Hey Guys! This is just a short one-shot that I came up with. I've always thought about the unique interactions that Caitlyn and Jhin could have if he was ever interrogated. I wrote how I thought the whole scenario would go down. Enjoy!
Edit: This one-shot once stood alone when I first wrote this after being inspired by Jhin's release trailer way back in 2016. Cringey me thought the dude was sooooooo fire that I wanted to put out this hot garbage as fast as I could (emo me also thought it was a great idea to grow out bangs lol).
Anyways, with Pawns now in the works, I've decided to try and build an actual working universe within these two stories (maybe more if I can find the motivation to write another, as well as the will to live).
I'm gonna be like Allah when he first created the cosmos, only better lol.
10 Minutes
"One, two, three, four, two, two, three, four…"
Caitlyn and Vi watched the masked man curiously as he continued his obsessive counting sequence since he arrived this morning. A white robe of sorts was draped over his body, but that was barely visible with the chains linked around his body. His hands, however were secured to the table with handcuffs. The ornate, silver mask, he wore only produced two soulless, black holes where his eyes were.
"What a nutjob," Vi remarked nonchalantly. She was met with a look from her partner, which she put both hands up.
"Okay, okay… remaining professional, Cait," which caused the man to let out a chuckle.
"My, my… what an uncoordinated duo…" His voice was deep, and raspy. With a hint of malice.
Rather than rising to the bait, Caitlyn pulled out her chair and sat across from him. She motioned for Vi to do the same. A myriad of armed guards stood outside preventing anyone from getting in. Or out.
"Name?" she asked the man, who let out another chuckle.
"I go by many. The Golden Demon. The Tainted Ionian. The Virtuoso. But I am commonly addressed as Khada Jhin. And you are?"
"Caitlyn." She replied with a smirk. "And I'll be asking the questions, thank you."
"Ah yes, Caitlyn... the Sheriff of Piltover," Jhin chuckled. "Why ask the questions when you already know so much about my name? You have heard of me, yes?"
Caitlyn hardened her eyes as she recalled the first time the legendary Golden Demon's identity was revealed.
"Khada Jhin?" a young Caitlyn asked her guide as the duo trekked through the dense Ionian forests.
"While you are here in Ionia as part of the Piltover-Ionia police exercise, you must be aware of the infamous criminals who have desecrated these peaceful lands. It is your duty as the future Piltover sheriff to maintain the peace for the duration of your stay," her guide remarked as the duo trekked further up the hills.
He continued. "The most infamous of them all include the Golden Demo, Khada Jhin." He held out his hand to bring them both to a stop. There, they gazed at the landscape before them.
Hundreds of animals laid mutilated. Cattle, horses, livestock. Several human corpses littered the fields as well. Caitlyn strained to hold back the vomit rising to her throat.
"Names can induce fear, Caitlyn. The shadow master Zed, and the fox spirit Ahri are good examples. But few produce the same amount of panic as Khada Jhin.
Caitlyn stared deep Jhin's black pits as she experienced her flashback. Vi spoke up, seeking to reassure her partner.
"I've heard your name before. A few years back when I worked with my gang, I came across your bounty poster. A 200 million bounty on your head for the murders of 237 Ionian civilians."
"What year was this?" Jhin interjected.
"20 CLE, I believe."
"239," he spat, as if he was insulted. "I killed 239. And their corpses made a fine addition to my grand masterpiece."
"Appalling as it is impressive," Vi remarked. "But back to business, we need information. And if you're not ready to give it up, we're gonna have to beat it out of you."
"Agreed. So what would you like to know? I overheard that you only have 10 minutes with me until I am returned to Ionia. And you've already used up 5..."
"Why? Why do you kill so many?" Caitlyn asked quietly, but was shaking with rage. "These statistics say at least a thousand humans alone have lost their lives to you. What did those innocent people do to deserve their deaths!?" Her fear all, but gone and replaced with sheer anger.
"Art."
Vi suddenly slammed both arms on the table, furious at the incredulous explanation.
"Art?!" Vi glared deep into the empty sockets of Jhin's mask with her own cold eyes. "Children were left orphaned, homesteads were destroyed, lives ruined... All. For. Art?!"
"Quite simple, isn't it? My goal is to create the most beautiful masterpieces, however nothing is as beautiful as the few last moments before death. As each man or women takes their last breath, perhaps experiencing their life flash before their eyes, true beauty arises as their essence escapes their body, like each flower petal drops when its source dies.
"Shut up! You're insane!" Caitlyn shouted, shocked by his words and logic.
