"Vi." The call echoed, as if it were coming from very far away.
"Ah!!" With a cry of pain and a fluorescent glow flaring in her eyes, Vi's whole body jolted upright.
In her daze, she saw flashes of her parents and Powder. Maybe Vander too.
"It's okay, it's okay." Caitlyn cupped Vi's face in her hands and pressed their foreheads together, soothing her.
Only after Vi's expression finally calmed did Caitlyn rise and step back.
"You need to pull yourself together." There was worry in Caitlyn's eyes. "What was the name Sevika mentioned? Jinx?"
"Yeah. Jinx." Vi struggled to sit up. "That name's burned into me."
The wound in her abdomen had already healed, leaving behind only a smear of blood.
"Looks like you're probably not in any real danger now, but we still have more important things to deal with," Caleb said from the side.
"You didn't run?" Vi glared at the man who had disappeared without a word. "Where'd you go?"
"To scrape together money for medicine, so Cupcake here wouldn't have to pawn her rifle." Caleb tossed a coin up and down, the crisp clink especially sharp in the silence.
Out of habit, Caitlyn leaned against a pillar, then immediately lost her balance and caught herself.
Only then did she realize the whole house was on the verge of collapse, and carved into that pillar were Vi and Powder's names.
"This was your home? Who's Powder?" Caitlyn turned and asked.
"My sister. I thought she was dead." Vi's face was heavy with grief. "But no matter what, I have to find her."
Yet in the span of a blink, Vi's expression hardened with resolve again.
Caleb opened his mouth, then chose to say nothing.
"How can you not know whether your sister is dead or alive?" The moment Caitlyn said that, Caleb leaned in close to her ear.
"She and Powder's parents died in the uprising when Zaun charged Piltover. They were killed by Enforcers."
Caitlyn froze for a second, then fell silent as well.
…
In Piltover's council chamber, Jayce sat with his brows tightly furrowed, a stack of papers he had written resting at his side.
Marcus stepped forward and handed him a shark-shaped grenade.
"I recovered this from one of the Firelights. It's made from the same material as the fragments found at the lab and outside the Hexgates."
Marcus paused, Silco's face and words flashing through his mind, then continued,
"I have reason to believe they're still planning more attacks."
Jayce studied the object in his hand. Just a few of these had been enough to cause the loss of the Hextech gemstone and the deaths of six Enforcers.
"How was a threat this serious overlooked for so long?" he demanded angrily.
"After the Hexgates were completed, the fissures stopped being a priority…"
"We can discuss that later. Right now, the urgent thing is preventing another attack." Jayce cut him off and gave the order.
"You mean we'd have to search everyone crossing the bridge?" Marcus raised a brow, sounding almost incredulous.
"But how is that even possible?"
"That's how it'll be done." Jayce's expression was grim. "This city must be protected."
Marcus's face was full of displeasure, but he still obediently turned to leave.
Just before stepping through the door, he turned back and asked,
"One more thing. I found out Miss Caitlyn Kiramman released two prisoners under your orders."
"Is there anything you need me to assist with?"
Jayce paused, but in the end, he chose to trust his friend and answered calmly, "No. There isn't. We've already arranged everything."
After the door shut, Jayce stared up at the vaulted ceiling of the chamber, lost in thought.
Viktor was his closest friend. Years ago, when Jayce had been expelled from the Academy over the Hexcore, Viktor had taken a risk and completed the experiment with him.
The two of them had created the Hexgates together, and that achievement had made Jayce famous.
And Viktor had remained in the shadows, never sharing in the fame or the public praise.
Now Viktor's condition was getting worse and worse. Not long ago, he had coughed up blood and collapsed in the lab.
The doctors had already given their diagnosis: he only had a few days left.
The Hexcore was his only hope of surviving. If they used the healing magic formed through adaptive runes, maybe he could recover.
However, their mentor, Heimerdinger, was vehemently opposed and had insisted it had to be destroyed.
His reason was the experience he had gained over his impossibly long life.
For the sake of his brother's life, Jayce had no choice but to move to oust Heimerdinger at the upcoming meeting.
The Father of Piltover. The teacher who had guided and taught him. The yordle wholly devoted to science.
Jayce's position as the representative of House Talis and a new councilor had only been possible because of Heimerdinger's strong support.
"I hope you can forgive me, Professor…" Jayce closed his eyes and murmured.
He also understood that the other councilors all had business ties with him, and Mel, the most influential among them, firmly backed him.
So if he truly spoke those cutting words aloud, that kindly little old man would really be leaving the council forever.
…
"So by following that guy, you really did find Vi and that Enforcer?" Silco leaned back in his plush chair and looked at Sevika.
Sevika crudely wrapped her ruined chemtech arm and replied, "Yeah. He didn't even bother hiding where he was going. They're all at that abandoned old home."
"Any word from Jinx?" Compared to Vi and some topsider councilor's daughter, Silco cared far more about the little lunatic who painted graffiti on his things.
"She disappeared after running out. The whole city is watching. The second there's the slightest movement, we'll know."
"Do you really think that man, Caleb, can help you make Zaun independent?"
This wasn't the first time Sevika had voiced her doubts, and she didn't need to humble herself to do it.
"He deliberately avoided Jinx. He knew I care about her." Silco let out a slow breath.
"He sees right through me, right through you, even right through Jinx." Silco picked up his cigar, and Sevika lit it for him without a word.
"It's as if every important moment in our lives, he was standing off to the side, watching coldly."
The smoke slowly drifted away, but Silco's doubts did not. "Make sure Jinx stays safe. We still have business left to do with him."
…
"Chicken soup's here." Caleb pushed the door open carrying a crock of chicken soup. Counting everything hanging from both arms, it was practically a feast by Undercity standards.
"I'm starving." Vi rudely ripped the lid off, filled herself a bowl, and started wolfing it down.
"Nobody followed you, right?" Caitlyn watched the area outside through the crack in the door.
Other than the occasional rustling sound, everything around the house was completely still. There was no sign of anyone.
"There were. When you walk around like a rich guy, of course people take notice." Caleb pressed down on Vi's hand just as she reached for the whole chicken, then went on.
"Where are they?" Caitlyn sat down with the food. Her eyesight was excellent even in the dark, but she genuinely hadn't seen any enemies.
"My friend took care of them." Caleb stuffed food into his mouth and mumbled the answer.
"Your friend's really something." Vi laughed and punched Caleb lightly, nearly making him spit his food out.
"Pretty impressive, having that much influence in the Lanes," Caitlyn said as she accepted a bowl and began eating too.