A/N- Hey bbs I have returned. I hope you enjoy this chapter. Also I must warn, there is some mention of how Caitlyn had been attacked when she became pregnant with Dakota. So if you are uncomfortable with that kind of thing I would take your time and possibly move to the next segment. Also prepare for the feels. It's gonna hit you like a train...I hope. Enjoy ^_^
She shoots into an upright position. Her raven black hair is plastered to the back of her neck with damp sweat. Her breathing is laboured and hard to control as the dream triggers the anxiety attack. Her icy eyes are widened with fear as she inspects the unfamiliar room. She brings her knees to her chest wrapping her long pale arms around her shins. She presses her forehead into her knee caps as she focuses on her wild breathing.
One, two, three, four, five ,six, inhale.
Hold.
One, two, three, four, five, six, exhale.
Her beating heart begins to slow as she concentrates on controlling herself. She takes shaky deep breaths and collects her thoughts.
First things first, where the hell was she?
The room is a tiny square of egg white high ceilinged walls. There's a wide bay window that overlooks the Piltover city skyline. The mid afternoon sun streams through the lace curtain that blows from an autumn wind.
OK, so she's somewhere in Piltover.
Her eyes dart to the rest of the room. She sees her armor piled onto an Ionian fir dresser. Her eyes flick to her dirty boots that stand at the base of the dresser.
She looks to herself.
She is placed in a rather comfortable queen sized bed that takes up half of the room. She's wearing her usual cotton long sleeved black shirt, that goes underneath her armour. It's soaked in her night terror sweat. She pushes the white duvet off of her body and looks to the black denim pants. She wiggles her bare feet, wondering where her favorite pair of socks went.
She was still in her armour gear. Someone must have helped her into the bed.
She tries to recollect what had happened last night, but the memories were fuzzy. Her right hands travels through her bangs, letting the hair slip through her fingers.
Zaun, she was in Zaun.
She swings her legs over the side of the bed and places her feet onto the hardwood floor.
She carefully approaches the door, turning the brass doorknob. She opens the heavy door just a crack to catch any sights or sounds that might help her figure out where she was. The smell of oil, tea and cleaning supplies hit her nose, with the slight hint of bacon. She peers through the crack seeing a long hallway. Soundlessly she pulls the rest of the door back and looks on the left hand side of the short hallway.
Two doors open up to a rather modern looking bathroom and a large master bedroom with a comfy looking queen sized bed, with a grey comforter and massive body pillows. Beside the bedroom was a closed door, where the sounds of hammers and drilling escaped from underneath the door. She quietly padded to the opening of the hallway and entered into a massive open living room that led out to a turned her head to the kitchen where Abbie and the sheriff looked like they were having a serious conversation.
Abbie's tall lean body, was resting against the black granite countertop. Her tawny arms were crossed over her chest. Her white v-neck T-shirt had a speck of blood on her neck line. Her fiery hair was tied up into a tight bun. Her face was in an expression of short fused anger. Her hand cupped the side of her face as she rubbed her temples.
The sheriff was seated at a small kitchen table. Her long legs were crossed over each other. Her pale lithe hands were placed on her thighs. She sat with a well practiced posture. Her small shoulders were held back and her chin was tipped up slightly as she stared Abbie down. Both their heads turned as Dakota stepped on a squeaky floorboard by the entrance of the short hallway.
Caitlyn stood up slowly from the kitchen chair and flattened the bottom of her purple dress. Her icy eyes softened at the confused state that was Dakota's face.
Caitlyn observed the shadows under her eyes that defined the tiredness in her face. A confused frown was placed on her lips as she looked around. She was covered in sweat, and the ends of her hair were plastered to the back of her neck. She padded closer toward the two women as she reached behind herself and scratched the back of her neck. Her icy eyes locked to Caitlyn's, questions and demands lining her optics. Her pupils contracted and dilated as she focused her confused gaze to Abbie's moving figure.
Abbie stood up straighter, her long arms held at her sides, her knuckles tucked into tight fists. Her jaw line was taut with anger and frustration, but her chocolate eyes were filled with sorrow and sadness, and lined with guilt. She brought one of her arms up to her shoulder hugging herself and looked away from Dakota.
Dakota quirked a curious eyebrow to her captain. She returned her questioning gaze to Caitlyn.
"Where am I?" Her voice was rough and husky from the drowsiness of waking up. Her high Piltovian accent becoming more prominent, but the Demacian side lilted in the shadows of her voice, waiting for her to be more alert.
Caitlyn gave a calming smile as she answered. "You are in my penthouse apartment, only a five minutes walk from town hall centre."
Dakota nodded taking in the information, letting her mind calculate and understand where she was located. Her eyes did a quick sweep of the kitchen, looking for potential threats, then relaxed, as none came in sight. She refocused back to Caitlyn. "For the life of me, I can't…" She swallowed the rising emotion of embarrassment. "I… what happened last night?" Her eyes quickly looked away. She developed a nervous chuckle. "I know I didn't go out on the town." A small lopsided grin went to her thin lips.
The tension in the room could've been cut by a knife. Dakota sensed it, and took a careful step back, her eyes flicking to Abbie. The air around Abbie was suffocated by rage and intensity. Her fists went into tighter balls,as her knuckles threatened to break through her skin. Her tawny arms were held in taut muscles that shook uncontrollably.
"Abbie?" Dakota sounded like a kick puppy as she watched her superior turn her back to Dakota. "What did I do?" Terror trembled in Dakota's voice, her eyes wide with fear of the unknown.
"You didn't do anything, Dakota." Abbie whispered. Even though her voice was quiet, it rang loud enough to make the hairs on Dakota's neck stand on end.
Something went wrong.
Her gut clenched, as the feeling of dread rippled through her abdomen.
