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Silco stood above her, vaguely aware that his underlings were gathering behind him and picking together who was alive and dead. He scoffed, glancing down at the child sobbing uncontrollably on the pavement. “No, it was your explosions that killed them. I did nothing but watch, Child.”
She, Power if Silco could remember correctly, cried harder. Silco took a step forward across the dusty cement. The child scrawled backward “LEAVE ME ALONE YOU MONSTER! YOU KILLED THEM! YOU KILLED THEM ALL!” She mustered the strength to scramble to her feet, running away from the burning building with the charred remains of her family with Silco and his gang.
“Want me to kill the girl?” Sevika asked, lazily nodding to the blue-haired child, who was running away with swaying feet, stumbling between hiccuping gasps. “I might only have one arm now, but I can still get her. Adrenaline is one hell of a drug.”
“She won’t survive long in The Lanes.” Shrugged Silco, “There’s no need to waste our ammunition on such a child.”
“And if she does survive? She’s Vander’s kid after all.”
Silco smirked, “Then I will finish the job.”
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Power had been running for hours. At least, she thinks she has been. Running away from the beast hunting her down. A glowing orange eye follows her, watching, waiting to pounce, and running from her dad, from Milo and Claggor.
She didn’t mean to mess up, she was trying to save Vi! But Vi wasn’t her sister anymore, Vi had left. She left Power in the snarling jaws of the beast.
Power ran and ran until she could a quiet stream. Water, Power needed water. Vi had always told her if she was lost, find water and food first.
She scrambled over rocks, eyes locked hungrily on the dark water. She fell to her knees, her head swaying down, hands running in the cold stream. She closed her eyes, dipping her head-
“I wouldn’t drink that if I were you, dear.”
Blue eyes darted up, “Who’s there?” Power glanced around the alcove. From the dark alleyway she had come from, to the blackened cave where the stream ran into, to the pipelines dumping water down.
A man stood in the gaping jaws of a sewer pipe. The silver shine of his cane reflected the lights from the undercity. “The factories have contaminated the water. It’s not safe to drink.”
“I don’t care,” Power huffed, rocking back and forth on her knees. “No one would care if I'm hurt or not.” She glanced back down at the black water.
“I might.” replied the man, his voice thick with an accent, one that Power had heard a few times at Vandar’s bar. It was heavy, like smog, coating his throat and wrapping around his words. The creaking of rusted pipes coincided with him shifting his feet around, shuffling to get a better look at Power.
“Do you?”
“Would you like some drinking water? And perhaps some food as well?”
Power glanced back up. He was pale, sickly almost. Dressed in a fancy Piltover outfit. His one leg was bent at an old angel, and he leaned heavily on his metal cane. He was interesting, she decided. Power considers her options, the strange man the poisoned water, or the monster.
“You can’t trust strangers” echoed Vi, she stood over Power, hand on her shoulders. “Especially angry strangers. They will do bad things to you. Don’t trust them, okay Pow-Pow?”
“I don’t know you, you're just some stranger. Why would I trust you?”
The man considered her words for a moment before responding, “My name is Viktor. I’m an inventor at the Piltover Academy. I come from the Lanes.”
“The Lanes?” Power asked, tilting her head up at Viktor. “But you dress like a Piltie.”
The man, Viktor, looked amused, a smirk on his lips. “Do you trust me? I can get you food and water if you would like.”
Viktor or the Monster?
“One day, you’ll be the greatest inventor Pow-Pow. You’ll show those Piltover’s who's boss.”
“I’m an inventor.”
“Oh? You are? I wasn’t aware.” responded Viktor.
Power nodded, “I’m gonna be the greatest inventor in the world someday!” She stood up, glaring at Viktor as if asking him to challenge her.
“I can’t wait to see what you will invent.”
They fell silent, the rushing waves of the water flowing over them both. The sounds of the allies behind Power got louder, angry yelling, and the shattering of a glass bottle.
“I can only invent bombs… But they never work!”“Perhaps you just need better supplies and a teacher. I would be willing to help you if you would like.”
“Will- Will you keep me safe from the monster?” Power asked, voice cracking. She glanced down at her shoes, face heating up in embarrassment.
“Of course, I’ll make sure no one can hurt you ever again,” Viktor replied softly, barely heard over the gurgling stream.
“Oh- okay, I’ll go with you.”
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“Vik, keep your kid under control.” Grumbled Jayce, dramatically falling down into his chair. “She got into my notes, again. Wrote all over them.” He glanced angrily towards his partner, whose face was illuminated by glowing blue light.
Viktor hummed, “And did she improve your math?” He turned the Hexcore, it flicked through to another rune before spinning around to adjust yet again. He hummed softly, before twisting the core once more to instead rune at the bottom through his goggles.
“Yeah… But she also called me stupid. Multiple times.”
“She does that.” Viktor replied, not caring to glace up from the Hexcore to look at his partner. “I told her to explore the city, and that we would join her after Himerdingers speech. And perhaps meet up with Caitlin if she gets off work in time.”
