yelled, fear quickly washing away the cocky facade he had put on to revel in Caitlyn’s misery. 

But the room remained in darkness, with the spotlight only turned on Caitlyn and Jayce. She heard Ambessa and the other soldiers scramble to look for Jinx, the others trying to turn the light back on. 

Caitlyn breathed hard, eyes searching wildly. 

The spotlight shut off and everyone was in the dark, the only light that colored the room came from the starry night outside the expansive, roybd window  that allowed a view of the cityscape. 

“But if I turn on the lights, you won’t see the show that well.” 

A chill ran down her back. Caitlyn ran towards the window, already knowing what Jinx meant before she said anything. By the time she reached it, a bomb had already set off and she could see the blue mushroom cloud form. 

The room was suddenly filled with screams. 

Ambessa ignited the hammer, lighting the room partially. “Show yourself, lunatic!” 

“Oh relax! It’s just a silly little color bomb,” Jinx said, laughing again from the shadows. “Can’t say the same for the next few ones though!” 

As if on cue, two more bombs set off in different parts of the cities. 

Pandemonium broke out. Shoola and the rest of the aristocrats suddenly ran towards the door, only to crowd against it. Caitlyn quickly realized that someone had bolted it from outside. 

Noxian soldiers and Enforcers alike brandished their weapons, pointing them wildly, but no enemies were in sight. 

The lights started to flash. Caitlyn found her way to Jayce and they stood with their backs to each other, their cuffed hands raised, anticipating a fight. As the lights flickered, more color bombs went off. Caitlyn could see them: clouds of green, purple, blue and whatever color Jinx’s crazy mind could conjure up. 

All of the sudden, the lights turned on at once. Caitlyn blinked, the sudden onslaught of light assaulting her senses. 

At the center of the table, Jinx was right behind Salo. Her gun was pressed right to his temple. “Jeez, you guys suck. You left behind the guy in the wheelchair.” 

Every gun in the room was trained on her. 

But no shots were fired. 

“What are you waiting for? Shoot her!” Ambessa yelled. 

“Don’t! Please!” Salo said, pitiful tears falling from his eyes. 

“Fire!” Ambessa said again. 

The resounding sound of guns clicking came and Salo flinched, whimpering. 

But no bullets flew. 

Caitlyn looked at the Enforcers. All of them looked at each other quizzically, unable to understand how their guns could malfunction at the same time. Ambessa rolled her eyes. She unsheathed a metal dagger and hurled it towards Jinx. 

But the girl did not flinch. The knife stopped mere inches away from her. Jinx smirked. 

The knife clattered uselessly on the table. Jinx turned away Salo’s wheelchair and pushed it with her foot, sending him careening a few feet away from the table. He whimpered as he wheeled himself as far from her as possible, joining the other rich aristocrats. She grabbed the chair next to her and sat down at the center. 

“Neat party trick huh? You can come out, Cookie! Your ex-boyfriend misses you.” 

She could feel Jayce step forward, eyes filled with both hope and despair. 

From the shadows, a lean man fully clad in metal appeared. Viktor held a staff with a Hextech crystal gleaming as its top piece. His third arm looked at all the Piltovans and Noxians in the room, as if daring them to come closer. Gone was the quiet, amiable man Caitlyn would make small talk with when she visited Jayce in their lab. But Caitlyn could hardly claim to know Viktor at all, perhaps this was his true self. 

“Viktor…” Jayce said, his voice filled with longing and regret. 

But Viktor’s expression remained neutral as he sat next to Jinx. Jayce kept looking at him, disbelieving that he was seeing Viktor again. Caitlyn struggled against her handcuffs but to no avail. 

Ambessa growled and raised the hammer, igniting it, pointing it at Jinx and Viktor. 

But a Noxian soldier — the shorter one who was with Ambessa in the holding cell — suddenly used a bat to hit the center of the hammer with deadly precision, unlocking the crystal inside of it and grabbing it with lightning speed. 

The hammer powered down, dropping to the floor. 

Ambessa was too stunned to move as the Noxian soldier bolted towards Viktor and Jinx. 

He removed his mask, revealing snow white hair. The boy seemed to have aged years since Caitlyn last saw him, as if he had seen too much in too little time. 

Ekko took his seat next to Jinx’s right.

As if on cue, a bunch of other disguised soldiers and Enforcers took off their masks and their hats. Many of them revealed blue hair, tattoos and piercings. The Zaunites turned their guns towards the remaining officers and the aristocrats, herding them against the bolted door. Jayce and Caitlyn looked at each other. 

This was either their salvation or their doom. 

Caitlyn thought if she could get away with stealing a gun from one of the Enforcers but with dread she realized that every piece of weaponry in the room was useless as long as Viktor could control metal. Even if she did get a gun, Caitlyn had no idea which way to point it at. 

“Sixty-four,” Ekko said, his eyes switching between Ambessa and Caitlyn. 

Caitlyn stilled. She felt her heart beat faster. Somehow, she already knew what the number meant. 

“Sixty-four Zaunites died when you let those drones fly,” he said. 

She could feel the air leave her lungs and it took every bit of willpower to stay on her feet. Jayce grabbed her arm, his eyes shiney with tears. 

“Jury’s still out for some of the others who got sick. We’ll update you with the final tally if they kick the bucket, our dear overlords,” Jinx said with a mock salute. 

“You’re lying! Ambessa said that those devices were tested. They were only meant to stun,” Shoola said, stepping forward. 

“Sure,” Ekko said, shrugging. “Tested it here on Topside? On what? Animals? In an open field?” 

Caitlyn could feel her head spinning. Jayce was right. A machine like that was devastating for Zaunites. 

“Enough of this! We’re done with your lies, you beasts!” Ambessa said, brandishing another dagger and surging forward. She threw it once more, only for it to end up in the air again. 

It was Viktor, Caitlyn realized. He held a hand up and twisted it, the dagger imitating his movement as it floated. 

It clattered to the floor. 

“Try it again and the next one goes through your skull,” Viktor said, his voice void of any emotion. Ambessa breathed hard, her eyes slightly baring a spark of amusement, as if she was almost impressed. 

“Oh! I got something for you,” Jinx said, rummaging her coat pocket for something. She held up a crumpled piece of paper. 

She squinted her eyes and cleared her throat. “We, the United People of Zaun, hereby unilaterally declare independence from the City-State of Stinkover — oh, wait, silly me. Well, you know what I mean,” she said, slamming down the paper on the table and stabbing Ambessa’s knife through it. 

“It just means we want you to leave us alone. For good,” Ekko said. 

“You bomb our city and you ask us for sovereignty?” Salo said shakily, trying to feign any semblance of control over the situation. 

“Oh, we aren’t asking,” Jinx said, standing up. “No more negotiations. No more promises. No more lies.” 

“Don’t touch us. We won’t touch you,” Ekko said. 

The Zaunites who were disguised as guards slowly joined Jinx, their guns remaining trained towards the Piltovans and Noxians.

“You expect us to take this attack lightly? How many of our people did you kill?” Shoola asked gravely. 

“None,” Ekko said, checking his pocket watch and showing it to Jinx. “The color bombs helped evacuate citizens of the city to the harbor.”   

“Which lets us do this,” Jinx said. 

Several larger bombs were set off across the city. The sound was deafening, even from the Council Room. 

This time, everyone in the room knew that the bombs were meant to destroy. 

“What did you do!?” Salo screamed. 

“Oh nothing, really. Leveled a few mansions here and there. All of yours, specifically,” Jinx said, grinning. 

Cries of despair filled the room. 

“You should know what it’s like to live in rubble,” Jinx said, her eyes turning dark for a moment before smiling. 

“I think we made our point, ladies,” she said, standing up. Jinx raised a gun powered by Hextech and pointed it to the window. “See yah, bitches!”
She shot several rounds, shattering the window. The Zaunites ran out, jumping from the window. 

Caitlyn held her breath as they leapt out. Had Jinx’s insanity spread like a disease? 

One by one however, green streaks of light from the Firelights’ hoverboards ignited the night sky. They all left until only Viktor, Jinx and Ekko remained. 

Caitlyn stared Jinx dead in the eyes. The girl met her glare with every bit of hatred. Jinx started to turn away. But as the light danced around Jinx’s face from the flames outside the window, Caitlyn saw her . 

“I don’t care if you destroy our homes,” Caitlyn yelled out. “A few buildings is nothing compared to the loss of your people. I just need to know one thing.” 

Jinx stopped, but refused to turn around. Ekko and Viktor eyed Caitlyn carefully. 

“Please… just tell me, is Vi alright? Is she with you?” 

Jinx remained silent for a few moments, as if for once, she was carefully weighing her words. 

“She’s okay… after we broke her out of Stillwater,” Jinx said before pausing. “Did you put her there?” 

Caitlyn felt her heart drop to her stomach. 

“No! I would never,” she replied, angry tears rolling down her face as she glared at Ambessa. The general’s expression remained neutral as she looked back. 

“Please… tell her I’ve been looking for her and that I love her,” Caitlyn said. 

Jinx glanced back. She seemed ready to say no but then she offered the slightest nod. Jinx turned to Ekko and they held hands as they leapt out of the window, a hoverboard already waiting for them below. 

Viktor remained, likely ensuring that all the Zaunites had safely left. After Jinx and Ekko had gained a considerable distance, he turned to leave. 

“Viktor!” Jayce suddenly yelled. 

The man stopped as he reached the ledge. His back remained turned to them. 

“Can we talk, please?” Jayce said, his voice cracking. 

Viktor peered over his shoulder. 

“No,” he said. Viktor merely waved a hand and both Jayce and Caitlyn’s handcuffs clattered to the floor, with an Enforcer’s gun flying from their hand and landing right in front of Caitlyn. 

Caitlyn did not miss a beat, grabbing the gun and aiming it at Ambessa. 

Jinx leapt off Ekko’s hoverboard without it even touching the ground yet. Several Zaunites were already on the bridge, methodically planting the charges. Some were still disguised as Enforcers. 

“Hold on!” he yelled as he stumbled off the board. But she was already off to check if everything was set. 

“Kogi! Make sure all the wires are in the right place this time!” she yelled at one of the Jinxers. 

“Yes Ma’am!” he yelled from under the bridge. 

Ekko watched Jinx bark orders to the Jinxers, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. All the Zaunites, a good seventy of them, worked in a unison that Ekko had never seen before. It did not matter what faction they were: Jinxers, Firelights and gang members alike helped each other. 

Ekko would have never agreed to it years ago, but revenge was a powerful unifier. 

He had always been angry, but Ekko needed to keep it in check. His emotions were neatly categorized into a file cabinet in his mind and he prided himself in being able to call upon which one was needed for the occasion: grief for whenever a Firelight would be killed, joy when he watched kids safely play at the tree, anger when he needed to tell off a Topsider.  

Now, he felt an unbridled rage and all the cabinet drawers were swinging open, all of its contents spilling out. Everything in him was a mess now. 

But this kept him focused. Having a mission gave him purpose. 

There are several ways to travel back and forth from Zaun and Piltover. The method most commonly used was the main bridge connecting the two cities.

It was time for it to end. 

Ekko spotted Scar jogging to him.  

“Everything is set,” Scar reported. 

“Alright. Make sure everyone else gets to the other side before any Enforcers arrive,” he said. 

Scar nodded and hopped on his hoverboard, lighting a signal to tell everyone that it was time to leave.  

Ekko walked along the bridge as he watched people start to filter out. 

He could still remember the last time he was here. They almost killed each other. 

Ekko stared across the bridge, seeing Jinx.  Her back was turned to him and she was deathly still, as if lost in the same memory that he was. He walked to her slowly, unable to find the right words. All the hurt from the day she pushed him away was not because he felt betrayed. 

Ekko missed his best friend. 

He had often found himself wondering what a kinder world would look like for the two of them. Maybe they both would have studied in the Academy. Viktor and Heimerdinger would have been their professors and at the end of the day, when they headed back to Zaun, Vander and Vi would be waiting for them in The Last Drop. 

The boy could almost see it: Jinx’s face bright with laughter and hope. Her cheeks fuller and her skin slightly more tanned from the sun. 

But there was no alternate universe for them. He accepted the cards he had been dealt a long time ago. Ekko has had to live with the death of his friends everyday, sometimes still wishing that he had never given them that tip that led them to Jayce’s apartment. 

He often wished, achingly, that he had not given up on Powder. 

But clarity hit him like a bullet. Without realizing it, he had been looking everywhere for her: every time he gazed at the blue sky for too long, every time he lingered in daydreams of a different universe. 

She was here: in every fight, in every dance, in every bitter word and in every broken promise.   

She has always been here.

“Jinx!” he yelled, marching towards her. She turned around, as if waking from a reverie. She held her breath as he walked, uncertain if he was about to embrace her or start another fight.  

Ekko did neither; he grabbed her by the waist and kissed her lips. Jinx did not waste a second, throwing her arms around his neck and kissing him back hard. 

He felt his head spinning: was this what Shimmer felt like? 

As the two broke apart to breathe, he felt her hand on his cheek. She looked at him, the ever-present spark of mischief making her eyes shine brighter than ever before. 

“Took you long enough, Ekko,” she whispered, surging forward to kiss him again. 

“Jeez,” Sevika said, turning away from Ekko and Jinx as they collided. “They should get a room.” 

Viktor smirked, turning around as well to give them some privacy. “We all knew it was coming.”

The two of them waited at the foot of the bridge, on Piltover’s side. They were tasked with ensuring that every Zaunite had crossed back to the Undercity. Unfortunately for Viktor and Sevika, that also included the two lovebirds. 

As happy as Viktor was for the two of them, they were running on a schedule. 

“Were you able to find Singed?” Viktor said, his expression turning grim.  

She shook her head. “They hid the old man pretty well.” 

He already felt that this would happen. To some extent, Ambessa already expected retaliation. She likely thought they would go after Singed. Looking for his old teacher would be more difficult than he had hoped.

“As long as they have Singed, the poison attacks could keep happening,” Viktor said. 

“I never liked that creep,” Sevika said. She glanced at Viktor. “We’ll find him.” 

“Hey! You done yapping over there?” Jinx called out from the bridge. 

“We were waiting for you to be done,” Sevika called behind her back. The girl merely laughed in return. 

“Alright, we’re leaving!” Jinx shouted back. 

Viktor turned back in time to see the two teenagers run towards Zaun, hand in hand. He smiled before turning to Sevika and nodding. The two of them started to walk back towards Zaun. They already reached the middle of the bridge when the sound of Enforcers’ sirens filled the air. 

Their walk turned into a sprint. 

“Viktor, wait!” 

 Viktor turned around to see Jayce stumbling out of the Enforcer’s car. From a distance, he glimpsed Caitlyn behind the wheel as well. 

“I’ll handle this,” Viktor told Sevika. She looked at him cautiously and nodded, leaving him alone. 

Jayce ran, stopping a few feet away from Viktor. 

“You… you said I wouldn’t see you again,” Jayce said breathlessly. 

“I didn’t return to Piltover for you. Whatever’s coming next, you can’t stop it, Jayce” Viktor said bitterly.

“I know. I just wanted you to know something,” Jayce said. 

“I don’t want to hear any more proclamations of love —” 

“I’m gonna find Singed, and I’m going to end him, do you understand? I’m gonna fix this city and all of its crappy vanity and elitism. I’m gonna make sure that Piltover doesn’t hurt Zaun any more than it has,” Jayce said, his eyes burning with a conviction that Viktor had never seen before. 

“Then I’m going to find you again, and if you’ll let me, I’m going to love you properly. I’m gonna build us a lab in Zaun where we can work on projects as much as we want until I nag at you to get some sleep. We’re gonna have a house where I can make you as much sweetmilk as you want, and then you’re gonna complain about it being too sweet.”  

Jayce looked at Viktor with pained earnesty. “I won’t fail, I swear.” 

Viktor blinked, too stunned. 

He lies to you again. 

“I just need you to remember this, because it’s gonna happen. You don’t need to say anything. You don’t even need to believe it. But you have to know,” Jayce said, as he himself heard The Other speak in Viktor’s head. 

The two men stared at each other. 

Everything they were laid bare before them: scientists lost in magic, friends torn apart by betrayal, lovers damned to separation. 

He said nothing, staring at Jayce: his heart torn open and stripped for Viktor’s taking. But Viktor had already offered his heart at Jayce’s altar a long time ago and he has only had it trampled upon again and again.  

And Viktor could only stare at the man. Love, bleeding and aching, still lived in Viktor’s chest, an agonizing reminder that he was still somewhat human. 

Viktor could only nod, as tears fell from his silver eyes. 

“Go, Jayce. Fix this,” Viktor said, turning away. He kept walking, unable to meet Jayce’s eyes because if he did, Viktor knew he would surrender to his emotions once more. 

He kept walking until he met Jinx, Ekko, Sevika and Scar at Zaun’s side of the bridge. The rest of the Zaunites were further back, likely wanting a better view. 

Jinx threw her arms around Viktor and he held her in return. As she let go, Ekko patted Viktor’s shoulder. 

Viktor turned his eyes towards the bridge once more, just in time to see Jayce reach the other side as well. Caitlyn greeted him likewise, rubbing his arm. 

“It’s time,” Viktor said, his eyes still across the bridge. 

Jinx stepped forward, producing a detonator. “I’ve always wanted to do this.” 

“Goodbye! Stinkover!” 

The bombs planted along the bridge ignited, with Zaunites jubilantly celebrating their victory. Even Jinx lept into Ekko’s arms, peppering him with kisses. 

Viktor watched as the bridge burned, chunks of cement falling into the water as it collapsed. Through the flames and the falling debris, Viktor could see Jayce stare back. 

Chapter Text

“You need to help them,” Ekko told Viktor. He and Viktor looked at the unconscious poison survivors at the infirmary in the creek. It was a particularly hot day, and Viktor was worried how the temperature might affect the ill.  

It has been two weeks since Zaun’s declaration of independence. Most of the other Zaunites that recovered from the poison attacks had already left the creek and returned to their homes. But there were still people who remained.  

Viktor was wrong, it seemed. He first thought that the people who were poisoned would either be sick or dead. 

He did not account for the slowly dying. 

Specifically those who appeared to have fallen into a sort of paralytic coma. It was both a miracle and a curse. Phyllis, one of the few people in Zaun with any sort of advanced medical training, was going around checking the coma patients — a good twenty of them. While they were still breathing, they could hardly be called alive.

Phyllis approached them. They were a small human being with brown skin and long, grey hair. 

“Just as I thought. Their lungs appeared to have deteriorated. Many of them have developed a difficulty in breathing.”  

Phyllis surmised that the victims’ bodies shut down to preserve themselves from the poison’s effects. 

“Thank you, Doctor,” Viktor said. 

“Not a doctor. Don’t have a fancy degree like you,” they said, packing their medical equipment in a bag. 

“What can be done for them?” Ekko asked. 

“Unless you can figure out a way to wake them up and replace their lungs, they will continue to deteriorate,” they said, walking out of the infirmary. 

Viktor sat on the bedside of one of the unconscious poison victims: a Vastaya with purple skin and gills. Ekko stood above him, arms crossed. 

“You need to help them, Viktor,” Ekko said again. 

“I’m not a doctor, Ekko.” 

“You healed Vander!” 

“Because he had metal leaking poison into his body,” Viktor said, exasperated. “He isn’t even completely himself. We can hardly say he’s healed.” 

Ekko buried his head into his hands. The boy was smart. He already knew that Viktor could do little for them. But intelligence hardly eased desperation. After the death and destruction that the young Firelight had seen, he was desperate to salvage as much life as he could. 

“What if I help you?” Ekko said as he started pacing around, as if already trying to look for a solution. 

“I know you are devastated by what happened, Ekko. But you can hardly take responsibility for everyone. You have your own community to look after. Have you even cleaned the tanks? They’re due for maintenance soon.” 

The filtration machine had been effective in reducing Anomaly pollution in the waters but the tanks containing the filaments needed to be emptied out every few weeks. 

“You’re changing the topic,” Ekko said hastily. 

Viktor looked away from the boy, finding it difficult to say no to him. 

But there were limits to both his knowledge and capabilities. Testing the limit of either was dangerous with the Hexcore enveloping him. 

“Can we just brainstorm at least? Don’t say no right away,” Ekko said. 

“I’m leveling your expectations, Ekko. I would have to assess what’s physically wrong with each of them, and then what? Create a magic breathing machine for them?” Viktor said. 

Both of them suddenly stopped, arriving at the same conclusion. 

“No—” Viktor started. 

“Maybe it’s possible—” 

“Breathing is an intricate process, it might not work,” Viktor replied. 

“You made Isha’s arm! It’s the most advanced prosthetic there is,” Ekko said. 

“Because there was technology that preceded it!” 

“Look at yourself!” Ekko said, his voice rising. 

“This is the Hexcore’s cursed work,” Viktor said, gesturing to his body. “I would rather die than use the Hexcore on another human being.” 

“We aren’t using the Hexcore,” Ekko said, placing a hand on Viktor’s shoulders. The boy looked at him earnestly and for a moment, Viktor was reminded of a young, hopeful scientist who wanted to help people through magic.

“We need to help them. Everyone is worth saving” Ekko finished. 

Viktor stared at the boy. He was reminded, once again, of how wise he was beyond his years. 

It is possible if we do it all together. They can be saved. They can be…evolved. 

Viktor stared at the comatose victim in front of him and sighed. The Other prodded him on, murmuring all the different ways that the poison victims could be saved. 

“We need a way to keep them alive first while we figure this out,” Viktor said, both to Ekko and the voice inside his head. 

You already know how. 

Viktor’s eyes landed on a space beyond the creek, hidden by a waterfall. His thoughts went to a daughter barely on the cusp of life while her father looked for ways to defeat death. 

Viktor sighed. “Fine.”  

“Veeeektor,” Blitzcrank sang. 

“Viktooor,” Vander said back. 

The robot shook his head vehemently. “Veeeeeeektor,” they said again. 

Vi and Jinx sat on the ground side by side, watching as Blitzcrank and Vander “spoke” in the yard in front of Viktor’s compound.

“Isn’t it your turn for Vander’s speech training?” Vi said, sucking on a lollipop her sister gave her. 

Jinx pulled out the lollipop from her own mouth. “Yeah, but this is waaaay funnier,” she said. 

Vi rolled her eyes. 

Vander had grown more human in the past two weeks, albeit he was still covered in fur. He was smaller, yet still thrice the size that Vander originally was. This was likely his new normal, Viktor told them. 

Vander has been speaking more but Viktor advised them to teach him how to talk again anyway. He said something about his voice pipes being physically different now, so he was having a hard time speaking even if his mind was clearer. The two sisters have been taking turns for his speech therapy everyday. Save for today, when Jinx decided to let Blitzcrank take over his lesson. 

“If our dad only knows how to say ‘Viktor’ from now on, I swear Jinx—” 

“It’s fiiine! They’re teaching each other,” she said.

Jinx smiled to herself as she snuck a glance at her sister. Things were not as they used to be between her and Vi, but Jinx was not as sad about the change as she thought she would be. 

A big part of her was just relieved that they were not trying to kill each other anymore. In some strange way, they were something akin to friends. 

Besides, their father came back from the dead. What were a few dead Councilors compared to that? 

So there they were. They were far from the ideal pair of loving sisters but hey, at least Vi did not have a dictator whispering in her ear anymore. Jinx still had a couple of voices in her head but that was apples and oranges. 

Things were not the same between them. They never would be again. 

And maybe that could be a good thing, Jinx thought, smiling quietly to herself. 

The sound of people approaching tore their eyes away from the two giants. 

Several Firelights marched into the compound, led by Viktor and Ekko. They all carried what appeared to be tools and other materials. Viktor rushed ahead, nodding at the two sisters before scurrying into the lab. He emerged, mere moments later, carrying an ugly, beat up old journal. 

Jinx and Vi joined Ekko. She looped her arm around Ekko’s and planted a kiss on his cheek. Ekko beamed, even if he nearly dropped his toolkit. 

Jinx would never admit it but she finally understood what it meant to have butterflies in her stomach.

It had to be that or she had a very bad case of constipation. 

“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to that,” Vi said, her eyes turning soft. “But I can’t say I’m surprised.” 

Jinx grinned as Ekko smiled shyly. He averted his eyes from her. Jinx could tell that he was still having trouble trusting her sister again completely. 

“Ekko!” Viktor called out he read the notebook, his eyes reading at an inhuman pace. Jinx wondered if he was like this before he turned half machine. 

Viktor showed Ekko a page from the book and his expression became stern. Jinx frowned, annoyed at being left out, and snatched the notebook from their hands. 

She raised an eyebrow at the two of them. 

“I thought you were done meddling with people’s bodies,” Jinx told Viktor. 

“I was supposed to be. But your boyfriend convinced me to help some of the poison victims,” Viktor said. 

“Sooooo you wanna turn them into human popsicle sticks?” she said. 

“No,” Viktor said flatly. “They aren’t frozen. They’ll be suspended in liquid with tubes attached to—”

Jinx raised a finger. “I don’t wanna know the gross details. Just tell us what you need.”

Blitzcrank also led Vander to them, already sensing that their master might need help. 

Viktor smiled at Ekko as they gathered around. He then looked at Jinx, and she saw, what seemed to be, pride. She stopped for a moment as she looked back at Viktor. For a moment, the light hit his eyes in a way that almost made it look orange. 

Pandemonium hit Piltover like a plague. 

Ekko was honest when he said that no lives were lost when the bombs hit Piltover. Jinx was also telling the truthwhen she said that they leveled all of the elite’s houses. Even Caitlyn’s home was gone. 

Neither of them acknowledged that servants and other employees actually lived in quarters in the estates. 

Hundreds of people were homeless and they did not have the same money as their employers. 

Massive tents were set up to accommodate the citizens, but many of the aristocrats were too indignant to avail of them, opting to stay with relatives or take a trip abroad to keep themselves safe until it all blew over. The whole of the Ferros clan was already halfway to Demacia. 

A bunch of cowards, Caitlyn thought as she helped distribute food at the tents. A sizable meal composed of beef stew, mashed potatoes and carrots were in a metal tray, prepared by a staff in a different tent. She scanned the crowd. Most of them were regular citizens. 

They filed into line neatly, waiting for their turn for their meals. Caitlyn worked methodically, watching the clock as she handed out trays. 

She had ten minutes before she met with Jayce. 

Both had been “pardoned” after they fled from the Council Room. While Caitlyn had shot Ambessa as she fled with Jayce, Salo had been too much of a coward to make a real decision about any of them. Ambessa’s deception and Caitlyn’s potential imprisonment meant nothing to the man: not when his mansion and riches burned. 

So, all of them were still free and Ambessa was still in the Council Room. 

“Are you Caitlyn Kiramman?” an old woman’s voice asked. 

Caitlen jumped as she handed her the food tray. She looked around; no one else was in line behind her. 

“Y-yes,” she replied. She was small in stature, and she carried herself with a certain level of grace that told Caitlyn she had worked in high society. Her eyes flickered to the woman’s hands; they were calloused not just with age but with physical labor. She was likely a maid. 

“I didn’t expect someone of your stature down here. It’s an honor to meet you,” the old woman said. 

Caitlyn felt the blood rush to her cheeks. Many moments in her life could be classified as embarrassing. One of them was pretending to be a sex worker with a shitty accent. But as she stared at the old woman, who had lost her home, Caitlyn felt mortified. 

She had let this happen. 

Caitlyn spiraled out of control and it allowed so many others to be hurt. She had mistaken vengeance for justice and it poisoned her. 

Worst of all, she failed to protect Vi.  

“No, please. The honor is mine, Miss…?” Caitlyn asked softly. 

“Cari,” she replied. “I used to be in the employ of the Arvino clan but they had to leave.” 

Caitlyn nodded grimly. “Well, Miss Cari. When everything is back to normal, perhaps you can come work with me.” 

Cari seemed to be flattered, taking the food graciously. “You are very gracious. I hope I live long enough to see that, Miss Kiramman.” 

Whatever pleasantry Caitlyn had prepared in her mind was forgotten. She could only look as Cari nodded politely and walked away. 

As Caitlyn scanned the crowds of citizens huddled up in the mess hall, she also wondered if things ever could ever go back to the way they were. 

As Caitlyn made her way home by nightfall, she passed by city hall where a handful of protestors. 

“Justice for Piltover!” 

“Topside unite!” 

“Punish the trenchers!” 

From what Caitlyn had heard, Shoola had convinced Salo not to attack Zaun yet and allow the city to recover. She wondered how long this would last however, with Ambessa still whispering in Salo’s ear. 

She shook her head, turning her gaze away from the rallyists. They had work to do. 

“Can you still sleep?” Jayce asked Viktor as he twirled the man’s brown hair between his fingers. 

Viktor sighed against Jayce’s bare chest, looking up at him. “I can. I just don’t need to as much.” 

He hummed in turn, pulling the man closer to him. The bed they made on the floor could hardly be called a bed: they were cardboard boxes and burlap sacks Viktor found while scavenging for materials for his shop. His back ached and everything was coated in dust. 

Yet it was the most comfortable Jayce has ever been. 

“Can you still eat?” Jayce asked softly. 

“I… haven’t tried. I think the Hexcore is sustaining me,” Viktor said. By the tone of his voice, Jayce already knew that his mind was already beginning to wander into an endless maze of hypotheses. 

From Viktor’s neck, Jayce’s hand trailed down the metal workings fused into Viktor’s body, crossing the boundary where flesh met with steel. He could still remember the metal back brace embedded into Viktor, even before he was infused with the Hexcore. 

Every now and then, when Jayce would stop by the lab fresh from a late night meeting, he would catch Viktor without his shirt on, tightening the screws of the brace. 

Jayce had always wondered what it would feel like to trail his fingers on that back. 

Now, as his fingers traced Viktor’s spine, he realized, with a sudden rush of ache in his chest, that his back brace had turned into a permanent part of his body: the metal spreading across Viktor’s back, encasing him like a bird cage. 

“Are you in any pain?” Jayce asked. 

Viktor shook his head gently, as if already sensing where Jayce’s mind was. “No, don’t worry. I do not even feel the weight of illness on my lungs anymore.” 

He breathed a sigh of relief, pressing a kiss on Viktor’s forehead. Despite the news that Viktor appeared to be free from illness, Jayce was still worried. Would the Hexcore work perpetually? Could it make sure that Viktor lived long? 

“I can hear you thinking, Jayce. You’re not half-machine. You should sleep,” Viktor murmured. 

“I just have one more question,” he said. 

“Alright, but that’s your last one for tonight,” Viktor mumbled. 

“Do you… do you still feel it when I touch you?” Jayce said as his arm wrapped tighter around Viktor’s waist, drawing him impossibly close. His other hand traversed Viktor’s arm until it finally reached his chest. Jayce’s fingers traced all the moles that dotted his skin all the way up to Viktor’s neck. The smaller man shivered.  

“When it’s my flesh… I feel just as you do.” Viktor said, his eyes closing as Jayce’s hand lifted his chin up gently, allowing him space to kiss the beauty marks on his neck. 