Dakota's icy eyes turned into a blizzard. "Captain Preston!" Dakota's voice made Abbie's head snap up. "As your subordinate, you need to let me know what happened." Dakota warned. "I need to help with damage control for the rest of the unit, so you better tell me what happened."
Abbie turned on her heels. She stalked to Dakota, gripping the front of her shirt and pushing her up against the modern double door refrigerator. Jars and various other food stuffs rattled inside, as the two bodies crashed aggressively into the stainless steel face.
Chocolate and Ice glared sharper than daggers.
"Abbie!" Caitlyn warned. It fell to unlistening ears.
"Your idiot brother didn't make it out!" Abbie roared. "He couldn't let us get hurt, so he sacrificed himself so that we could get away!" Tears rolled down her cheeks. Anger and guilt lined her weakening throat.
Dakota's eyes widened.
Her heart froze.
Dakota pushed Abbie away, her strong arms making the older girl tumble onto the hardwood floor.
Dakota fell to her knees as the memories came flooding back.
She was running up flights of stairs, a messenger bag slapping against her hip as she took two stairs at a time. Alex screaming at her to keep going and to not look back. The smell of Matais's crystal shards being used to hold back the acolytes. Elric and Abbie had pushed them back far enough, so that they could follow the rest of their group.
Elric was being attacked and she had helped him take one out.
She remembered him grabbing her roughly and throwing her to Abbie.
He got pinned down as rope enclosed his neck. He was tackled and brought to his back. His sapphire eyes widened in fear. "Get out of here!" He had bellowed.
Dakota could've helped him. She would've taken everyone of them down.
Abbie. Dakota snarled in her thoughts.
Abbie wouldn't let her. Abbie had tackled her to the ground.
Dakota stood menacingly over Abbie. Her face darkened with an emotionless state. Her icy eyes slitted and her nostrils flared.
Abbie didn't expect the speed or strength that Dakota possessed as she grabbed her throat. She dragged Abbie to her feet and pinned her against a wall across from the fingers dug into Abbie's windpipe cutting off the air supply. Caitlyn rushed to Abbie's aid, but was swatted by Dakota, pushing her away from the two soldiers.
Abbie clawed at Dakota's pale arms, that shook violently.
"You could have let me save him." Dakota spat, her teeth bared in a snarl. She brought her free fist up and slammed it into Abbie's abdomen, making her target jerk and sputter for air.
"Vi!" Caitlyn screamed, as she brought herself back to her feet. Desperation and urgency laced through her panicked scream. "Vi, get out here!"
Dakota could hear a door get kicked down. The enforcer rushed out from the small hallway, eyes wide as she witnessed Dakota choking the life out of Abbie. She pulled her goggles off her face and ripped a pair of leather work gloves off her calloused hands.
"You left him there!" Dakota growled, her icy eyes, turned into a winter storm of threatening rage and destruction. "I thought you loved him!"
Vi launched forward striking at Dakota's exposed elbow, making her grip loosen around Abbie's neck. Vi wrapped her muscular arms around Dakota's waist pulling the girl away from the redhead, who gasped and fought for air. Caitlyn rushed to the captain's side pulling her to her feet. She helped get Abbie out of Dakota's view pushing her into her personal bedroom leaving heavy oak to be the barrier between the two soldiers.
Vi held tightly to the kicking girl. Dakota writhed in her grip as she struggled to break free. Vi grunted, as one of the girl's heels connected into her shin. "Let go of me," She seethed, pressing her elbows into Vi's ribs.
"Not until you calm the hell down, kid." Vi huffed, tightening her grip around Dakota's waist ignoring the girl's flailing attempt to escape.
"She left him there to rot!" She bellowed. She threw her weight forward making Vi lose a bit of her footing. With a roar, she ripped her way out of Vi's grip and went to the floor, sweeping her leg so that she made Vi fall backward, cracking her head onto the counter.
Vi grunted and lunged for the girl wrapping her fingers in the black cotton of Dakota's shirt, dragging the girl back. Dakota clawed at the hard wood floor, trying to gain some kind of purchase as Vi dragged her back to her person. Dakota tried to kick at Vi, trying to get the brawler to let her go, but Vi took each impact, snarling and seething. A sob ripped through Dakota as her will to fight diminished as the brawler's arms collected the girl in her lap. Tears streaked through her cheeks.
"I could have saved him." She sobbed.
Vi closed her violet eyes and embraced the grieving teenager. Dakota curled into a ball and nuzzled her nose into Vi's pentakill tank top. "I know,kid." Vi sighed, rubbing the girl's back. "I know."
( 1 day later)
Sapphire blinked, and caught nothing but darkness.
The smell of dampness and mold struck his nose. The moisture in the air made it hard to breathe as he tried to recollect himself.
The shackles on his wrists were extraordinarily tight. He could feel the rawness of the biting metal and hissed as he pulled too hard. His ankles were free however.
He tried to get himself into a standing position with gritted teeth, as the metal shackles held his arms to ankle height. He returned back to his seating position and let his head rest up against the grimy wall.
Suddenly, with a screech of a thousand banshee wails, a large metal door opened, pooling the small room in light. Five acolytes dragged in a girl, who was obviously giving them a hard time. One of them bashed her head with a cane, making the girl snarl and free one of her arms. Her fist connected into the acolyte's head, making it take a step back. A syringe implanted itself into her thigh, as another follower of the machine herald, snickered evilly. The girl fell to her knees without the support of the others.
"You fuckers paralyzed me." There was a slight arrogant chortle coming from the girl. "I'll remember that."
A boot was pressed into the side of the girl's face as the four others worked at her wrists that were pulled behind her. They dragged her to her feet, and clamped heavy restraints around her ankles and forearms. They raised her captured wrists above her head and hammered a nail into a chain giving it a tight grip.
