Chapter 14
10 seconds later, Kassadin fell backwards onto his bed back in the hotel. Ezreal and Lux, stars above. He had heard about the rumors but it still surprised him. For such a long time, Ezreal had been studying Taric's various crystal fragments and their refractive properties, so nobody expected him to start any relationships. Then, one day, Lux was seen walking with him in the hallways and helping him with his research. They published their study on light refraction together, and it had been a bombshell guide for magic-users and hextech engineers alike.
Kassadin shook himself out of his reveire, getting to his feet. A shower was necessary after all of that paintballing, and a nap as well. Then dinner and a patrol with Vi. Kassadin let out a deep sigh. Smooth sailing from here. Just try to ignore Icathia and you'll be good.
The four souls met once more, as they left the Commons.
"He did it! He riftwalked. Did you see that? He did it." The one named Flynt whispered excitedly. "All of that beautiful purp-"
"Flynt. Maw, you're blowing our cover." Carla snapped. "We lost the target, could you please be professional?"
"Relax," The third man said, "Although we lost him, we know where he will be."
"Yes. The patrol, as we expected. Our journey begins now," The bald leader affirmed. "By the Hunger, we shall be successful."
The patrol was going to be a blast, Kassadin was told as he followed Vi through to the PPD garage. They were going to catch a ride on Vi's state-of-the-art automobile. The contraption and its capabilities frightened Kassadin more than the hyperloop. Amazingly, despite all of the strange vibrations and hums of the metal carriage, Kassadin was able to look out the window and see the beauty of Piltover flash by.
"So how was the rest of the Carnival?" Kassadin asked to spark conversation.
"Fun, but sluggish. We weren't able to take on anyone else." Vi responded "I would have killed to do it again. So much better than typical S.W.A.T practice. And Jayce's face!" She chuckled. "God, if I could get a picture of that, I'd post it on my locker."
Kassadin winced as Vi took a whipped around a bend, without slowing down. "Really?" He asked.
"Oh god, yes! Funniest thing I ever did see. He's such a loud-mouth." Vi vented. "Always smirking and showing off. Never saw him make such a wimpy face before, and probably never will for a while. He's always patronizing."
"I think he just wants to look good." Kassadin said, defending Jayce in his friend's absence.
"He 'looks good' to everyone." Vi echoed.
Good luck, Jayce. Kassadin thought.
"Deputy!" The radio on the panel crackled, addressing Vi. "Come in, Vi."
In one smooth motion, her right hand on the wheel, Vi's left hand snagged the mike from her uniform and brought it up to her chin. "Evenin', Eddy. What's up?"
"A Rescue bot has reported motor failure at H. Bro Avenue. Can you go check up on it?"
"Sure. You have an engineer on the way, right?"
"Hypha's already in his car."
"Roger. We'll be there soon."
Vi hung up, casting a grin to Kass. "Usually, I don't do these chores. But H. Bro is a pretty neat street, and you're a guest."
"Well, you gotta follow orders." Kassadin agreed, and Vi laughed.
"Oh, yes, we wouldn't want to ruffle up Sheriff Caitlyn's knickers." She said sarcastically, mimicking Caitlyn's tone.
"So, H. Bro Avenue?"
"Yeah, it's a cool promenade of sorts, buncha shops, lotta people."
"And a Rescue bot."
"Which is strange, 'cause although we don't want anyone messing with them, nobody ever does. Breakdowns are a blue moon. This is the third time this month. Still, it's a great excuse to see the town."
Kassdin grimaced as Vi took another sharp turn. "Shouldn't you guys organize these streets more? What are you guys gonna do if automobiles get commercialized?"
"I think Jayce and Heim have thought of a "light system" to direct traffic. Personally, I think the hyperloop is going to remain peoples main mode of transport."
"Whatever," Kassadin growled as Vi stepped on the accelerator. "Are we there yet?"
Vi laughed as she jerked the car wheel to the right, sharply turning the car mid-acceleration. Jamming on the breaks, she brought the car to a clean stop on the sidewalk.
"Already here." She responded to Kasssadin, who had frozen up like a deer in headlights.
After five minutes of deep breathing, Kassadin finally got out of the automobile. One minute waiting for Vi to equip her gauntlets, and they were off.
"Always with those gloves?" Kassadin asked as they walked towards the flashing street. "Aren't those a bit too lethal for a common criminal, let alone a maintenance job?"
"Not really, if you can control'em right. Anyhow, I gotta keep my image... especially with Jinx out and about..."