“But when it’s machine… it is more like… a charge.” 

“Only a charge?” Jayce said between soft kisses, with some extending to the metallic flesh. 

“A very…. enjoyable charge,” he sighed. 

Without warning, Jayce deepened the kisses on Viktor’s neck as his hands roamed around freely across the rest of his body. Pale skin turned pink under his lips. It was not enough, Jayce decided. In the middle of licks and kisses, he bared his teeth. 

Viktor groaned. He pulled back Jayce by the hair and smiled mischievously. “Bastard.” 

Their lips collided once more. 

“Jayce…”  he moaned, again and again between kisses. Jayce could live the rest of his life happily if he only heard Viktor say his name like this. 

“Jayce!” 

“Jayce!” 

Jayce nearly fell off his chair. He turned a violent shade of red as Caitlyn stared at him with an eyebrow raised.

“Do you need a moment?” she asked, deadpan. 

“No! No, I-I’m okay,” he said as he turned away. “I just fell asleep.” 

“Don’t let me disturb your wet dreams,” Caitlyn said, smirking. 

“Cait!” he yelped, burying his face in his hands. 

Caitlyn waved her hand, dismissing the whole situation. “I don’t want to discuss this further. Can we get back to our investigation?” 

Both of their houses were totaled in the bombing, but neither could find it in themselves to be angry. They were the only two people in Piltover who had any semblance of understanding over the “why” of it all. 

In the weeks that followed the bombing, no one knew of the poison attacks on Zaun. Caitlyn and Jayce had monitored every radio channel and newspaper report: no one knew why the Undercity bombed Piltover. 

Which meant that every Piltovan was furious at the Zaunites. 

So Caitlyn and Jayce did the only thing they could do: grab an apartment together and figure things out, starting with Singed. 

Mere weeks since the bombings, the apartment was already a mess. Books and newspapers were scattered about. The centerpiece of the two bedroom apartment however, was the large map of Piltover taped on a bulletin board, complete with notes and photos. 

They had already checked off several places where Singed could be, with only a few other possible locations. 

Caitlyn and Jayce had already checked several other locations: they varied from old apartments to warehouses. 

There were no plans to visit the remaining locations tonight, however. Caitlyn had already spotted Noxians tailing them twice. Caitlyn had decided to throw them off their pattern every now and then. 

Jayce and Caitlyn stood side by side as they stared at the board. 

“Where else could that asshole be?” Caitlyn muttered as she stared at the board. 

“Maybe we’re looking at places that are too obvious,” Jayce said. “For all we know, he’s in Ambessa’s basement. Can’t you access some information from the Enforcer’s headquarters?” 

“I’ve been discharged , remember?” Caitlyn said impatiently. She cocked her head to the left as she gazed at the board. 

She pulled up Singed’s Academy files. “It says here he was casted out from the Academy after unethical experiments. Sounds like someone I know.” 

“Ha-ha,” Jayce said dryly. “I didn’t get kicked out.” 

“You did. You just had some last minute miracle—” 

“It wasn’t a miracle,” Jayce said before he could think. “It was Viktor.” 

Now that he had said it aloud, he realized that there was no difference between the two. It was Viktor who found him that day. It was Viktor who believed in him and pulled him back from the brink. 

“You never did tell me much about that day,” Caitlyn said, her gaze turning soft. 

“I was… I was on the edge and he was the one who pulled me back,” Jayce said, mostly to himself. 

Caitlyn paused, already deducing what he meant. She looked at him, eyebrows furrowed as if she wanted to ask something. Caitlyn had been young then. The girl was wise beyond her years but Jayce doubted that she knew the gravity of his situation back then. 

“Are you… are you alright?” she asked. 

“I keep trying to pinpoint the exact moment where it all went wrong,” he said. “Sometimes I think, it’s when I made those weapons. Other times, it’s when I took that Council seat. I’m starting to think that it could have been the moment I invented Hextech. I was so desperate to help everyone that I ended up hurting everyone. Especially Viktor.”  

“You never meant to hurt him. You're not the one that unleashed hell onto Zaun,” Caitlyn grimly. “I was blinded. I thought, somehow, finding Jinx would make it all hurt less but I was wrong…” 

“I guess there’s plenty of blame to pass around, huh?” he replied silently. The two fell quiet as the waves of regret washed over them. Jayce looked at Caitlyn, whose gaze had turned downwards. While regret is a feeling difficult to erase, it was a great motivator. 

“Come on, sprout. We can figure it out.

I’ll make you some sweetmilk,” he said. 

As the evening went on, they poured through Singed’s history.

“Maybe we’re looking at the wrong map. Maybe he’s in Zaun again,” Caitlyn suddenly said as she looked at the map. “When he was expelled, he likely stayed in Zaun so he could keep experimenting. I doubt that he’s stopped even if he joined Noxus. He probably has a lab somewhere there.” 

“If he is there, then we’re gonna have a hard time looking for him,” Jayce said, writing a note on his desk and pinning it to the board. 

It only had one word: “ Zaun .” 

Viktor stared at the broken tank that used to hold Rio. 

The lab stood solitary now, untouched since Viktor stole every useful book and tool he could find. He had not touched the dead creatures in the jars. If anything, he had been tempted to burn it all. 

He edged closer towards the tank, broken glass crunching under his metallic feet. His eyes scanned the mechanisms of the tank: they were clean and precise. Singed had likely perfected the technique before trying it on Rio and his daughter. 

Viktor brought out Singed’s journal, flipping to the empty pages as he started to take notes. 

He made his way to Singed’s daughter. 

She lay sleeping peacefully in her chamber, undisturbed by the world catching on fire outside their doorstep. 

Viktor examined every inch of the pod. It would be vital to know how to recreate it. 

As he wrote down schematics, Viktor tried not to think of Jayce’s promise. 

No, not a promise. 

An oath. 

“Did your father promise you that he would save you?” Viktor wondered aloud. He stared at the girl. The machine had also appeared to need upkeep. 

Singed had gone through extraneous lengths to keep her alive. It was unthinkable that he would leave her alone for so long, which only told Viktor that Singed was likely being held captive as well. 

Viktor rolled back his sleeves and opened the book. He harbored no ill-will towards the girl, and saw no reason to let her perish for her father’s sins. He set to work, re-attaching tubes that had come loose from the pod and adjusting pressure valves. A certain type of Shimmer was injected into the pod, likely for sustenance. Viktor found it among Singed’s shelves and administered it. 

He sighed, setting the syringe down as he watched the girl remain still. 

“I never knew this of Corin,” a voice softly spoke from behind him. 

“I did not take you as the kind to be in a place like this, Professor Heimerdinger,” Viktor said without looking. “Did you follow me here?” 

“Ekko told me what you were attempting to do,” he replied. “He told me you might be here.”   

“I see. You’re here to warn me against it?” Viktor said, turning around to face his old mentor. 

Viktor had been scarcely able to speak with his old professor, even if he was in Zaun. “Will you tell me once more to accept fate, even if it brought death?” 

The words had come out with more venom than Viktor intended. But with everything that had happened to him, he was not enthusiastic to meet the Yordle once more. 

A lifetime ago, Heimerdinger had accepted Viktor’s illness long before he did. 

“Before, I might have. I’m sorry for not being there, Viktor. If I had paid more attention, I could have seen what this was all about,” Heimerdinger said. 

“But I cannot apologize for trying to stop you from using the Hexcore. I’ve lived long enough to see great evils, Viktor. I have always associated such atrocities with magic. That’s why I built Piltover, and that is why Hextech alarmed me so much.” 

He is a fool who should only exist in history books. 

Viktor almost clamped his hand over his mouth: he had nearly said it aloud. 

He breathed hard, willing The Other to stay quiet. But anger, unbidden, came to Viktor. It was as if he shared the Hexcore's rage now. 

This creature has held us back for too long and you know it. 

“Tell me, professor. When you built your city, did you not build it on the back of us trenchers? Do you only recognize evil when it reaches a fever pitch? When it becomes loud and difficult to ignore?” Viktor said before he could think it through. But once he started, he could not stop. 

“Do you not see it every time a Piltovan paid slave wages to their miners? Did you not see it in the eyes of an addict driven to Shimmer use because of destitution? Or was it too quiet, Professor?” 

“Viktor, I assure you, I have always tried to treat everyone equally—” 

“Treating everyone equally doesn’t help the people being left behind. Ekko will never see a formal education because he is spending his life fighting.  Why do you think that?” 

Heimerdinger merely closed his eyes. “I know, Viktor. You are not the only one I failed.” 

The Yordle shook his head gently, his eyes falling. “The poison attacks were like nothing I have seen. It had nothing to do with magic. I could never imagine that Corin would be capable of inventing such monstrosities.” 

“And what about the Hexcore?” Viktor asked. He mostly believed that he no longer needed the professor’s approval, that he had surpassed it. 

But he still remembered the boy waiting nervously in Heimerdinger’s office, waiting if he would be granted any mercy. 

“The jury’s still out on that, lad. But I have seen what you’ve done for Zaun. I would never agree with violence, magic or not, but perhaps it should be time to see if we can use magic to heal our people.” 

Viktor looked at his old professor. “What do you mean, sir?” 

“Let me help you this time, Viktor. Using technology to heal others is a noble cause. I would like to work alongside you this time.”  

Viktor looked at Heimerdinger, uncertain, but found himself nodding along anyway. “Alright, Professor.” 

Heimerdinger waved his hand, dismissing the honorarium. 

“We’re colleagues now. Call me Cecil, Viktor.” 

Relief had never arrived quicker for Mel when she saw her brother Kino in that terrible, terrible prison. Her feet were bare against the unpaved ground and her body was in multitudes of pain but she could not care less. 

Kino was here. He was alive. 

For the briefest of moments, she believed it. She allowed herself to believe that her brother was alive. That her mother was wrong or more likely, that she was lying again. Mel held her brother again for the first time in years. 

She felt like a little girl again, running to her big brother sobbing because some of the older kids bullied her in the playground. 

Mel embraced Kino and she allowed herself to believe that this was her brother. 

But she knew. Somehow, she knew. 

Never had that relief so quickly be turned into agony when she had to accept that the creature in front of her was not Kino. 

With power she did not realize she had, she slammed the pretender’s face into the stone walls. She gritted her teeth as tears fell from her face; she watched its face flicker from her brother’s, to Jayce’s, to Elora’s and then to her mother. 

Before she could see the next face —the true face — shadows enveloped her once more.

“NO!” she screamed as darkness wrapped its jaws around her and swallowed her whole.  

Chapter Text

The sun does not shine on Zaun the way it does for Piltover. Piltover basks in the light, thinking that it is glory and progress. 

But the true reason that Piltover needs the light is because it is terrified of the shadows. Far beneath the surface is Zaun, kneeling as it holds Piltover on a platter above its head as it presents the glorious city to the sun like an offering. 

Piltover was built on the shadows, and yet it hates the darkness. The darkness reminds them that for all their gold and glory, Piltover will fall the moment that Zaun begins to stand up. 

“You reading that old thing again?” Jinx grumbled, still half-asleep. 

A smile tugged at the corner of Ekko’s lips. “I still hate him, but Silco made some good points back in the day,” he said, putting the book on the bedside table and settling back in bed next to Jinx. Her eyes were still closed as she remained blissfully in a state between her dreams and the waking world. Her hair, now shorter, was messy and scattered all over her porcelain face. Likely not used to being free from long braids. 

Ekko carefully tucked back her blue hair. Her hand grasped his and placed it on her cheek. 

“Come back to bed,” she murmured. 

“I can’t. I have to inspect the poison traps today,” he replied, running his thumb carefully across her soft cheek.  He looked out of the window to see the Firelight camp slowly waking up as well. Ekko spotted Scar already prepping their hoverboards. 

“You have shooting practice with new Jinxers this morning, don’t you?” 

She frowned, burying her head in the pillow and grunting.  Ekko rolled his eyes. For the months that he had been reintroduced to Jinx, he had discovered many things. 

First and foremost: she was not a morning person. 

“They should learn how to shoot at night. A baby could shoot a gun in broad daylight,” she muttered as she pulled up the covers to hide her face. 

Ekko gently peeled the blanket back. 

“Come on, Captain Jinx,” he said. “The troops need you.” 

“Go teach a Firelight how to fly,” she said, turning to the other side. 

Ekko rolled his eyes. “I’ll make you some pancakes for lunch later if you get your butt to practice. What do you say?” 

The second most important thing he learned about Jinx: she liked his cooking. 

Jinx was quiet, then grunted loudly before sitting up. “Waffles. I want waffles.” 

“Waffles it is,” he said. 

Trusting that Jinx would get up and meet her new recruits on time, Ekko planted a kiss on her forehead and got dressed. 

“Vi’s fight is this evening. Be there on time,” Jinx called out lazily from the bed. 

“I’m always on time,” Ekko said, smiling as he headed out. 

Several other Firelights were already waiting for him at the foot of the tree. Scar handed him his hoverboard and they were off. The camp had slowly decongested within the last few months, with more and more people returning their homes as The Lanes grew more peaceful. 

As the Firelights flew across Zaun, Ekko took a moment to appreciate the change. 

The streets were noticeably cleaner. After the poison attacks, the cleanup from the damage extended to the mess that was there before the drones. 

Ekko, Heimerdinger and Viktor had developed a central disposal system that helped keep the streets clean as well, complete with automatic street sweepers and a large incinerator at the edge of town. One of the chembarons’ old accountants bankrolled it, employing some of the old goons to maintain it. Apparently, their wages were much higher without a chembaron taking most of the share for themselves. 

Blitzcrank had also taken it upon themselves to fix every streetlight in Zaun, making the place brighter at night. The golem even set up new lamp posts in unlit places. 

When Ekko asked Viktor about it, the man was dumbfounded. “That’s what they’ve been up to?” 

Ekko spotted Vi and Vander walking around. He whistled in greeting and she saluted back, smiling. After The Last Drop reopened, small businesses started to pop up as well. First it was a couple of food stalls, then some convenience stores and junk shops. Before Ekko even realized it, The Lanes were alive again. They had to watch out though. Some of the old chembaron thugs still caused trouble in that part of town every now and then, so when she was not mixing drinks in The Last Drop, Vi would go around to check on the shops — wearing those giant gauntlets. 

It was far from the metropolis that Piltover was, but it was beginning to regain the sense of community that was there when Ekko was a kid. 

Ekko whistled again. The Firelights rose higher, a few meters up from the streets, where the poison traps were flying around. 

He heard a poison trap ring and was suddenly reminded of how delicate the peace was. 

“I’ll get it,” Ekko called out. Scar and the others nodded, getting to the other traps.

The poison trap was Jinx’s idea. 

They were drones themselves, rebuilt from the scraps of Singed’s horrid inventions. They were slightly larger, because they had the sole purpose of catching and neutralizing any poison drone that came. 

And they also looked like giant butterflies. 

Ekko put on his mask, which had been modified to withstand gas attacks, as he approached the device. The poison trap held the drone, its butterfly legs wrapped around it. One leg pierced the battery of the drone with deadly precision, rendering it useless. 

Ekko pressed on the trap and it released the poison drone. The butterfly fluttered away, ready for its patrol again. 

“Ugly little bug,” he muttered as he held up the drone, unceremoniously throwing the machine in his satchel.

“Hand me the wrench, Blitzcrank,” Viktor muttered. The robot obeyed wordlessly and Viktor wondered briefly at one point they stopped saying “Veektor” so often. He would never admit it but he missed the sound of the golem whining. 

“What are you doing?” Blitzcrank asked. 

“I’m fixing someone’s prosthetic leg, Blitzcrank,” he replied.

“Why?” 

Viktor glanced at them. “To help people, Blitzcrank.”

He was still not sure when Blitzcrank had started becoming so articulate. It was his fault for not monitoring their progress for the past few months. Viktor knew Blitzcrank was learning but he failed to notice how fast they had evolved. 

Between creating the breathing devices with Heimerdinger and developing Jinx’s poison traps, Viktor had been working non-stop. 

It did not help that he had a line of people asking him to repair their prosthetics. A few months back, Sevika tussled with some of the old chembaron goons and broke her prosthetic arm again. Viktor fixed it for her, then she proceeded to tell half of Zaun that he gave out free repairs. 

He tightened the bolts on the leg he was working on, and made sure it was labeled correctly. The man it belonged to will pick it up later. 

Within the past few months, his compound had turned into some parts a mechanic shop, and other parts a lab, and then a small portion for what Jinx had called, “the incubator”. 

As much as he hated the name, Viktor did not know what to call the metal hut with all of the poison victims in a coma. 

Something tugged Viktor towards them. He was overwhelmed with a sudden urgency to check on them. He told Blitzcrank to stay where they were as they stepped away from the table for a bit: it was filled to the brim with loose nuts and bolts and it reeked of motor oil, which Viktor quite liked. 

He reached the metal hut at the heart of the compound, right next to his lab. 

There they all were: the poison victims slept peacefully in pods that were near-identical to Orianna’s. They were all lined up neatly against the walls. Viktor gracefully navigated the wires and tubes that ran on the ground. They all lead to the pillar in the middle of the hut. 

At the center of the room was the energy source: three Hexcore crystals dancing around each other; encased within sturdy glass. 

If they were larger, Viktor might have called it the Hexgrid. But he was beyond the point of naming his inventions. He had begrudgingly left that job to Jinx. 

He inspected the pods one by one. For some of them, Jinx had taken the liberty of decorating, giving them colorful mustaches and wigs on the glass that held them. 

Isha had also “named” them. While no one knew the names of the victims (since no family claimed them), Viktor was not about to call the poor man he was staring at “Fanni face”. 

Viktor made a mental note to start tutoring Isha.

He heard a pair of familiar footsteps and smiled.  

“Poison traps working well,” Ekko said, treading carefully through the wires. Viktor turned tp face the boy. 

“It caught a few drones. The Enforcers are probably trying to see if they can mount another full-scale attack,” Ekko reported. 

“Good morning to you too, Ekko,” Viktor said, smirking. 

“Right, right. G’morning,” Ekko replied. 

Viktor shook his head gently. “How many did they catch?” 

“Six,” Ekko replied. “I dropped them off at the workshop.” 

“The workshop” is where they converted scrap metal to poison traps. It was also the hut Jinx had claimed for herself, setting up a bed for her and Isha whenever they wanted to stay over. They had made the hut their own, decorating it with streamers and fairy lights. Viktor did not mind, welcoming the noise that brought a little more life to the compound. 

“Do you think… another big attack is coming?” Ekko asked. “Other than a few skirmishes, they’ve left us alone for a good while.” 

Viktor paused, his eyes settling on the three crystals. “Do you think we should be afraid?” 

“I think we should be ready,” Ekko said. 

“That sounds more like you,” Viktor said, smiling. 

Viktor could already tell that the boy’s mind was reeling, ticking off all the contingencies they had prepared in case Piltover struck back. One of them was the alarm system that they had set up across Zaun through a radio system. 

Ekko smirked, looking around, staring at the poison victims. “How are the patients, Doc?” 

“I’m not a doctor, Ekko,” Viktor said, walking towards the boy. “Come, I’ll show you what I’ve been working on.” 

The two walked towards the lab. It had become even more congested: this time with countless prototypes of everything they worked on scattered about: from the poison traps to the breathing machines. Half-made metal butterfly wings, battery cells, and more devices were scattered about. 

Most of it however, were prototypes of the prosthetic lung. 

The most current model sat on Viktor’s desk.

It was a simple implant that would not require an invasive surgery. On the surface, it was a small, flat white disk, much smaller than the prototypes. There was a series of small runes carved into the piece. It would embed itself on the victim's chest and help regulate their breathing. Viktor based it on the metal implants he affixed on Vander, so in a way, this was Singed’s technology as well. 

“This is incredible, Viktor!” Ekko exclaimed, bending down to look at it. 

“Cecil cracked it the other day. It needed a more stable energy source,” Viktor said, reaching for the locked metal box on the table. 

He opened it without a key, the inner mechanisms moving in the secret pattern in Viktor’s mind. As he lifted the metal lid, the raw Shurima crystals that laid inside glowed blue.  

“Wait… how did you get this?” Ekko said as he eyed the gems with suspicion. 

Viktor smiled. “I know someone.” 

By knowing someone, Viktor only meant he knew who to steal from. There were several of their old investors who kept Shurima crystals in their metal lockboxes at the banks. 

Ekko frowned. “Are you sure that this is safe?” 

“In a controlled environment, yes,” Viktor said, carefully extracting a smaller shard of the crystal with a pair of tweezers. 

“Care to do the honors?” Viktor handed it to Ekko. 

Ekko removed his thick, brown leather gloves and grabbed the tweezers holding the shard. It glowed blue against his face as he lowered it into the device’s cell unit. 

Mere inches away, the shard was pulled into the core of the disk. It lit up, turning into a gentle shade of blue. 

“How will you test it?” Ekko asked. 

“I’ll talk to the butcher near The Last Drop if he has some live animals to spare,” Viktor said a little too quickly as he stared at the disk. 

It took Viktor a moment to notice how Ekko’s face fell. 

Viktor raised an eyebrow. “Would you prefer I directly try it on the human victims?” 

“What? No, no,” Ekko said, shaking his head. “I just feel bad for the cow is all.” 

“Oh? I’ve seen you eat beef,” Viktor said smirking, leaning on the table. 

“That’s different!”

“Because you don’t have to be the one to kill them,” Viktor said calmly. “It’s alright, Ekko. You don’t have to be here for it.” 

The boy furrowed his eyes. He was about to say something when he heard a clicking noise, followed by the sound of footsteps. Viktor and Ekko snapped their heads towards the intruder in unison, like two owls sensing prey. 

A tall man with black hair and missing a leg hobbled into the hut, oblivious to the alarm he had raised. 

“Uh, hello. Is my prosthetic leg ready?” 

The crowds roared, pushing and raving against each other in the stadium. Sevika was already there, somewhere in the front. Despite the chaos, the people still made way for Ekko, Jinx and Viktor as they headed towards the front. Isha was happily perched on top of Ekko’s shoulders. 

An unexpected upside of attacking Piltover was becoming very popular in Zaun, Jinx concluded. 

Jinx was offered a drink by one of the watchers, which she gladly took. Ekko had to politely decline. They spotted Sevika at the front and made their way to her. Once they reached her, Isha clambered off of Ekko’s shoulders and ran towards the railing, wanting to get an even better view. Ekko yelped and chased after her, making sure she did not fall into the pit.  

Viktor was largely indifferent to the chaos, only looking on with mild curiosity. Jinx nudged his shoulders. “Come on, enjoy the show. Want some snacks? I still have some waffles from lunch,” she said, rummaging her satchel for the brown paper bag with leftovers. 

“No, no,” Viktor chuckled. “You should eat it. I’m just here to observe.” 

Right as he said it, Jinx felt something sticky in her bag and already knew that the syrup had spilled. She rolled her eyes and retracted her hand and shook the syrup off. “Suit yourself.” 

“AND IN THE OTHER CORNER. THE REIGNING CHAMPION OF THE PITS. THE BIG BAD RED WHO WANTS YOU DEAD. SHE PUTS THE V IN VIOLENCE. LET’S HEAR IT FOOOOOR… VI!” the announcer  yelled into the mic. 

Jinx ran to the rails joining Isha, Ekko and Sevika. She watched excitedly as her sister emerged from one of the entrances. 

A mix of boos and cheers erupted from the crowd. A lot of Zaunites were still sour at her for being an Enforcer before but she had slowly been rebuilding her reputation. Reopening The Last Drop helped, but the other part of that was letting people know that she was not to be messed with, with or without those big, ugly gauntlets of hers. 

It helped that Jinx would stare daggers at anyone who spoke badly about her sister. 

The girl grinned and whistled. 

“KILL THESE BITCHES!” she screamed. 

Vi immediately locked onto Jinx’s voice, as if she had a special radar in her brain just for her sister. She smiled and waved at them from the pit. Isha waved back, and Ekko merely smiled, already knowing how the match was going to end. 

She was in a white tank top and her toned arms were in full display. Somehow, she had grown even larger within the past few months. Jinx was not surprised. Vi tried to hide it but she could tell that she missed Caitlyn. The punching bag in Vi’s room in The Last Drop had already been replaced dozens of times. 

So when Jinx told Vi she could at least get some money from all that rage, her sister gave it a shot. 

Vi’s opponent was one of  Silco’s old goons. Jinx sort of recognized him but could not even care to put a name on him. He was twice Vi’s size and he had a gold plate chin and a smug look on his face that Jinx knew would not be there long. 

The bell rang, signifying the start of the match. 

Well, it was not really a match if the opponent went down in one punch. 

“Come on meat-mittens, make it at least worth people’s money!” Jinx yelled. 

“There’s still plenty more fights tonight,” Ekko shouted, trying to rise above the deafening roar of the crowd. 

“We all know she’s gonna kick their asses,” Jinx said back. 

“Here’s to the reigning champion of the pits!” Jinx yelled, raising a shot. Sevika, Ekko, and Viktor raised a glass as Vi smiled from behind the bar. Jinx down the drink hastily, spilling a lot of it on the counter top. The Last Drop was abuzz, with music playing from the record player Jinx found and repaired. 

“Nice try, I’m still not drinking,” she said, taking the towel hanging from her shoulder and wiping down the counter. “Appreciate it though.”

“Alright crabby, I’ll drink yours then,” Jinx said, quickly snatching the glass she poured for Vi.  

Ekko also seemed hesitant to drink. Vi smirked at him. “Can’t handle your liquor, Little Man?” 

“I can handle anything, Piltie,” Ekko teased back. It had taken time to regain the boy’s trust. They were still not as close as they were before but progress was progress, Vi decided.

“I would drink but we have to  check on the filtration tanks again tomorrow morning,” Ekko said.  

This time, it was Sevika who snatched Ekko's drink. “You should have fought me,” she told Vi. 

“And I would still be the champion,” Vi said, smiling. 

The fights had been surprisingly healthy for the community. After the chembarons stopped meddling and fixing up fights, it had simply turned into a tournament of sorts, with people placing friendly bets on who would be the last one standing. 

It had been an excellent way to pass the time as well. Between running the bar and going on patrols around the neighborhood, Vi had only been thinking of her . 

“She said she loves you and stuff and she wasn’t the one who put you in jail,” Jinx had hastily told her several months ago as they returned from a decimated Piltover. 

It was in that moment that Vi knew of two things: one was that she could trust Jinx now, completely. Jinx had every reason to lie about it, or to simply not tell Vi, but she still did. 

The second thing she learned was that she had to see Cait again. She had to. 

And she was going to. Oddly enough, it was not Jinx stopping her. Vander lugged into the bar, through the larger door that they had fixed up, just for him. Vi and Jinx beamed at him. 

He was an even mix of man and beast now. They had even made him a shirt and a vest, as well as a sturdy pair of pants. Vander looked at Vi and looked at her with pride. 

Before she could stop it, the memory suddenly came back.  

Vi stared at the sky as smoke and fire rose from Piltover. She ran here after Jinx told her about Cait. The bridge before her was gone. In some ways, Vi was grateful. That was the same bridge that their parents died on, after all. 

She had been choosing between finding a boat or seeing if the gondolas still worked when Vi heard a familiar set of footsteps. 

Several feet away, Vi watched as Vander approached her. He was trying his best to walk like his old self but she could see him struggle with his new weight. Every moment with Vander was still surreal to her. She still felt like she was dreaming sometimes, so much so that every time she went to sleep, she was terrified that Vander would disappear again, like a dream forgotten. 

“You should be at Viktor’s,” Vi said, meeting him as he drew near. 

“I know… who you’re after…” Vander said, careful with his words. 

Vi already knew that Jinx had babbled on endlessly to Vander about everything that happened to them, even before Viktor started treating their father. 

“I need to see her, Vander.” 

“You… need to let go of the past… walk away.” 

Vi looked at the man, realizing all of the sudden that while this was the bridge where they lost their parents, this is where Vander found his daughters. 

He found them and walked away with them. 

“But… I love her,” Vi said. 

“I loved… someone, I should have left in the past too…” he said. 

Vi blinked the memory away as Jinx embraced Vander. She watched the crowd surrounding her. Ekko and Jinx happily chatted with Vander while Sevika was making Viktor look at her prosthetic arm for possible upgrades. Isha was sound asleep in her bedroom upstairs; Vi had tucked her in herself after she finally tired herself out for the day. 

She thought of Caitlyn. Vi never prayed to any deity but she hoped that she was well. 

She vowed to herself to make her way back to Piltover again one day. Vi just needed to make sure that when she blinked, her family would still be here.

As she poured another round of drinks, Vi felt that her heart was a little less heavy and that her steps could be a little lighter. 

“And that is how you apply Cromwell’s theorem to get the maximum energy yield,” Jayce finished the equation on the chalkboard with a flourish of the chalk. 

He turned around to face the class—a group of bright-eyed young Academy freshmen. “Any questions?” 

To his surprise, dozens of hands short up into the air. 

Jayce paused, then sighed. “Questions that don’t have anything to do with Hextech?” 

Every hand went down. 

Jayce pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes. He had half his mind to throw his chair out of the window; his first day as a professor at the Piltover Academy was going splendidly. 

A polite cough made him turn his head up. He saw a lone hand raised. 

“Yes, you?” 

A young brunette girl, probably eighteen years old or so, looked at him expectantly. “Is it true you worked with The Machine Herald?” 

“You mean one of those nasty terrorists?” a male student called out. 

“Hey!” Jayce yelled at the direction of the student, his voice hard. He looked back at the girl. “Viktor. His name is Viktor. He is—was—my partner.”

“Is he really a rebel now?” she asked. 

“I heard he was turning a bunch of Zaunites into machines like him so they could take over Piltover,” the same boy chimed in. 

“What the f…” Jayce had to stop himself from cursing in front of the students. “Where did you hear that?” 

“It was in the newspapers!” he said. 

It took every inch of Jayce’s willpower not to storm out of the room. 

“Listen. Piltover and Zaun have a very… complicated history,” Jayce had to be careful with his words. He had to hold back plenty of his own feelings. Many of these students came from rich families and the last thing he needed was a meddling parent getting him kicked out of the Academy. 

He had a mission here. 

“Complicated? They attacked us! We should have bombed them right back months ago!” the disruptor said. A chorus of agreement rang from the class and Jayce had never felt so disheartened at the next generation than he did now. 

“Enough!” Jayce yelled, silencing everyone in the room. 

“If you want violence, go be an Enforcer. The Academy is a place to study and discover ways to make people’s lives better,” Jayce said. “Piltovans and Zaunites alike.”  

“Zaunites are hardly people,” the boy muttered.

Jayce could only stare back in disbelief. There were so many things he wanted to say but all of them would have gotten him fired. But he could not let it go. He thought of Viktor in that hospital bed, dying from forces beyond his control. 

“They are people. They have dreams, they have fears, they have hope and grief. Just like us. The moment we forget that, then we lose more of our humanity,” Jayce said. 