One of the acolytes have a playful slap to the side of the girl's face, earning a devious smile on the girl's full lips.
The five acolytes departed the room, slamming the screeching door firmly closed, and bringing the room back into to pitch black.
He heard an exasperated sigh and the sound of rustling chains. "You up yet, Blondie?" The girl asked through a snicker.
A small smile splayed on his lips. She sounded like Abbie. In the back of his mind he wondered if his unit had survived the onslaught. He wondered if his sister was okay and if her and Abbie were getting along.
"I asked you a fucking question." The girl snarled.
He was taken aback by the girl's rudeness.
"Cranky, are we?" He asked playfully.
He heard a snort across the room. "What do you expect, dumbass? You'll understand soon. Viktor wants to test on you. Apparently you are quite the fine specimen." There was a mock accent at the word specimen.
He wish he could get a better look at the feisty girl and see the mask of the arrogant character.
He chuckled darkly. "Seems to be my luck."
"Well, shit for brains, this is the worst piece of luck anyone could come by."
(1 hour later)
They had been looking for her.
She had a hunch, but it was only a hunch.
Vi and Alex had focused their search toward the lower city, and smuggling rings that take immigrants to and from Zaun. Abbie and Matais were on the hunt in the upper city, following any trail they could. It had led them to her missing armor, weapons and hextech from her room.
But how could you find a person that didn't want to be found?
She took a deep sigh as she stared at the wrought iron gates. Gargoyles guarded the massive stone walls, giving gnarly faces of sharp teeth and downward casted stone eyes. The rain pattered against the canvas material of her dark blue Piltover Police Department jacket. Her trusty rifle was strapped to her shoulder tightly. Her purple top hat replaced by the blue hood of the jacket, blocking off the rain from her raven black locks.
Her boots echoed off the stonewalls as they cascaded down the cobbled path. She nodded to the guard who let her in with a solemn look. She bowed her head in thanks and continued down the way.
Her eyes passed the names etched in stone. They were forgotten family names, taken away by plagues, murder, accidents or old age. Some had intricate designs carved into the immaculate stone, while others had begun to be grown over by the rigid vines and damp wild grass.
It didn't take her long to find her.
She stayed a few feet away, watching cautiously as the soldier pressed her fingers into the marble, following the curves of her family name. She was crouched low and pressed her forehead into the marble. She was in her battle attire. Her chest plate,greaves and arm guards darker then midnight itself. Her black combat boots were pressed into the muddy rain soaked earth. Her leather hood was pulled off showing her raven black bangs braided to the back of her head, keeping the hair out of the way of her icy eyes. Her axes hung from her belt, looking sharp and ready.
The sheriff took a careful step, alerting the soldier instantly of her presence.
With a flash of speed the girl rose and turned on her heels, her rough hands hovering over the safety latches of her axes. Her icy eyes hardened into a terrifying glare toward the sheriff.
"What are you doing here?" She asked suspiciously. Her eyes flicked to one of the stone walls, looking for an emergency escape.
Caitlyn gave a cool smile.
"Your unit is worried about you, they thought you left them." She stated crossing her arms over her chest.
Rain dribbled down Dakota's nose. In this weather, her icy eyes were icier than ever. The subtle blues and dark greys of the clouded sky, brightened them. In Caitlyn's mind, she wondered if her own icy eyes were this intense with the rain.
Dakota gave a snort. "I wouldn't leave them. I'm ..." She looked away from Caitlyn a sure sign of a lie being brought up from Dakota. "I'm going to the Demacian high lands, for a while."
Caitlyn raised an eyebrow to Dakota, an unamused look on her face. "You are a terrible liar, Master Corporal."
Dakota's spine went ramrod straight as her rank was uttered by the sheriff. Her jaw line went taut with frustration and she bit her lower lip in agitation. She sighed heavily.
"I'm bringing my brother home." She muttered. Her intense eyes then locked with Caitlyn's in a challenge. "And you can't stop me, sheriff."
A smile tugged at the sheriff's lips. How many times has she heard herself say those same words to her father, mother and even Vi?
Caitlyn regained control, and nodded at the information. "Who said I was going to stop you?"
Dakota blinked at the sheriff in shock.
Caitlyn reached into her jacket pocket and produced a set of keys. "Down the road is my black Z367 hexmobile. If it so much as gets the slightest scratch you won't have to worry about Viktor killing you." Caitlyn tossed the keys to Dakota who caught them without even blinking.
"Of course," Dakota blurted.
Caitlyn stepped off the path and gestured to Dakota." You better get going. I expect you back by midnight. If you do not return by then I am not risking your unit to come retrieve you."
"I understand, sheriff." The young master Corporal replied. "Thank you." Dakota flipped the hood of her leather under jacket. She lunged forward and sprinted down the path.
Caitlyn looked longingly at the headstone beside her. Her lithe fingers dragged along the marble, gliding by the stone etchings of the Sampson name. "By the gods, Sarah, I hope I made the right choice." She whispered to the grave stone.
(That night)
She rested against the black leather of the sleek hexmobile. It was a fast car, and Dakota couldn't get enough of it's speed. She knew she had blown past a few highway speed limits, without so much as a grunt from the hexmobile's high performance engine. She wondered if the sheriff was a speed demon, especially with this sleek car. She could picture the sheriff, with a wry grin and a bubbling laugh as her foot pressed against the accelerator, letting the hexmobile purr under her control.
Her eyes wandered to the large building in front of her, where the small figure of a guard was rested against the wall of the entrance, with arms crossed over their chest. Their face was covered by a metal mask, with engravings of facial features. She had been watching them for over five hours hours. Soon they would trade the guards like they did every hour, and that would be her ticket in.
She had parked in the shadows of some alleyway across from the brick building. This is where they were sent. A rumoured temporary laboratory owned by the machine herald himself.