“So… about that-”
“What did you do now?” Viktor replied with a sigh.
“I- Hey! That rude you know, I didn’t do anything! It's Himerdinger you should worry about. He’s insistent that I give the speech this year. ME. JAYCE!”
“Hm, so you need to start writing then, Golden Boy.”
Jayce growned at the nickname, covering his face with his calloused hands. “I’m going to ignore you saying that. Anyways, I told him that we could reveal our next stage of Hextech, your arm, my hammer, and whatever Power made. He will be coming over soon to see it.”
“Sounds lovely.”
“You… should do the speech with me.”
Viktor powered down the Hexcore, lifting his goggles up over his eyes to give Jayce a pointed look. “No.”
“Come on! Pleaseeeee!” Jayce begged, “Pow will kill me if I don’t include you. Besides, you know way more about this tech than I do!”
“Jayce, it's your invention. You created Hextech-”
“It’s only because of you that I got to keep working on it! Please Vik, you're my partner. You deserve to be up there. I hate when you try to hide in the shadows. You’re incredible, and we're going to show all of Piltover what you have done for them.”
Viktor turned to look at Jayce, his pleading eyes, a smudge of grease under his left eye. His hair was a mess, sweat dripping down his chin. Bronze skin and gold eyes. “You know I'm too sick to give a speech, Jayce.”
“Then just stand by my side, please Viktor. I- I need you there. The council is being shady and I don’t know who I can trust, but I can trust you. I’ve always been able to.” Jayce leaned forward, holding Viktors thin, cold hands in his warm calloused ones. “Please Viktor.”
Viktor glanced up, eyes locked with Jayce’s. “Fine, I'll stand beside you.”
Jayce sagged with relief, his head falling forward into Viktor’s chest. “Thank you Viktor, thank you.”
Viktor wrangled his hands free from Jayce’s, hesitantly passing them through the other man's hair. “What time did Himerdinger say he would be here?”
“11.” Mumbled Jayce.
Viktor hummed, glancing around the lab to get a sense of what they would have to pick up. Jayce and Power were awful at cleaning up their lab stations. “We should get everything set up for him then.”
“Should we have Powder come back?”
“Perhaps, she loves showing Himerdinger her work.”
Jayce sat back up, a blush creeping up onto his face. “Okay, that sounds… good.”
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“Well, that was shitty.”
“Great observation Pow.”
The girl bared her teeth in a grin, “Love you too Jay-Jay.”
Viktor sat back down in his chair, running a hand through his hair. “I don’t understand. 10 more years? We can’t wait that long. There are people in need, who need help now.”
Jayce bit his lip, glancing to the table where the Hextech sat abandoned. “I know. It's done, for the most part. What if we… Ignore what Himerdinger said. It wouldn’t be the first time we went behind his back. He’s just too scared to see all the help this technology could bring!”
“He isn’t wrong to be afraid.” Shrugged Power, “I mean, look what happened to me.”
Silence befell the group, as they glanced at their youngest member. Her grey dress pants were rumbled and creased. Her maroon button up was rolled up to her elbows, her light grey vest with its blue detailing and white tie. Her hair, pulled back into one long braid, fitted with intricate woven gold bands, gifts form Viktor, Jayce and even one form Catlin.
“But we should help people. Kids.” Power finished. “It's our duty, right? To help people?”
Viktor glanced at Jayce. “We will ignore his suggestion. We have too.”
Power grid, “Awesome! Can I come to the speech too!”
Jayce looked at Viktor helplessly, letting the other man decide. Viktor shrugged, “If you stay quiet and still, then sure. They already know you help us, if I’m going up there you mind as well.”
“Power can push your wheelchair.” Jayce suggested, “No need to be struggling to stand the whole time. We can’t have our genius getting hurt up there.”
“Brains, Brawn and Madness!” Power squeaked, “It's gonna be awesome! I’m gonna brag about it to all those pests in my classes! Tell them to shove it up their-”
“Power,” Viktor warned.
“Sorry!” Power resplies, hands raised defensively. “I’m just saying! You should see how they treat me, like I'm some mud that accidentally tracks inside. Maybe one day I should have you and Jay go full mama bear on them.”
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“Who’s that?” Vi asked, nodding to the large banner that was proudly pinned onto a nearby building. In black and gold, the stoic face of a Piltie stood, glancing towards the sky. Behind him, golden gears locked together.
“Oh, that's Jayce Talis. He’s an invention from the Academy. He made the Hexgates, with the help of his partner and sister.” The officer, Catlin, replied. “I’m actually friends with them, well, with Jayce and his sister. She is younger than me, an excellent shot though, and wicked smart.”
“Hm.” Vi replied with a snort. “Bit egotistical,” He nodded towards the banner. Now that she thought about it, his face was plastered pretty much everywhere.