“We sit here, in a comfortable room, and we talk about them like they’re less than human because that takes away our sense of accountability for the injustice we put them through: the decades of poverty and brutality,” Jayce said, sitting down on his desk. 

The class fell silent once more, uncertain of what to make of everything. The bell rang, Jayce did not even bother to dismiss the class. They packed up by themselves and filtered out of the room. 

The man stared at the empty classroom for a while before picking himself up, reminding himself that he was here for a reason. He rummaged around in his pocket for a piece of folded paper. 

Underground level four . Third storage facility to the right. 

Singed was here at the Academy Jayce was almost certain. Months of following his trail had led them here. As Jayce made his way through the hallways, he spotted the news stand outside the library. He hastily grabbed a copy when he caught a glimpse of the frontpage photo. He felt his heart pounding as he stared at the cover. 

It was a grainy picture, but it was unmistakable. 

Viktor and Ekko were talking near a bright energy source while they were surrounded by what looked to be large pods. And Jayce could only assume what was in those pods. 

Another photo was on the corner of the page, a closer shot of Viktor. His hair was longer and his features had become even sharper than before. 

Jayce went back and forth between that photo and the headline that screamed at him. 

REBELS EXPERIMENTING ON ZAUNITES. IS PILTOVER NEXT?

In his lab, Viktor worked to unlatch the metal disks off Vander’s back. 

“You were due for a check up last week, Vander,” Viktor said calmly. 

“I know,” he grumbled. 

“Sorry ‘bout that. Took him to meet the Jinxers. They like him a lot,” Jinx said as she looked at the prototype of the prosthetic lung. “What if you call it… the iron lung,” she hummed. Isha leaped, wanting to see the device in Jinx’s hands but she held it up higher, still, the girl had grown a bit in the past few months, so Jinx had to stand on her tiptoes. Jinx learned a while back that Viktor preferred not to have his prototypes messed with — after they broke his first prototype lung. 

“It’s not made out of iron,” Viktor said, adjusting the new disk onto Vander’s back. The man grumbled. Jinx knew that meant he felt better. 

She stared at Vander. He was not quite his old self, and he never would be. Jinx knew that. She stared at Viktor’s metallic fingers working to help heal her father. She doubted Viktor ever planned to be the way he was. 

Yet he was here, helping someone without asking anything in return. Hell, Viktor was helping a bunch of people he didn’t know.  

When Viktor was finished with Vander, Isha led the hulking man into the empty field in front of Viktor’s compound. She wanted to show him one of the butterfly prototypes she had worked on herself. It was a failed version of the poison trap but it still worked well as a toy. Jinx and Viktor fell behind, watching the two from the entrance of the lab.  

“Heya Cookie,” Jinx started, clearing her throat. 

“Yes, Jinx?” He said, raising an eyebrow. 

“Why do you do it?” she asked. 

“Why do I do what?” 

“Why do you keep… helping us? I threatened you into doing it months ago but you just kept… helping. Not just my family, but Zaun. Why?” 

Viktor stared at Jinx, his brows knitted together in thought, as if he himself had not reflected on the matter. 

“I could give you two answers. The first one is the answer I would give to anyone, that I was an Undercity orphan with nothing but a penchant for tinkering with machinery. I saw the misery down here and I became a noble, altruistic scientist to save my people.” 

“What’s the second answer?” Jinx asked. 

Viktor stared as Isha and Vander played with the metal butterfly. He looked Jinx in the eyes, silver burning into purple. 

“That I’m a selfish bastard who can't bear to look at himself, so I focus on everyone else’s problems, their flaws, their woes. That… while I keep to myself, I need people more than people need me. I need… other people’s voices so I don’t have to listen to the darkness in my own head.” 

Viktor fell silent and Jinx again caught a glimpse of Them. She could almost see it: how he shifted back and forth, balancing two conversations. One in his head, and one in real life, with her.  

“I don’t believe that nobility is a necessity to help others. We don’t need a perfect reason to do good. Sometimes, we save others to save ourselves,” he finally said. 

Jinx said nothing as he turned away, unable to meet his eyes. She watched as Vander tried to capture the butterfly, to Isha’s glee. 

“Which one is the truth?” she whispered. 

“Which one do you want to believe?” he asked, his eyes studying her face. 

Jinx said nothing for a while. Whatever brought Viktor to Zaun, Jinx did not care anymore. She was just happy that he was here.  

Jinx slipped his hand into his and squeezed. She was shaking her head before she even realized it. “It doesn’t matter.”  

The man smiled. Before Viktor could say anything else, someone whistled to catch their attention.  

Ekko and a bunch of the other Firelights and Jinxers were on the outskirts of the compound, on their way to the riverbanks. He waved to Jinx and Viktor. 

The two of them waved back. “Gotta go. Can you watch my dad and Isha?” she said, walking away. 

Viktor nodded. “I will. I prepared some worksheets so Isha could work on her spelling.” 

“Oh, I’m sure she’s gonna love that,” she said sarcastically as she walked away. She waved at Viktor once more, giving Vander and Isha a quick hug before walking towards Ekko. 

She felt, for a fleeting second, that perhaps she should have embraced Viktor as well. It was the same feeling one would get if they forgot something important at home. Jinx shrugged off the inkling.

Jinx would hug him the next time she saw him. 

Shoola herself poured tea for Caitlyn. The former councilor’s apartment was a large, penthouse suite that offered a glorious view of Piltover. It was decorated in deep, vibrat shades of purple and gold. Although, Caitlyn knew that Shoola was only there for a few more days. They were almost done rebuilding her house. Still, Caitlyn found it surprising that she had not hired a servant. Gods knew that Piltovans needed jobs. 

“Thank you, Shoola,” Caitlyn said as the former Councilor put down the kettle. “And thank you for inviting me.” 

It was the most polite way that Caitlyn could say: Why did you ignore me for six months and call on me now?

“No need for such pleasantries, Caitlyn,” Shoola said. Caitlyn was relieved. She did not have it in herself to pretend. She had spent the past six months with Jayce, trying to look for Singed. While it was a less comfortable life, she had finally dropped any pretense of decorum and high society manners. 

“What’s happening, Shoola?” Caitlyn said, her voice rough. 

The woman in front of her was nervous, as if this was something she had debated upon with herself endlessly. “I feel something terrible is brewing.” 

“What do you mean?” Caitlyn asked. 

Shoola said nothing, a cup of tea sitting in her hands. “In the past few months, I had convinced Salo not to retaliate against Zaun. All of our weapons would be useless as long as The Machine Herald was there. I told him that the focus should be making sure our people would recover from the attacks.”  

“It worked for a while,” she added. 

Caitlyn had thought about this. While she was barred from the Council Room, she surmised that it was Shoola acting as the only voice of reason among them. 

“What I did not know was how cunning Ambessa was,” Shoola said. 

Caitlyn’s fingers wrapped around her cup tighter. If Shoola had also been tricked into trusting Ambessa, then perhaps she could forgive herself a little more for trusting the Noxian. 

“She convinced Salo that I was a weak adviser. He said I was no longer needed there,” she said. “But I caught wind of the nature of their plan…” 

From the way that Shoola was rotating the cup in her hands, Caitlyn could tell that she wished that it was alcohol. 

“What is it, Shoola? Out with it,” she urged. 

Shoola closed her eyes and sighed, shaking her head. “What have we done…” 

“Shoola!” 

“Extermination, Caitlyn. They’re planning an extermination.” 

“Do we reeeally have to do this?” Jinx asked, blinking as the sun was hitting its peak. 

“Yep,” Ekko said back with a smile.

Jinxers and Firelights milled around them on the riverside, carrying tools and replacement parts. 

The filtration machines that they had set up several months back were still holding out well, albeit some of them were obviously due for maintenance. 

The past few months had been hard work; hard work that eventually bloomed into better days. 

The river was indeed cleaner now, Ekko saw. The glint of the anomaly pollution was no longer there. The poisoned parts of the tree have been cut off as well, leaving the tree a bit smaller, but healthier. 

“Can I have more waffles after this?” she said. 

“You didn’t even finish the waffles from yesterday,” he said as he climbed up one of the tanks. 

Jinx huffed. “Not my fault you made so many.” 

“Not my fault that you didn’t wanna share with the other Jinxers,” Ekko said as he went up the ladder. 

The boy was capable of many things. 

He was able to cook an assortment of meals made from scraps. He could easily win any gun fight with his bat. As Jinx smiled mischievously up at him, Ekko found that if he was patient enough, he could get his best friend back as well. 

What Ekko never could have done, was see the razor thin wire that tightened as he pulled up the hatch of the tank. 

He only had a moment before he heard the beeping and saw the flash of red from a bomb planted inside the walls of the metal tank. 

“RUN!” he screamed as he tried to leap off the tank. It was the only thing he could do before the bomb went off.

Chapter Text

Time froze for Jinx. More accurately, it went by extremely slowly. She heard him scream and she was already moving before she could think about it, propelled by adrenaline and the Shimmer that ran through her veins. 

With speed unnatural for any human, Jinx grabbed Ekko and pulled him away. 

She had gotten them a few feet away but it was not enough. The two of them were thrown forward by the explosion. 

As they rolled unceremoniously on the ground, Jinx heard Ekko yell in pain. She could taste the dirt in her mouth and her body ached as she hit the ground hard, but she refused to stay down too long. 

She checked on Ekko, who was struggling to stand up. Blood streamed down his arm and Jinx knew that he was probably hit with shrapnel from the tank. She tore off a piece of her jacket and quickly wrapped it around his arm.

“What the fuck…” he whispered under his breath as he stared at the ruined tank. 

There were around twenty Zaunites with them, most of them were Firelights while the rest were Jinxers. They rushed to Ekko and Jinx, nearly crowding the two. Scar helped Ekko stand all the way up. 

Jinx was possessed with a terrible feeling that this was just the start. 

Her hand automatically went to her waist, grabbing her gun. Something turned on in her head as she recognized a fight starting. Her heart hammered wildly against her chest and her eyes were wild, looking everywhere for danger. 

They had only been standing for a few moments when the other tanks started exploding as well. 

“GET AWAY FROM THE TANKS! EVERYONE GET IN THE AIR!” Ekko yelled.  

All the Firelights grabbed any Zaunite who did not have a hoverboard. By no means were they defenseless but they were not an army either. 

Ekko zeroed in on his hoverboard and grabbed it, pulling Jinx on top of it and taking flight. Fire, dust and smoke covered the entire area and Jinx could hardly see anything, pointing her gun wildly on the ground. 

The Firelights flew in formation, taking to the air and rising above the dirt and dust. The riverside was on fire and Jinx could hardly see anything. They hovered for a moment. Then Jinx spotted it: a black, iron ship coming down the river bearing the bloodred flag of Noxus.  

From the boat, a battalion of soldiers offloaded. 

They fell into formation and Jinx saw them raise their bows and ready their arrows. 

“Scatter around!” Ekko screamed. The Firelights lit the sky green as they prepared for a fight. 

The wind blew gently around the compound, flowing freely through the metal huts' porous walls. The canyon embracing the compound was made from smooth stone that allowed them just enough privacy without being disconnected to Zaun. The sun overhead was reaching its peak, but it was partially covered by the clouds. It was a lovely day, overall. 

In the lab, Viktor looked at the worksheets and knitted his eyebrows in confusion. He peered at Isha, who had her arms crossed, as if she was daring him to correct her. While Viktor would admit that the little girl was intimidating sometimes, he would stand his ground when it came to academic integrity. 

“You spelled ‘telefone’ wrong,” Viktor signed, turning the page to her and pointing to the mistake. 

“Your face is wrong,” she signed back, grabbing the paper and running outside the lab. 

Vander watched the exchange, amused. “Direct but gentle. You would make a good parent.” 

Viktor chuckled. “I do not see that for myself. Besides, I have my hands full with work.”

“I didn’t expect to be a parent myself. Then you find a bunch of kids and before you know it, you would do anything for them,” Vander said, sitting on the floor.  

Viktor smiled. Aside from the wonderful progress Vander had made in his recovery, Viktor was pleasantly surprised to find that he had genuinely liked the man underneath the beast. 

Still, Viktor would never have kids. Blitzcrank was already acting like an aloof teenager sometimes, wandering off on their own from time to time. Including today, it would appear. 

“Parenthood is a righteous path. It’s just not for me,” Viktor said, smiling. 

“Never imagined it then? With anyone?” 

The image of Jayce playing with a little child suddenly came to mind and Viktor had to push it all the way down. 

“Nope,” Viktor said as he stood up, going over to the entrance of the lab to make sure Isha had not strayed too far. He spotted her several meters away in the open, laying in her stomach as she looked at the worksheet. He was certain that she was a few minutes away from taking out her crayons and drawing all over her papers.

Viktor felt the wind on his face and stared towards the sky. He took a deep breath, taking in the scenery and wondered briefly, if he should try planting foliage around the area. He thought of all the plants he had killed while experimenting with the Hexcore. Perhaps he should start making up for it.  

Then he felt something . Viktor was not sure what it was, it could have been a shift in the wind or the clouds moving east instead of west but something was wrong and Viktor could not place what it was. 

A chill suddenly ran down his spine. He was overwhelmed by a sense of foreboding, and as he scanned the vicinity, he saw nothing out of place. Vander was next to him within moments, as if being possessed by the same instinct. 

“Do you feel it?” Viktor asked. 

Vander nodded before running on all fours to reach Isha. He grabbed the girl gently, who was confused but otherwise not alarmed. 

Viktor ran to the radio in his lab: it was a simple, two way radio. He turned it to Ekko’s channel but was greeted with nothing but white noise. He tried Jinx’s channel but the same sound greeted him. Sevika and Vi’s channels were dead as well. 

Viktor rolled his eyes. “Of course it doesn’t work.” 

“The fucking radio won’t work!” Jinx yelled as she took a shot at the soldiers from Ekko’s hoverboard. One arm clung to Ekko’s waist while the other alternated between shooting and calling for help on the radio. 

Ekko navigated the hoverboard with ease, dodging arrows. Every now and then, heavy spears would shoot to the sky. 

It was complete chaos. The Jinxers clung to the Firelights as they flew, shooting at the soldiers. He took a quick survey of the land: the tanks were all destroyed and their contents were already leaking into the river. Ekko yelled in frustration as he dipped closer to the ground, taking out his bat and clubbing several soldiers on the head. He lifted up again, letting Jinx shoot more soldiers down.  

From the corner of his eye, he saw a spear fly through Scar’s hoverboard, sending him on the ground. A soldier raised his sword, ready to strike the Firelight. 

“NO!” he yelled. Ekko sped up, he glanced at Jinx and nodded. “Your turn to drive.” 

“Ekko, hold on —” 

Before she could finish, Ekko leapt off the board and rolled on the ground until he reached Scar. His bat met the Noxian’s sword, he twisted it out of the soldier’s hand and clubbed him in the head with every bit of strength he had. Ekko handed the sword to Scar, who was already on his feet. 

“Thought this was supposed to be a checkup,” Scar said, breathing hard as he held up the sword. He was frowning, obviously mad at himself that he did not bring a weapon. 

“Guess the Noxians didn’t get the memo,” Ekko said, his bat raised. 

With some Zaunites finally joining the battle on the ground, the Noxians encircled Scar and Ekko. 

Jinx hovered above them, providing cover fire. 

Ekko and Scar stood back to back as soldiers descended upon them; those who managed to dodge Jinx’s fire. 

Time slowed for Ekko. In his mind he could see it, the variables on how the soldiers could move. His thumb twitched on his club, as if yearning for the comfort of his pocket watch to help him count. But he did not need it. 

Ekko dodged and weaved, already recognizing the patterns that the Noxians were trained in. They relied on brute force, and they were slower because of their large sizes. But they were much stronger than the average Enforcer; Ekko needed to stay on his feet and he could not be separated from Scar. 

A soldier’s spear came dangerously close. Ekko evaded it, hitting the soldier’s hand until he let it go. He held onto the spear. While he had never trained with it, Ekko knew his way around melee weapons. He danced with the Noxians, his bat in one hand and a spear in another. 

The shrapnel wound on his shoulder throbbed in pain. One soldier seemed to have caught on his weakness and hammered in on it. Ekko dodged instinctively and kneed the soldier on the groin before swinging his bat up, hitting him right on the chin and knocking him down to the ground. He raised the spear, ready to drive it on the soldier’s exposed throat. 

But Ekko paused. 

He had never killed anyone before. 

Perhaps he had sent several of these soldiers into a coma with how hard he was hitting their heads hard but he had never killed before. Not like this, when they were vulnerable on the ground. 

Jinx’s bloodied face flashed in his mind all that time ago from their fight on the bridge. 

Ekko breathed hard. He turned the spear upside down and hit the soldier with the spear’s butt instead, rendering him unconscious. 

From his lab, Viktor grabbed three gas masks: the small one for Isha, the large one custom built for Vander, and the mask that Ekko gave him all those months ago. He had modified his own mask to withstand gas attacks, embedding the entire cover with metal. 

Isha took her mask reluctantly. The larger man sat cross-legged in the lab, with Isha on his lap. 

“Just to make sure,” Viktor signed, before helping her put it on. Vander was still rather large, and his sharp claws made more delicate tasks difficult. He bent his head down, trusting Viktor to secure the mask for him. Viktor did just that, tightening the straps and making sure it was in place. 

He turned away from them, grabbing his cane. The blue hue of the gem glowed. Viktor sighed, reaching within himself. “What’s happening?” he whispered under his breath. 

There is a malicious presence but… it brings no machinery or metal. 

“Is it another poison attack?” 

No… it’s something else entirely. Whatever it is… it is violent. 

“Stay here,” Viktor told them as he put on his own mask. His eyes met Vander’s. “Make sure she’s safe.” 

He stepped out of the lab once more to survey the land. It was still empty. Nothing was out of place. 

Viktor only heard the arrow slice through the air mere milliseconds before it hit his metal shoulder. He yelped instinctively, pulling it out and looking wildly at where it came from. He finally looked up and understood why they could not see it. A lone archer stood on top of the canyons. 

Viktor looked at the arrow in his hand. Its shaft was made out of wood and the arrowhead was diamond: no part of it was metal. His eyes grew wide, suddenly realizing why it took so long for the Noxians to attack again. 

They were preparing. 

In his mind he could see it: a battalion of archers was likely stationed on top of the canyon overlooking the compound. 

Several other archers emerged and Viktor already knew what was next. 

His third arm came to life and shot a beam onto the canyon where the archers were and he could see the blast, with several men falling off the edge. 

But the feeling of dread did not leave. Viktor scanned the vicinity. His eyes grew wide as he saw a torrent of arrows fly across the sky, ready to fall upon them. 

Run. 

Jinx hovered around Ekko and Scar dutifully as they fought, taking down as many soldiers as she could. She must have taken out dozens of them, none of them able to crowd over the two Firelights as they fought hand to hand with the soldiers. 

Ekko moved quickly, opting to evade and redirect his opponents’ energy against themselves and just when they thought that they figured out his style, he would bring down his bat with a brutality that Jinx did not know he was capable of. She could tell that his mind was moving at a thousand miles per hour, working out the possibility of every move in a matter of seconds. 

When Noxians noticed that Jinx was shooting at them from the hoverboard, some of them turned their attention to her. Spears started flying upwards as they tried to hit her in the air, as well as the other Zaunites on hoverboards. She kept her feet steady as she evaded the spears and arrows. But the other Zaunites were not as lucky. Several others took a hit, falling and being forced to fight the soldiers on the ground. From the corner of her eyes, she saw Gert go down with another Firelight after a spear hit their board. 

“Fuck!” Jinx yelled. 

Jinx dove after them, shooting anyone who would come near them. 

After seeing them get to their feet and joining the fight, Jinx smiled. She rose again, taking a bomb out as she eyed their battleship. It was small for a war boat, likely just enough to get them down the river to Zaun. 

She unlatched three grenades from her belt as she searched for the engine room. Guessing that it was on the farback of the boat, she dove fast, pinning a bomb onto the stern of the boat. She rose up again as the ship exploded spectacularly. 

Jinx smirked before flying away. She whistled, calling the flyers to her. Around eight pairs answered her call. 

“Get the Zaunites away from the Noxians! We gotta blow these suckers up!” she yelled, leading the way and looking for Ekko in the crowd.

She saw the flash of white hair from several meters away and whistled. He looked up as she joined him on the ground, the hoverboard still floating several inches from the ground. 

“What are you doing? Stay on the air!” he yelled. 

She frowned, pointing a gun at him. Ekko looked at her incredulously. 

“Don’t tell me what to do,” she said. Jinx pulled the trigger, hitting the Noxian who tried to creep up behind him. 

Ekko rolled his eyes at her and she smirked back at him. She shoved the hoverboard in his hands. “You and Scar go. Get all the Zaunites in the air. Get them FAR. Fifty meters away. I have a plan.” 

“Jinx,” he grabbed her arm. “Are you sure?” 

Jinx smiled, grabbing his face with one hand and kissing him quickly on the lips. “Trust a jinx to wreak some havoc, okay?” 

Ekko looked conflicted. Something flickered in his eyes, as if he could not decide if he wanted to be: the leader of the Firelights, or her Boy Savior. Jinx squeezed his hand in assurance. He was both to her, and she loved both versions of him fiercely. 

Ultimately, Ekko nodded anyway, getting on his hoverboard and grabbing Scar along the way. The other Firelights followed him upwards. 

There were still a good fifty soldiers left, Jinx counted as she sprinted across the battlefield. Any Noxian that attempted to catch her was left eating dust with how fast she was. 

Jinx spotted a tank that had not been blown up yet and climbed on top of it. She glanced at the battlefield quickly and then towards the sky, counting around fifteen or so hoverboards. 

This was the only chance they could win. 

The soldiers descended upon her. Several spears came her way but she dodged them, her eyes glowing purple as Shimmer drummed through her veins. 

She pulled out her last grenade and knocked the Hextech gem out of her gun, quickly placing it inside the bomb. 

“HEY YOU WARDOGS!” Jinx yelled. “COME AND GET PILTOVER’S MOST WANTED!”

The soldiers took up the challenge. When they were close enough, Jinx opened the tank, and threw the grenade in before leaping into the river, coloring her trail purple. She hit the water hard, propelled even deeper once the tank went off. The explosion was painfully bright and she had to shield her eyes. She was about to swim up when shards of the tank began falling into the water. 

Before she could see it coming, part of the tank’s lid shot through the water and hit her head.

Jinx only felt the briefest of pain before everything went black. 

Viktor ran to join Isha and Vander in the lab, throwing his cane to the side and slamming his hands on the metal walls of the lab, forcing every window and door to close, slowly drowning them in darkness. Not more than a moment since the last gap was closed when a rain of arrows came barreling on the walls of the hut. 

The books that he had stacked up against the walls clattered to the floor as the force of the arrows repeatedly slammed against the hut. 

He kept his hands on the wall, feeling how every diamond tip dented them. Viktor concentrated, reinforcing the metal when it was getting dangerously thin. 

Isha whimpered as she huddled closer to Vander. 

After what felt like a painful eternity, the arrows began dying out. 

“Vander… when I say go, take Isha and run to The Lanes,” Viktor said. 

“I’m not leaving yo—” 

“You won’t endanger your daughters,” Viktor said, turning to him, breathing heavily against his mask. He did not need to know the man too deeply; Viktor already knew what he would choose. “You need to warn Vi and Jinx, too.”

Vander stared at Viktor, but he already knew that the man would choose his daughters in any situation. Isha’s eyes went back and forth between the two men, as if she sensed the weight of the decision being made for them but unable to fully understand it yet. They could barely see each other in these enclosed walls, with only the glow of Viktor’s arm and cane as their light but Viktor could still see her bright, golden eyes. Viktor smiled and ran his fingers through her hair to assure her. He turned to Vander and nodded. The man stood tall, pulling Isha close to his chest. 

“One…” Viktor said as he grabbed his cane and closed his eyes. He reached within himself one more. He could almost see Them, mirroring his movement. At that moment, the two of them were in agreement: that they must survive. 

“Two…” The metal in the hut began shifting, allowing Viktor a view of the cliff where the archers were reloading. 

Viktor’s eyes opened, glowing an unearthly shade of silver. 

“ Three .” 

A powerful beam of silver light was unleashed from the third arm. Isha and Vander had to shield their eyes. The energy that Viktor unleashed was powerful and ice-cold, decimating the cliff completely. Viktor could see several archers fall but he knew that this was not the end. 

Viktor heard the sound of soldiers’ shouts, followed by the steady march of footsteps coming up to where the entrance of the lab used to be. 

“Go!” he yelled at Vander and Isha. 

The back entrance of the lab opened on Viktor’s command and Vander bolted with Isha in his arms. Viktor tore the entrance to his lab open and unleashed another beam, cutting through the soldiers waiting on the other side, cutting down several unlucky souls standing on the frontlines. 

He counted fifty of them still standing, but knew that there were still others hiding. 

The Other moved through him, raising the cane. He could feel, once more, the power of the Arcane. 

The Noxian soldiers looked on, unfazed by their fallen comrades. 

Viktor stared back, magic coursing through the machinery in him. Power surged through him once more: he felt electric and alive. 

The soldiers descended upon him, like a swarm of moths flying towards a flame. 

The blast was blinding and Ekko understood why she asked them to get on the air. Around twenty soldiers must have been taken down from that blast alone. Bodies — or vestiges of bodies — surrounded the tank that Jinx blew up. The fire around them grew even stronger. Ekko could almost see the blood mix with the oil and pollution in the river. 

But panic quickly settled in as Ekko looked for a trace of blue among the wreckage. Ekko knew she was abnormally fast but the thought of her getting hurt terrified him.

After a few moments, he realized that she was not on the ground.  

“JINX!” Ekko dove after her, leaving Scar to navigate the hoverboard. He hit the water, dodging debris from the tank. Then he saw her. 

Her blue hair floated around her, obscuring her face and he could feel his own heart drop to his stomach. Ekko finally understood what fear truly meant. 

Something in him forced him to move. He already knew what it felt like losing her. But then, she was still alive. Ekko always knew she was out there, maybe staring at the same moon as he was. But losing her in battle like this would mean that she was gone for good. 

Ekko would not let it happen; he could not.  

The boy grabbed her, not wasting a single moment. The two of them emerged from the water and he pulled her towards the shore. Scar was already on the riverside and helped the two of them up. 

Ekko laid her down gently. Jinx’s face was pale, a stream of blood starting to pool from the side of her head. 

“No, no, no…” Ekko pressed his ear against her chest and heard the steady beating of her heart., but to his horror, she was not breathing normally. He started chest compressions, counting each beat in his head with precision before tilting her head back and pinching her nose. Ekko pressed his mouth to hers before starting compressions again. 

He counted every, agonizing second, resisting the urge to rush through it. Ekko needed this to be right. 

Jinx started coughing out the water. 

“Jinx!” 

She opened her eyes slowly, still coughing. Her eyes immediately fell on Ekko and she smiled weakly. “Did we win?” 

Ekko’s shoulders slackened as he finally looked around, only to find that Zaunites surrounded them, not enemies. The only flash of the Noxian red he could see were the ones belonging to the dead. He quickly counted their people and to his relief, found that they were complete. 

Ekko heard the faint sounds of someone yelling retreat and he breathed a sigh of relief. 

“Yeah. I think we did. You sent them running,” Ekko said, cupping her face.

Jinx frowned, sitting up suddenly. “Those bastards fight to the end, what do you mean they’re running…” 

Ekko frowned in turn. The relief of seeing Jinx alive was suddenly replaced by a sense of  dread. He also felt that something was wrong. It was the same feeling he got when Jinx and Viktor were ambushed in Piltover. 

Jinx stood up quickly, looking at the soldiers falling back, her mind reeling. The battle was not easy, but Ekko could hardly say that they earned their win. His eyes fell on the Noxian spear he handed to Scar in the heat of the battle.  

“Can I see that?” Ekko said. Scar dutifully handed the weapon to him and he examined it. He had seen what the Noxian’s weapons looked like, and what he held now was different. 

The blade was not metal, but diamond. As he ran his hand across the handle, Ekko realized it was made entirely out of wood. 

Jinx looked at the weapon and her eyes widened in a terrible realization. 

“Viktor,” she whispered. 

The last soldier fell. Viktor felt the points of several arrows on his shoulders and back and he breathed hard. His shirt — a purple button down that used to belong to Silco — was in tatters, revealing how metal and machine twisted around his body. Pain was hardly the word for what he felt in his body but he could still feel himself weakening. Damage was still damage, no matter how primitive the weaponry was. He took off his mask, his tired fingers letting it slip to the ground. 

He pulled out an arrow that came dangerously close to the part of him that was still human. The tip was tinged with a mixture of blood and a dark, iridescent liquid.

“Impressive,” a voice said from behind him. He wasted no time, raising his third arm and charging it once more. 

But as he turned around, he saw that Ambessa was not standing alone. She held Isha, trapping the girl in one arm as a diamond-edged dagger held another.  Isha struggled against the woman’s vice grip but to no avail. 

End her. The threat she poses to this world knows no end. 

But Viktor could not. No part of him ever could risk hurting Isha, no matter how loud They were. Isha’s panicked eyes stared at him, both begging him to save her and apologizing for letting herself be captured again. 

Ambessa held up her hand . “Unless you want your friends dead, I suggest you stand down.”   

“I see that Noxians truly have no end to their cruelty,” Viktor said. 

“You say cruelty. I say strength,” she said. 

“Only the weak will use a child as a shield,” Viktor said bitterly. 

Ambessa said nothing, staring at him. “You accuse me of weakness when you were the one who destroyed a magnificent weapon.”

Several soldiers pulled in a large wagon and to Viktor’s horror, he saw an unconscious Vander battered and bruised, every limb tied with layers upon layers of rope to secure him to the wooden caravan. Several arrows riddled his back, likely shielding Isha from their attackers. 

Several archers lined up and readied an arrow at Vander, daring Viktor to make a false move. 

“How dare you?!” Viktor said, his eyes glowing again. “He is a good man. He wants no part of your violence.” 

“I’ve seen him in Stillwater. He is violence incarnate,” Ambessa said calmly, raising her dagger. 

End them or they will end you. 

“Let them go, Ambessa. We have no interest in taking lives but we will not let you take ours,” he said, stepping forward. 

Ambessa pointed the dagger at Isha and pressed it gently against her prosthetic arm.  

“No!” Viktor yelled. 

“Easy now,” Ambessa said, the dagger trailing down Isha’s arm until it found the slot containing the Hextech crystal.

Viktor could feel every sense in him scream to move. To shoot Ambessa down and grab the gem. But as Isha struggled against the woman’s grip, Viktor knew he did not have a choice. He would never forgive himself if Isha got hurt. He could hardly imagine how Jinx would react if she were to lose Isha. Ambessa found the hidden slot and pressed down, releasing the crystal and grabbing it for herself. 

“You got what you wanted. Now leave,” Viktor said through gritted teeth. 

“That isn’t the only thing we wanted, I’m afraid.”  