Dakota gripped the steering wheel with white knuckles. She took a large breath and opened the car door quietly. She exited out of the vehicle seamlessly. She reached behind her and released the buckles that were holding her chest plate. She knelt low using the black door to give her a hiding spot as she took off the greaves and armguards. She looked to her belt with a frown. She would have to leave her precious axes behind with the plan she had. With a sigh, she undid the safety latches and took out the axes from the leather. She let her finger drift over the locking mechanism, thinking how terribly Caitlyn would skin her alive if her vehicle had been stolen. She made sure the other doors were also locked. She pocketed the key into the deep pockets of her black denim pants. She flipped the hood of her leather tunic letting it hide her features. She pulled the ends of the tunic over her weapons belt, ensuring that the hextech bugs and the combat knife were out of view. With a final deep breath, she silently closed the vehicle's door and strode along the city sidewalk.
Dakota hated Zaun. It was a rancid city, with garbage and constant smog lining the city streets. The feeling of being watched struck her instincts, most likely the unknown street orphans allowing their curiosity to pull them out of their hiding spot. Dakota stopped to let an electrocarriage pass the disgusting city street. She dug her hands into her pockets, as a cold fall breeze whipped through the cobbled pavement. She kept her head low as she approached the large brick building.
In her peripherals, she noticed the guard push off the wall, getting into a more intimidating position. She feigned to trip and barreled into the guard's shoulder, making a snarling grunt report from the guard's throat. They grabbed at her shoulders and threw her up against the wall. Dakota ducked under the guard's arm as they tried to strike her. She lashed out and swiped the metal mask off her assailant's face. She side stepped the guard and leaped forward bringing the guard out of their position as they chased after her.
Dakota now had the game tipped in her hand. She took a sharp turn into an unknown alleyway, the acolyte tight on her heels. She skidded to a halt and bent her knees. She turned her body toward the acolyte, letting the darkness of the pitch black alleyway to give her a final act of surprise as she grabbed the acolyte by the ducked under the acolyte's defending arm and came behind them. She wrapped her long arms around the follower's neck, using her height to her advantage. She pressed the crook of her elbow to push into the acolyte's windpipe, crushing it. She knelt low as she brought the follower to the grimy alleyway floor. The acolyte stopped struggling, letting death take over their body.
With icy eyes shut tight she waited, still applying pressure to ensure the acolyte was done. She dropped the body and set to work undressing the machine herald's follower. She slipped out of her leather tunic and into the soft cotton hooded jacket. She did the buttons all the way up to her left shoulder. She tightened the burgundy arm guards to her forearms and the black greaves to her shins. The material had a soft fabric like feel to them , but when she rapped her knuckles against the face of the material it had turned into a solid surface.
Now for the piece de resistance. She thought to herself.
The metal mask made her shiver as she placed it over her face. The eye pieces gave her icy eyes a steel like effect to them. She rose to her feet brushing the dust off of the cotton material. She looked to the unclothed body in front of her. The body was mangled with bits of metal in the appendages and sinews of muscle. The body was too mangled to tell the gender of the acolyte. She shrugged and dragged the body to the darkest of shadows in the alley. She jogged to the exit and walked slowly back to the guard's post in front of the door. She crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back against the wall, her icy eyes watching the street in front of her. It wasn't long until the wooden door, swung open, revealing a similarly dressed acolyte.
They nodded at her as she pushed off the wall, with a heavy sigh. She felt their hand clap against her shoulder, and a mechanical chortle escape from the acolyte.
"Get yourself some rest, young one." Came the chilling voice. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end, as the sound of hextech and metal reached her ear. She nodded slowly and watched as the new guard took up position against the wall. She pushed through the entrance, her heart pounding a hundred times a minute,as she effortlessly got into the laboratory building. She meandered along the hallways, trying to find the entrance to the stairway, that led to the underground lab. There she could find clues, or maybe even find her brother.
She swallowed hard as her thoughts went to Elric being strapped to a table, with scientists huddled around him and beginning his machine like transformation. Or he could just be another lifeless body.
Both of those thoughts made her shiver involuntarily. She took a left into another hallway, and came face to face with a group of acolytes.
"Ah perfect," The leader of the bunch grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her behind them. "We need another hand with one of the prisoners. It's time for his evolution."
She followed the acolytes, letting them lead her. In her mind she mapped out the pathway, trying to keep a good memory so she could escape easily. She had found that she was very close to the stairway. Her eyes caught the dents of concrete and scorch marks from the past mission along the walls. She gave a small smile from the inside of her mask.
They pushed through the final door, entering in the dark space. The damp smell hit Dakota's nose instantly. She held back the urge to cough out the possible mold spores going into her airway. They marched along the dimly lit hall, where massive metal doors lined the stone walls. At the very end of the hall was the green tinted laboratory. That would be her ticket.
The acolytes stopped at one of the massive metal doors. One of them grabbed the latch and with excessive force threw the door open.
One of the acolytes pulled out a hexlamp and shone it over the faces of the two prisoners as all of the acolytes entered into the damp cell. Dakota's heart stopped when she saw a head of blonde hair. Sapphire eyes looked dazedly at the acolytes around him.
She watched as one crouched low to him, a syringe held in their mechanical arm. "Your evolution begins today, young man!" The mechanical voice chuckled. "You will become more powerful. Try not to resist."
Dakota's fingers reached at her belt, as the acolyte dug the syringe into Elric's neck. With a flash of speed, she deployed one of the hextech bugs, giving a shrill whistle that made it explode into light. She turned to the door keeping her eyes closed from the blinding light, and closed it to prevent any of the acolytes from escaping. She grabbed at the combat knife at her belt, and lunged for the closest acolyte, plunging the knife into their abdomen, which was thankfully not yet mechanised. She dragged the knife up in a swift motion, gutting the acolyte. She dodged a kick from another, and attacked in response cutting the neck of the kicking follower. They fell to their knees.
