Every problem had a solution. This was the rule Caitlyn went by for years now. And she was determined to find a solution for the Ezreal issue once and for all.
The main problem wasn't the boy himself but his protectors. Caitlyn realized that she had been playing this game all wrong; there was no way she could come victorious against a battle with the PROJECTS and she still wasn't entirely sure why she had chosen that approach. But now that she was certain that the PROJECT corporation couldn't be trusted, she wasn't going to bother with them. It was their problem and not hers any longer. They were just obstacles between her and her goal. What she needs to find out was how to overcome such obstacles, which required the right information, information that the company wouldn't provide. Therefore, Caitlyn needed to get what she needed from somebody else, someone who was familiar with the PROJECT technology.
She called Vi, asking to meet near the TPA headquarters. Caitlyn didn't specify why. When Vi arrived at the spot, the first thing she did was ask her where they were going. Caitlyn had instructed her to get into the uber, not answering her persistent questions. They drove away from the headquarters, in a location that they had never been before. Caitlyn exited the vehicle in a rush, moving towards the nearest alley. Vi followed closely behind, obviously very annoyed with the agent's behavior.
"Will you at least tell me where we're going before we proceed into a labyrinth of alleyways?" she asked again.
"Everything in their tight time, Vi. Show me some faith here," was Caitlyn response.
Vi didn't ask her again as she followed her around. It seemed like Caitlyn knew exactly where she was going with every turn she took. After a while, the alley ended and the road appeared in front of them. Caitlyn retrieved her rifle and turned it into a motorcycle before climbing on it.
"Come on." She motioned at the PROJECT.
Vi had enough. "Not until you tell me where exactly where we are going." She crossed her arms across her chest.
"Fine, I guess there's no point in hiding it from you now." Caitlyn shrugged. "We're going to meet the scientist that invented the PROJECT technology. His name is Viktor. I hope he could give us some answers regarding his creation, maybe provide a solution to your little problem."
"You could have just told me this from the beginning, y'know." Vi climbed onto Caitlyn's bike. "What's with all the secrecy anyways?"
"My boss wouldn't be too happy about this. Plus, I don't want to get the others involved, not yet at least," Caitlyn responded. "Hold on tight," she warned.
They navigated through the dark streets, slowly but steadily leaving the city behind them. From her research, Caitlyn knew that Viktor had his laboratory located somewhere more isolated, away from the regular commotion of Piltover. He wasn't very sociable - at least that's one thing they had in common. He prefered to work alone. Which made it even more curious to why he had chosen to work for PROJECT Inc. He was the only one who could provide them with those answers.
Eventually, they arrived at the laboratory, a building located in a lonely plot with no other structures in the surrounding area. It felt odd standing there, like a mushroom that had popped up from the ground after a heavy rain. The area was unnaturally quiet, giving the impression that it wasn't even located in Piltover. Caitlyn pulled over on the side of the road and both her and Vi climbed off the motorcycle, which in the next moment turned back into a rifle and Caitlyn threw it over her shoulder. There was a high metal fence surrounding the plot with no other access to the lab. The entrance seemed to be locked too. Cameras were installed all around the fence. Nothing went in or out without being noticed.
"So, what do we do?" Vi questioned.
"We ring the bell and hope someone answers," Caitlyn replied as she approached the doorbell that was installed near the entrance. There was another camera aimed straight at them. She rang it without hesitation. For a little bit, nothing happened but then the entrance unlocked, giving them access.
"Is it too bad that I didn't expect the door to open?" Vi inquired, seemingly surprised.
"Come on." Caitlyn motioned her to follow.
The entrance to the laboratory slid open with a hiss when they came close to it. Once they stepped inside, it shut close once again. Caitlyn and Vi found themselves inside one of the most full equipped labs they had ever had the luck to visit. Machines and hextech devices flashing lights and making weird noises, blueprints and unfinished inventions laying on the tables, forgotten probably or left for some other time, computers projecting data, chemicals brewing in a corner, everything that a scientist dreamed of was right there. Vi whistled, obviously mildly impressed with the sight before her. What she would give to have access to so many toys! Even Caitlyn seemed somewhat keen on all the things surrounding her.
"Professor Viktor?" she called.
"Back here," a voice came, sending chills to both of them. There was something off about his voice, something almost unnatural but they could be wrong.
They had to go around a couple of tables before they could Viktor on the back of his laboratory, tinkering with one of his inventions. When he heard them approach, he turned to look at them. Vi almost lost it; his face was a metal mask and there was a third hand protruding off his back. His arms were also metallic. He didn't seem humane at all.
"Welcome. My apologies for the mess. I don't think it's ever truly been tidy around here," he apologized as he placed his device in a drawer to finish it off later. Despite his appearance, he still got some manners. "What can I do for you two? I don't usually have visitors."