Another soldier took Isha from Ambessa, assuming the same position: this time holding the dagger to her throat. Another Noxian took the Hextech crystal from Ambessa and in turn, gave her diamond-encrusted twin drakehounds. 

“In Noxus, we have a tradition. That the strongest must lead the pack. Many generals have settled their squabbles by fighting each other in a one on one duel, sparing the lives of many men. The rules are simple. Our powers and weapons are only to be pointed at one another. This way, we prevent the loss of more lives,” she said. “You are strong Viktor. Likely one of the strongest beings  have ever encountered,” Ambessa said, brandishing her blades.  “You have a lot of tricks. But you are not a warrior.” 

Ambessa slowly walked towards him. Her soldiers stepped aside, giving them space.  

“If I win, you let them go,” Viktor said. Ambessa nodded. 

Viktor could burn the world twice over and it would not be enough to satiate his rage. He stared at the bodies around him. He must have killed fifty of her men at least. 

All of them are mere lambs to the slaughter. She has been assessing you from the moment you unveiled yourself in Piltover. She studied the way you tore down her men. It would appear that she still deemed you beneath her skills. 

“You would sacrifice your men to see if I was a worthy opponent?” Viktor snarled as they circled one another. 

“They died in honor, fighting a wretched monster like you,” Ambessa said calmly, her eyes glinting, as if impressed that Viktor saw through her strategy. 

Viktor’s eyes glowed again, his third arm came to life and shot a beam at Ambessa. But the woman did not flinch. She raised her arm, decorated with ornate rune stones that Viktor could not read. As the beam hit her, an invisible shield absorbed the energy. She dug her feet onto the ground, resisting the push of Viktor’s attack.

Ambessa surged forward, even as the beam barrelled down on her. Viktor had never been pushed to the limit of his powers like this and he could feel himself faltering. 

As if sensing Viktor weakening, the general bounded forward, throwing her diamond drakehound. It wrapped around his third arm. Before he could flinch, Ambessa pulled hard, ripping the arm off from his back. 

Viktor did not get the chance to scream. He realized, belatedly, that the earlier battle was not just to see which parts of him were still human enough to kill; but which part they needed to dispose of first so they could win. 

Vander howled from the wagon and Isha struggled even harder against the soldier as they watched Viktor fall to the ground. 

He remembered that this was pain. He had not felt it for so long that he almost forgotten what it felt like. Pain had been his most constant companion in his life. How could he have ever forgotten it? Viktor curled into himself, pain overwhelming him like a vengeful spirit.   

“So you are still somehow human,” Ambessa said as she drew near him. 

Viktor forced himself to get up. As he did, he caught a glimpse of Isha struggling ferociously against the soldier.  As he remained on his knees, he reached within himself once more. 

“Help me save them, please,” Viktor whispered. 

You should save yourself. 

“I’m trying to,” Viktor whispered back as he stood once more, relying, with aching familiarity, on his cane. 

He reached out, sensing the metal from the huts. They moved like fluids, turning into metal shards. He willed them towards Ambessa: a rain of metal barrelled towards her. 

But the Noxian was too fast, she moved as if she was already anticipating that he would resort to using his surroundings. 

One of the drakehounds hit him, his metal arm barely being able to shield him from the attack. Viktor raised his arm, metal shards pelted the ground as Ambessa expertly out-maneuvered them.

Viktor quickly realized that Ambessa was right: he was no warrior. He was a man of science, forced into a war. Even when he was cursed with powers beyond his understanding, everything had a limit. He had already violated his own limit several times. As he ran to dodge the swing of the drakehounds, he caught sight of Isha and Vander. The soldiers have moved them together, as if readying to take them away once Ambessa disposed of him. 

He made eye contact with Vander, his sorrowful eyes pleading to Viktor. 

In his mind, he could see it through Jinx’s eyes once more: Vander’s mutilated body as Powder cried and wailed all alone in that alley. He died that day, taking his dreams of a peaceful Zaun with him.  

Ambessa’s eyes were locked straight onto Viktor, readying to strike again. 

Viktor took a deep breath and raised one arm, willing one of the metal shards that Ambessa had deflected to float and take aim. In one fell swoop, the metal shard flew. 

Time slowed down for Viktor and everything happened quickly. 

The scrap metal flew between the eyes of the unsuspecting soldier that was holding Isha. As his body collapsed, Isha scrambled away, quickly evading soldiers and making her way to Vander, trying to undo the ropes. As soldiers scrambled, Viktor raised his hand, willing more metal scraps to fly through their bodies. 

Ambessa’s eyes grew wide in horror. “You broke the pact!” 

“I don’t give a fuck,” Viktor said, willing one of the shards to slice through Vander’s ropes. “Run, now!” 

Vander did not hesitate this time, grabbing Isha and putting her on his back. Ambessa roared, throwing her drakehounds again at them. Viktor moved, using more metal to redirect the vicious chains. 

With the swing of one of his arms, one of the panels of a nearby hut flew and hit Ambessa, throwing her several meters back, sending her crashing into the workshop.  

“Isha!” He heard Jinx’s familiar voice. The sound of hoverboards filled the air and the man breathed a sigh of relief. Viktor turned to see Vi and Jinx several meters away, taking Vander and Isha into their arms. As the family embraced each other, Jinx peered at Viktor, relief painting her face as she saw him alive. Viktor saw the blood stream down her face and it looked like they had been through hell as well. 

Several other Zaunites came running to help, with Sevika leading them. Behind them, the green trail of the Firelights’ hoverboard began coloring the air and Viktor smiled tiredly, fighting to stay on his feet. He spotted Ekko leading the Firelights in the air, taking on the remaining soldiers who were still alive. 

Then he felt it. 

The familiar hum of energy and the interlocking movement of its metal mechanisms. He knew every turn of the cog, every placement of the bolt. Viktor knew it because he still has its blueprint memorized from the day Jayce showed it to him when they had just invented Hextech. He had thought that it was ridiculous at first: a giant hammer to help the miners? It seemed like a child’s invention. 

But oh , how Jayce smiled that day. He had been hopeful again, mere months after being on the brink. And Viktor could not help it. It was crazy but Viktor already knew that he had no choice but to help his partner make his plans for a giant hammer come true. 

From the corner of his eye, Viktor saw what he had already felt. Ambessa emerged from the wreckage of his home with the Mercury Hammer. 

And she was pointing it straight at Jinx, Vi, Vander and Isha. 

Viktor was moving before anyone could blink. His eyes glowed as he ran towards the hammer’s blinding beam. 

A moment. 

Viktor was only allowed one moment to understand what he was doing. 

If he had more than a moment, he would have thought of the Zaun they were building: the one Viktor had envisioned, the one he thought he could save with Hextech. 

But it was never Hextech that could save them, Viktor would have realized. He would have realized that it was them . Only they could have saved themselves. Zaun would have been nothing without Vander’s dreams, or Vi’s grit. Sevika’s loyalty. Isha’s stubbornness. 

Ekko’s virtue. 

Jinx’s valor. 

If Viktor had one more moment, he would greedily beg for a thousand more. Just so he could see what life could have been for all of them. Maybe he could have built a school in Zaun. Maybe Ekko and Jinx could have been his students.

Most of all, Viktor would have liked to see if Jayce could have built them that little house in Zaun with a lab and all the terrible sweetmilk. 

But in his final moment, Viktor only knew one thing: he would do it all over again if he had to.  

It happened too fast for Jinx to understand it all. 

One moment, they were on the outskirts of Viktor’s compound. Jinx was on her feet, running alongside Vi. Then they spotted Vander and Isha running. 

Her eyes watered as she saw Vander: her father was in a terrible state. Jinx’s instincts were right: they were ambushed too. 

Isha also appeared unharmed as Jinx held her tightly. She peered over Isha’s shoulders to Viktor and saw him standing. He looked terrible but he was still standing. 

Viktor smiled at her: tired but alive. 

Then the next moment, there was a light so bright. 

Jinx held Isha to herself, using her body to shield her. Vander and Vi had the same instinct: shielding the two of them from the blast. It was another bomb, Jinx thought. She expected a rain of fire and shrapnel and held Isha tighter. 

But neither came. 

The light faded and all was still. 

Jinx slowly entangled herself from her family. She breathed hard, her heart beating wildly as she looked around. 

Viktor was no longer standing. 

Her feet carried her as she moved mechanically towards him, unable to comprehend what had just happened. 

Everything happened in flashes to her. 

She heard Ekko scream as the Firelights descended upon Ambessa from the sky. 

Sevika and Vi sprang towards Ambessa like lions attacking their prey, forcing the hammer away from her hand. 

Jinx reached Viktor and then it suddenly sank in. 

“No, no, no, no, no, no…” she whispered, over and over as she knelt down to him. Her heart sank somewhere deeper than hell as she saw the hollow in his chest where he was hit by the blast. 

Her hands trembled as she held him close to her. “Viktor…” she was finally able to say, the tears finally falling. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry,” she said, over and over again. 

Viktor merely looked at her as he fought to breathe. Something sparked in his eyes as he looked at her, and for one second, it looked like the man was merely about to peacefully sleep. 

“Not… not your fault…” he whispered, trying to smile. “Thank you… for finding me…” Viktor said weakly, as if it was taking him every effort just to speak. 

“Don’t leave, please,” she whispered, holding him tighter. Her hand shook as she cradled his face. 

Viktor merely looked at her apologetically, a single, iridescent tear falling from his eyes before they went from silver to grey. 

Jinx felt his body go limp in her arms. 

“No…” Jinx whimpered, shaking Viktor’s body gently, trying to wake him up. She cried over and over again until her sobs turned into screams. “No, no, no, no, no, no, NO!” 

Jayce’s mug fell from his desk, smashing into a thousand pieces. The class raised their heads at the sudden noise. They were supposed to be taking a quiz but anything was a welcome distraction, Jayce supposed. 

“Nothing to see here, get back to the test,” Jayce said as he bent down to pick up the pieces. He surmised that he had not been paying attention to the cup dangerously perched on the edge of the table as he graded papers. 

As he picked up the larger pieces of the broken cup, he saw his wristband: the blue gem glimmering at him. He stopped picking up the shards and stared at it. 

Jayce could still remember Viktor handing this back to him, all those years ago, when he was on the brink. Viktor had saved his life then. From a symbol of his Hextech dreams, the wristband had turned into a reminder of the day Viktor found him. There was never a day that he was without it. 

He stood up slowly as he stared at the bracelet: Jayce was suddenly overwhelmed by the feeling that something was terribly amiss. He stared out the window. He was not sure what it was. It felt like the sun was in the wrong place, or the sky was the wrong color all of the sudden. 

Jayce’s fingers brushed the gem gently, remembering his promise to Viktor. He thought of that house in Zaun he would share with Viktor, and all the sweetmilk they were going to have.  

Everything will be alright, Jayce assured himself as he stared out the window. The two of them would have it all, one day. 

Chapter Text

Ekko took the first strike against Ambessa, hitting her in the head as he leapt off his hoverboard. Vi dove fast, hitting the Noxian with her gauntlets and then pulling the hammer away from her. Even without the hammer, Ambessa did not surrender. She brandished her drakehounds, ready to fight. 

Sevika took a turn, surging forward and swung hard at Ambessa, catching one of the drakehounds with her prosthetic. The Noxian dodged the punch, only for Vi to come up from behind the general and grab her other drakehound with her gauntlet. Ambessa struggled against Sevika and Vi working together. 

Then, he heard Jinx scream. 

Vi kept her eyes on the general. “Go to her!” she told Ekko through gritted teeth as her eyes remained trained on Ambessa. Scar and other Firelights descended upon the general. 

Ekko turned around and ran. Then he saw them. 

All of the sudden, the air left his lungs. 

Viktor’s grey eyes stared uselessly at the sky, seeing nothing as iridescent tears painted his face. His chest was caved in completely, absorbing the full hit of the hammer’s blast. 

Jinx looked at him as she sobbed. “Ekko… please… help.” 

And it felt like the world had upended itself. Because none of this was fair. Ekko only managed to draw closer, finding himself incapable of speaking as his lips trembled and his eyes started to tear up. 

“M-maybe we could find Jayce,” she started to say. “Maybe we could make another Hexcore…” 

She buried her face in Viktor’s neck as she sobbed. 

Ekko held her shoulder, his knees no longer able to support him as he fell opposite Jinx over Viktor’s body. 

“He wouldn’t… he wouldn’t want that…” The boy managed to say through the lump in his throat. Jinx only whimpered further, clutching at Viktor’s body, an endless stream of “no’s” and “I’m sorry’s” leaving her lips like a prayer of penance. 

Ekko absentmindedly reached across Viktor’s back, helping Jinx carry his body. To his horror, he realized that Viktor’s third arm was gone, likely lost in battle. The boy closed his eyes, allowing his tears to fall. 

Somewhere, he was able to make out the sound of Sevika and Vi yelling something about Ambessa running away but for once, Ekko found himself unable to spring into action. He felt frozen: like he was a little boy who lost his friend again. His other hand found its way to Jinx’s face, she stared at Ekko as she cried, her tears falling onto the palm of his hand. Ekko pressed his forehead against hers as they cried, grief weighing heavily between their chests like stones sinking in the vast ocean. 

Ekko sighed as the memory came back to him. The river in front of him ran dark, pollution swarming the surface like a locusts upon a field. The filtration machines were destroyed, spilling all of their contents onto the river. It mixed with the oil that leaked from the Noxian battleship. Even with the sun starting to fall, Ekko saw them again: the iridescent, weblike filaments from the Anomaly floating on the surface of the water. 

In his mind, he knew that they would have to rebuild it all again. He knew that he had to get his people ready. He knew that there was war coming. But Ekko allowed himself the luxury of a few seconds alone to feel his own loss. 

Only a few seconds: any more than that and the full weight of anguish would crush him all over again. 

Around him, Zaunites methodically worked to gather the bodies of the fallen Noxian soldiers. They had set up a mass grave a few meters away from the riverside. There was no way that Ekko would allow Noxians near Zaun, even if they were dead. There would be no ceremonies for the soldiers. Getting rid of their bodies would purely be for the sake of preventing the spread of pestilence. Ekko absentmindedly walked to one of the bodies that have yet to be collected near the decimated tank. He realized, belatedly, that it was the soldier he had spared during the battle. He died from Jinx’s bomb, likely trying to kill her. 

“You don’t have to be the one to kill them,” Viktor had told him. 

Scar walked up to him, grabbing his arm gently. “We can handle this. You should go to her. Get ready.” 

Usually, Ekko would argue. He would see the mission through. But his shoulders sagged; he had no strength to argue. Ekko nodded, giving Scar a pat on the shoulder as he prepared his hoverboard. 

“There was nothing you could have done, Ekko. I hope you know that,” Scar called out. 

Ekko merely glanced back before getting on his hoverboard and taking off. 

The Last Drop was closed today. It would be close for the rest of the week. 

Vi worked to redress Vander’s wounds. The man was sullen and quiet, holding Isha close to his chest. The girl had finally tired herself out from crying so much for hours. 

Logically, Vi knew that there was no way she could have known that any of them were in danger: the signal jammers on the radio proved that. Still, Vi wondered if she had ran faster after Jinx told her something was amiss, or if she was able to see what Ambessa was planning from the start when she was manipulating Caitlyn. She had spent most of her life pondering what-ifs. Vi injected Vander carefully with a careful dose of purified Shimmer. 

“It’s my fault,” he whispered suddenly. 

“Don’t do that to yourself,” Vi said, putting the rest of the gauze away as she finished tending to his wounds. “Once you start, it won’t end.” 

“Perhaps… if I was still stronger…” he said. Vi had seen her father in many lights since she was a child. He had often been kind, just as he was always exasperated. Having four children would do that. 

Now, years later, as an adult herself, Vi could see a new face on him: a man feeling the full weight of regret. Vi felt it too. Viktor had been her friend, but more than that, the man helped return their father to them. 

“No, Vander. He worked so hard to heal you,” Vi said, cupping his face. His head was easily twice the size of her hand. Vander leaned on her palm still. 

“How… how’s your sister?” 

Vi sighed, feeling her eyes water again as she remembered Jinx’s cries while she held Viktor’s dead body. “She hasn’t left his side.” 

Vander nodded solemnly. “You should go to her. Help her get ready for the funeral. We’re safe here, don’t worry.”  

“I… I can’t leave you after what you’ve been through,” Vi said. 

“She needs you, Violet,” Vander said. “We’ll meet you at the harbor. Tomorrow, we get ready for the next time that Piltover and Noxus bring hell on us. Today, we grieve as a family.” 

Vi sighed and nodded. She grabbed her black jacket from the bench and got ready to leave. On her way out, she glanced at the hammer that she had wrestled away from Ambessa. It sat silently behind the counter of the bar. 

For a moment, Vi wondered if Jayce would ever find out and if he did, how would he take it. She thought back to how Viktor remained suspended in the Hexcore cocoon. Vi never fully understood what happened to them but she knew that Jayce put him there in a frenzied attempt to save the man. 

Vi did not know if it was love or obsession. 

After making sure that Vander and Isha were safe, Vi set off. The streets of Zaun were quiet, people closed their doors and kept their windows shut. Fear and sorrow had taken hold of them once more. 

As Vi walked, the sound of a hoverboard drew her gaze to the sky. Ekko approached her slowly. He silently gestured for Vi to get on the board, already knowing where she was headed. 

Vi gingerly planted her feet on the hoverboard and the two took to the sky. 

Flowers were a rarity in Zaun, so Viktor would never be adorned with blossoms of purple and white in his casket the way most Piltovans do when they die. 

Instead, he was given a makeshift coffin made from the metal scraps of the battleground he died on. 

Sevika watched silently as Jinx decorated Viktor’s casket with deactivated butterfly bombs. Gold and brass wings fluttered around the man, many of which were painted and drawn on. Sevika tried to help her but Jinx merely raised her hand, telling Sevika to let her do it herself. Jinxers and some other Zaunites milled about the compound, gathering the bodies of Noxian soldiers and cleaning up the mess. 

A large part of Viktor’s home had been destroyed. From the way that the metal twisted and shot into the ground, Sevika knew that most of the destruction was from Viktor himself. 

The sun was getting ready to set over Zaun. Sevika looked up and wondered, briefly, if there was an afterlife. If there was, would Silco see what was happening now. 

Silco had given grand speeches about a free Zaun, enacting so much violence and cruelty to reach their independence. For a long time, Sevika thought it was necessary. 

But Silco had never so much as lifted a finger to help others without anything in return. It was something Sevika thought it was natural: a leader needed to be ruthless and tactical. 

In many ways, Jinx provided that same, necessary cruelty. Sevika still did not know what she did with all those chembarons all those months ago. 

However, the past six months showed Sevika that brutality alone could never have given them the Zaun that she dreamed of. Violence was necessary at times, yes, but Zaun needed more. 

Sevika solemnly stared at Viktor’s body; the man had helped everyone he could without asking anything in return. It was the kind of compassion that would have never survived in a place like Zaun. 

They were so, damn, close. 

“Veektor?” 

Sevika raised her head and saw the iron golem staring at the scene in front of them. She knew that the cyborg had a tendency of coming and going wherever they pleased, seeing them walk the streets of Zaun without a chaperone many times.  

Blitzcrank’s eyes, bright and unblinking, still managed to look confused somehow.

“Why is Veektor sleeping? He does not need to,” Blitzrcank said. 

Jinx said nothing, affixing another butterfly on the coffin. Sevika cleared her throat. “He just needs to rest, Blitzcrank.” 

“Rest? But he doesn’t need —” 

“Viktor’s dead, Blitzcrank,” Jinx said flatly, her back turned to the golem. Her head was downcast, staring at another butterfly she was going to attach to Viktor’s coffin. 

Blitzcrank’s eyes remained on Viktor, as if struggling to understand what was happening. They walked slowly towards Viktor’s body, standing over him next to Jinx. 

“Veektor? Veektor,” Blitzcrank said, again and again, something akin to sorrow tugging at their voice. Sevika wondered if the robot even knew what death was. 

“Veektooooooor.” 

Jinx’s face crumpled once more, dropping some of her butterflies as she ran to her workshop. A few moments later, Ekko and Vi arrived together on his hoverboard. Sevika quietly pointed to Jinx’s workshop. Without saying a word, the two of them ran to her. 

Soon enough, Sevika could hear Jinx’s cries again. The woman stared up at the sky, blinking away tears. 

“Do you think they’re gonna come for us soon?” Ekko asked as he kept his eyes on the wiring on an electrical panel. As promised, Ekko was helping Viktor create the pods for the poison victims. 

“How many times have you asked me that?” Viktor said, tightening the bolts on one of the panels with a wave of his hand. “It’s been a week since Independence Day. We’re preparing as best as we can, Ekko. You have several items on your schedule today, if I’m not mistaken.” 

“I know. After this I have to meet with new recruits for the Firelights.” 

“I’m happy to see your community is growing,” Viktor said warmly. 

“Our community,” Ekko corrected him without thinking. Viktor paused, looking at the boy, a mixture of surprise and gratitude on his face. 

“Thank you, Ekko,” he said. Viktor’s face slowly fell, a sullen thought suddenly coming to mind. The man sat on the pod’s walls and gestured to Ekko to sit next to him. The boy obliged, curious about the change in Viktor’s demeanor. 

“I agree with you. They will come for us one day. It’s not in Noxus’ nature to surrender to enemies. Neither is it in Piltover’s nature to let go of its assets. We will be ready when they come,” Viktor said, his face stern. Ekko already felt something else coming. 

“I have something to ask of you,” Viktor said. 

Ekko listened, waiting for Viktor to speak. 

“If anything happens to me, you need to make sure that no one gets access to my body,” Viktor said. 

“Viktor, don’t talk like—” 

“I’m not saying it will happen. But just in case, alright? Set me on fire, hide me in a cave or sink me in the sea. Do it quickly. No ceremonies.” Viktor stared at his hand, the one that was purely made from the Hexcore: an odd mix of purple and gold. “Gods forbid that Singed or Ambessa get a chance to study…me.” 

Ekko said nothing, already thinking of the ramifications. An army made with soldiers who have Viktor’s powers and strengths came to mind, sending shivers down his spine. 

“Thanks for letting me know but… that ain’t gonna happen,” Ekko said. “Jinx would kill you if you left us like that.” 

“A bit redundant, noh? She already killed me once,” Viktor said, smiling mischievously. A laugh escaped from Ekko’s throat before he could help it. Jinx would throw her shoe at him if she found out that Ekko found that quip funny.   

“Viktor? Did you just make a joke? Is that the Hexcore talking? Are you an evil twin?” 

“Bah. I’m a very funny man. People just mistake it for bullying.” 

Ekko chuckled, shaking his head. “Never change, Viktor.” 

Ekko stared out into the sea as he helped carry Viktor’s casket, unable to look down at the man. Jinx’s butterflies adorned the man’s coffin, and their metal wings gently brushed against Ekko’s fingers. Vi carried the other side of the casket, with Sevika and Scar at his feet. 

Jinx walked behind them, holding Isha’s hand. Ekko could tell that the little girl was trying with all her might to hold back tears. Vander walked behind the two of them, his torso still wrapped in bandages from the attack.  

Dozens of Zaunites showed up at the sendoff by the harbor. There were little distinctions now among the factions now, save from the bright blue hair of the Jinxers. Many of the ones who showed up to pay their respects were normal citizens, many of them with prosthetics. Viktor’s customers, most likely.  

They cleared a path for the casket, respectfully keeping their distance from the procession. 

Viktor might have not wanted any ceremonies, but word of his death had spread quickly, and people wanted to say goodbye. After all, funerals were for the living, not for the dead. 

Ekko kept his eyes on the water, the sun sinking into the horizon, painting the sky a mix of orange and purple. Even with the sun setting, he could still see it: the pollution of the Anomaly dancing on the surface. 

His friend deserved better, but this was the only thing they could come up with on such short notice. Three, small boats waited by the docks. The one in the middle was small and wooden, tied to the two other motorboats. Here was where they laid down Viktor’s casket. 

As they placed Viktor on the boat, Ekko was finally forced to look at him again and he could not stop it. A fresh set of tears fell from his eyes as he saw the man's lifeless body, and he forced himself to look up to the sky once more. He felt a hand on his shoulders, seeing Jinx stare at him, tears streaming down her face as well. 

Ekko only nodded. 

She withdrew her hand to pick up Isha, hugging her hard before handing her to Vander. Isha buried her face in Vander’s chest, sobbing once more. 

As they reached the front, Ekko saw Heimerdinger and Blitzcrank. Heimerdinger was quietly sniffling. Ekko bent down on one knee to pull the professor into a hug. The Yordle was unable to say anything as he cried against Ekko’s neck. 

The iron golem stared blankly at Viktor’s body on the boat. “Veektor…” 

Ekko patted the robot on the arm before moving to help Jinx onto one of the boats. The boy walked over to Viktor’s boat one more time, and took out the mask he had given him all those months ago. It had burn marks and scratches, an obvious sign of battle. He stared at it for a few moments before placing it on the man’s chest. Ekko boarded the ship. Vi joined their boat, embracing her sister. Sevika and Scar quietly boarded the boat opposite them. The only sound between everyone were the boat engines coming to life. 

The two boats set sail, gently tugging Viktor’s casket behind them. Ekko looked at the people on the shore and his chest felt heavy. He had gotten used to being the one that people always relied on. Viktor was one of the few people that Ekko sought guidance from. 

But Ekko did not have that now. 

They kept going, three small boats cutting smoothly through the water under the purple sky. They stopped at one of the deepest spots. Even when they were so far from the shore, Ekko could still see the iridescent filaments shine in the water. 

Across them, Sevika and Scar stood on their vessel, dutifully undoing the ropes that tethered Viktor’s boat to theirs. Ekko stood as well, his hands automatically moving to the knots on the railings, but suddenly finding himself unable to move. 

“Let me, it’s alright,” Vi said as she saw him pause. Jinx remained still by her side, her eyes staying on Viktor. She gently undid the ropes on their boat, setting the middle boat free. 

Viktor’s boat, the only one without a motor to keep it still, began moving with the waves. 

Across them, Ekko saw Sevika ready her prosthetic arm to take the boat down as it gathered more distance away from them. The plan was to set his boat on fire as it drifted away. 

Ekko could still remember the day that Jinx got mad at Viktor for “ruining” the arm she made for Sevika. In truth, the man had just altered the arm to allow Sevika control over which of the arm’s weapons she could use without the slot machine.  

Jinx stood up all of the sudden, taking out her gun. “I should do it.” 

“I don’t think you should —” Vi started to say. 

But Jinx started firing at the boat before her sister could finish speaking. Each bullet hit the wooden hull of the boat with precision as Jinx started to cry out in frustration, black tears streaming her face anew. Even when the boat started to go down, Jinx did not stop firing. Ekko had to gently grab her, holding her wrist to stop her from shooting. 

All of them watched in silence as the boat went down, and with it, Viktor’s body. 

As the cruel spell that had taken over Jinx lifted, her lips began to tremble.  

“No…no…” she whispered. She dropped the gun and rushed to the edge of the boat, leaping into the water before anyone could blink. 

Ekko did not hesitate this time, diving after her. Through the waning sun, Ekko could see them. 

Viktor’s body floated down from the wreckage of the boat as he separated from the casket. He sank slowly, the butterfly bombs that adorned his casket almost looked like they were dancing around him. His eyes remained closed, oblivious to the world around him. 

Jinx swam hard until she reached his body, wrapping her arms around him. Ekko followed suit, desperate for one more chance to say goodbye. 

Even as his lungs begged him to surface, Ekko buried his face on Viktor’s neck as he held him, his tears uselessly mixing into the sea. Jinx did the same, her other hand grasping Ekko’s back. 

Time passed, and Ekko knew they needed to breathe. He gently wrapped one arm on Jinx’s waist, letting her know that it was time. Ekko looked her in the eye and she already knew what needed to be done. She did not fight this time. 

As they untangled themselves from the man they both loved like a brother, Ekko held onto one of Viktor’s hands as Jinx held the other. The water tugged at Viktor, waiting to claim him fully. 

The boy knew they could delay no longer.  

Jinx and Ekko finally let Viktor go. 

He sank, weighed down by the metal and machine in his body. Viktor descended into the cold shadows of the sea, the abyss enveloping him. 

At the gates of the Academy, Jayce waited under a black umbrella as the rain hammered down over Piltover. It added to the cover provided to them by the darkness of the night. Caitlyn, Loris and Seb were going to arrive any minute. As time went on, Jayce stared at the gem on his wristband. 

It has been several days since he got that horrible feeling. No matter how much he assured himself, something still felt horribly amiss. Caitlyn said that it was likely just the nerves: after all, he was a “civilian”. 

Three hooded figures finally emerged from the streets. Jayce took out the keys he had swiped from the custodian’s room to open the gates. The four of them quickly made their way inside. 

They sprinted silently across the cavernous hallways of the Academy until they made their way to the basement. The expansive basement held all sorts of supplies, mixed together with prototypes of inventions that were too useless to be displayed in labs but warranted keeping for future references. Jayce was certain that their prototypes for Hextech were here somewhere. 

Caitlyn tugged at Jayce as they navigated across the maze of crates and aisles until they finally reached sight of the storage facility where Singed was. With two Noxian guards at the front of an unassuming hatch, it looked like their intel was right. 

The four of them hid behind an aisle. Caitlyn took out her gun: it was a pistol, not the sniper rifle she was used to. They needed to be as quiet as possible. With two precise shots, the guards went down.  

Seb stayed back to provide cover fire if needed as the three of them continued on. Caitlyn shot the lock of the containment facility, sending it wide open. 

Calling what they saw an abomination was not enough. 

Dead specimens lined every inch of the walls, illuminated by a sickly green light. The smell of iron filled the still air… among other horrendous smells. 

Singed sat on his desk in the middle of the room, his back turned to them. He turned around slowly, his face clearly unimpressed. Even with Caitlyn and Loris pointing guns at him, the old man showed no sign of fear. If anything, he almost looked bored. 

“You finally found me. I had a feeling you might arrive soon,” Singed said evenly. “Tell me, are the tides changing against the Noxians?” 

Caitlyn and Jayce looked at each other incredulously. 

Jayce had imagined this scenario a thousand times already. They would have ambushed and captured the man, telling him he was to pay for the poison attacks in Zaun. He imagined how Singed would have reacted, if he would be defiant or if he would try to bargain. 

Now, it seemed as if the man almost wanted to be found. 

“What do you mean? Things have been on a standstill for the past few months,” Jayce asked, his instincts again screaming at him that something was wrong.  

Singed looked at him quizzically. A few moments passed and his eyes widened ever so slightly, as if realizing something. “So the Noxian chose to act in secret.” 

Caitlyn tightened her grip around the gun. “What are you talking about? What’s Ambessa up to?” 

“She asked me a very peculiar set of questions a while ago,” the man said. “How do you combat an enemy with unearthly powers?’, ‘How do you face an opponent with an inhuman body?’”

Jayce could suddenly feel his heart quicken as the feeling of foreboding only increased tenfold. He surged past Caitlyn and grabbed Singed by the collar of his shirt. 