Her next target ran full tilt at her. She got low, bending her knees to gather enough balance as the acolyte tried to ram into her. She grabbed at their shoulders using their momentum against them, swinging them to their oncoming ally. The two acolytes collided into the far wall. Dakota lunged forward. She grabbed the first acolyte by the throat and plunged the knife into the thigh of the other. She ducked out of the way from a strike and gave a swift uppercut to the stabbed acolyte's jaw. She turned her attention to the one with her hand wrapped around their neck. It was squishy still, nothing metallic or hard. She ripped the knife from the other acolyte's thigh, and plunged the knife into the jugular of the one she had been holding. Then with quick succession she tackled the other acolyte's to the ground. She straddled their waist and placed her knee into the acolyte's neck. She buried the knife into the eye hole of the mask, cutting into the brain matter behind the acolyte's eye.
She got up quickly rushing over to her brother. She knelt to him placing her bloodied hands to his cheeks. He blinked at her trying to recognize who might have saved him, but whatever they had put into him, gave him bleary eyes. He watched as the acolyte removed the metal mask revealing the face of his sister.
"Dakota?" He asked surprisingly. "What the hell are you doing here?" His voice was getting super groggy as the sedative coursed through his veins.
"Your girlfriend here, is saving your ass."
The voice made Dakota spin on her heels. Her knife was drawn and ready to kill whoever had sneaked up on her. The source of the voice gave an appreciative wolf whistle as the prisoner got a better look at the acolyte killer.
"She's cute too." A wry grin spread through full lips.
"She's my sister, you slime." Elric's voice broke at the last syllable as his voice got groggier and groggier with sleep.
"Yeah, yeah, Blondie." The girl snorted. She was chained heavily to the wall. She was shirtless, and the only thing covering her abdomen was a blue sports bra. She had a slim figure, but had lean muscle surrounding her body. The girl's hair was tied into a messy ponytail, with strands of her lavender hair plastered to her neck with sweat. Her legs were covered in a pair of loose fitting green scrubs, that clung to her angular hip bones. She was close to Dakota's height, but she was at least an inch and a half shorter than the Piltovian soldier. "You two don't even look alike."
"He's not lying." Dakota sighed as she crouched back to her sleeping brother. Without so much as a warning, her open palm connected to Elric's jaw, making a wicked slap echo in the cell. Elric's eyes jumped open in minor panic.
"Ow, what the fuck, Dakota?" Elric complained sleepily.
"I need you to stay awake, El." She muttered as she grabbed at the two other hextech bugs on her belt.
"And a cute accent too."
"Stop flirting with her," Elric called out grumpily as he pouted his lips.
Dakota rolled her eyes at the banter and gave out low whistles of command, making the hextech bugs whirr and click in response. They flew over to the shackles by Elric's wrists and began using the custom made lasers to cut at the metal. Dakota smiled in pride. It had taken her two months to perfect the coding, wiring, crystal energy coefficients and metal crafting to get her bugs to perform the way they do. Now if only she could get a tracking mechanism to...
She couldn't ponder about this now. She has to rescue her brother first.
Dakota got her brother to his feet. She ducked under his arm, trying to support him from falling back down. Dakota growled with frustration. If only she had been a second faster she could have stopped them from administering the sedative. This was going to be impossible to escape, especially if they had to fight their way out.
She placed Elric back on the cold cell floor and strode over to the chained girl. She was inches away from her face. Ice blue and emerald green held contact.
"Will you help us escape, if I let you free?"
The girl gave a devilish sideways grin. "Didn't anyone tell you not to trust anyone."
Dakota snorted and gave out a harsh whistle. Her bugs flew over and set to work at the chains and cuffs.
"I will promise you safe passage to wherever you call home. I have a hexmobile waiting outside. So if you want to escape, you have to help us." Dakota warned.
The girl chuckled. "Sure thing. I'll accept those terms."
"Good," Dakota nodded as her bugs did the final cut releasing the girl from the wall. Dakota helped catch the girl before she could fall to the cold floor. She noticed the black numerals tattooed to the girl's shoulder, depicting which unit she belonged to. Dakota had seen many tattoos like these on the battlefields between the Noxians and Demacians. "You're Noxian." Dakota stated evenly helping the girl get to her feet.
The girl looked up sharply, her emerald eyes cutting into Dakota's wintery eyes. "Is that a problem?" She asked with bared teeth, her fists clenched and prepared to fight.
Dakota gave a gentle laugh. "Nope, just means I can rely on your strength to carry my brother while I fight."
The girl was taken aback. Not many react to Noxians lightly.
"Illya." She blurted out.
"Hmm?"
"My name's Illya."
Dakota gave a small smile. "Dakota." She resisted the urge to shake the Noxian's hand. She strode over to her brother's side and hefted him up from his shoulders. "Now if you wouldn't mind, my lug of a brother needs to be carried out of here."
Illya chuckled and strode over a little unsteadily to the blonde man. "C'mon Blondie, time to get ya home!"
(while Dakota is busting Illya and Elric from Viktor's lab)
A knock on the door caught her ears. She gently placed the book down by the coffee table, careful not to spill the warm tea in a nearby purple mug. She brought herself up off the leather armchair. She had finished work early and to the stubborn request of a certain enforcer, she was forced to take the rest of the night off, while Vi was out busting criminal skulls.
"Yeah Yeah Cupcake, I'll keep them out of the hospitals." Vi had chuckled, dropping Caitlyn off at their shared apartment. "I'll keep the damage to a minimum, now go inside, make yerself some tea and read that damned book you've been wantin' to read."