"I guess so." Kassadin responded as he took in H. Bro Avenue. Neon lights stretched to the sky as peopled shuttled up and down the grand promenade. Start up musicians, magicians and entertainers performed in the middle of the walkway, making the street vibrate with enthusiasm and activity. Lines formed up in front of restaurants and theaters. In the distance, the "great tree" of Piltover, the administrative and industrial heart of Piltover, stood tall over the low-lying urban center. Kassadin paused to read the movie posters displayed in front of one of the theaters.
"Have you watched any movies lately?" Vi asked, following Kassadin's gaze.
"Never."
"Wow. You ought to. The special effects have gone completely wild."
"Eh, the commercials I've seen have given me headaches."
Vi chuckled and shook her head. "Well, you're missing out."
A while down the road, Kassadin spied the rescue bot. The metal machine was surrounded by a crowd of bystanders. By unseen force, the crowd parted as Vi approached. There were benefits to being an enforcer.
"You have the cones?" Vi asked.
"Yeah."
"Set up the perimeter. I'll go around and check out the damage."
Kassadin quickly went to work, placing cones around the large machine. Some onlookers whispered and tried to catch Kassadin's attention, but nobody crossed the boundaries Kassadin placed. Once he had finished, he approached Vi, who was kneeling at the treads of the machine.
"Found the problem?" Kassadin asked.
"Yeah... and boy is it suspicious. Looks like sabotage... but its a cut."
"Hm..." Kassadin, peering at the section Vi pointed at.
The wound was like Vi said, a sharp gash that extended at least six inches into the machinery. The area around it was undamaged. The metal itself seemed to be perfectly fine, no wear and tear, nor any signs of explosives or heat. It was as if the damage had been inflicted by a single blow, perfectly and exactly.
"Strange." Kassadin muttered. "Probably a plasma of sorts, or magic... Even so, I've never seen anything like it."
"Nothing Pinky would do, either." Vi grimaced, referring to Jinx. "Time for interviews, then."
Standing up, Vi called out to the crowd. "Anyone who witnessed this malfunction occur, please come to the front!"
As the crowd obediently followed Vi's instruction, Vi addressed Kassadin. "You interview, ask the usual.. I'm gonna open up the treads so our grease monkey doesn't have too much trouble."
"The usual?" Kassadin hesitated, a green thumb to police investigations.
"Yeah. The clip-board in your backpack." Vi responded. "You know, place, time, name, ID, and description of the event. Not complicated."
Kassadin blinked for a moment, and then got to work. The crowd of anxious individuals readily lined up to describe their tales. As Kassadin cycled through each person, the picture became clearer and clearer, and yet... the mystery deepened.
Soon, Kassadin gave Vi a filled out clipboard with a verbal summary.
"Seems that the RescueBot was rolling among a crowd when the damage occurred. One person was close enough to see the breakdown occur and believes that the person behind him struck the Bot as he/she passed. However, when the witness turned around to the noise of the breakdown, the suspect walked by him and was not identified. The rest of the witnesses could not distinguish the saboteur in the chaos."
"Huh."
"I find it very strange. To cut into this metal so cleanly, so quickly, without any noise or large motion... I have no doubts it is a high form of magic or technology, most likely the former. Ballistics or explosives simply do not apply, none of the witnesses heard anything but the malfunction alarm of the RescueBot or the malfunctioning gears."
"Definitely not Jinx. She leaves paint everywhere and a few bodies as props. And hell, she's never destroyed a RescueBot before... Kinda thought it was dumb, even for her."
"Could it be one of her associates?"
"Most of her associates are dead on the scene. She's a backstabbing prick like that."
"Then I have no idea what else to say."
"We can review the video feed from the RescueBot and the surveillance cameras on this street. I'm sure we'll get our culprit."
"Good, that sounds-"
"Hey Vi!" A voice called out, forcing its way through the crowd. Pushing his way to the front, a squat man carrying a metal box and brandishing a big grin approached the duo.
"Hypha! Glad you could show up so early." Vi responded happily.
"Sure thing! How are the gauntlets?"
"Fine, fine. When's the next checkup again?"
"Well, Yesterday."
"Ah." Vi chuckled awkwardly. "I"ll bring'em in tomorrow, then. Top of the morning."
"No sweat, Vi. Just lemme at this RescueBot." Hypha suddenly did a double take, noticing Kassadin.
"Holy smokes! I didn't see you there, sir. You kinda blended into the dark."
"No need." Kassadin said, extending his hand. "Nice to meet you."
"Its an honor, sir." Hypha replied, grasping Kassadin's hand. ""You pulled some fancy moves last match. Piltover's loving ya, for sure!"