“What. Did. You. Do?” Jayce snarled. 

“Nothing,” Singed said, unafraid of the man. Not because he believed Jayce would not hurt him, but because Singed did not care if he did.

“I merely told them to go for his heart.” 

As if on cue, the ground shook slightly, several of the jars rattled, some of them falling to the ground and releasing the foul cadavers they displayed. The distant sound of explosions faintly heard through the deep ground. 

Still, Jayce kept his eyes on Singed, unable to fully comprehend what the man said. 

“We can take him from here. You two should check what’s happening up there,” Loris said. 

Caitlyn nodded. She grabbed Jayce’s wrist, forcing him to let go of Singed. Jayce moved mechanically, the man’s words echoing in his mind like a malediction.   

Go for his heart. 

Because you’re a Jinx! 

Don’t cry. You’re perfect.

Not your fault…thank you for finding me. 

Jinx watched as the Academy burned. Part of her wondered if Viktor would be upset at her for ruining his old school. She would have just told him that they were all stuck-up dumb-dumbs and technically speaking, he blew up part of the Academy first. 

Jinx pulled out Ekko’s pocket watch and looked at the time. It has been a few minutes since the first bomb went off. 

“We got a few minutes before the next one goes off,” Jinx said as she sat on the floor facing the window. She showed the watch to the man next to her. “Wanna see?” 

Salo merely yelled through the gag in his mouth. He struggled uselessly against the ropes that bound him to his wheelchair. 

“What are you whining about? You got the best view in the house,” Jinx said, pulling the gun from her belt, prompting Salo to scream and squirm some more. 

“That’s just bad audience behavior,” she said, huffing. She stood up and looked around the room. The Council Room was pristine once more after the Zaunites declared their independence all those months back. It seemed like they were getting used to remodeling the place every time she destroyed it. Everything looked brand new.  

Well, except for the Enforcers who had the misfortune of being assigned to this poor sack of bones. 

Jinx walked around the Council Room, stepping over dead bodies. She twirled Ekko’s pocketwatch between her fingers effortlessly.  Against the window, she watched the silhouette of Salo struggling in his wheelchair. The skylight was massive, decorated with ornate patterns of gold. 

“You know what, you’re right, Piltie,” Jinx called out, pointing her gun. “The view could be better.”

She shot several rounds. The glass shattered around the man. Salo yelled himself hoarse, trying to hide from the bullets and the rain of broken glass. The sound that Salo made through the gag almost made Jinx laugh. 

Almost. 

Because you’re a Jinx! 

Don’t cry. You’re perfect.

Not your fault…thank you for finding me. 

Jinx closed her eyes, the words replaying in her head again and again. Viktor’s face sinking beneath the water flashed in her mind once more and she felt her eyes water. She blinked rapidly, willing the tears away. 

She made her way back to Salo, the glass crunching beneath her boots. With the window broken wide open, the rain sprayed gently against the two of them. The wind swept across the room, kicking up broken glass. The gentle wind surrounded her and she felt all the way to her nape. Jinx touched the back of her neck,  doubting that she would ever get used to her hair being so short. 

“Are you ready?” Vi told her. 

“Why do I have to do this?” Jinx said as she covered her eyes with her hands. She sat on the couch she and Isha salvaged and forced into the workshop in Viktor’s compound. 

“Because you gambled with Sevika and you lost,” Vi said, gathering one of her braids in her hand. Jinx heard the happy snipping of scissors and already knew that Isha was excited to start cutting. 

Little traitor. 

“How the fuck was I supposed to know she was that good at poker?!” Jinx whined. The opportunity to color Sevika’s hair blue was too good. 

“All of Zaun knows I could play well,” Sevika said. Jinx could imagine the wide, shit-splitting grin on her mouth and her fingers twitched for a gun. 

“Just…! Just fucking do it!” Jinx said, instantly regretting it. 

With several fell swoops, her sisters chopped off her hair. 

Suddenly, her head was too light. As she uncovered her eyes, Sevika cockily handed her a mirror. 

Jinx screamed upon seeing herself. 

Not even a few seconds later, Viktor came running, stumbling through the entrance of the workshop. 

“Jinx! Are you alright? What’s —” Viktor paused, taking in the scene before him: 

Sevika was doubled over in laughter.  

Isha was playing with loose, long, blue hair. 

Vi was holding a pair of scissors like a thief caught at the scene of the crime. 

At the center of it, Jinx was on the verge of tears, her hair messy and uneven. 

Viktor sighed in relief when he figured out what had just happened, staring at Jinx as she started sniffling. 

“Hey, hey, you look great,” he said, chuckling as he approached her, being careful not to step over her loose hair. 

“You’re laughing!” 

“I’m not!” he said, stifling his giggles. He turned to Vi, quietly asking her for the scissors. 

Viktor gently tucked a tuft of hair behind Jinx’s ear. “You look wonderful, Jinx. Even if you go bald. We just need to even the ends out.”  

“You know how to cut hair?” 

“Of course. I used to cut my own hair all the time. The barbershops in Piltover were too damn expensive,” he said, smirking. “Come, sit. We can fix this.”

The sound of running broke Jinx away from the memory. The door burst open, with Caitlyn Kiramman and Jayce Talis running through, taking in the scene before them. Bodies splayed recklessly around the room, their blood painting the floor red. 

“I was wondering if you were ever gonna get here, Jinx muttered under her breath. She glanced once more at the pocket watch. “Right on time.” 

Another bomb went off in the distance. “And there goes the Enforcer’s headquarters,” Jinx said.  

“You bitch!” Caitlyn’s eyes were wide open, horrified. She pointed a handgun at Jimx. 

Jinx raised her finger, placing her other hand on Salo’s wheelchair handle, pushing him close to the edge. “We don’t want an accident now, do we?” 

Salo’s muffled screams filled the air as he saw the height that he could drop from. He looked at Caitlyn, tears streaming down his face as he pleaded at her to save him. Caitlyn’s eyes traveled rapidly between Jinx and Salo, trying to comprehend what had happened. 

“Jinx, we can talk about this. Killing… killing isn’t a solution,” Jayce suddenly said, raising his hands. 

“Maybe. Killing sure is a cycle though,” Jinx said, unimpressed, turning her back to them and watching the night sky. Another bomb should go off soon enough. 

Caitlyn was quiet, as if she was taking in every detail from the scene playing before her. She stared at Jinx, and her eyes grew open, a realization suddenly striking her. 

“Who did you lose?” she said quietly. 

Damn. The woman was smart. Jinx could almost understand why Vi was so in love with her. 

“The last time I saw you like this, Silco had died. Now who is it? Was it Vi?” she said, dread seeping through Caitlyn’s voice. Jayce’s eyes nervously moved between the two women. 

But Jinx kept her back turned to them. 

“Ekko?” Caitlyn tried again. 

Jinx’s fingers wrapped tightly around her gun as she glanced back at them. 

The other woman kept her gun trained at Jinx, as the answer finally became clear to her. She sorrowfully glanced at Jayce, as if already apologizing for what she was going to say next. 

“It’s Viktor, isn’t it?” 

Besides her, Jayce paled. “No…no, you’re wrong,” he whispered to Caitlyn as he shook his head. He turned to Jinx, as if begging her to deny it. Jinx finally turned to face them, angry tears streaming from her eyes.

“No!” he yelled again, seeing the look on Jinx’s face. 

Viktor’s lifeless eyes flashed in her mind once more and she was no longer able to stop herself from crying once more, rage and grief drawing a storm in her chest. 

Because you’re a Jinx! 

Don’t cry. You’re perfect. 

Thank you for finding me. 

Jinx screamed, finally kicking Salo’s wheelchair from behind and sending the man careening down the tower. Caitlyn yelled, pulling the trigger. 

Time froze for Jinx as she pulled out her own gun. She tracked Kiramman’s trajectory and fired before she could pull the trigger all the way, shooting the gun out of the older woman’s hand.  

In one snap, Jinx bolted forward, tackling Jayce to the ground. She grabbed the man’s face, her chipped, colored nails digging into his cheeks. 

Behind them, Caitlyn scattered to find her gun. 

“I want you to know,” she whispered angrily through tears. “That it was your stupid, ugly hammer that killed him.” 

Jayce shook his head vigorously. “No… no… you’re lying. Please say you’re lying,” he choked out as his face contorted with pain.  

“There’s a fucking hole in his chest, because of you!” she yelled as she descended into sobs.  

She heard the click of a gun. “Let him go!” Caitlyn yelled. 

“No, no, no, no, no, no, NO!” Jayce yelled as he stared at Jinx, as if he finally understood that the grief in her eyes could never be fabricated. Jinx let him go, standing slowly as she drew her gun at them. She looked down at the man and felt nothing for his agony. Jinx had plenty of her own anguish to deal with. 

“You’re only alive because of Viktor,” Jinx said as she pointed her gun at Jayce. She moved her gun towards Caitlyn. “And you’re only alive because of Vi.”   

Jayce appeared completely oblivious to what Jinx said. He grabbed the seam of her pants as she was about to leave. 

“Where’s his body?” he said, his voice raw as he got on his knees. “M-maybe I can revive him, maybe—” 

“At the bottom of the sea. He didn’t want anyone else messing with his body. Especially you,” she said blankly. 

Jayce’s hand dropped as he stared into empty space, tears streaming on his face as the full weight of realization hit him.  

“Was this the plan?” Caitlyn suddenly shouted. “Torture the man that Viktor loved? Destroy Piltover in his name?” 

“Sounds like a good plan,” Jinx said as she glanced at the pocket watch once more. Another explosion erupted in the distance. Caitlyn stared out the window in horror, but the man could not be roused from his distress. Before Caitlyn could turn to Jinx again, she was already sprinting through the doors. 

Grief still lived violently in Jinx’s heart. She was terrified of every shadow, every corner. Every moment that went by, she dreaded seeing Viktor’s face once more even if he was not there. Having Viktor alive in her mind would only mean he was truly gone from the world. 

And somehow, she would feel that it was her fault. Because she was too late. Because she did not stay with him. 

But Viktor spent his last breath telling her that it was not her fault. His words echoed through her mind endlessly, as if he already knew what his death would do to her. Viktor even said he was grateful that she was in his life. And Jinx did not know what to do with that. Every time she lost someone she loved, it was always her fault. 

So who else could she blame this time? Ambessa? Jayce? The whole of Piltover and Noxus? 

As far as Jinx was concerned, it was the whole damn world’s fault.

Chapter Text

“Remember the Distinguished Innovators Competition?” Jayce asked. 

“I remember… you.” 

“Jayce?” someone said. But the voice was faraway and distorted. And it did not matter. It was not his voice. Jayce  was somewhat aware that he was on his bed but that was where his attention to the world ended. There were cuts on his face from where Jinx dug her nails on his cheeks but he could not bring himself to care. 

“Jayce… you need to eat,” she said. Caitlyn. It was Caitlyn speaking. But Jayce could not move. He stared uselessly at the ceiling, a fresh steam of tears falling into his ears every time he remembered Viktor.  

Somewhere, in his head, Jayce knew he had duties. He still needed to make sure Singed was in prison. He needed to write to his mother. He needed to grade papers. 

But Jayce didn’t care anymore. Every breath he took felt too heavy, as if he was the one with an illness in his lungs. 

“How long has he been like this?” another voice asked. 

“Two days,” Caitlyn replied, her voice sorrowful. 

Jayce wanted to apologize, but he did not find it in himself to move. He could barely keep his eyes focused on anything. 

Everything still hurt.  

I remember… you.

“I remember you, too,” Jayce whispered, staring blankly ahead. 

“Jayce? Jayce! Did you say something?” 

But darkness eclipsed his vision as Jayce embraced the full weight of the memory. 

“Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, FUCK!” Viktor said, throwing the notebook to the floor and sitting down on his chair with a thud. He winced in pain, and Jayce had to stop himself from rushing to Viktor. After all, they had only been “partners” for a few weeks. He has yet to ask the man about his need for a cane, afraid of pushing his boundaries.  

As they waited their turn to be judged at the competition, Jayce took a cursory glance around, peering past the divider separating them from other booths. The exhibit hall was filled to the brim with magnificent inventions. He even saw a machine that could potentially run a thousand computations within seconds. 

The prototype for the Hexgates remained stagnant, unable to run on the latest sequence of runes. The  blue gem sat lifeless in its core and both of them were at their wit’s end. Jayce’s eyes flickered between Viktor and the prototype. Not long ago, they made the scrappier version of the machine work. 

Now, built with better materials, it was stagnant.  

And they only had a few minutes before they presented Hextech to the judges at the Academy. 

“Hey… it’s alright,” Jayce said, walking up to Viktor. “We’ll figure it out.” 

“We did not change anything in the sequence from the test run, I don’t understand why it’s not working now. Today, of all days! When we finally unveil Hextech to Piltover!” 

Jayce racked his head. Viktor was right. Something must have changed. He looked over the machine. He got on his knees and looked at the machine’s wiring. 

Then, Jayce saw it. Several gears were loose, altering the pressure valves. Jayce quickly grabbed the wrench and started adjusting the gears. 

“What are you doing?” Viktor whispered angrily. 

“They must have come loose when we moved it from the lab,” Jayce muttered. 

“I already checked all the valves there. Everything was perfect!” 

“Well maybe you didn’t check everything well,” Jayce said, glancing down the hall and seeing Heimerdinger’s tiny legs quickly coming their way. 

Jayce moved quickly, tightening the rest of the gears. The prototype came to life, igniting with blue energy. Both of them were elated — for a moment. They quickly realized that the metal arches that contained the crystal were moving too fast. To his horror, Jayce realized he must have overcorrected the machine’s pressure levels. 

Viktor and Jayce looked at each other before springing to action. Jayce moved to readjust the gears while Viktor scrambled to rearrange a new sequence. 

He panicked, his dreams of putting magic in the hands of man suddenly beginning to fade. Oddly enough, Hextech failing was not the first fear to tug at Jayce’s chest: it was the thought of never working with Viktor again. 

As Heimerdinger and the other judges approached them, the prototype sputtered wildly and Jayce was terrified that a loose bolt was going to take someone’s eye out. Viktor’s fingers moved quickly, moving through ten different rune combinations on the stones. 

“Ah, Jayce! Viktor! Time to show us —” 

Blue light burst from the prototype and for one moment, Jayce shielded his eyes, thinking that it had blown up completely, taking him and everyone else in the hall. He opened his eyes, seeing Viktor grinning like a fool as he stared at the stable crystal spinning around by itself. This time, the energy was successfully contained within the machine. Everything around it remained stable. 

And Jayce was awestruck as he looked the prototype over: the man had figured out an entirely new set of rune combinations on the fly after Jayce essentially altered the pressure levels. 

“Incredible,” Viktor whispered as he stared at the prototype. 

Jayce stared at his partner and he could not help but agree. 

Donning a cloak, Jayce wandered aimlessly on the streets of Piltover. He had managed to slip away from the apartment when Caitlyn went out for a meeting with some retired Enforcers about the bombings. She had been doing that a lot: trying to save everything. 

Jayce went to many of these meetings himself before he found out about Viktor. 

As he laid in bed, dreaming endlessly of everything that could have been, a feeling deep in his soul forced him to stand, to get dressed, and to leave. As if pulled under a spell, Jayce went outside for the first time in weeks, with no destination in his mind. Everything and everyone passed through him in a blur. 

Jayce walked the streets of the city he grew up in, completely transformed by the bombings. Where people used to walk down the streets merrily and with purpose, everyone hid in their homes, terrified that the next public building they went to would go up in flames. 

As he passed by the ruins of the Academy, he saw several students holding a protest, demanding that those “terrorists” pay for what they did to Piltover. Jayce even recognized some of his students. 

As he walked through the smooth pavements of Piltover, he stepped on a discarded newspaper that read: SALO DEAD: IS THIS THE END OF PILTOVER? 

Somewhere, in his mind, he objectively knew that what Jinx did was terrible. Jayce felt no particular attachment to Salo. He only felt a semblance of loss for The Academy, where Jayce and Viktor spent some of their best years together. 

The Academy should have been a place free from politics and war; bombing it only served to set back years of research that could have benefitted countless people.  

But oddly enough, Jayce understood. He would have burned the world several times over if it meant he would get Viktor back. 

Piltover had traces of Viktor everywhere, in Jayce’s eyes. Most of the shops were closed after the bombings, but he could still remember all the places he went to with Viktor. Jayce wandered by the coffee shop where Viktor would get espresso shots during late nights, making his way to the bar they shared a toast in when they secured their first big investor. 

As he walked, Jayce saw a record shop. That was where he tried to look for the Zaunite vinyl with that one song Viktor would unconsciously hum to himself. Jayce never found it, in the end. He always thought he had more time. 

Piltover was in chaos and yet the only thing that Jayce could think about was the man he would never see again, and everything they could have been. 

Losing Viktor was unfathomable. It was as if someone flipped the world upside down: the stars were beneath his feet and the ground was above his head. 

How was he expected to keep going when everything was out of place?  

Every now and then, Jayce would pass by someone that bore the slightest resemblance to the man. Jayce would pause, staring at the stranger until they scurried away, afraid of the haggard man looking at them.  

One time, it was a man with chestnut brown hair. The other, it was a woman with a beauty mark beneath her eye. 

But they were never Viktor, and Jayce would spiral all over again. 

So he moved, from place to place, without aim or purpose. He walked, memories and regrets spinning around mercilessly in his head. His heart, broken and bent out of shape, kept beating uselessly, and Jayce did not know why.   

Viktor died, but Jayce became the ghost. 

“...and the winner is …” the Heimerdinger started, obviously pausing to maximize the drama. Viktor and Jayce waited with bated breaths. Jayce fought the urge to grip Viktor’s arm. 

When the third place was proclaimed, they were somehow relieved. They were certain that the Hexgates prototype would at least earn them second place. Then the silver trophy was awarded to the inventors of the computing machine, and the two of them started getting nervous. 

Had their mishap caused them the top prize? Jayce wondered. 

“The Hexgate prototype by Jayce Talis and Viktor!” Heimerdinger shouted. 

Jayce could not contain himself, whooping and throwing his arms around Viktor. He planted a joyous kiss on Viktor’s cheek before he could even think about it. 

Jayce was just too damn happy! So much so that he failed to notice that Viktor had turned scarlet as he smiled. 

The two of them climbed on stage, with Jayce offering Viktor his hand to help him up. Viktor hesitated for a moment, before taking Jayce’s hand and going up the stage with him. 

They each held a handle on the golden cup. Jayce beamed effortlessly as the photographer readied to take their picture. 

Viktor nervously glanced at Jayce, trying to copy his winning grin. With every eye in the room on them, Viktor wanted to throw up.  

“I have a bottle of whiskey at the lab I’ve been saving for a special occasion. Let’s open it and toast after this, yeah? Just us,” Jayce said as he stared at the camera. 

Viktor furtively glanced at Jayce, his cheeks still red. “A-alright.”  

There was a celebratory banquet for the participants. Some of Piltover’s top investors were there, hungrily eyeing their next opportunity for a profit. Jayce and Viktor knew they had to attend. 

All eyes fell on Hextech that night. 

Jayce was more than happy to entertain. After all, he was on the brink of ruin all those weeks ago, his name and reputation in the bin. Now, some of Piltover’s most powerful saw Hextech’s potential. 

He made sure to keep Viktor by his side as they spoke to potential patrons. Jayce noticed that most of the questions were always pointed to him, and every time he would defer to Viktor, the conversation would always stray away from the Zaunite. 

The way Viktor’s face would fall every time this happened did not go unnoticed by Jayce. 

In the distance, Jayce noticed the band about to start another set. Jayce loosely recognized the first few notes of the song and smiled. 

“Excuse me,” Jayce finally said while Councilor Salo was inquiring about Hextech’s potential trade implications. “I need to speak to my partner alone about an important matter.” 

Viktor looked at Jayce quizzically but followed his lead. As they gained considerable distance from the investors, Viktor tugged at Jayce’s sleeve to draw his attention. 

“Jayce? What is this? What’s the important matter?” 

“I need to ask my partner for a dance,” Jayce said, taking Viktor’s hand and leading him to the dance floor. 

“What?!” Viktor said, staring around wildly, his pale cheeks turning pink. “Those were investors Jayce! They could fund our research!” 

“I know. But I know this song is from Zaun, and I know you miss home sometimes,” Jayce suddenly said. He cocked his head to the side as he offered his hand to Viktor. “Even if you call it a shithole every now and then.” 

Viktor stared at him. It was likely the most personal thing that Jayce had said to him thus far. His surprise turned into something close to warmth and his shoulders loosened, as if giving into Jayce’s little stunt. He hung his cane on the crook of his arm and took Jayce’s hand.

Jayce took Viktor’s arm gently, letting the man lean on him for support as they started to sway. 

Pourquoi ton prénom me blesse

Quand il se cache juste là dans l'espace ?

C'est quelle émotion, la haine

Ou la douceur, quand j'entends ton prénom ?

Je t'avais dit : "Ne regarde pas en arrière"

Le passé qui te suit te fait la guerre

Jayce twirled Viktor gently around and their laughter filled the air, mixing seamlessly with the music. 

Eventually, Jayce felt the tug towards Zaun. Even with the bridge destroyed, there were still plenty of ways to cross the borders. Viktor had told him about them before everything went to shit. He moved mechanically, walking the streets of Viktor’s homeland, stumbling on uneven pavement, and by some odd miracle, not getting mugged. 

Jayce found Viktor’s old workshop, the one that used to belong to a man named Benzo. He peered through the window and saw that it was empty now. Even all the spare parts and tools that Viktor had amassed were gone. Had they disposed of it when he died? 

With the lab destroyed and his workshop gone, what other traces of Viktor were left? 

Memories of their night together came back. Jayce still remembered every detail. Every word. Every touch. Every moan. 

Jayce tore himself away from the window. The man kept walking along the streets, unable to stay still. The tug in his stomach kept pulling him somewhere else, as if disallowing him from staying in a happy memory. 

Eventually, the night enveloped Zaun, neon lights igniting and coloring the sky. 

Even in his state, Jayce could notice the vast difference of the Undercity since the last time he was here. The streets were cleaner, and the people seemed less aggressive. Jayce spotted several Zaunites with prosthetics and he recognized Viktor’s handiwork. 

Jayce kept walking, recognizing his partner’s work in the most unassuming of places.  

The sound of loud music caught Jayce’s attention, as bright lights pulsated wildly in a bar. 

A rowdy crowd of young Zaunites, clearly drunk, saw the poor state that Jayce was in and pulled them into the bar with them. The man did not fight, unable to move much on his own volition. Inside the bar, sweaty bodies danced and grinded against each other. Several of them were clearly high on Shimmer. 

Jayce was about to leave when someone shoved a drink in his hand. 

He did not think much of it, downing the drink to numb himself to the weight in his chest. His new “friends” encouraged him to keep drinking, so he did. The flashes of the colorful neon lights pulsated, coloring everyone in purple and blue. 

Jayce’s head started to pound with how loud the music was and how strong the drinks were. Viktor was right; he would never be able to survive Zaun’s strong drinks, and yet he stayed put. Jayce sat in the corner and drank, and drank, and drank. The pain in his chest finally began to numb by the eighth drink. 

Then, as the lights shifted from blue to purple, Jayce saw him . 

He nearly dropped the glass in his hand. Standing dead center in a mosaic of drunken youth, Viktor was there, smiling and dancing. He was staring right at Jayce, eyes peering at the broken man like a cat seeing its prey. 

Jayce was already walking, squeezing through bodies before getting to him. Jinx was lying. He was here, this whole time. Viktor kept his eyes locked on Jayce as he approached. The smaller man cocked his head slightly to the right, sliding his hands up Jayce’s chest until he locked his fingers behind his neck. 

The music grew louder and Viktor pulled him closer. Jayce let him, falling into his embrace as he swayed them back and forth. The smaller man held Jayce’s face and pulled him down, pressing his lips gently onto Jayce’s. A moan escaped Jayce’s throat as he wrapped his strong arms around his lithe body. 

“Viktor…” Jayce whispered between kisses, as if his name was a prayer. 

“Sure love, I can be whoever you want me to be,” he said, giggling against Jayce’s lips, his voice dripping with a sickly sweetness. 

Jayce pulled away from “Viktor”, and he finally realized it was not him at all. His hair was a lighter shade of brown, and his face was softer compared to Viktor’s sharp edges. They both had a beauty mark under their eye, and that was where their similarities ended. 

Jayce backed away, disgusted at himself for even allowing another man to touch him. His insides twisted and turned at the thought of betraying Viktor and he could feel a fresh set of tears stream down his face. 

The lights began pulsating once more. One moment, the man was Viktor again, in his old Academy uniform, happier and healthier. 

The lights switched again, and suddenly, it was Viktor in his hospital gown after being given his diagnosis. 

The lights kept shifting and Jayce saw every version of Viktor: from the days they started their partnership, to the day of the explosion. 

The lights stopped changing colors, and then finally, Jayce saw Viktor after he was fused with the Hexcore. 

To Jayce’s horror, Viktor’s eyes were sickly and grey. As his eyes traveled down the man’s exposed body, a guttural cry escaped Jayce’s throat. 

Viktor’s entire chest was caved in. 

Jayce backed away, choking out sobs. The partygoers made way for the man, figuring that he had had too much to drink. He stumbled through the exit and fell on the streets, scraping both his knees.  He doubled over, heaving. 

Viktor’s dead eyes flashed in his mind again and Jayce screamed. 

After the song, (and several glasses of champagne later), the two of them snuck out of the banquet hall and made their way to the lab, where Jayce’s whiskey waited for them. Jayce felt like he was walking on the clouds as the two of them talked endlessly about everything and nothing. 

He helped Viktor up the stairs: the man was giggling from all the flutes of champagne he downed, as he shared with Jayce his very “accurate” impression of Heimerdinger. 

“Viktor, my boy! Tell Professor Kremmel to go fuck himself!” Viktor said in the Yordle’s voice. 

It was a terrible impression, Jayce thought, which made it ten times funnier. 

As they went up the stairs, his eyes always found their way back to Viktor. The man was always so surly that seeing him like this, happy and loose, was a revelation to Jayce. 

They had been so distracted that both of them missed the last step, falling on the landing. As they stumbled, Viktor laid on his back, laughing. 

“Shiiiiit…” Viktor said, laughing as his arm covered his eyes with his arms. “You drank too much.” 

Jayce looked at the man incredulously as he held onto the banister for balance, a laugh escaping his throat. “Me!? You’re on the floor.”

His eyes landed on Viktor’s exposed neck as the other man laughed, and Jayce noticed that he had a mole there too. For one wild second, Jayce wondered what would happen if he pressed his lips on that beauty mark. 

The thought rang so many red alarms in Jayce’s mind all at once. 

“L-let’s go,” Jayce sputtered, gently helping Viktor to his feet. 

Viktor went along, still smiling to himself, oblivious to the wildly inappropriate thoughts Jayce was having. The man was still giggling, and Jayce, despite his embarrassment, found himself laughing along. 

The two of them were still laughing as Jayce swung the doors to the lab open. But the lab was not empty. 

Mel Medarda, dressed in a dangerously low-cut black dress, waited for them, a glass of red wine in her hand. They were still in the process of moving into the lab, so many of their things are still in boxes. It was on one of these boxes where she sat, her long legs crossed. 

Jayce’s throat ran dry. Viktor also stopped dead in his tracks as he saw her. 

“Mr. Talis, I was looking all over for you,” she said, her voice low. As she stood to meet them. Her eyes shifted gently between Jayce and Viktor. “Viktor,” she said more curtly. 

“M-Mel,” Jayce stuttered as she walked up to him. 

“I was hoping to congratulate you on your win,” Mel said, keeping her eyes on Jayce. 

And Jayce was awestruck: the most beautiful woman in Piltover was looking for him — and found him too. 

“You’re wanted at the party, you know,” she told Jayce, her feline eyes never leaving him and suddenly, he was the luckiest man in Piltover. 

Viktor coughed politely. “You two should get going. My leg is flaring up and I should rest here —” 

“Viktor!” Jayce said, suddenly remembering why they were there. “I can help, I —” 

“It’s alright Jayce,” Viktor said, smiling politely as he took his seat on his corner of the lab.

"Miss Medarda," Viktor said, nodding once at Mel before turning away, grabbing the nearest journal to him and cracking it open. Jayce was about to go to him, but Mel gently grabbed his arm. 

“Let’s go. Everyone wants to meet with the Man of Progress,” she said, smiling. 

Jayce said nothing, his eyes glancing back and forth between Mel and Viktor. Viktor kept his back to him, grabbing a pen to start writing. 

Jayce sighed, letting Mel lead him out of the lab. As the two of them left, Jayce glanced back at Viktor, and saw that his back was hunched even lower than usual. It would be the first of many nights that Viktor would spend alone in the lab, throwing himself at their work while Jayce was away talking to some of the most important people in Piltover. 

And for many of those nights, Viktor was not one of those people. 

I remember you… leaving me. 

The waves crashed gently against the harbor. Jayce watched the grey horizon, the clouds enveloping both Zaun and Piltover alike in a greedy embrace. He stood beneath the verge of a storm, but the sky stubbornly refused to unleash the rain, opting to thrash its angry winds instead. In the distance, thunder roared. 

Jayce fell to his knees again, imagining all the times he left Viktor alone. Now, he laid in the bottom of the cold sea, forever out of Jayce’s reach. Alone, once more.
I remember you leaving me, again and again. 

Tears fell from Jayce’s eyes again. He had been a fool. He always thought that they would have more time together. The thought of never seeing Viktor again took over him like a plague, and everything in him screamed and begged for one more conversation, one more look, one more godforsaken moment. 

You left me alone in that lab, so many times. I only had Them with me.  

“I’m sorry,” Jayce choked out. “I’m so sorry…” 

You were everyone's golden boy while I was all lone in the shadows. I was so lonely, Jayce. I’m all alone down here, too. 

“V-viktor,” Jayce said, stumbling forward as desperation seized him. 

I’m so cold. 

Viktor always got cold too easily, Jayce thought sadly. He thought of all the times he insisted on cloaking Viktor in his jacket. Now, Jayce would happily burn the world to keep him warm. 

Jayce. Please… help me. Save me. 

“I’m here,” Jayce said, walking towards the edge of the harbor. “I’m coming.” 

Hope, deranged and illogical, took a hold of the man’s heart. Viktor was waiting for him. Jayce could bring him back. 

They could be together again. 

Jayce threw himself into the waters and he swam without aim. He kept swimming, deeper and deeper into the waters until his body hurt. His lungs screamed for air but Jayce did not care. 

He needed to get to Viktor. He needed to save him. 

Even as blackness tinted the edge of his vision, Jayce kept swimming, spurred on by the sound of his voice, calling to him. He swam deeper and deeper until he could join Viktor. 

When Jayce felt his body faltering, he cursed. The air finally escaped his lungs and water burst through his nose and his mouth. He cried out: he still has not seen his Viktor yet. 