Caitlyn shook her head from the not so distant memory. She rushed over to the door, and peered through the porthole, seeing a familiar blonde head peer back through the glass. Caitlyn rolled her eyes and opened the door to the prodigal explorer. "Good evening, Ezreal." She raised a questioning eyebrow to the blonde man. "Why in the void are you knocking on my door two hours before midnight?"
Ezreal gave a sheepish grin and scratched the back of his head. "Needed to talk to ya." He muttered out, looking behind him. "About that girl in your office the other day."
If Caitlyn was a cat, her fur would have bristled. Her icy eyes hardened toward Ezreal, making the explorer shrink. Caitlyn loomed over the explorer.
"And what pray tell do you think you have any business in that matter?" She asked evenly, her lithe hand gripping the knob of the door with white knuckles.
"Curiosity?" He squeaked.
Caitlyn's face fell in an unimpressed expression. She began to close the door, but Ezreal put his foot and the door.
"Wait, Cait." Ezreal grunted, trying to get the sheriff to hear him out. "Hold on, by the void."
Caitlyn rolled her eyes in agitation, and opened the door to let the explorer in.
Ezreal brushed invisible dust off his shirt front and entered into the penthouse apartment. He bent down to pull the laces of his boots and stepped out of the dusty leather. He carefully placed them by the coat rack and went to the kitchen, where Caitlyn was most likely getting a mug of tea ready for him. He sat at the tall island in the center of the kitchen, only a few short meters away from the round kitchen table. He hopped onto one of the tall bar stools and watched Caitlyn's back as she methodically took the screaming kettle and poured the hot water into a forest green mug, his favorite one that she had reminded him of the voodoo forests, on of his new obsessions and he couldb't help himself from continually thinking about them and their undiscovered treasures.
Caitlyn was in a comfy looking long sleeved grey and purple baseball t-shirt, and a pair of dark blue boxers that were most likely Vi's. Ezreal smirked at the thought of the pink haired enforcer and the sheriff's relationship. He loved the two together. They had opposing personalities but you know what they say about opposites.
They always attract.
Caitlyn turned to Ezreal with the mug in hand and passed it over to him. He took a sip a made a sound of content as the warm liquid took the cool edge of fall out of his body. Caitlyn had made the tea in perfection, using the right amount of honey, to take the bitterness out of the Piltovian grey tea.
"Thank you," He murmured happily. He placed the mug down carefully and watched as Cait put both of her hands on the counter and leaned against them for support. "So, who is she to you? A lost sister?" He asked.
Caitlyn looked away from Ezreal. She bit her lip as she thought about the consequences of coming clean to Ezreal. She had never told anyone about Dakota.
Not even Vi.
"No not a lost sister." She had whispered, her fingers clenched the marble counter.
"She looks so much like you," Ezreal stated wonderingly.
Caitlyn snorted. Her anger was starting to get the best of her, she had to control herself. She had to be professional.
"Look, Cait. I'm your friend. Whatever it is, whoever she is, I just want you to know that I will never say anything. I understand that family has it's quarrels, but you know as much as me that curiosity needs to be sated or it drives us nuts." He took another sip of his tea and hummed happily.
"This situation has been kept secret for a very long time Ezreal. If I hear you utter a single word about this to anyone, you will regret it." She warned, her eyes sharpening into icy shards, making Ezreal nod quickly.
Caitlyn took a shaky breath.
"I don't even know how to start." She admitted.
Ezreal watched as Caitlyn scratched the back of her neck, a gesture she had picked up from Vi.
"When I was thirteen, I was attacked by a lower city man, who was mad about the law my father and his fellow statesmen had emplaced on the smuggling rings." She took another shaky breath. "I was found in the alley beside my school, unconscious and unclothed the day after. My parents had urged the authorities to keep the incident quiet. A month later, during a checkup with my family doctor, at the time, we had learned that I had been impregnated." Caitlyn took a second to wipe the tears from her cheeks. She had come to terms with herself about the incident, but she was opening old wounds. She could still remember the way the man smelled, the way he laughed. She shuddered involuntarily.
Ezreal looked to Cait in horror. "Cait, I," He placed a hand on her rubbing his thumb soothingly over the back of her fingers. "I had no idea, you don't need to continue, it's none of my business." He hated himself now. Gods damned curiosity.
Caitlyn's tugged up in a small smile. She wiped the rest of her tears with the back of her hand. "No it's ok, Ezreal, honestly. I haven't gotten the chance to tell Vi yet. Infact you are the first person I have ever told."
Ezreal jumped off the stool and strode over to Caitlyn wrapping his skinny arms around her shoulders and embracing the sheriff.
"She's my daughter, Ezreal." She whispered quietly. "My parents wouldn't allow me to keep her. I understand completely, but I wish things were different. 's wife had just lost their unborn the same day the incident happened. I had convinced my parents that we should discuss with the Sampson's about taking the baby, rather than terminating it. My mother was all for the idea, but my father wanted the baby to be terminated. Thankfully Eli and Sarah accepted our offer, and they raised her. I never got to actually meet her until she was two. Sarah was very lenient in letting me visit and to be there during important times of her life. I'm glad they raised her."
"The Sampson's were always a courteous and kind family. It's a shame that the good Doctor and his wife passed." Ezreal frowned. "They funded the museum and helped out with the charity balls. There needs to be more people like them."
"They live in their children now. You should see their son, Elric. He resembles Eli so much." Caitlyn gave a chuckle. "With looks and his witt. You know he's Eli's son."
"What's her name?" Ezreal asked leaning up against the stove. His lake blue eyes brimming with curiosity.
"Dakota Sampson." She gave a wide prideful smile toward Ezreal, her icy eyes softening with unconditional love.
Ezreal beamed. "Dakota is just a beautiful as you. The resemblance is uncanny."
Ezreal reached for his mug from the island counter and took a quick sip. "I take it she has no idea who her biological family is, does she?"