Cupcake snorted, “Tell me about it. His sister and I sometimes deface them. Draw mustaches on them and everything.” she smiled, her eyes glossing over as if she was looking at something else, looking back at a memory.
“Ooo, so she's a bad girl.” Vi teased. “Shall I report you to the Enforcers?”
“Hey!” Cupcake yelped, face blushing a bright red to Vi’s amusement. “Actually, while we're on the topic, we should visit them. They might know something about this ‘Silco’ character. Sharks I think had a run in with him a while back.”
Vi perked up, “She’s from the undercity?”
Cupcake shrugged, “She doesn’t talk about it much. Only that she lived in the lanes and ran away to the topside after being chased by a monster. Ever since then, she's refused to go back. Silco killed her family I think.”
“If something ever happens to you, what should I do!” Cried Power.
Vi stayed silent, following Catlin through the city.
Cupcake showed her onto some vehicle, flashing her fancy badge. It looked like a giant metal box, racing along tracks embedded in the ground. They stayed there, seated on plush seats, watching as buildings and people passed by until they made it to the “Academy District” as the voice on the loudspeaker announced.
The Academy streets were even busier than wherever they had entered the ‘vehicle’. People bustling alonge, some holding papers, carrying leather bags. Some held steaming drinks, dark circles under their eyes. Some tourists, some professors with long coats and scowls. Some with metal scraps, others with full inventions.
“Welcome to the Academy, Vi.” Cupcake said with a grin. “The pride of Piltover.”
“Boring.”
Catlin scoffed, graping Vi’s hand and dragging her through the hustle and bustle. She knew where they were, she expertly wove between stores and streets.
Vi wasn’t sure where they ended up. She stopped trying to make a mental map some time ago. But they weren’t in the streets anymore. Dark halls were filled with silence. A few people strolled by. Their uniforms were neat and pressed. They were about Vi’s age, if she could guess. Only they were not sickly thin. Some were built, others with baby-like fat on their cheeks. Their gazes tracked Vi and her Enforcer, curiosity in their eyes.
“Here we are,” sung Cupcake, banging on a random door.
Faintly, you could hear music in the background.
“-come on, shoot faster! Just a little bit of energy; yeah-”
“Come in!”
Caitlyn opens the door, with a flourish, pushing Vi inside.
It was a mess. And Power would have loved it. Tables and shelves were catered with books and papers and tools. The walls were blackboards with white marks and numbers covering everything.
“Viktor!” Catlin greeted, leaving Vi at the door, to walk over to the man in the center of their room. Purple light glowed in front of him.
“I wanna try something fun right now, I guess some people call it anarchy-”
The man shifted, and instantly the light faded. The man turned, lifting his goggles up from his eyes. “Catlyn, it's nice to see you again. I’m afraid Jayce is out as of now, meeting with Mel if I remember correctly.”
“Let's blow this city to ashes, and see what daddy thinks-”
Cupcake turned to Vi, “This is Viktor, he also grew up in the Lanes, but he left before Silco took power.”
“It’s such pathetic neatness, but not for long cause you'll get beat-”
Viktor looked Vi up and down. “You're his kid, aren’t you?”
Vi stiffened, “I don’t know who you're talking about. My parents are dead.”
“So much better, so much fun-”
Viktor’s eyes narrowed, but turned back to his desk, “Do what you like.” He adjusted his goggles once more over his eyes.
Cupcake butted in, “Do you know anything about Silco?”
“Let's start from scratch and blow up the sun-”
Vi glanced around the lab once more, eyes landing on oil pastels lying abandoned on the table. Onto papers with messy blue handwriting. Onto shelves filled with dark metal grenades. A stuffed animal on a chair over there, by the door was an abandoned pair of boots that were worn in from running.
“Silco was friends with the original owner of The Last Drop. They were close, from what I can remember.”
“Like brothers.” Vi whispered.
“Come on, shoot faster! Just a little bit of energy; yeah-”
“I don’t know anything more than that.”
“Where's the Shark?” Cupcake asked, “She mentioned something about Silco a long time ago. About him being a monster.”
“I wanna try something fun right now, i guess some people call it anarchy-”
Viktor went silent. He let out a breath before answering “He had just killed her whole family when I found her, on the border of the undercity. She was just a child.”
“Let’s blow this city to ashes, and see what daddy thinks-”
Cupcake shifted on her feet, “She was just a child.”
“It's such pathetic neatness-”
“Pow, can you turn the music off.”
“Sorry Vik!” called back the reply.
“Pow?” Vi asked. “Power?”
Viktor glanced back at her, a strange look on his face. “You are Violet, of The Last Drop.” It wasn’t a question, it was a statement, said with sudden clarity.
The music cut off.
“Kit-Cat!” Greeted a friendly voice, Vi turned to the shadows, where a blue braid swept across the floor. Black boots, polished and neat. “Who’s this you got-”
“Power. You're alive.”
Vi’s eyes met Power’s.