Before the darkness overtook him, he could feel a strong set of arms wrap around his chest. All Jayce could think about was the man that waited for him at the bottom of the sea, and how, yet again, he left him all alone.  

I understand you now, Viktor. 

I saw the love you possessed for your people. I saw your hopes and your dreams. I saw how they almost came true. I saw the good in you.    

You were right, in the end. Everything is capable of changing. 

But I have also learned: Humans will always return to evil. 

Love will transform into betrayal, and dreams will turn into nightmares. I saw the great forces of good and evil, and how the pendulum precariously teeters between one and the other. It will always fall on evil again, Viktor. 

You will suffer through the same vicious cycle, over and over again. You will bleed out. You will cry. You will be destroyed. And then in the end, there will be nothing. All this hurt. All this loss. All for nothing. 

So I will save you. 

I will save… all of you. 

We will all be a part of the final, glorious, evolution. 

The sea embracing the shores of Zaun was quiet as the moon hung quietly over the city. As light danced on the surface of the water, the filaments of the Anomaly started to sink, deeper into the darkness. 

They ignited in the water during the descent, emitting an ethereal, iridescent glow. The tendrils of light traveled deeper and deeper, as if being summoned by the Arcane itself. When it found the source of the call, they latched onto it, wrapping around Them like a cocoon. 

From the depths of the sea, a set of unseeing, unfeeling eyes sprang open. 

Chapter Text

Ekko stared at the cane in his hands. The glow of the Hextech gem pulsed gently against the night sky. He had never held the thing before: it was always in Viktor’s hands whenever he needed to perform more powerful magic. It hummed quietly, energy gently flowing through it like water running down a creek. 

Now, Ekko had no clue what to do with it, other than hide it from their enemies. They have not even found Viktor’s third arm in all the wreckage yet. He laid the cane gently against the walls of his small bedroom. His tiny nook in the Firelight tree had already been crammed before: full of tools and gadgets he would tinker with if he had the spare time, as well as other trinkets from Benzo’s shop before he was killed. 

With Jinx often staying over often, it was overloaded: stuffed toys lined the top of his bed now, and several guns scattered on top of his wooden desk. As his eyes traveled on her things, his eyes landed on a single picture frame. 

It was the grand re-opening of The Last Drop. It had technically been running for a few weeks then, but they decided to throw an opening party anyway, this time welcoming Vander back.  

Behind the counter, Vi poured drinks while Vander nervously watched, doubtful if she could pull off a good drink. Sevika was seated on the counter top, trying to woo a random woman. At the center of the photo, Jinx was trying to pour a bottle of moonshine straight into Ekko’s mouth while Viktor watched the two of them, doubled over in laughter. It was one of the few times Ekko saw the man cut loose. 

Ekko’s eyes fell on Viktor once more, his face was slightly turned away and his eyes crinkled in laughter. It was the only photo all of them together. He did not even know who took the picture: Jinx just gave it as a gift to Ekko as a celebration for their first three months together.

He sighed and tore his gaze away from the photo. There was no shortage of tasks today. 

A knock on the entrance raised Ekko from his thoughts. Lora, one of the newer Firelight recruits who joined after the poison attacks, peered through the opening. The young girl was by no means a fighter, but she was highly organized when it came to logistics and planning.  

“Sir, we gathered all the Noxian arrows and spears back at the compound. What do we do with them?” 

“You don’t have to call me sir, Lora. Ekko is fine,” the boy said. 

“Copy that, Sir Ekko!” 

Ekko raised an eyebrow and sighed. “Get the diamonds. We could sell them for supplies. Make sure we have people stationed at Viktor’s compound for the next few days. Scar and I need to set up the frontlines.” 

“Alright Sir Ekko!” she said with a salute as she walked off.  

The Firelights have doubled in number since the poison attacks, and he expected them to grow after Viktor died. He already had several people approach him on the streets asking how to join. By no means were the Firelights an army, and neither was the average Zaunite defenseless. Everyone knew how to fight. It was just becoming clear to everyone that they were stronger together. 

Better to die fighting than to be slaughtered in surrender, Ekko supposed.  He finally left his room, greeting the new set of Firelights. 

There were around twenty of them. All of them had that same look in their eye as Lora did: they were hungry for a fight and wanted to be part of something bigger than themselves. Ekko already knew that their hunger for a fight would not last long. If they were to become real Firelights, they would know that a fight should be the last thing that they want. 

But being part of something more than themselves? That was worth the fight.  

“Listen up! Today, you’re gonna learn how to ride a hoverboard,” Ekko started. 

The morning was filled with a bunch of Zaunites falling off their hoverboards, much to Ekko’s dismay.Not everyone had to be a fighter to join the cause, Ekko supposed, already enumerating the administrative tasks that needed to be done as the Firelights expanded in number. 

After the training sessions, the Firelight leader moved mechanically throughout the day. He was on autopilot, moving from task to task. One minute, he was at the Firelight base checking on the new hoverboards that they built from the leftover scraps from Viktor’s compound. Then he was in the sky, checking on the poison traps. For someone who lived underground, Ekko had always felt most at home when he was gliding through the air. There had been more and more drones lately, and Ekko took note to remind Jinx to make more of the butterflies. 

Viktor’s body floated down from the wreckage of the boat as he separated from the casket. He sank slowly, the butterfly bombs that adorned his casket almost looked like they were dancing around him. 

Ekko forced the memory away as he unlatched a poison drone from the butterfly. The butterfly lingered for a few more moments before flying away. He shoved the poison drone in his sack and flew down. 

As the night fell, the final task for the day was checking on Viktor’s compound with Heimerdinger. As he waited for the Yordle, Ekko looked around the compound. It was emptier now, with most of the wreckage being salvaged for parts. 

When rain started to fall, Ekko headed towards one of the few huts that were still standing: the clinic. Jinx called it the incubator but Ekko never liked the name, so in his mind, he called it the clinic. 

By some odd miracle, the poison victims remained untouched. The Noxians were too focused on Viktor, Ekko surmised. 

Rain pattered gently on the hut’s walls. As he walked through the pods, Ekko counted them: anything to distract him from the memories of a man sinking into the sea.  

“Nineteen… twenty…” Ekko stopped, noticing another pod. He knew for certain that there were twenty poison victims and there should have been twenty pods. He knew that because he helped build the damn things. 

So how there were twenty-one pods all of the sudden, Ekko did not know. He peered into the extra pod to see a young blonde girl he did not recognize at all. She was outfitted in much finer clothes than the rest of the poison victims, which told Ekko that she was not a Zaunite. 

“Viktor took her in about two months ago,” Heimerdinger suddenly said. Ekko looked behind him to see the Yordle walking towards him. 

Ekko’s brows furrowed. “Who is she?” 

Heimerdinger looked at Ekko carefully and the boy caught a rare glimpse of the professor’s old age. He was immortal, but Viktor’s death weighed heavily on him and his cheery exterior had turned dour these days.

“Her name is Orianna. Singed’s daughter.”  

Ekko’s breath caught in his throat. He could still remember that day clearly. The screaming. The pain. The death. There were countless times that Ekko could have sworn he felt the sting of the poison on his skin again.

And they had the perpetrator’s daughter right here. 

He listened passively as Heimerdinger explained that Viktor had been stalking Singed’s hideout for months since the poison attacks. Orianna’s pod had fallen into disrepair and Viktor had to move her to his own compound. 

“Why didn’t he tell us?” Ekko asked, thinking of all the times he had gone here but never noticed the extra pod. He had always been in such a rush. 

“He knew you had a lot to worry about, Ekko. Maintaining a city’s independence is no small feet,” Heimerdinger said, walking up to the boy. 

“You should know, lad. Viktor cared deeply for you. In his eyes, you’re the future of Zaun.” 

Ekko closed his eyes and sighed. He had not thought much about the future these days. He had firmly planted his feet in the present: looking into the past was too painful and looking at the future was too uncertain. The farthest he allowed himself to go was tomorrow: just in case their enemies decided to strike.  

“Ekko,” Scar’s voice roused him from his thoughts. The man’s expression was grim, and Ekko already knew that he was not going to like what he had to say. 

“Piltover’s been bombed,” Scar said grimly. 

It was daylight in Piltover again, but Caitlyn could still see the smoke from Jinx’s explosions. She took a few steps forward and peered down below, her eyes zeroing in on the spot where they had to scrape Salo off the pavement. He was no longer there: his family quickly took his remains, cremated them and fled the city. Caitlyn had never liked the man, going as far as considering killing him herself. But there was a particular cruelty in the way that Jinx did it that haunted Caitlyn. 

Jinx had already kidnapped and bound her once. She was more terrified that Jinx would do it to her father… or Jayce. Jayce was still catatonic from hearing that Viktor died. Caitlyn made a mental note to grab some food for the two of them before heading back to their apartment.  

“Caitlyn? Did you hear me?” Shoola asked from the head of the Council table. 

“Yes, I heard you,” Caitlyn said, stepping away from the broken window. 

“Will you accept?” 

“First, you sat there when I was unseated as Commander. Now, you want me back?” Caitlyn said. 

“Not as head of the city, no. I need you as a sheriff, Caitlyn. Someone who could defend Piltover from Undercity attacks,” Shoola said. 

“And what about Noxus? They attacked the Undercity. As far as I’m concerned, Salo never recognized Zaun’s independence. So they technically attacked Piltover. Are we to do nothing about that?” 

“You know I hate their presence here, but Piltover has no means to force the Noxians out and…” Shoola said, sighing. “They’ve gained popularity among the people. They make them feel safe by keeping the Zaunites in check.”

“‘In check’? Some of Piltover’s most vital institutions are rubble now because Noxus killed one of Zaun’s heroes. They weren’t even doing anything to us in the past six months,” Caitlyn said. 

“Are you defending them?” 

“No!” Caitlyn replied, her voice higher. “I’m stating what I witnessed. Jinx herself admitted that it was Viktor’s death that caused all of this, just like how I—” 

Just like how my mother’s death caused so much chaos in Zaun.    

Caitlyn bit her tongue, unable to say anything more. 

“I know what you mean, Caitlyn. But we need to be reasonable for now. We’re in dire straits,” Shoola said. 

Rage flared in Caitlyn’s chest all of the sudden. “So what?! You’d keep them here?

“That’s not what I’m saying, Caitlyn. Ambessa has been ruling through Salo. Now that Salo is gone, they may use this as an excuse to annex Piltover. This is our chance to seize full power over the city. We don’t have the means to take them on our own but perhaps if our remaining Enforcers were armed properly —” 

“No, Shoola. We already saw what happened when we used Hextech weapons,” Caitlyn said. 

And Jayce would never allow it, Caitlyn thought. 

“We may not have a choice, Caitlyn. Let’s say we let the Zaunites and the Noxians fight it out. Who do they come for next?” 

Caitlyn pinched the bridge of her nose. She looked Shoola in the eye: the woman’s face was impassive as she stared back at Caitlyn. Of all the Councilors to remain standing other than her mother, Caitlyn supposed that Shoola was the best option. Quiet yet steadfast, Shoola was smart, often acting as the mediator among the Councilors. She would make a suitable leader … for now. 

“Yes, I will be your sheriff.” 

The following days were a flurry of tasks for Caitlyn, so she was in and out of her shared apartment with Jayce. She had to help rebuild an entire unit of law enforcers: many of them were allowed to graduate from the Enforcer’s Academy earlier than expected due to the conflict between the two cities. Many others also lined up to volunteer for defense efforts as well. 

Despite it all, she would make sure that Jayce ate, even just a little. 

After a meeting with some retired Enforcers, Caitlyn had a paper bag with two tubs of noodles for the both of them. Neither of them really cooked, so their trash bin was constantly filled to the brim with takeout cartons.
As she brought out her keys, the door swung open. Caitlyn dropped the food and rushed into the apartment. 

Only to find it empty with no signs of a struggle. 

“Jayce?” she called out as she brought out her gun. She proceeded carefully, her training kicking in. As she approached Jayce’s door, she also found it ajar. Her heart picked up its pace and she burst through the door. 

Jayce’s bed was empty. 

Jinx was missing for days. 

Ekko searched everywhere, starting at her usual spots. He passed by The Last Drop, but Vander said she has not been to the bar since the funeral. Her hideout yielded nothing as well, with Gert telling him they have not seen their leader in a few days.

Suddenly, Ekko was a little kid again, searching for his best friend. 

He looked all over Zaun, often checking back on those two locations. The longer the search, the more Ekko refused to give up. What if Piltover had captured her? He was used to Jinx going about on her own for days on end, but this was different. On the third night of his search, Ekko was wandering mechanically, as if he was a patrolman on assignment. He might as well have been. As he searched for Jinx, he kept an eye out for possible signs of retaliation from Piltover, or unrest from the Zaunites. 

As the dawn took over the sky, painting the world silver, Ekko realized where she was at that moment. He headed east, toward the harbor. 

Ekko spotted her blue hair a mile away. 

Jinx sat cross-legged on the ground, staring at the sea. The wind gently whipped her hair around as she calmly looked at the waters where Viktor was buried. She had a serenity to her as she sat there, as if she had not struck fear into the heart of the most advanced city in the world. Jinx paid no attention to Ekko as he sat next to her. 

“Why didn’t you tell me what you were planning?” he said. 

She kept her eyes on the water, as if at any moment, her brother would crawl out of the sea. 

"I didn't want you to stop me," Jinx said blankly. 

"How are you so sure that I would?" 

Jinx finally turned to look at Ekko. "You aren't a killer.” 

You don’t have to be the one to kill them.

Ekko closed his eyes. “How many people died?” 

Jinx kept her eyes on him. “A bunch of people no one will miss.” 

“Jinx.” 

She returned her gaze to the sea and paused. “I killed Salo.” 

Silence fell heavy between the two of them. Ekko did not know that. 

"Do you hate me for what I did?" Jinx said, turning her gaze back towards the sea. 

This time, Ekko had an answer. The man was wretched and corrupt. Every attack on Zaun happened on his watch. 

"No,” Ekko said plainly. “But Piltover's gonna be on our necks soon.” 

"When haven't they?" Jinx said. 

"I'm just saying,” Ekko said. 

Jinx stood up, looking down at Ekko, angry determination carved on her face. "When we started this, it's because I thought we had the guts to see it through. We gave them a warning. They didn’t give a fuck. We need to make good on the threat we made all those months ago or else they’re going to destroy all of us.” 

Tears started brimming on her eyes again. “Just like how they destroyed Viktor. This isn't gonna end if we're always on the defensive, Ekko."

"What are you saying?" he said as he stood up to meet her eyes. 

“Singed needs to die. Ambessa needs to die. Whoever they put in that Council Room needs to die,” Jinx said.  "There is a base violence needed for change."

The line was taken straight out of Silco’s manifesto. Ekko had read over it dozens of times, ruminating on whether or not he was right. 

“What happens after they all die?” he asked. 

“That part’s up to you,” Jinx said as she gently laid a hand on Ekko’s cheek. “I’ll take care of the bloodshed. You protect our people.” 

Ekko fell silent as he took in her words. There was an eerie calm to Jinx. Ekko was used to her acting on the fly: never planning anything beyond tomorrow. But as she stood in front of him now, Ekko could tell that her mind was somewhere else, as if she was running through a dozen possible scenarios in her head. 

Bombing Piltover was not an act of impulse, Ekko realized. She had this plan in motion in case Topside struck back.  

She eventually withdrew her hand, taking one more glance at the waters before walking away. 

The boy remained rooted in his spot as she left him. All alone, his eyes fell on the water once more as the silence enveloped the shore.

The Anomaly filaments looked absent from the surface, its iridescent webs no longer coating the waters. 

It must have been a trick of light, Ekko thought.  

It took all of Vi’s strength to pull Jayce out of the water. When she heard that some guy who looked like that “asshole from those Piltie posters” was going around Zaun, Vi already knew who it was. 

She ran around, asking about Jayce, until it led her to the harbor. Then she watched that asshole jump into the water, and Vi had to come get him. 

Now, Jayce was in her bed in The Last Drop. The man looked like he had aged ten more years since she last saw him. His hair was long and unkept, and he had grown a gruff beard. The circles beneath his eyes told Vi that he has not slept in a long time. The man had come down with a fever after she dragged him out of the freezing waters. 

The low hum of the energy from Jayce’s hammer filled the room. Vi had brought it up as he slept. It seemed fitting to return it to him. 

The door creaked, which was followed by a series of short, quick footsteps and she already knew who it was. 

Isha gingerly walked to Vi. At least the girl was up and about again, albeit still solemn. They had replaced the Hextech gem in her prosthetic arm, so it was functional once more. 

“Who is this guy?” Isha signed to Vi. 

“Someone who loved Viktor very much,” Vi said. “His name is Jayce.” 

“You mean that asshole from those Piltie posters?” 

“Watch your language,” she signed back, frowning. “But yeah. That asshole from the posters.” 

Isha looked at Jayce, walking closer to get a good look at him. “He looks ugly in real life.” 

Vi smirked sadly. “Grief does that to a person.” 

Isha looked down. Vi sighed, sitting on the couch by the foot of the bed. She gestured to Isha to sit next to her. The girl obliged. 

“How are you feeling?” 

Her shoulders slumped as she stared at her feet. “I miss him. Even if he was a dummy sometimes.” 

“Yeah… I miss him too. But we’re all dummies sometimes though, don’t you think?” Vi said. 

“Maybe you, but not me. And definitely not Jinx,” Isha said, her expressions falling once more. “I… I miss Jinx too.” 

Vi sighed. Ever since Viktor died, Jinx had been on the move constantly, only dropping by to check on them every now and then before disappearing for long bouts of time.  

With news of Piltover being bombed spreading through town like wildfire, Vi knew why. Ekko had already passed by The Last Drop a few times to look for her. She was set to join him in his search but she found Jayce instead. 

“V-vi?” 

Vi sprang to her feet, walking over to Jayce. The man was sitting up slowly, looking around where he was. 

“Jayce,” she said gently. “You’re safe. You’re in Zaun.” 

The man stared at her, as if reality was settling in his mind. His eyes were wide and feral; it was almost as if he was no longer sure what was real and what was not. Slowly, he calmed down. He remained quiet for a while. Vi started to explain that she had heard that he was roaming around the city and chased after him. As she spoke, Jayce’s eyes fell on the hammer. When Vi was finished, Jayce kept staring at the same spot. 

“It’s true, isn’t it? He’s gone,” he whispered. 

Vi remained silent as she sat on the foot of the bed. She signed to Isha if she could give them some time alone. The girl seemed eager to leave, quickly growing uninterested in the man from the posters. She stared out at the small windowsill that offered a view of Zaun’s city life, unable to meet Jayce’s eyes. 

“I’m sorry, Jayce,” she said, turning to him slowly. 

His face crumpled and he threw his head back. He took a staggered breath. “It’s my fault,” he said before descending into silent sobs. 

And there it was again. Remorse wrapping its ugly hands on the bereaved like a curse. For years, Vi blamed herself for countless things. She had spent so many nights in Stillwater, crying silently as she bore the death of her family on her shoulders. 

“I want you to know,” Vi started before she could think, before the lump in her throat overwhelmed her. At her words, Jayce tensed, as if bracing himself for a terrible blow despite her gentle tone. “That he died saving my family.” 

Jayce stared at her, as if he wanted to know more, even if the knowledge would hurt him. 

“He saw Ambessa point that hammer at us and he just… he ran. He didn’t even think about it,” Vi’s hand found her way to his hand as she whispered. 

“I’m so sorry you lost him, Jayce. But we all make our choices. Viktor made his,” she gripped his hand as tears welled in her eyes. “And I wish he didn’t have to, I really do but… my family’s alive because of that choice. And it’s a debt I could never repay.” 

It was at this moment that Vi realized that she could do right by Viktor by making sure that the man he loved did not destroy himself. 

“He helped so many people, Jayce. You should be proud. Do you want to hear how he lived down here?” Vi offered gently, a tear streaming down her cheek as she shared in Jayce’s sorrows. 

Jayce stared at her as he leaned on the headboard, tear tracks still painting his face. He gripped her hand like a lifeline, nodding slowly.

“It started when my dad was transfused with wolves,” Vi started. Jayce furrowed his eyebrows, but clung to her every word about his partner. Eventually, Vi ran out of stories of her own, and she started telling Jayce about Jinx, Ekko and Viktor. 

As she peered at Jayce, his fever seemed to have won out, lulling him into sleep. Vi breathed a sigh of relief. She carefully left Jayce’s bedside and went downstairs to the bar. Beneath the counter was a radio: the same one that failed during Ambessa’s ambush. Ekko had triple checked the thing since then. 

Vi fine tuned it, flipping through channels until she found the right one. The radio line opened and she sighed. 

“I need to send a message,” Vi said.  

Within days, the borders between Piltover and Zaun turned into a no man’s land. Each side set up their own respective frontiers, with dozens of guards on each corner. The river that separated the two cities was flooded with naval mines: where Piltover's bombs were silver and uniform, purchased from an arms dealer abroad, Jinx's colorful bombs lined Zaun's side of the river. An electric fence was set up on the entrance to Piltover, while the Undercity's side was lined with wooden spikes. Where Enforcers were all in the same, blue Enforcer uniform, the Zaunites came as they are: a myriad of colors. 

Gunners lined up both fences, each waiting for one wrong move from the other side. The air was heavy, and Ekko could smell the gunpowder and metal in the air. He could no longer tell from which side the smell was from. 

Everyone was hungry for a fight. All except for Ekko, who marched along the Zaunite frontline. He wore his mask, and when people looked to him, they did not see Ekko: they saw the leader of the Firelights. But behind his mas, his mind was an endless stream of thoughts, he counted through every security measure they had in place and enumerated all the steps they took to reinforce them. 

The cable carts connecting the two cities have been destroyed all those months back. Nonetheless, Sevika and other Zaunites were also guarding it. The woman had not only been keeping all the former chembaron goons in check, but somehow, she formed her own gang. Not all of the chem goons joined but those who both feared and respected Sevika said they would follow her lead. 

More and more Zaunites had lined up to either become a Firelight or a Jinxer ever since Viktor died, as if they already knew that danger was going to come to their doorsteps any day. 

Ekko had not heard from Jinx in days, only having Gert pass him messages from her. Apparently, Jinx had been working non stop to prep bombs with the Jinxers. She had been meeting with different gunsmiths and arms dealers across Zaun for more weapons and ammunition, striking deals that she refused to tell Ekko the details of. All he knew was that the Jinxers showed up with a bunch of weapons. 

He never wanted a war, but he could recognize when times demanded that he become a soldier.  

The two of them had already tasted what life could be like if Zaun was free, and neither Ekko and Jinx could stop fighting for it. 

Protect our people. 

“Sir Ekko!” he heard Lora’s labored voice from afar. He stopped walking, pausing to let her catch up. The young girl was wheezing, as if she ran to the frontlines on foot because she could not properly ride a hoverboard. Which was likely the case.  

“Hey what’s —”  

“You…” she rasped. “You need to see this… Vik-Viktor’s compound…” 

Panic seized the boy. Another attack? So close to home? Already? 

“What is it?” 

“The-they’re gone!” 

“Who?!” Ekko yelled, fear taking a hold of him. 

“The bodies! They’re all gone!” 

Ekko had never flown on the hoverboard as fast as he did in the next few minutes. Lora grasped onto his waist as if her life depended on it. When he finally arrived at Viktor’s home, he ignored every Firelight and Zaunite that tried to talk to him, to explain everything. He needed to see for himself. He went straight to the clinic and the full weight of Lora’s words sunk in. 

The poison victims were gone. 

Ekko stared, incredulously, at each pod, wrapping his mind around what on Runeterra could have happened. 

“Who… what is this?!” Ekko yelled as he jogged along the pods and saw how all of them were empty. The Firelights, mostly new recruits, looked at him, unable to answer. 

Old memories flashed through his mind at once. Him and Viktor building the clinic, toiling over each and every pod, pouring through every one of Singed’s disgusting notes. Ekko had endlessly told Viktor to just use his powers to build the machines but the man insisted on doing it precisely. 

Because they needed to help them. To save them. 

And now they were gone. 

The world was spinning around him and the ground felt unstable to Ekko. But he needed to get a grip. Someone did this to them. 

Lora finally stepped forward, stuttering how, even if there were Zaunite guards roaming the compound all night, they never saw anyone there. They did not see how any of the bodies were stolen in the night. There was no way it should have been possible, she insisted. 

A lump quickly formed in Ekko’s throat when his eyes fell on the center of the room: the three Hextech crystal gems that powered all the pods were gone.

Ekko wanted to scream. He breathed hard, rage violently took a hold of him but he remained still, forcing himself to think.  

If they wanted to take the crystals, he would at least have a reasonable explanation for the invasion. But he saw no tactical advantage to defiling a room filled with innocent people who were half-dead. This felt cruel, as if their enemies were mocking them. 

Something about this felt deeply sinister, and it was completely uncharacteristic of Piltover and Noxus to go the extra mile to be perverse. 

And then it hit him. 

“Singed,” he whispered under his breath. 

Jayce’s fever improved in the following days. Still, Vi would catch him staring at the hammer sometimes as if he wanted to melt it with his mind.

Isha proved surprisingly helpful. She would sit on the foot of his bed and ask him countless questions. The girl had grown bored without Jinx. Vander had joined the frontlines as well, so keeping Jayce’s presence at the bar a secret was easy. Vander had merely asked Vi to keep the bar open so that The Lanes had a safe place people could turn to. To keep Isha from sneaking out and joining the front, Vander told her that it was her job to keep the bar safe.  

“Is it true that Pilties don’t take baths because they think perfumes are enough?” Isha signed. 

“Uhm..” Jayce said. He understood Isha enough but struggled to communicate in return, with Vi needing to translate for them. The man was still devastated but it seemed like his little talks with Isha were a welcome distraction. Vi had given Jayce some of Vander’s old clothes. Jayce was a large man, but somehow, he still drowned in Vander’s clothes.  

Before Jayce could answer, a crash from downstairs sent Vi sprinting towards the noise. Isha trailed after the woman. 

“Get out of here if you know what’s good for you!” Vander yelled. 

Vi knew the shape of her from a thousand miles away. Vander, fresh from his shift in the frontlines, pinned down a cloaked figure to the ground, a sniper rifle several feet away from her. 

“Vander! Stop! It’s Cait!” she yelled.

“I know,” Vander snarled, bearing his teeth. Caitlyn recoiled in fear, her eyes wide and terrified. Vi saw, for one horrifying moment, the beast that Singed created, the one that Viktor tamed.

Vi sprinted, tackling Vander off of her. eCaitlyn scrambled to get her gun but Isha lept on the woman, sending her to the ground again. Isha kicked and scratched, pulling Caitlyn’s hair. 

“Fuck—argh!” Caitlyn yelled as Isha attacked her. 

Vi ran to pull the girl off of her. Vander was about to charge again but Vi threw herself in front of Caitlyn while Isha struggled in her arms. 

“Everyone, calm the fuck down! I called her here!” 

“Why would you do that?” Vander said, standing down. Isha also looked to Vi, as if the woman just proved her point about people being dummies. 

“Because of me,” Jayce said as he climbed down the stairs. Caitlyn tore her eyes away from Vi as relief flooded her features. She ran and threw her arms around Jayce.  

Vander stared incredulously at the two. “You let in two Pilties here?!” 

“You used to make deals with Topsiders all the time!” Vi said. 

“That was before, Violet. When there were people up there that we could trust. We lost so many of ours since then,” Vander growled. Isha ran to his side and crossed his arms, doubling down on their disappointment in Vi. 

“Please, before anything. You have to know. The poison attacks… the ambush on Viktor… I didn’t know anything about it,” Caitlyn said, raising her hand. Her eyes however, were set on Vi, as if she was the only one she truly needed to convince. 

Besides her, Jayce further deflated at the mention of Viktor’s name. 

With no one at each other’s necks for now, Vi was now only able to fully register that Caitlyn was here. She took her in. Caitlyn’s face had become more sunken and Vi could already tell that she had skipped plenty of meals. Her hair had grown long enough to pull into a ponytail again. Everything in Vi screamed at her to take Caitlyn in her arms but the past few months weighed too heavily between them. The losses, mostly on Zaun’s side, planted Vi’s feet firmly opposite Caitlyn. 

“Pardon us if we don’t take your word at face value,” Vander said. 

Vi thought of the bodies they burned after the poison attack. She could still smell them. 

“You let that warlord into our midst. Everything Noxus has done… it’s on Piltover too, Caitlyn,” Vi said quietly as she tightened her fist. 

“I know… I know,” Caitlyn said, eyes pleading at Vi. “I know this is a lot… but I need your help. Can we talk in private? Please?” 

Vi’s eyes shifted between Caitlyn and Vander. Her father made his displeasure known, as if he wanted to bear his teeth again. 

Vi shrugged, gesturing to Caitlyn. “Come on.”

Seeing Vi again for the first time in months was sending Caitlyn’s head into a tailspin. But she was not about to let the woman see that. The last thing she needed was letting Vi see how much she had fallen apart without her. 

Caitlyn kept her eyes forward as Vi led her downstairs to the basement of the bar. Crates filled with bottles lined the hall. Vi stopped and turned to Caitlyn, unable to meet her eyes. 

“I…” Caitlyn started. 

Where would she even start? 

I’m sorry I turned my back on you. 

I’m sorry I couldn’t find you in Stillwater. 

I’m sorry for listening to Ambessa. 

“Have you been eating?” Vi said all of the sudden. 

“W-what?” Caitlyn said, staring at Vi. 

“You… you look like you haven’t been eating well. Or sleeping,” Vi said quietly. 

And Caitlyn could feel every last one of her defenses crumbling. She had spent the last few months trying to rebuild Piltover, rallying support against Ambessa and keeping the violence from escalating. Ever since she became Shoola’s sheriff, she had been in countless meetings with Shoola and anyone else who expressed any sort of disagreement with Ambessa’s presence in Piltover. She had tried to use every bit of her mother’s lessons of etiquette, poise and politics. For the past six months, she has been the perfect Kiramman. 

“Foreign actors have disrupted the peace in our city, and we must act as a united Piltover,” Sheriff Caitlyn Kiramman would say, again and again. 

Now, in Vi’s eyes, she was just Cait. 

“I’m so sorry, Violet… for everything,” Caitlyn said, her eyes starting to water. “Everything just flew out of my control so quickly and I… I was hurt and I made it everyone’s problem.”

“Yeah…” Vi said, finally meeting her eyes. “I know a thing or two about that. My sister is Jinx.” 

“I know… I know what happened to Viktor was terrible. And there are no excuses for the poison attacks. But I need your help to get rid of Ambessa. It’s the only way any of this could stop,” Caitlyn said. 

It had been the most honest and sincere version of the line she had been repeatedly echoing to different people. 

“Then what, Cait? What happens after that? Piltover keeps punching down on Zaun?” Vi said. 

“No!” Caitlyn said. “We-we could figure that out after. We need to eliminate the threat now. I know Ambessa is planning something terrible for Zaun. That’s why she killed Viktor first. He would have been the biggest threat. We captured Singed but he hasn’t been talking.” 