"I hope so." Kassadin responded, "So you are..."
"Hypha the Quartermaster, sir. PPD's best and brightest mechanic. 'Cept for Heim and Jayce, of course." Hypha announced proudly.
"He made the first auto-mobile" Vi added, "The one we rode in is designed by him."
"Oh! Mr. Kassadin, sir, you must tell me what you think!"
"Its... erm..." Kassadin struggled for an adjective. "Its... surprising."
"I know, right? Such an intricately designed two-stroke combustion engine, the timing of the valves, the micro-hextech, the gears, all me! Well, a bit of Jayce, a bit of Rumble, but still a bunch of me!" Hypha laughed, "I assure you, you're going to see these everywhere!"
"Can't wait." Kassadin managed, hiding his dismay as best he could.
"Well, Hypha, get this thing running extra quick, 'kay?" Vi asked.
"Of course! Be done in a second!"
And he was. Observing the mechanic at work was akin to watching a recital. By pure memory, Hypha unscrewed and removed the damaged bolts, cogs, circuits and washers, and one by one, bit by bit, recreated a perfectly complete design of the tread with the spares in his backpack.
"There! Just pop the pannels on the outside... and we're done!"
"What's your analysis on the damage?" Kassadin asked.
"Well, its gotta be some sorta plasma or magic that cut this boy in. Adamantine-infused Iron is not easy to break, let alone nick or rust. I'll run trace scans of these damaged parts to see if there are any residuals or magical indicators. Beats the heck out of me though. Never seen anything like it."
"Good stuff." Vi responded as Hypha started packing away the broken components. "Well, Hypha, we'll be off."
"Alright, deputy!" See you at the station!" Turning to Kassadin, he warmly shook his hand once more. "Take care, sir. Do visit Piltover more often, we're in your debt."
"You need not convince me." Kassadin grinned, impressed by the grimy mechanic.
"Wonderful!"
They walked back up the street in good humor. The whirs of the RescueBot could be heard, running through simple diagnostics. Musicians and magicians acted as if nothing happened, continuing to perform to crowds. The clot in the middle of H. Bro Avenue slowly diffused , no longer disturbed by Kassadin and Vi's presence.
"One of our grease monkeys." Vi said proudly, "The best in all of Valoran, I'd wager."
"Very skilled, indeed." Kassadin said, watching people pass by. "Great guy. What's his story?"
"He was gifted. Went to the Academy, and applied himself to civil service. A great wingman too, from what I've heard."
"I best take him out for a drink sometime." Kassadin joked.
"Oh you." Vi chuckled. "Such a riot."
Kassadin didn't respond, instead taking the time to look at one of the movie posters posted outside of the theater. The poster showed off three popular summoners in dramatic poses with fire and explosions in the background. The letters proudly proclaimed them as the "Elite".
"You wanna watch that?" Vi asked, following Kassadin's vision again, "I've heard thats a real kicker, almost as good as Saint's Thro-"
"No... Its fine." Kassadin insisted, averting his gaze.
"Ah, come on man, live a little!" Vi laughed.
"Its just..."
For a moment, Kassadin considered his possibilities. He gazed down the road, where Vi's automobile was. He would need to ride that again...
And as he looked, he caught a glimpse of a figure in a heavyset grey cloak, disappearing into the crowd. Strange...
"Its pretty hot tonight." Kassadin heard himself say.
"Yeah, theaters have air conditioning."
Kassadin thought about Vi's driving. It didn't take long for him to make a decision.
"Okay, we can watch something."
Turning around, Kassadin walked back towards the theater the only to nearly collide into someone.
"Woah... So-" Kassadin began to apologize, speaking directly into the edge of a blade that approached his jaw in a surreal speed.
A scream pierced through the cool evening air, and H. Bro Avenue fell silent.
Chapter 14 End
Muwahaha!
My very first cliffhanger!
I was stuck, weighing Rumble or Heimer coming in to fix the car. Rumble I took off the table because he kinda hates most societies except for Bandle City. Kinda hates Heimer's guts, along with every sort of prejudiced human out there too. So I really don't expect him to be in a human city because he's so... competitive/aggressive/hateful.
Heimer is much more academic, and not really that connected to the Piltoverian police, so him being up late at night to do late night repair jobs really didn't fit his vibe either. Jayce doesn't fit as well, just like Heimer he has other things to research and build.
So I just made up my own sort of character to fit the mold. Obviously, he's no one time character.
(...Helmet Bro is a cool enough dude for you guys to get the joke, right?)