Caitlyn shook her head. "No, not even a hint."
"Do you plan on telling her?" Ezreal asks.
"Sarah and I have discussed that eighteen would be a key time, to know who she really is."
Ezreal nodded.
"She has your freaky eyes. " He mentioned from behind his mug. Caitlyn glared at him. "Yeah those ones!"
(As Ezreal and Caitlyn are discussing budget cuts)
She was stupid.
She had made a stupid move.
"You're a fucking idiot!" She heard for the thousandth time from the Noxian in the backseat.
"I know!" Dakota barked out angrily, holding her abdomen and applying pressure to the bullet wound. Elric had his fingers pressed onto the wound on her right shoulder with heavy amounts of gauze. Her foot was pressed against the gas pedal, taking the vehicle speeding down the highway out of Zaun province. She growled loudly as Elric tried to take her arm away from the steering wheel. "Do you want us to crash?"
"Do you want to bleed out!" The sedative was finally wearing off, making Elric more alert.
"My shoulder's fine. It's my damn liver that I'm worried about!" She snarled pressing her left hand firmly on the cotton, gauze trying to keep her breathing even, trying not to disturb the bullet farther. Elric's fingers then moved to her abdomen taking the rest of the gauze from the first aid kit he found underneath his seat. He brushed her left hand away, and applied pressure to the wound making her hiss. She swerved out of the way of a vehicle and took the next exit toward Piltover.
"I repeat, you're a fucking idiot!" Illya yelled keeping her eyes behind them making sure they weren't being chased.
"I swear to the gods if you say that one more time I am kicking you out of this speeding car!' Dakota snarled flicking an icy glare to the rearview mirror. "You're lucky I took the fucking shot for you. They were aiming for your head."
"Then you should have left me behind." Illya snarled back.
"I promised you safe passage." Dakota muttered.
"Out of all the callous bullshit I have heard in my life, that really takes the fucking cake."
Dakota faught the urge to turn her head backward to the Noxian and argue further. Her head started to get fuzzy as the loss of extreme amounts of blood was getting to her.
"We need to get you to a hospital, Dakota." Elric whispered calmly as he kept pressure on her abdomen.
"Can't." She mumbled, her vision fading slightly at the edges. "Cait didn...authorize...this." Now she was having trouble with her words she released some pressure off the accelerator. She shook her head to keep herself conscious. She took a right, then a speedy left, as they approached Caitlyn's apartment building. She drove onto the sidewalk leading up to the entrance. She put the hexmobile in park and leaned back against the leather head rest. "Penthouse four, El." She mumbled to her brother. She felt his hand grab hers to place on her abdomen. She heard the passenger door open then close.
"Get out and help me!" She could hear him roar.
The back seat passenger groaned and opened then closed angrily.
She felt the door beside her open. She reached for the keys in the ignition, turning off the car. She ripped the keys out and pocketed them.
Elric's arm went around her shoulder and legs as she carried her out of the car. His eyes swept the perimeter as he stepped back. Illya closed the hexmobile's door firmly and followed Elric as he rushed to the front entrance. His eyes caught the familiar mop of pink hair strutting up to the door.
"Vi!" He barked out as he struggled with Dakota. The sedatives the acolytes gave him, had weakened him slightly.
The pinkette snapped her head to his voice, her face turning pale as she looked to the dying girl in his arms. Vi sprinted forward and grabbed the girl before Elric collapsed. Illya grabbed the back of his shirt, to stop him from falling forward. Illya ducked under Elric's arm and supported him as she followed Vi toward the building.
"Bloody fuck!" Vi yelled as she rushed. "Cait was right, she would go after you. C'mon we gotta get her some medical aid. What happened?" She asked behind her as she pushed through the doors and toward the elevators. She nodded to the pale faced concierge. "Hey Declan. Don't worry everything will be handled, just get the elevator to us please! You didn't see us!" Vi barked as she entered the elevator followed by Illya and Elric.
"We got out of the lab, until this dumbass, high on sedatives screamed a massive fuck you to Viktor. One of the guards at the top of the building was armed with a gun and tried to take me out, while dumbass number two in your arms over there, pushed me out of the way and took a shot to the shoulder and her stomach. Fucking idiot."
Vi raised an eye to the girl. "And who the hell are you?"
Illya grinned. "Wouldn't you like to know."
Illya watched as Dakota raised her head groggily and lifted her middle finger up to Illya. "That's...Illya." Dakota mumbled. With a loud ding, the elevator doors opened revealing the front door to the sheriff's and the enforcer's apartment.
Vi pushed against the door roughly, to have it not budge open. "Damnit Caitlyn! Open the door!" Vi roared through the hard wood oak door.
Vi was surprised to see Ezreal at the entrance. "Move for Valoran's sake, pip squeak, get the kitchen counter clear so I can put her down!" Vi ordered. She pushed into her apartment and watched Ezreal move cutting boards and a tea pot and kettle out of the way. Vi placed Dakota carefully on the marble surface and ventured to the bathroom. She ran into Caitlyn as she turned to get to the small hallway. Caitlyn looked over Vi's shoulder and shrieked. Her icy eyes widened with shock. She cupped her hands over her mouth to smother the scream. Ezreal's head snapped to Caitlyn watching the way she reacted, to finding her daughter shot.
Vi took Caitlyn's shoulder. "Cupcake, you gotta calm down. She's injured and needs you to pull out the bullet. She needs you to have a clear head. Don't let her down. She tipped her chin and kissed her lips to get Caitlyn focused. "I'm getting the kit, get her prepped." Vi ordered with determined violet eyes.