Vi took a deep breath as he stared at Caitlyn. “You know I just called you down here to get Jayce, right? I didn’t want to get involved in Piltover anymore.” 

“I know… I figured. I know my words don’t mean much now, but let me show you,” Caitlyn said, stepping closer, her heart beating incessantly. Always, always drawn to Vi like the moon earnestly stringing along the earth.  

Vi did not move, uncertainty still painted on her features. She was deep in thought, weighing everything in her head, likely still anchored towards any decision that would keep her family safe.  

“I’m not the one you should talk to about this. I’ll try to see if Ekko wants to meet with you,” Vi said as she started to walk away. 

Caitlyn’s shoulders slumped in relief. 

At hearing that there was a chance for peace. 

At the feeling that Vi may not completely hate her. 

At Vi willing to help her. 

“Thank you, Violet.” 

Vi looked over her shoulder. “You got it, Cupcake.” 

And just like that, Caitlyn felt alive again. Hope, while often ill-fated, ignited in her spirit. 

After much contention from Vi’s father, the wolf-man named Vander, Jayce and Caitlyn were allowed to stay the night. Vi told Jayce to stay in her room as he had already “stunk up her sheets.” Caitlyn was to stay in Jinx’s room, much to her displeasure. 

Before throwing in the towel, Caitlyn sat at the foot of Vi’s bed. She stared at Jayce as he leaned on the headboard. 

“So… you jumped into the sea because you heard him?” 

“I know it’s crazy, Cait—”

“No! You know what’s crazy? You were catatonic for days, then the moment I leave you alone, you end up in Zaun!”  

“I know,” Jayce said quietly, sinking into the bed. “I’m sorry I made you worry.” 

Caitlyn pinched the bridge of her nose. “No, no, it’s alright,” she said, her shoulders sagging. “I’m just glad you’re in one piece. I don’t know what I would have done if I lost you too.” 

Jayce drew his knees up and embraced them, a fresh set of tears beginning to stream down his face. It seemed as if he had gained a sense of reality again, and somehow, that made everything worse. Because it meant admitting that Viktor was gone. 

“I just…” He said, staring out the window, the neon lights of the Undercity painting the night. “I don’t know what to do without him now. He’s… gone. And all I could think about was every goddamn moment I wasted. I thought he would always be there, you know? I thought that after every meeting, after every gala, he would be waiting for me back at the lab.” 

“I know I’m being selfish. I don’t care,” Jayce said as tears streamed down his face. 

“I didn’t realize how much I needed him until he died in that bombing,” Jayce said. “I didn’t even think about it. I saw him in the rubble and I knew. I knew I couldn’t be without him. I didn’t care about principles. I didn’t even care about what Viktor wanted. I broke my promise to him because I was too selfish.” 

“And now he’s gone. He wanted to be gone in a way I couldn’t get him back. I can’t breathe, I can’t speak without every moment reminding me that Viktor’s dead. He’s gone and I don’t know what to do. All I could think about now was every moment we can’t have. I want, so badly, to trade it all away for one more day with him. There’s no me without him, Caitlyn. There isn’t.” 

Caitlyn stared at Jayce, tears trickling down her face. She closed her eyes as she slipped her hands into his. 

“I’m so sorry, Jayce. Nothing I say could make it better. But I’m here. We fight through the pain together, yeah?” she whispered. 

But Jayce seemed oblivious to what she said. He was not done. The older man gripped her hand, his eyes boring into hers. “Don’t lose her, Cait,” he whispered. “Do everything you can to get her back. I don’t ever want you to feel like how I’m feeling right now.” 

And just like, the storm in Caitlyn’s heart unfurled and she could feel a sob escape her chest. She gripped Jayce’s hands until her knuckles turned white. As the two cities descended into chaos, her fear of burying Vi came alive once more. Only this time, she had no one to blame. All the lines had blurred: what was right was wrong, what was left was right. 

The only thing Caitlyn was sure of was how she loved Vi. 

“I… I will. I will,” she whispered to herself. 

The night fell, reaching a point that even the streets of Zaun were finally lulled to sleep. Parties and celebrations were commonplace, driving the local night market and creating business for those willing to brave the work until sunrise. But war was upon them. Neighborhood patrols took to the streets rather than partygoers. Jayce watched a group of women in leather brandishing weapons walk down empty streets, keeping their eyes open for intruders. 

Eventually, the man settled into bed, exhausted, but finding it difficult to sleep. He tossed and turned, fatigue almost winning out. He felt the soft beginning of slumber. 

“Jayce?” 

The man’s heart nearly stopped. He turned to his side, his back against the window. Jayce curled into a ball, wound so tightly that his back started to hurt. He hugged his knees and willed his eyes to close. The voice was all in his head, he told himself. Caitlyn’s worried face came to his mind and Jayce held onto it: he did not want to cause her stress again. She had already been through much.   

It was just a regular hallucination, Jayce concluded. Tears quickly gathered in his eyes once more at the sound of his voice. 

“Jayce… please…” 

The pain in his voice reminded Jayce of those rare moments where Viktor’s leg flared up so badly that he would ask his partner to help him move because his pain finally outweighed his pride. He hated admitting it, but Jayce was grateful for these moments. It told him that Viktor still needed him. 

Because Jayce always needed Viktor more than he needed him. 

“You, you aren’t real,” Jayce sputtered out, closing his eyes so tightly that he started to see white. 

“Jayce…” the sound of a body hitting the floor finally made him sit up and see.  

A small hooded figure was crumpled on the floor. Their shape was small but Jayce could read the outline of that body even in the dark.  He leapt out of the bed in seconds, gathering the intruder in his arms. The hood of the cloak fell, revealing his pale face. 

And Jayce could feel himself spiraling all over again. 

Viktor stared up at him, smiling weakly before trying to stand. Jayce’s body moved by itself, helping him up. His first instinct was always to help Viktor move around. The two men stood in the moonlight, Viktor grasping Jayce’s arms for support as he stood.  

“V-Viktor?” Jayce stuttered, his eyes wide open in shock as they became glassy. His arms held onto the man who looked like Viktor, holding him in place as if any moment, he would disappear again. 

It felt like someone had pulled Jayce’s heart out of his chest and forced it back again all of the sudden. 

The smaller man looked at him, silver eyes shining bright. He smiled weakly and Jayce wanted to scream again. 

“It’s me, Jayce.” 

Jayce stared at the man wildly, taking in every detail. In the moonlight, Viktor almost looked like he was glowing. His eyes traced the beauty marks on his face, down to the one on his neck, the one he wanted to kiss since the day he noticed it was there. 

“Are you real?” Jayce said, tears breaking away from his eyes. 

Viktor laid his hand on his partner's face and he could feel himself coming undone. 

“Do you feel that? I’m real, Jayce. I’m sorry for going away, but I’m here now. You made me a promise, remember?” 

Jayce grasped Viktor’s hand on his cheek and he closed his eyes, savoring his touch once again after he thought he had lost it forever.  

“Yes… I promised you.” 

Jayce made several decisions all at once. If this was a hallucination, he did not want to go back to reality. If this was a dream, he did not want to be roused. If he was going crazy, he refused to be sane. 

“I want that awful sweetmilk you’re about to make,” Viktor teased, smirking as he cocked his head to the left. He looked at Jayce the exact same way he did the very first time he told him his name. 

And Jayce’s face crumpled, tears now freely falling down his face. “They-they said you were gone,” he choked out. “I almost believed them, I’m sorry. I’m sorry for everything.” 

Jayce wrapped his arms around Viktor as sobs overtook his body. He started to apologize, for leaving him alone so often, for breaking his promise, for betraying what they stood for. 

But Viktor hushed him, taking his face in his hands 

“Jayce, it’s alright. We’ve had enough pain for a hundred lifetimes. We need to leave it all in the past.” 

Jayce stared at Viktor as he cried, nodding shakily, desperately. He felt like a burden had been lifted from his chest upon hearing that those words. The smaller man gently kissed the trail of tears on Jayce’s face. He groaned: feeling Viktor’s lips on his skin again ignited something in him he thought was dead. He snaked an arm around the smaller man’s waist and pulled him closer, the other one cupping the back of his neck, trapping him in an embrace. 

The other man welcomed Jayce’s touch, wrapping his arms around his neck with equal gusto. Their lips collided and Jayce felt alive. They kissed deeply: Jayce savored every moment, until he finally needed to breathe. 

“Jayce…” Viktor said, breathing hard. His eyes remained closed as Jayce pressed his forehead against his. The larger man kissed every part of his partner's face, still marveling at the fact that he was alive after all. 

“I need… I need to tell you something,” he whispered. There was an ache to his voice that made Jayce pause. 

“Anything,” Jayce said, eyes boring into the man. Viktor could recite the alphabet backwards and Jayce would think it was the most beautiful thing uttered. He cupped Viktor’s cheek, and the smaller man held his hand there, making sure Jayce would not withdraw his hand. 

He looked away, his lips brushing gently against Jayce’s palm. “I’m… I’m still dying, Jayce,” he whispered. 

Jayce could feel his heart plummet all over again. “What?” he whispered. Suddenly it felt like Jayce was cursed. Were they damned to this cycle of separation and reunion? Of life and death?

“They weren’t wrong to think I had died…” Viktor said quietly. “I was hurt… very badly.” 

He took a shaky breath, remembering Jinx’s angry tears and Vi’s sorrowful recollection. “It was Ambessa, wasn’t it?” 

Viktor nodded sadly. 

Jayce said nothing as he breathed hard, staring at Viktor. Rage bubbled in his chest and he wanted to hunt the woman down. But Viktor was more important right now, he needed Jayce again. 

“Tell me what I need to do,” Jayce said, desperation gripping him as he held the smaller man. 

“I need to go to the Hexgates. Will you take me there?” Viktor said, eyes peering at him, begging him. “Save me… please.” 

The man looked scared. 

Jayce was already nodding before he knew what he was doing, before he understood what Viktor was asking of him. “Of course, Viktor. Anything you need.” 

Viktor’s face transformed from trepidation to relief. “Thank you.” He pressed another kiss on Jayce’s lips and stared at the man, eyes sparkling in the moonlight. “I love you, Jayce.” 

And Jayce could feel the world stop. 

It felt like every star in the sky was falling, or every tree had uprooted itself and died. He looked at the man before him and fear coiled at the base of Jayce’s stomach. 

“Who are you?” Jayce whispered, his blood running cold as he untangled himself from Viktor’s arms. 

“What?” Viktor asked, hurt and confusion bleeding into his features as they parted. His body screamed at the separation from Viktor, but something in Jayce felt like he was violated. Every alarm in his mind was ringing. 

 Jayce grasped both of his arms tightly, locking him in an iron grip. 

“Who are you!?” he whispered angrily, disgust once again filling his stomach.

“J-Jayce, you’re hurting me,” the other man said, recoiling. 

“You aren’t him,” Jayce whispered angrily, a new set of tears streaming down his face. “You aren’t him!” 

The other man stared at him, a mixture of terror and confusion on his face. Everything in Jayce kicked and screamed at himself to stop hurting Viktor. It violated every base instinct he had: he was supposed to save his partner, not cause him pain. 

In a few more moments, Jayce would have let him go and gotten on his knees to beg for forgiveness. But he kept his golden eyes on the man pretending to be his partner: somehow, he knew. 

But “Viktor” kept staring at him. Slowly, the mask fell. His face became void of any emotion, and as Jayce stared into his eyes, he saw nothing in them. 

“It was the ‘I love you’, wasn’t it?” he said plainly, almost as if he was bored. He sounded excruciatingly like his partner, but his voice was devoid of all the things that made him who he was: the wit, the sarcasm, the irritation.

Jayce’s hands fell to his side as he stared at the intruder, horrified. He choked out another sob and stepped back. 

Free from his grasp, “Viktor” backed away slowly, pacing the room, as if he was deep in thought. 

“He had said it so often in his mind that I forgot that he never said it aloud to you.” 

Jayce stared at the thing wearing Viktor’s skin and dread ran through every fiber of his being. It felt like Jayce was the one sinking into the sea.  

“Who are you?” Jayce asked one last time, already knowing the answer. 

“Viktor” walked up to him slowly, like a snake looking at its prey. “You don’t recognize me, Jayce?” 

Jayce froze, his breath catching in his throat. Their eyes pierced Jayce as if they could see into his mind, all his suffering and longing. All of his dreams and his regrets. 

“I’m the soul you shoved into your partner’s broken corpse,” They said.

Chapter Text

“Jayce,” They said his name again.

And Jayce heard it once more, the emptiness in his voice. The difference between Them and Viktor was suddenly so clear that Jayce loathed himself for believing it could have been his partner. 

It was a mimicry of Viktor, his movements and words. A very good mimic, so good that it was almost a mockery. Jayce had no doubt that this was Viktor’s body but it was void of all the things that made his partner human.  

Somewhere, in his mind, he was able to piece it together. It was the Hexcore, alive and sentient. As They stepped towards the moonlight peering through the window, Jayce could make out traces of the Anomaly on his face, just barely past his jawline. 

They stepped towards Jayce slowly, as if he was a frightened animal being backed into a corner. 

But Jayce had already transcended fear. It was a horrible mix of regret and terror but most of all, grief. 

Deep inside him, he understood. There was no one like Viktor. Not even a being that took a hold of his very flesh. 

“What did you do to him?” he whispered, staring at the creature in front of him, wondering, for the hundredth time, where his partner went. 

They looked at Jayce, mild confusion touching Their features. “I saved him.”  

Their hands moved to unbutton the cloak. As it fell to the floor, Jayce’s eyes grew wide. 

His human body was gone. 

The Hexcore completed Viktor’s transformation. Where flesh and skin should have been, there was metal. When Jayce fused the Hexcore onto his partner, parts of him were still human, as if Viktor fought tooth and nail to retain some semblance of humanity.  

Now, the machinery has enveloped him completely. The unearthly metal was a deep shade of purple, lined with an erratic pattern of gold. Even the Zaunite prosthetics had been reshaped to fit the rest of his body. 

As he stared, Jayce could feel himself breaking apart a thousand times over. Still, he resisted the urge to touch Viktor’s body. He did not know if it was curiosity, or desire. 

They stepped closer. 

“You’re suffering,” They said, ignoring his question. Their eyes boring into Jayce as if he was a problem that needed to be solved. “So much regret. So much grief. Let me help you .” 

Their hand reached out and energy hummed from his fingertips. Jayce’s hand reached out slowly in response, as if in anticipation. Something akin to joy flickered on Their face, ready to take Jayce’s hand. 

But the said hand quickly grasped Their wrist tightly, with the other grabbing the smaller body’s shoulder. Jayce switched their positions, pinning “Viktor” against the wall. His hands gripped Their wrists tightly. 

“I said,” Jayce furiously whispered through gritted teeth. He was merely a breath’s distance away from Their face. “Where. Is. Viktor?” 

Blank eyes stared up at Jayce. 

“Viktor’s gone.” 

“No!” Jayce yelled, his knuckles beginning to bruise because of how forcefully he was pushing Their wrists against the wall. Even with all this, They did not flinch. 

“Jayce… it’s easier for you to believe that he’s gone than to hear the truth.” 

He hated how They were using Viktor’s eyes to look at him. It was as if They were guessing what emotion Viktor would use and imitated it as best as They could. This time, it was pity. 

And this is how Jayce knew that this was not his partner. Viktor never saw him as someone who needed pity, not even when he was standing on a ledge. 

Back then, Viktor looked at Jayce with belief, not pity. 

“And what’s the truth?” Jayce managed through the lump in his throat. 

While he was so close to “Viktor”, Jayce realized, painfully, that They were not breathing. Because They did not need to. Because They were not human. 

“Your Viktor and I are one and the same, Jayce. There is no me without him, and there’s no him without me,” They said. In the blink of an eye, They forced themselves out of Jayce’s vice grip with startling strength, pushing Jayce to the ground. The Other surged forward, leaping on Jayce. They pinned both of his wrists on the floor and nearly closed the gaps between the two of them. For one wild moment, Jayce thought They were going to kiss him. 

But They did not. The two men stared at each other: “Viktor” analyzing him and Jayce could swear that they were reading his mind. Something in the way They stared at Jayce through Viktor’s eyes felt horribly invasive and perverse. 

Yet somehow, still familiar to Jayce.  

“Do you still love me, Jayce? Do you love the monster you created? ” They taunted, eyes shifting from silver to a violent shade of purple. 

Look at me Jayce! I’m a monster!

And Jayce looked. 

He truly looked at Them until a memory flashed in Jayce’s mind. 

The Hexcore was in its base form when Viktor had just created Them, runes shifting and turning rapidly by itself. As if the act of creation had drained all of his energy, Viktor was slumped on a chair, exhausted: both from labor and from illness. Viktor’s face was frighteningly pale, a single stream of blood dripping from his nose. He did not seem to care about this. His eyes remained on the Hexcore as it pulsed, tendrils of purple light dancing beneath the patterns. 

They called to Viktor. And Viktor could hear their voice so clearly: after all, he was all alone here. He only had Them. 

The vision left Jayce as suddenly as it came. The man, once known as the Defender of Tomorrow, was overwhelmed by his vision of the past, of a memory that did not belong to him. His heart broke all over again. Confusion etched upon Their face at the look on Jayce’s face. It was indiscernible to Them but it was a mix of love, loss and everything in between,  Jayce’s head inched nearer to Them. 

“ Yes, I still love you,” Jayce said, his eyes boring into Theirs. “You’re still in there. I know you are. I don’t care what form you take or what you do. You’re Viktor. My Viktor.”

Fear flashed in Their eyes once more. They scrambled away from Jayce, disbelieving of what he said. They ran towards the window, but not without tossing Jayce a venomous look. 

Jayce kept staring at the window, long after They left. He kept looking even as Caitlyn and Vi burst through the doors, even when tried to pick him up from the floor and begged him to tell them what happened. 

But Jayce kept looking out the window, hoping to see his ghost again. There was something else in those eyes, because Jayce could have sworn that it was Him. 

Zaunites only had one name. 

Unlike Piltovans, who held onto their house names like a prayer, Zaunites are only marked by a single name, sometimes two. But they rarely inherited a last name from their parents. This was not a sign that parents did not love their children. Because Ekko could loosely recall calling an older man that looked like him “papa” before he ended up with Benzo. He remembered loving the man and being deeply loved in return.  

But Ekko had been so young. His memory was unmatched, but he could hardly recall life before he was with Benzo. He never called Benzo his father but it always felt that way. 

No, Zaunites did not have last names because they were not loved, Ekko surmised as he walked through the streets of Zaun. 

All of Zaun’s children belonged to her, Ekko thought. Bloodlines never mattered: families were forged through suffering and pain. And they would call each other by that single name. 

But the poison victims had no names at all. They could not speak, and had no family or friends to speak for them. 

Some of them probably still had some blood relatives somewhere in Zaun. Ekko and Jinx had put up posters with the victims’ faces all over town, so that anyone who could have possibly lost a loved one during the poison attacks would know where to find them. 

But no one arrived. 

Death was commonplace in the Fissures. One day, you would just hear about your brother getting gunned down by an Enforcer after he “attacked” them. Or your sister overdosed on Shimmer in the club. Or your father owed money to a chembaron. Or your mother’s lungs finally gave out from all the smog.  

So Ekko was not surprised that the bodies stayed there for the past six months: unclaimed and unnamed. 

Jinx, Vi, Vander, Isha, Scar, Sevika, Heimerdinger, Ekko counted his family and friend’s names in his head as he headed to her lair. He even recited the name of the Firelights, old and new. He said their names repeatedly in his head like a prayer, or more accurately, a remembrance. Names carry power and pain. Zaunites may only have one name, but they hold everything about the person. He paused slightly as he walked, willing himself to remember the names of those he lost. Mylo, Claggor, Papa, Benzo, Viktor. 

“ Powder ,” he whispered to himself. 

Ekko found his way to Jinx’s lair. He had been so deep in his thoughts, moving automatically, that he was unable to take in the full extent of her home. It was the full blast of the record player that raised him from his thoughts. Music filled the air and Eko had half his mind to cover his ears. 

In chaos I reign

Tear this place apart

Rebel heart

In chaos I'm free

Destruction is art

Rebel heart

Where the Firelights grew in number, the Jinxers surged. Jinx’s lair had expanded. Before, the interior was merely a large turboprop and a propeller. Now, the Jinxers had built in several other hanging platforms all over the lair. Fairy lights ran down the wires holding up the scaffolding. Grenades, bullets and other weapons were strung on the bellies of the hanging platforms. They moved around with the precision of an ant colony, jumping from each scaffolding  to another with ease. Come to think of it, Ekko had not come here in weeks, so Jinx was probably already expanding her own home to others well before Viktor died. 

As he looked around, Ekko could not help but to admire Jinx despite their differences. She was able to build a community for herself, much like he did when he started the Firelights. 

Ekko suddenly felt a certain weight in his chest as he pondered more on their relationship. He could not help but feel like Jinx was worlds away from him, just like when they were kids. He had just gotten her back, and now the world seemed eager to lure them down separate paths once more. 

After Viktor died, Jinx moved with a stunning focus that Ekko did not know she was capable of. Yet, he understood: moving meant that the grief had a hard time catching up with you. 

No one paid him much mind as they milled about the lair. There were about fifty Jinxers, it seemed. Zaunites of different ages and races roamed around: the only thing they had in common were their blue hairstyles. 

Even in a sea of blue, Ekko spotted Jinx at the center of the turbine, hunched over something he could not see. She did not raise her head as he approached her. 

Butterflies, Ekko realized. She was working on new butterflies, just like he asked her to do in one of the notes he passed along through Gert.  

“We need to talk,” Ekko started. 

“You’re already talking, Savior,” she said, keeping her focus on the device. 

“I need you to listen too…” he said, gently placing a hand on her shoulder. 

The weight of a single name hung heavily on his tongue, laced with pain and love. 

“...Jinx.” 

She stopped and took her goggles off. “Alright, what’s —” she stopped mid sentence when she saw the look on his face. The steely expression she had been wearing since the attack fell off immediately and she took his hand. “What’s wrong?” 

Something heavy weighed on Ekko’s chest and he found it hard to speak. Jinx had that effect on him often. Only this time, the weight came from somewhere else entirely. 

I missed you , he thought. But those words did not leave his lips. 

“Do you know where Singed is?” he managed. “I know you’re planning something for him and I’m coming with you.” 

“What? I… Ekko… I don’t want you to see what I’m about to do,” she said.
“Why?” Ekko said, eyes searching hers. “What do you even plan to do? Cut him in pieces and feed him to rats?” he quipped weakly. 

Jinx raised an eyebrow, refusing to answer. 

“Wait, you’re not—” he started. 

“Boss! Message from the radio!” one of the Jinxers called out as she approached them. Keena, Ekko recalled. Her rabbit ears twitched nervously as she spotted him. Her eyes stared at Ekko as she wordlessly passed a note to Jinx. She fled promptly. 

Jinx raised her eyebrow as she read the note. “Scar’s been looking for you and… oh,” she trailed off, pursing her lips in disappointment.

“Oh?” 

“Looks like Vi’s back to making bad decisions.” 

Silence stretched across the table. It felt like the moment before a tsunami would hit a beach. Vi had imagined countless scenarios where she, Caitlyn and Jinx would be in one room again. At some point, it was the two of them arresting Jinx and taking her in. Sometimes, Vi would imagine a kinder timeline where they all got along. 

But this was not one of them. 

All of them sat at a table at The Last Drop, together with Isha, Ekko, Jayce and Vander. 

It was like a twisted, family reunion. Vi had been trying to reach Ekko the whole morning, only managing to get a hold on him through Scar. She had already expected there to be tensions between the two leaders, but Vi trusted that Ekko could keep his cool and listen to reason. 

What she did not expect was for Jinx to be with him when he got here. 

No one said a word and Vi felt like she wanted the earth to swallow her up. 

“So…” Vi started. 

“What the FUCK are you doing here?” Jinx yelled, fingers digging into the table as she snarled at Caitlyn. 

“I didn’t just assassinate your leader—” 

“Salo was a little BITCH!” 

The entire table fell into chaos. Vi had barred every weapon from the table so all of them fought with words, save for Jayce, who was silent in a corner, still looking like he had just seen a ghost. Vi would have to save that conversation for another time as the screams from Vander, Ekko, Jinx and Caitlyn only grew louder. Even Isha was signing the most horrendous curses from the corner of the table. 

“You killed my mother!” 

“Viktor’s dead because of you!” 

“People died in the bombings!” 

“Piltover killed so many of us!” 

“Terrorist!” 

“Dictator!” 

“WHY IS SHE HERE?!” Jinx and Caitlyn screamed in unison. The entire table looked at Vi, even Jayce. At some point, the noise must have finally brought him back to reality. 

Oddly enough, all the people Vi has ever loved were in one table but this was likely the most tense situation she has ever been in. And she has stared down the barrel of a gun multiple times (most of them Jinx’s). 

Vi sighed. “Listen. We’re from different sides of the fence but we all have the same enemy. Caitlyn says she has information about Ambessa that affects Zaun. I thought Ekko might want to hear it.” 

“She could have written a damn letter,” Ekko said, his eyes narrowing at Caitlyn before looking at Vi. “Even then, why the hell should I trust her? I barely trust you .”

Ouch.  

Vi knew she deserved that but it was still a low blow. Even Ekko seemed to know he went too far with Vi, seeing how he shifted his eyes away from her. 

“Listen,” Caitlyn said, controlling her tone. “Piltover is barely keeping it together. We have Enforcers but they could barely hold a candle against the Noxian Army.”  

“Don’t you have the magical Man of Progress to create magic lazer beams to defend you?” Jinx said, eyes narrowing at Jayce.  

“No,” he said. All eyes fell on him, as if everyone realized that he was still there. “No more Hextech weapons.” 

Jinx looked like she wanted to strangle him. “Fuck. That. You weren’t afraid to use Hextech against a bunch of poor people but when a demon army’s on your doorstep you don’t wanna use it?” 

“Hextech was never meant to kill,” Jayce said, eyes downcast. Vi was struck by how old he looked even if they had just seen each other the previous year. 

“You only feel bad about it now because it killed someone you gave a fuck about,” Jinx hissed. 

“Jinx!” Vi yelled. 

Jayce slammed his fists against the table. “HE’S NOT—”

But the words did not leave his mouth, as if he was stopping himself. For a moment, Vi wondered if Jayce was finally going to tell them what he saw last night: what caused such a ruckus in the middle of the night. Jayce merely looked at them with an eerie emptiness in his eyes, sinking back into a place in his mind where no one could reach him. 

“Yeah. Something like that,” he muttered. 

“Leave him alone!” Caitlyn said through gritted teeth as she glared at Jinx. 

“Alright everyone calm down! I’m getting sick of this,” Ekko said. Vi saw him shake off whatever remnants of the boy she saw growing up. There was an authority to his voice that made people listen to what he had to say, and no one at the table was exempt to that. 

The table fell quiet, looking at Ekko. 

“Kiramman. You tell us what Ambessa is planning. Now.”

Caitlyn looked at him evenly and Vi saw a flicker of respect flash in her eyes. 

“Ambessa wants control over both Piltover and Zaun. She already had a shadow grip over Piltover through Salo but since you… eliminated him, she’s losing control over the city. A lot of important people in the city are supporting Shoola but it won’t last unless we get rid of Ambessa,” Caitlyn started. 

“Get to the part where I should care,” Jinx said. 

Caitlyn shot her a pointed look but did not fight back. 

“Shoola told me something a while back. Ambessa wants a full siege against Zaun. Killing Viktor was the first step. She wants full control over the Undercity and it doesn’t matter to her whether anyone in it lives or dies.” 

“But… why?” Vi whispered, imagining, for one terrible moment, another attack from the Noxians. 

“What’s underground that she wants so badly?” Ekko said, as if the answer was already coming quickly to him. 

“The Hexgates,” Jayce whispered. 

The table fell silent. Caitlyn pulled out a folded blueprint from her coat and laid it on the table. Vi could make little sense of what was on it but as Jinx and Ekko read it, their eyes grew wide. 

“We found this when we captured Singed. Plans to expand the Hexgates: to harness its energy. Ambessa wasn’t going to get Hextech from Jayce and Viktor anymore so she used Singed to—”

“Figure out how to harness it directly from the source,” Ekko finished. He turned to Jayce. “Does anyone know about the Wild Rune at the Hexgates?” 

Jayce shook his head gravely. “I’m not sure. They would need my hammer to open it, but I didn’t have it for months.” 

“Ambessa is somewhere out there licking her wounds after Viktor killed half her army but I expect she’ll be back soon with reinforcements. To get the hammer back, and to start digging into the gates. If she taps into them, all of us are finished.” 

Ekko stared at the plans laid in front of him. His brow deepened. 

“When did you capture Singed?” 

“A few days ago. Wait, why is that important?” Caitlyn said, raising her eyebrow. 

Ekko gripped the sides of the table until his knuckles turned white. Jinx and Vi looked at each other, deep concern growing on both of their faces: Ekko was never one to look scared. 

“Take us to him. Now.” 

“This is incredibly dangerous. I’m risking everything to bring you here,” Caitlyn muttered as they rode the gondola towards Stillwater under the cover of night. 

With Caitlyn back as sheriff, it should be easier to sneak them around. Still, it did her no good to be seen with people who have been branded as state enemies unless she was arresting them. As a result, all of them donned ill-fitting Enforcer outfits: Vander’s uniform was stretched and it threatened to tear at any movement while even the smallest uniform looked loose on Jinx. Oddly enough, only Vi’s uniform fit her well, prompting Jinx to roll her eyes at her sister. 

“I don’t trust you either, Piltie. But we’re missing people and Singed is our best bet to find them,” Ekko said. 

“What makes you so sure it was him? We’ve had him under surveillance 24 hours a day. If you say he kidnapped a bunch of people, there was no way he could have done it without us knowing,” Caitlyn said. 

Ekko fell silent. He knew, logically, she was right. But his gut told him that Singed was somehow involved. If there was one person in Zaun who would meddle with human autonomy, it would have been him. He shifted his gaze to Jinx, who held Vander’s hand gently as they descended into the prison island. Vi held the other one. 

He averted his eyes, allowing the family a moment alone. The history that the prison held over them was great, in more ways than one. It was no wonder they insisted on going together: no one should be left alone there again.  

Slowly, he walked up to Jayce, who stared blankly at the water beneath them as they glided above it. 

“Does Ambessa know that she needs your hammer to open the Hexgates?” Ekko asked. 

“It’s probably why she had it in the first place,” Jayce said. 

It was pure luck then that Vi was able to wrestle it away from her, Ekko thought. His mind went back to the blueprints they had found in Singed’s lab. 

To describe it as a demolition job was too simplistic. 

The machinery needed to harness the energy from the Hexgates would require decimating most of Zaun to make space for it. For one horrid moment, Ekko pictured it: gargantuan tunnels running through the ruins of the town. Beneath their bellies, the unmarked graves of countless Zaunites. 