Jhin grinned underneath his mask. They were playing into his plan. "Am I? There is so much beauty in death. As the life leaves the body, who knows what emotions the mind may conjure? Peacefulness? Fear? Regret? The several thousand lives that I have already taken have all experienced this sense of… euphoria…"
"Enough!" Vi shouted, smashing the table in half. Inadvertently, she had also broke the handcuffs that chained the murderer to the table.
Jhin chuckled lowly as the chains fell off his body one by one. "That was a mistake on your part, and now I am free…"
"I may not be as well versed as my fellow Ionians, but…" Jhin held out his hand and closed his fingers into his palm. A purple-coloured shroud enveloped his body.
"He's a magic-sensitive?!" Caitlyn asked this time. "Requesting immediate support in Room A-2140!" The officers standing guard outside came filing into the room, rifles in hand. Vi retrieved her gauntlets from one and began calibrating them.
"More lives to claim… I wonder what type of emotions will go through your heads during your last few seconds?" Jhin simply stood at ease with his arms behind his back.
"Ionia won't be happy with your behavior." Caitlyn spat with her rifle in hand. "You have 10 seconds to get on your knees with both hands on your head, or things will get messy."
"I also wonder about that?" he asked aloud as a menacing rifle was assembled by the Ionian before their eyes.
"A rifle?!" one officer asked. "How did he sneak that into the interrogation room? Who did the security checks?"
"That thing looks a lot more powerful than any rifle I've ever seen…" Caitlyn thought to herself.
"Listen closely, Sheriff. Enforcer. You lot." Jhin spat coldly. "Young, innocent, and naive, all of you. I wonder how deep your heads must be in the ground for you to all not notice the games that are being played right now. But then again, that leaves another question to be answered. With your heads already there, I must ask: How deep are you all willing to look down the rabbit-hole? Can you handle the truth when it goes against everything you believe in?
While the officers were left confused at the message, the detective mindset that Caitlyn and Vi developed deduced the truth, leaving them both with mouths wide agape.
"The Ionian Council..." Caitlyn murmured, thinking back on how Jhin was received earlier this week. "He wasn't here to be interrogated at all..."
"They planned to unleash him in Piltover…" Vi finished.
The Piltover police force, now realizing what their superiors were implying, opened fire on the prisoner.
"One…" Jhin spoke forebodingly as the concussive blast from just a single shot sent several officers flying back.
"Two…" Jhin fired another shot, completely annihilating another platoon of officers.. Bullets. Explosives. Advanced hextech weaponry. Nothing seemed to be able to penetrate the purple shroud protecting the maniacal rifleman.
"Guys! Remember he's magically sensitive!" Caitlyn shouted to her comrades. "Bullets don't work on him!"
"Three…"
"Neither does anything else, but we have to try something!" her next-in command responded.
"All charged up!" Vi pounded her gauntlets together. They were finally calibrated as she began running down the masked man.
Caitlyn suddenly recalled Jhin's odd counting habit he did awaiting his interrogation.
"Vi! Wait!"
"Four…"
The building erupted in an enormous explosion as Caitlyn was tackled down by Vi herself. After what felt like several hours, she sat up groggily to see the entire holding wing in flames. Her ears rang as the fires threatened to swallow the entirety of the Piltover Police Department Not a single officer in the vicinity of the blast survived and her own partner laid unconscious beside her with serious injuries.
"Thank God your blast shield was fully charged, Vi…" she spoke to no one in particular. Standing across the room was the dreaded assassin with the silver mask. An entire section of the wall had collapsed, leaving the man with an opportunity to escape. He made no move, but a chuckle escaped him as the flames raged on beside her.
"It was a pleasure meeting you, Caitlyn. I will spare you and your partner as I have had enough fun for today. Although, please tell her not to rush in so recklessly the next time we battle." He began to turn around, and walk towards the gaping hole to the outside when Caitlyn's growl caught his attention.
"I swear… one day I will bring you to justice, Khada Jhin."
"Is that so? Only one person ever has accomplished that feat, and now he is dead. If you are unable to keep to stay true to your word, Piltover isn't the only nation in danger. This is your burden to bear. Ta-Ta."
With that he was gone.
Caitlyn let out a sigh before pulling out her transponder.
"Jayce."
"My God, Caitlyn! Are you alright? I saw an explosion at the Police department and I'm driving there right now!" Jayce responded worriedly.
"Never mind that. We are starting a manhunt for Khada Jhin. Get me Camille and Ezreal. We're taking him down."
Jayce let out his sigh. "Understood. Over." He cut the communications after that, leaving Caitlyn leaning against a wall, the building burning down around her.
Jhin was different from Jinx. This man truly was evil. Caitlyn wasn't sure who would stand as the victor when the dust settled, but her resolve to Justice was simply too strong for her to back down.
A/N: Remember guys, Pawns is still the main girl of my League of Legends works. This one-shot is just a side-chick lmao.