Caitlyn nodded and rolled up the sleeves to her baseball t-shirt and set off toward Dakota. Her lithe hands, moved to the buttons on her left shoulder and began to undo them. She pulled the heavy jacket off of Dakota. She grabbed a tea towel and instantly applied it to her bare abdomen. Dakota's breathing began to pick up, her eyes now opening wide. Shock was starting to kick in. Dakota had lifted her head toward Caitlyn with wide icy eyes. "I got blood on your leather." She mumbled with a frown. "I'm sorry."
Caitlyn looked up to the ceiling trying to hold back the laugh that wanted to erupt out of her throat. Vi then came up behind her and placed the med kit beside Caitlyn. She had done this countless times with Vi after her encounters with jinx. But Vi was Vi, Dakota was, not Vi.
She took a steadying breath. "The emergency sedative I have won't take effect by the time I start to work." Her eyes caught Vi's and Ezreal's. "I need you two to hold her down." The two of them nodded. Vi went to Dakota's feet and pressed her strong hands against her thighs. Ezreal carefully placed his hands along her shoulders, putting his weight against hers. She caught Elric leaning up against the wall watching over them like a hawk. "Elric, I'm glad you're back but I need your assistance." He nodded and strode over. "Hold onto the towel, while I give her the painkiller." His large hands pressed against the cloth on her abdomen.
Caitlyn reached into the med kit grabbing a syringe filled with a liquid. She put a sterile needle into the syringe and flicked the side of the syringe as she applied pressure to the butt of the stopper making the liquid spray out. She grabbed at Dakota's right hands looking for a vein, her lithe fingers trailing the scarred pale arms. She found the right one and stuck the needle in properly, pushing the painkiller into the girl's veins. She pulled the needle out and dug for the pair of long tweezers and clamps then the antiseptic. "Hold her down good. Elric you might want to help Ezreal out, she's probably strong enough to buck out of his hold." Elric nodded. With a deep breath she eyed the group around her. She closed her eyes for a second. "Here we go." She muttered.
She poured the antiseptic right on the wound, making Dakota grunt out, her body going rigid as the liquid burned at the wound. Caitlyn pushed her hands into a pair of gloves. She pressed her hand along her stomach and then placed a finger in the bullet hole to feel what had been penetrated. Dakota hissed angrily, her fists tightening into tight balls. She jerked slightly but kept in place thanks to Ezreal, Vi and Elric.
"I found it. It didn't puncture anything thankfully." She sighed out, making the tension in the room diminish slightly. She pulled her finger out and reached for the clamps. Dakota's eyes drifted and watched as Caitlyn placed them to hold the skin from the hole. She took a deep breath in preparing herself as Caitlyn pushed the tweezers through the hole. She grit her teeth, her jaw muscles tightening. Her arms corded as she felt the first pull of the bullet. She snarled and jerked as Caitlyn began to pull it out.
Dakota's scream turned bloodcurdling as Caitlyn tugged at the stubborn piece. With a final grunt it budge and she was able to pull out.
"Fuck!" Dakota bellowed bucking against the people holding her. "Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck. Fuck, that hurt!" She roared.
Blood followed the bullet out, Caitlyn moved methodically as she pressed gauze to the wound. Her eyes caught Vi's and Vi understood immediately. Vi took her place pressing firmly on the gauze as Caitlyn pulled out a needle and thread. With deft hands she pushed the thread through the eye of the needle. She pushed Vi out of the way went to work sewing up the wound.
Dakota sighed in content. "God I love painkillers." She murmured.
Good, Caitlyn thought. They're finally working.
She tied off the final knot, breaking the thread with her teeth. She placed a thick gauze strip along the wound and taped it firmly down. She then moved to her injured shoulder and began to work there following the same steps.
Her attention was captured when Dakota's hands grabbed at her arms. Her pupils dilated from the painkillers hallucinogenic ways. Dakota gasped as she looked up to Caitlyn, a fresh tear falling down her cheeks. "Mom?" Dakota croaked out, making everyone in the room freeze. "I missed you so much." She whispered sadly. Her bottom lip began to tremble as more tears travelled down her cheeks. "Mom, I thought I would never see you again. Did you see El, yet? He's so strong." She blubbered out. A sob ripped through her throat.
Caitlyn furrowed her brows. She looked to Elric, quickly. He was staring at his sister with opened mouth shock.
Caitlyn sighed and brushed her fingers through Dakota's hair. She cupped Dakota's face lovingly, brushing her thumb over her cheek. Dakota's hand held hers in place, her icy eyes watering at the edges. "I'm so proud of the two of you." Caitlyn whispered, her eyes threatening to break into her own tears. "I love you, Dakota." She bent low and placed a small kiss to Dakota's forehead. Dakota sighed in content, her icy eyes closing to the sensation.
"Love you too, mum." She mumbled out as unconsciousness took over her body.
Soon Dakota was lost to sleep and Caitlyn had finished her work at her shoulder. When she was done Vi lifted the girl up and moved her to the guest bedroom.
Elric came up to Caitlyn and embraced the sheriff.
"Thank you." He whispered into her ear. "What you did, I appreciate it. She needed that."
Caitlyn gave a gentle smile. "There was no problem to it, Elric."
Elric nodded. He looked to the Noxian girl who was curled up on the couch, sleeping life away as it seemed.
"We'll talk about it in the morning, Elric." She placed a hand on his large shoulder. "Go get some sleep. There's plenty of room in the guest bed, for you to sleep with your sister."
Elric nodded.
"Thank you."
With that Elric silently entered into the guest bedroom.
Caitlyn looked to her hands and sighed.
She looked up to the ceiling thinking of Sarah Sampson.
"I didn't mean to take your place." She whispered solemnly.
She padded out of the kitchen and into her room, where Vi was sleeping like a bear. She pushed the covers back and sidled up next to Vi, who wrapped her muscular arms around Caitlyn's waist.
Sleep came too quickly bringing dreams of Dakota.