Ekko realized sullenly that Jinx may be right. There was only one way to end this before all of them were destroyed. 

Just like Viktor. 

He caught a glimpse of Jayce as his eyes stayed on the water. He imagined what it would be like to lose Jinx the same way he lost Viktor. He would have gone off the deep end too. 

“I… haven’t spoken to you in awhile. I guess you already know what happened,” Ekko started softly, but unsure of where he was headed.  

Jayce said nothing as he stared downwards. They were far from the waters where they buried Viktor but the memory was still clear in Ekko’s mind. 

“He never stopped loving you, I hope you know that,” Ekko said as he stared at the waters with him. He could not count the times Viktor had to catch himself from talking about Jayce too much, even when he tried so desperately not to think about him. 

“He’s not gone…” Jayce whispered, barely above a breath. His eyes were glassy and unblinking as he stared at the sea beneath. 

Ekko raised an eyebrow. “What?” 

“We’re near, everyone. Put your masks on,” Caitlyn said. Everyone begrudgingly put on the mask. Ekko found himself in a similar position of sneaking into Stillwater once more: this time, he had a full team with him. 

As he settled the mask against his face, Ekko recoiled. It was disgusting but if this avoided a fight, he was all for it. Jinx walked up to him, placing a hand on his arm. 

“Are you ready?” she asked. 

“Got my mask on, yeah,” he replied. 

“Not what I meant, genius,” she leaned in closer, lowering her voice so that only Ekko would hear her. “Are you ready to kill the son of a bitch?” 

The man once known as Corin Reveck sat quietly in a cell at the bottom of Stillwater, with two Enforcers keeping watch over his jail cell. They allowed him no luxury, not even a window to see if it was night or day. The only thing he had were the clothes on his back when they captured him. While the Noxians did imprison him, they had at least given him the proper toys to keep his mind preoccupied.  

In his new prison cell, all he was left to do was to think: not of his own personal history, no. Aside from Orianna, he cared little for what had happened to him. There was no need to think about the past when there was so much about the future to shape and reshape. 

His days have been filled with pondering the countless possibilities that Hextech could bring to the world. While Viktor’s old lab was destroyed, there was enough published work to allow Signed to retrace most of it. The potential was endless. To see that it has only been used for such… unimaginative things was a shame. He was positive that it was Jayce Talis that held his old pupil back. Then again, Viktor’s heart was always on the softer side.  

There were several things that still eluded Singed, however. Most importantly, how to harness the volatile energy from the crystals and turn them into Hextech. Or how to reproduce the Hexcore. Singed has discovered, however, that there was a way to redirect the flow of energy from larger Hextech machinery such as the gates. 

Ambessa wanted weapons from it. Singed would provide them as long as he, too, would have access to the Hexgates for his own intentions. 

Singed found the Noxian general too prideful, but she was endlessly calculating. Always two steps ahead of the Kiramman girl, always stronger than those Zaunite rebels. Still, both Kiramman and the rebels were stubborn, and Singed figured it would be of no use to discount the possibility of them defeating Ambessa. It would be good then, to figure out how he could somehow leverage the situation to his advantage should the Noxian lose. 

Humans were frighteningly simple. Everyone liked to pretend that they stood for something greater than themselves: their country, their religion, their family. But there was always something they wanted more, something they would be willing to trade it all for. 

A deal could always be made, Singed thought calmly. 

The familiar sound of bodies falling to the ground roused the scientist from his thoughts. Both guards were knocked out. He walked up to the jail cells and looked around. The only light source was the single bulb hanging from the ceiling. It revealed nothing of the attacker, who  was somewhere in the shadows. 

Singed said nothing, expecting the attacker to either kill him or set him free. Neither would surprise him. 

“Doctor,” a familiar voice said. 

 Singed’s eyes shifted, ever so slightly, surprise leaking through his icy exterior. 

“Viktor,” he replied. “You’re… alive.” 

So Ambessa truly did lose, Singed thought. If she had failed to kill his old pupil, she bore no hope of completing her plans. He wondered, briefly, if Viktor knew about his advice to Ambessa. Viktor had not been a vengeful boy but he was certainly… emotional.  

Singed searched for him in the shadows but he did not reveal himself. 

“Tell me, Doctor. Do you believe in fate?” 

“Are we reviewing our old lessons?” he replied.

“I believe I have something to teach you this time. I ask you again, do you believe in fate?” 

Singed paused, sensing an edge in Viktor’s voice he had never heard before. “No, I do not. There is no fate, only evolution.” 

“And do you think humans are capable of evolving by themselves?” he asked. 

Singed paused, thinking of the daughter he left behind in Zaun. “Only if they are willing to lose themselves in the process. To simultaneously become a ghost of who they were, and become all that they could be.” 

“Humans are hopelessly flawed. They cling to a past that is not there, and run towards a future they could never have,” Viktor continued for him. “It’s in their nature.” 

“But we have the capacity to change our nature,” Singed said, recalling Viktor’s visit a long time ago. It did not take a doctor to see why the boy had come to see him: he was dying, desperate to defeat his inevitable death. 

If neither his illness nor the warmonger were successful in killing him, then Viktor likely superseded death itself. 

“Show yourself, Viktor,” Singed said quietly. 

“You are correct, Doctor. There is no fate,” Viktor said. A figure shuffled in the darkness, its footsteps heavy and solid. A single shadow emerged and Singed held his breath, already imagining the countless forms Viktor may have taken. 

But it was not his old pupil who stepped out into view. 

Orianna gracefully waltzed into the pale light, staring at her father through glowing, milky eyes. Her pale skin, fully transformed into gleaming metal. 

“There is only the final, glorious evolution,” They said through her lips. 

Chapter Text

Sevika watched the manlifts with disinterest. The ex-goons (assholes, she liked to call them) were also bored, many of them upset that they weren’t on the frontlines. They lounged around the broken manlifts, torn apart so that no one could use them anymore,  

She had gotten dozens of snide remarks about being away from the main action by the river. But Sevika was in agreement with Ekko: putting these assholes on the frontlines would set off a gunfight within seconds. She never liked the Firelights, having gone into many tussles with them in the past over Silco’s plans. But if there was one thing she could appreciate about them, it would be their discipline. 

These assholes had none of that. They could hardly be called her gang, as others put it. Distrust still ran deep among them. Tribalism was rampant among the chembaron sides but war had a way of setting some clarity for everyone. 

In many ways, she was grateful that they weren’t pointing their guns at each other anymore. A good twenty of them could sit around in the same space, with some playing cards on the ground and others falling asleep. Sevika could hardly blame them. She was bored as hell. 

But boredom did not mean complacency. Sevika saw something shift from the corner of her eyes up at the shafts. 

She took another drag from her cigar and took a deep breath, the beginning of a fight stirring in the air. She loaded up her arm, making sure it was properly set, and pointed it towards the movement without even looking. Before her companions even realized what she was doing, she took her shot, launching a grenade towards the movement. 

A colorful blast ignited the elevator shafts and all fell still, the goons following her lead as they pointed weapons upwards. 

Sevika heard the tiniest clattering of metal before they were engulfed with smoke. 

“Put your masks on!” she yelled as she put on her own. 

Sevika heard the slightest whistling of a spear before rolling to dodge it. 

Noxians, she realized. 

She looked up and saw at least five Noxians crawl down from the manlift’s torn wires. 

It must have been some scouts, she realized. 

Sevika wasted no time, charging towards them, readying for a fight. She climbed up the shaft with a stunning speed, with several other Zaunites trailing after her. 

Her arm charged up on command as they neared them. Ten meters. 

But then something shot past them, faster than Sevika could understand what it was. It passed through the Zaunites and shot straight to the Noxians. 

Then the soldiers started falling: an iron wire grabbing them down. 

“Stick to the sides!” Sevika told the other Zaunites as her prosthetic arm latched onto the shaft, piercing the metal. 

Sevika stared at the bottom of the shaft, trying to see what had ended the fight before it properly started. 

The bodies of the Noxian spies splayed uselessly around Blitzcrank, who stood eerily still at the bottom of the hoistway as his grappling hand returned to their outstretched arm. 

Sevika raised her eyebrow. She had not seen the machine since the funeral, assuming that he was off wandering the streets of Zaun once more, with no creator to return to anymore. 

As Sevika made it towards the iron golem, she patted them on the arm as she looked at the bodies.  

“Nice save, I didn’t know you could do that,” she looked up at Blitzcrank, who blankly looked forward. Sevika got an inkling that something may have been off and stepped away from the robot, afraid that they may have a screw  loose. 

A bit further away from them, Sevika could see a clear difference with Blitzcrank. It used to be clear that the robot was made from salvaged Zaunite material, even if it was melded through Viktor’s powers. 

Now, Blitzcrank looked damn near perfect: it was uncanny. All of their dents were gone and their body was perfectly symmetrical. 

Wordlessly, the robot shuffled off, with the other Zaunites watching them leave.

Perhaps Viktor had fixed them up before dying and Sevika never noticed? Or was it one of those other geniuses? 

“Get the bodies,” Sevika told the Zaunites, still staring at Blitzcrank as they left. She could not help feeling, once more, that something was amiss. 

Being back at Stillwater raised the hair on Ekko’s arms. This time, they crossed without much fanfare, given that Caitlyn was leading them. No one even questioned the disguised Vander, who had just killed half of Stillwater’s guards last year. 

That was power, Ekko supposed. 

Caitlyn told them that they had put Singed in the deepest parts of Stillwater. 

As they descended down the manlifts, Ekko felt disgust brew in his stomach. Where they were headed, there was barely any light. The only light sources were singular bulbs on the ceiling: Ekko could hardly tell if it was day or night. In here, he supposed it did not matter. How many Zaunites had been stuffed down here, never to see the sun again? He had heard tales of this place, but has never met anyone who survived through it to tell the tale. 

“You’re not tricking us and trapping us here forever aren’t you?” Jinx said, her mind exactly in the same place as Ekko’s was. 

“This was your idea, remember?” Caitlyn said. “Besides, I let you keep all your damn weapons.” 

Ekko huffed, giving the woman a quick glance. He noticed that on top of bullets and cartridges, Caitlyn also had a grenade strapped to her belt. Perhaps the Enforcers had taken a cue from Jinx and decided to fight bombs with bombs. 

As the elevator doors opened, Ekko already saw the trail of blood. 

“Oh shit,” he managed to say before everyone brought out their weapons. Vander bared his teeth as Vi’s gauntlets ignited, while Caitlyn and Jinx cocked their guns. Jayce half-heartedly raised his hammer.

They filtered out of the elevator, with Caitlyn taking the lead as she checked on the bodies. As they looked around, the dimly-lit hallway was empty. Ekko looked at the bodies: both bore a single burn mark to the chest.  

As they made their way to Singed’s cell, there was no sign of the intruder. Most of the cells were empty save for one at the end of the hall. 

Two Enforcers laid dead before the cells. 

A single light illuminated Singed. 

For the first time, Ekko was able to lay his eyes on the myth. 

He stood there, impassive as they approached, staring into nothing. 

Caitlyn pointed her gun at him. “What did you do?” 

But Singed ignored her. As if stirred awake, he only looked at Vander. “Look at what he has done to you.” 

Vander bared his teeth as Jinx and Vi stepped in front of him.

“You destroyed me,” Vander said. 

Singed cocked his head to the side. “I saved you.” 

Vander stepped past Jinx and Vi gently. “No. You took my dead body and turned me into a monster.” 

From the corner of Ekko’s eyes, he saw Jayce turn pale, ever so slightly. The man’s eyes started shifting around nervously, as if sensing something deeply off. The feeling spread to Ekko. He was not sure if it was paranoia. The Man of Progress was not exactly stable at the moment. 

“My daughters saved me. Viktor saved me,” he continued. 

“Ah yes. I suppose I do make the perfect villain in your story, if you put it that way. Know that I do not take it personally,” Singed said. 

Vander and Singed stared at each other: a monster and its maker speaking in silence. 

“You aren’t a villain, Singed. You need to stand for something to be someone’s villain. You… you’re empty. There’s nothing to you other than your grand delusions and your pompous philosophies. You can turn yourself inside out but you will keep finding the same thing: nothing.”

Singed stared at Vander, disinterested and bored. “I remember the days when Trenchers would hang onto your every word. Even Silco. I prefer the days where you could only howl.” 

Ekko’s eyes traveled around the dim room: the feeling that they were being watched was growing. He surmised that it was just Singed effortlessly making them uneasy. 

“Alright, can we kill this guy now?” Jinx said, cocking her gun. Even Vi seemed ready to kill him. Vander seemed largely unaffected: wisdom strengthened the mind’s psyche against insults from men like Singed. 

Jinx’s anger brought Ekko back to them, remembering why they were there. 

“Hang on,” the boy said. He could understand their rage. The man who mutilated their father was right in front of them, at his most vulnerable. As if that was not enough, he had just openly mocked the friend they had just lost for trying to heal Vander. 

But they came here for a reason. 

“What did you do to the poison victims?” Ekko said. 

Singed stared at Ekko. The man had an aura to him, as if at any moment, the air around him would cause all of them to wilt like dried flowers. 

“Ah. I understand. The little contraptions I built for Ambessa had… undesirable effects.” 

Ekko marched to the jail bars and grabbed them. “Undesirable effects?! You killed people,” Ekko spat through gritted teeth. “They were OUR people.” 

“You speak to me as if I… owe allegiance to the Undercity. The evolution of man, the pursuit of power, the rallying against death. These are not things that know such trivial things like borders.” 

“How does unleashing poison onto an unknowing population help your cause?” Ekko whispered, still remembering the screams from that day. 

“They were an… unfortunate means to an end,” he said. 

Ekko’s hand shot across the bars to grab Singed by the collar. “Those people had lives .”

“Did they? You do not even know their names,” Singed said. 

Ekko gripped his bat and raised it but Caitlyn quickly grabbed his hand. “He’s getting under your skin.” 

“No, I agree with the Boy Savior. We’re letting this piece of shit talk too much,” Jinx said. 

“We haven’t gotten any information yet,” Vi started. The group broke into bickering for a few seconds until Jinx finally rolled her eyes. It glowed brightly and Ekko already knew what was going to happen before she even reached her gun. And he was going to let it happen this time.

But several things happened all at once before Jinx could take her shot. 

Time moved slowly, happening in flashes in Ekko’s mind. As Jinx was about to pull the trigger, Ekko saw Jayce’s hammer ignite and turn it against a corner in the room. 

Jinx killing Singed was expected. 

Vi and Caitlyn trying to stop Jinx from killing someone was expected. 

Vander waiting until the last moment to intervene was expected. 

But Jayce suddenly being alert after being catatonic was not. Him turning towards a dark corner of the room as if there was a monster in the shadows was not. 

So Ekko turned to see where Jayce was looking. 

He saw a mere glimpse of it before it was hit with a blast from Jayce’s hammer. Everyone stopped. There was a crater in the corner of the room. Smoke erupted from the hole in the wall. 

“Jayce! What the hell?” Caitlyn yelled.

But Jayce’s eyes were wide with fear, hushing everyone as they raised their weapons. “They’re here…” 

“Who’s here?” Vi said, her gauntlets glowing against her face as she raised them. 

“I’m afraid you can’t kill him yet,” a girl’s voice said. From the crater on the wall, she rose. 

Ekko nearly dropped his bat. 

Orianna gingerly emerged from the ruins, completely unscathed by the blast of Jayce’s hammer. She was vastly different from how Ekko saw her: her skin was smooth metal and her eyes were wide and unblinking: empty and unseeing. 

“Who the fuck are you supposed to be?” Jinx said, pointing her gun at her. 

“A friend,” she said simply. 

“A friend that killed my Enforcers?” Caitlyn said, raising her rifle. 

“A friend that helped your people,” Orianna said, her voice warping as she looked directly at Ekko before shifting her gaze to Jinx. Her expression softened, as far as her metal face would allow. 

“I missed you both terribly,” Orianna said, someone else’s voice coming from her lips, a voice Ekko never thought he would hear again. 

Jinx paled, dropping her gun. Ekko froze, staring at Orianna, his eyes wide and unyielding as tears threatened to spill. 

“Wh-what…” Jinx said, her tears stained with eyeliner as it fell across her face. “No…” she whispered to herself. “No, no!” 

Viktor’s dead eyes flashed in his mind and Ekko found it harder and harder to breathe. It felt like the ground beneath his feet was about to give way at any minute. 

Everything was still for a moment. Before anyone could speak, Jayce yelled as he raised his hammer. 

“That’s not him!” he screamed. Before he could fire another blast, a figure emerged from the darkness, grabbing Jayce’s arm. Ekko only saw the barest hints of a white before they grabbed him as well. The same happened to everyone else in the room, with two of the figures needing to hold Vander down. 

There were around nine of them. The figures were barely human: they were white and metallic, faceless and unfeeling. Their sleek armor gleamed, even in the dark. 

Ekko realized, painfully, that they had found their missing Zaunites. 

Orianna calmly walked over to Singed and busted the lock to the cell with a single blast from her hands. 

Singed looked at his daughter with a solemn expression, as if he had yet to decide how he felt about her new form. 

The machines held them in place. They did not seem intent on harming them but all of them struggled against their vice grip. As Singed walked away, a set of purple eyes glowed violently, moving in the corner of Ekko’s eyes. 

“GET BACK HERE!” 

Jinx moved like a bullet, slipping through the machine’s grip by sheer speed and pointing her gun at Singed as his back was turned. Even Orianna did not see the shot coming. Before anyone realized what was happening, Singed was already on the ground, a single bullet hole hitting his neck. 

The man was alive, but not for long. Even in a frenzied rage, Jinx made sure to fire a lethal shot that would make him suffer. 

Orianna impassively looked at her father as he bled on the floor. Singed reached out to her, but she offered no kind words, no reassurance. 

“We had uses for him,” she said blankly, turning towards Jinx. Orianna stepped over Singed dismissively. Ekko watched as Singed’s eyes filled with tears. They were likely the only set of tears he had shed in years, and it would be his last. 

“‘We’? Who the fuck are you?” Jinx said through gritted teeth, her gun pointed at Orianna. “How can you copy his voice? Who the fuck brought all these manequins to life?” 

But Orianna did not get the chance to answer.
A growl erupted, low and mean. Ekko traced where it came from and watched, terrified, as Vander started baring his teeth.

The Hound of the Underground. 

It was a painfully ironic foreshadowing of what Vander would become. But before mad scientists and criminal lords, it was a proud moniker for someone who protected the Undercity, someone who knew when to bark and when to bite. Vi was happy to be his adoptive daughter, unafraid to use his name when someone was getting too rough with them when they were kids. That was before, when her punches were too light because she was too little, before she lost him and her whole family.  

Eventually, she got Vander back. Now, she had some weight to throw behind her punches and she could protect all of them. 

She was supposed to protect all of them.  

Now, she was forced to watch as Vander struggled violently against the machines. To her horror, the machines were struggling to hold him down. 

“W-what’s happening to him?” Caitlyn whispered.
“It’s Singed’s blood,” Vi managed to say, remembering the man’s notes from when she was helping Viktor heal her father. Singed had programmed something into Vander that drew him to his blood. There was no way around it when it came to healing the man. 

As Singed laid on the floor, bleeding towards his inevitable death, the smell roused the beast inside of Vander, the beast that they had fought so hard to contain. 

The thought of Vander returning to his beastly state gave Vi a terrifying surge of energy, she broke loose from the machine’s grasp and made her way to her father. 

“Easy! Easy, Vander please!” she begged. But as Vander struggled against the machines holding him down, he started to froth at the mouth: even Vi could smell the iron fill the air. The other machines released them and helped hold him down. But Vi watched, horrified, as her father struggled all the more. His eyes grew red and he convulsed. In his struggle, the machines held him tighter and the Vi heard the noise of metal crumpling. 

The metal disks on Vander’s back flashed in Vi’s mind. 

It was Shimmer, Viktor had told her: a purified version that Jinx made for medicinal purposes. 

“NO! Let him go! The medicine on his back!” 

Jinx’s eyes grew wide once she realized what was happening. She shot some of the machines but it seemed like the violence only roused something in the beast. Ekko and Jayce moved, trying to pry the machines away from Vander before they could further damage the prosthetics that regulated Vander’s Shimmer. 

“We need to leave,” Caitlyn said, panicked, grasping Vi’s hand. 

“I’m not leaving him,” Vi said through gritted teeth, shaking off Caitlyn’s hand as she charged towards Vander to help the two men get the machines off of Vander. 

But another  machine was hurled through the air, its limbs torn off as Vander released a roar. It nearly hit Vi if she had not dodged it. In the dim light, Vi could see him transform. With the disks on his back damaged, Vi could see him shake as his body forced itself to twist and expand. Bones were broken and mended again, muscles stretched and contorted. In a matter of moments, the man grew twice his size. Vander’s face twisted into the look of pure agony. 

“The pain and anger in his body feed into each other, making each other worse.  It’s a vicious cycle.” 

“VANDER!” Vi yelled. 

Vander tossed her one more sorrowful before doubling over and releasing a guttural roar. On all fours, he charged towards Singed’s body. The machine girl merely stepped aside, watching with mild curiosity. 

Vi saw, for the briefest moment, Singed’s eyes grow wide in fear before Vander sunk his teeth into his chest. The sound of wet flesh being torn apart filled the still air as everyone watched, horrified. 

“Such a waste,” the metal girl said blankly as she watched Singed be consumed by the beast. She looked at the machines and nodded. 

“We only came for Singed. You have successfully thwarted any chances of that. We shall be going now,” she said, the white figures falling in line like perfect soldiers. 

But they could not let them leave. Ekko and Jayce moved, raising their weapons at the machines. Everyone else followed suit. 

“I think you have bigger problems than us,” Orianna said, her eyes flickering to Vander. “He is almost done with his… plaything.” 

As if on cue, the sound of bones crunching grew even louder. As Orianna and the machines faded into the shadows, Vi turned around slowly. As she laid eyes on her father, she gasped. Blood and flesh was matted all over his mouth as he took another bite. It seemed as if Singed’s flesh itself was poisoned, eager to contaminate anyone who would mutilate it. It only made Vander hurt more. 

It was no longer Vander that stood, but the beast. 

Caitlyn was the first to move. She ran to the nearest alarm and pushed it, emergency lights drowning the room in flashes of red. 

Jayce raised his hammer but Jinx was quick, pointing her gun at him as she turned on them. “Don’t you fucking dare.” 

“That’s not your father anym—” 

“You really wanna kill another man with that hammer?” Jinx spat, waving her gun at the rest of them. 

“Jinx, I think he’s right,” Ekko started to say, tears pooling in his eyes as he looked at Vander. Ekko slowly raised his bat. 

“We can still fix him!" Jinx said, tears springing from her face. 

“Listen to Ekko, Jinx,” Caitlyn said, raising her rifle at Vander. She turned to Vi, pleading with her to see reason. 

Vi moved without thinking. She stepped in line with her sister, raising her gauntlets against the rest of them, ready to defend Vander. 

“Leave. All of you. We’ll find a way to fix him. Just. Go,” Vi said, gritting her teeth. 

Jinx looked at her sister, eyes filling with tears and gratitude. 

“Vi, I’ve fought him before,” Ekko said, stepping forward. “He’s dang—” 

But before Ekko could finish, a shot rang out. Vi watched, horrified, as her father went down. She traced the source to one of several terrified Enforcers. They must have come to check on the prisoners down here. 

“NO!” Jinx yelled. 

But Vander did not remain down long. In one jump, he charged at the Enforcer who had shot him, tackling him to the ground. He raised his claw, tearing at the guard’s throat. Some of the guards ran while the others tried, in vain, to take Vander down. 

Caitlyn sprang into action, shooting at Vander to get him off her officers. 

“CAIT, NO!” Vi yelled as she ran towards her. 

But it was too late, Vander took Caitlyn’s bullet like it was nothing. Too fast for anyone to see, Vander ran and sprang on top of Caitlyn, baring his teeth. His claws grew sharper, digging into her arms and drawing blood. Caitlyn screamed. 

But before Vi could pry him off her, Jayce’s hammer met Vander’s face with brute force, knocking him off Caitlyn and sending him careening across the room. 

“We need to go!” Ekko yelled, grabbing Jinx’s hand. 

“No!” she said, resisting his grip.

Another roar erupted from Vander’s jaws as he rose. She glanced at Caitlyn and Jinx as she struggled against Ekko. Caitlyn raised her gun once more as several other Enforcers started flooding the lower cells. Vi watched the blood drip down Caitlyn’s arm from where Vander grabbed her. 

"Whatever happens, it's on you. Just like it's on me what happens to us down there."

A lump formed in Vi’s throat as she realized what needed to be done. She removed her gauntlet in one swift motion and used her free hand to knock Jinx out with a strike to the temple. Ekko watched, shocked, but understood quickly what Vi wanted to happen as he gathered Jinx in his arms. 

“Get her out of here!” Vi yelled. “I’ll get out with Jayce and Caitlyn!” 

Ekko looked at her, dubious. But he took one more glance at Jinx, unconscious in his arms, and decided what he needed to do.  

“Stay safe,” he said, turning towards the exit and slipping through the chaos with Jinx in his arms. 

As Vi watched Vander tear through Enforcers, she slipped her hand into the gauntlet once more. 

“You’ve got a good heart. Don’t ever lose it. “

Vi screamed as she ran towards Vander, hitting him straight on the chin, splitting his skull into two. Tears fell from her face as Vander collapsed. Jayce and Cait emerged on both of her sides, with Caitlyn placing a loving hand on Vi’s shoulders. 

For one moment, Vi felt like throwing herself into one of Stillwater’s cells, never to see sunlight again. 

But she did not have time to grieve. 

Vander’s skull did not remain broken for long. The three of them watched as bone mended itself and flesh regrew on his face. Jayce charged his hammer as Caitlyn took shots at Vander. The other Enforcers also followed their Sheriff’s lead, shooting at Vander as he slowly rose from the ground. 

It was useless: it only aggravated him more.

“Everyone get out of here! Seal the lower cells!” Caitlyn yelled. The Enforcers trooped to the other elevators as Jayce, Caitlyn and Vi made their way to the lift they came from. As Vander charged at them, Vi held him back, charging her gauntlets to unsustainable levels. As Vander tore through more guards, he only seemed to grow stronger, the taste of blood turning him more and more into a beast. 

Vi watched in agony as the beast tried to snap his jaws at her. As the officers retreated, they still tried to shoot at Vander. Every headshot that landed however, likely belonged to Caitlyn. 

Despite the rain of bullets, a blast from Jayce’s hammer sent him off of her as he pulled her into the manlift. Caitlyn quickly produced a grenade: a standard issue one, not one of Jinx’s. She threw one sorrowful glance at Vi. Vi looked away, tears flooding her eyes as she heard Cait pull the pin and throw the grenade at Vander before the manlift’s doors closed. 

Vi’s knees gave out and she felt Caitlyn wrap her bloodied arms around her. She doubled over on the lift’s floor and screamed. 

All at once, Vi was back in that alley again, walking away from someone she loved.

Hours after the chaos in the lower cells, the prison unit remained sealed. 

They walked across the bodies that were neatly lined up. They counted thirty-one of them in total that were still salvageable. 

Metal feet walked carefully against the cold cement, but They could not feel it. 

“My apologies. I did not account for their intervention,” Orianna said as she walked next to Them.

“No apologies needed,” They said, purple eyes sweeping across the bodies. 

“Should we begin the process here?” she asked.

“It would be easier to have them move on their own, yes,” They replied simply.

They paused briefly at one of the bodies. It was Singed, They were able to identify even if most of his face was torn off. The original plan was to simply get the man to acquire his biotech knowledge. They would have to extract that knowledge in a more… intricate process if they could reassemble his brain. Still, most knowledge has already been lost. Vander mangled most of his head and there were still a few things that could not be replicated by machine. 

But the mission was not a complete waste. They arrived at the end of the row, where the man used to be known as Vander was still regenerating from the blast he endured. He was almost done, with flesh taking a hold of his skull slowly. The beast looked at the man approaching him, his pupils dilating. 

“V-vikt…” he tried to say, the effects of Singed's blood fading. 

“So much pain, so much suffering. You do not know if you are man or monster anymore,” They said, kneeling on the ground and extending Their to touch Vander's forehead. Vander recoiled, as if he could tell that it was no longer his old friend behind Their facade. 

“It’s your attachment to them that tortures you, I hope you understand this. Your memories, your humanity. All of it the good you brought to this world, only for for it to be taken away from you, again and again. But do not be afraid. I can make it better. You will leave that old life behind."

Their fingertips touched Vander's forehead. 

"From now on, we shall call you… Warwick.” 

Chapter Text

Isha was tired of getting really tired of being left behind. Her entire family went and left her alone and headed to Stillwater. Had she really been such a nuisance to them that they didn’t want to bring her on jobs anymore? 

Then again, the last time she was in danger, her friend was killed. Perhaps if she had been larger or if she was stronger, she could have been of use to her family. 

She could do it; she knew she could do it. Isha could help them. She could not let herself think of the consequences if she was useless to her family; it terrified her too much. She must make herself of use. 

So, Isha would help them. She would follow them to Stillwater — if she knew how to get there. 

For hours, the girl ran through alleyways and unpaved roads, trying to trace their steps. But Zaun was a living map with no solid destination unless you’ve explored enough of it. In her short life, most of it being spent in the mines, Isha has yet to fully roam everywhere. 

She was about to give up when she saw a familiar body of bronze moving solemnly in the street, paying no mind to the people around them. 

Blitzcrank ? She thought. Isha had not seen them since the funeral. Where did the machine shuffle off to when no one was watching? Perhaps he could help her get to Stillwater. 

Curious, she followed the robot as he traveled the streets. Zaunites had grown accustomed to seeing the iron golem wandering on their own, so no one paid them much heed. 

Isha weaved through the crowd effortlessly; Blitzcrank was much easier to keep track of. 

As they reached the edge of Zaun in the outer banks, Blitzcrank walked down a path upstream until they reached a waterfall. The iron giant walked through a crevice behind it. After waiting for a few moments, Isha followed them into the caves. The air was heavy and damp, but somehow cleaner than that of Zaun. 

Her jaw dropped when she saw where she was. It looked much like Viktor’s old compound, with machinery panels decorating most of the walls. Only this time, rather than recycled mechanical parts found in the scrapyards of Zaun, the metal was smooth and white, with weblike patterns of gold and purple. Isha looked at her prosthetic arm and realized that it was almost identical. 

The girl looked around some more, losing sight of Blitzcrank. Lined up neatly against the wall were strange… mannequins? Or were they people covered in metal like Viktor? They were all pale and faceless, It made Isha feel uneasy, as if they were watching her without eyes. Right as she started to wonder if she should turn back, she felt the vibration of heavy footsteps coming towards her. 

Jinx’s head was on fire. At least that was what it felt like. She opened her eyes and saw the same ceiling she had woken up to countless times. She always had dreamless nights of sleep whenever she would sleep next to him. Jinx loved those nights.