"I'm agent Pulsefire Caitlyn and this is my partner, Vi," Caitlyn introduced them to him. " We have a couple of questions for you."
Viktor raised a hand. "I know who you are." He approached Vi carefully, his eyes glowing. "May I?"
"Uh… sure." Vi was unsure of what he wanted to do with her but he just examined her, caressing his fingers across her metallic body.
Caitlyn cleared her throat. "We would like to ask you some questions regarding the PROJECT technology."
Viktor snapped his head at her. "PROJECT, you say? Oh, you just peaked my interest. Please, go ahead."
"You developed this technology, if I'm not mistaken," Caitlyn said as she followed Viktor with her eyes while he moved. She wasn't particularly fond of how he treated Vi, like an object to be observed. "Then you sold it to PROJECT Inc."
"Sold?" Viktor repeated, coming to a halt besides Vi. "No, there's a misunderstanding here. I would never give them access to such a technology. The right term would be that this technology was taken from me."
"Do you mean stolen?" Vi asked.
Viktor shook his head. "No. I mean taken as if one day they walked into my laboratory and took it away, made me sign a couple of papers so it would look legal. That's why I don't have a lot of visitors anymore." He sighed and continued to examine Vi. "Not that I ever had in the first place," he admitted quietly.
"Were you expecting this?" Caitlyn questioned.
"I had my suspicions but I didn't expect they would be so… bold about it. I expect that they'd get me out of the way first, if you know what I mean." Viktor ran his hands over Vi's shoulders towards her gauntlets. "They had been asking me repeatedly and so insistently to sell them the technology. I always declined, claiming that it wasn't finished yet. They didn't listen." He took a step back, staring at Vi. "Here's the result."
"So let me get this straight," said Caitlyn. "They took away a technology that was still under development… Why?"
If there were eyeballs inside his eyes, Viktor would probably roll them. "Because they were impatient and greedy. And I quote Mr McCarthy, "it is developed enough, professor. I don't see why we should utilize it now". I wasn't that saddened when I found out he passed away in such a way." He shook his head. "There were some glitches I needed to fix first before I could do anything with that technology. Glitches that proved to be very important to how things developed eventually."
"What were you even planning on doing with such a technology anyway?" Vi inquired.
Viktor remained silent for a bit. It seemed like he was contemplating, perhaps debating if he should tell them or not. Caitlyn didn't like that. He probably wasn't as innocent as they thought he'd be. Whoever is involved with PROJECT is never truly not guilty, she had concluded. Viktor sighed, looking away from them.
"If any of you has ever bothered to study the history of our world - not just our land's - then you'd realize that it's plagued with nonsense wars to satisfy the greed of unworthy leaders. Billions of people slaughtered in the name of glory. Perhaps you're familiar with such events, Pulsefire Caitlyn. Your job requires a lot of time traveling, doesn't it?"
Caitlyn nodded. He wasn't exactly wrong. She had first hand experience with those events. If it was hard learning about them, imagine how much more harder it probably was living them.
"But look! Time-travelling!" He exclaimed suddenly, opening his arms to emphasize. "Look what the human mind is capable of! Look what humans can do! They can create such magnificent and spectacular things. They can make their lives so much easier, so much better! That's why humanity is so different from the rest of the species around Runeterra; because it had the ability to think, to build up great civilizations!" He slowly lowered his arms. "However, humans are parasites for their own kind. Their greed for power is their doom. It always has been. There has always been unworthy leaders or in the rare cases that there's someone who's capable of ruling, they're usually wiped out by a sort of disease we haven't yet been able to cure."
»What I wanted to do was create a new era of humans, rid off their weaknesses; emotions and mortality. I could also make them smarter, stronger, easier to adapt even under the hardest situations, able to defeat any kind of threat against their kind. Humans united would create the One Civilization that would live forever without any errors. The worthy ones would lead and the rest would follow without complaining. Our future as a kind would be bright and we would be immortal!"
The more he talked, the more paranoid he seemed to Caitlyn. Vi's expression showed her that she was thinking the exact same thing.
"Those glitches you mentioned," Caitlyn interrupted his monologue. "What were they? Do you know?"
Viktor made a sound that resembled a growl. "The most important part of the whole project; emotions. I needed to find a way to remove them. If they had let me-"
"Are you saying that you could possibly tame a human soul?" Caitlyn cut him off again. "Because erasing emotions from a human brain would be just a temporary solution. The core of your problem is the soul."
"I would be able to!" He claimed. "I would make the perfect humans but those idiots…" He looked away momentarily before turning his head back at Caitlyn. "They wanted to use the PROJECT technology as a weapon. After all, it's easier to control someone's mind. But the soul. I needed more time-"
"But humans without their soul would be no humans at all," Caitlyn deadpanned. "I'm sorry but what you were going to create would be anything but humans."
"You don't understand, you don't see the bigger picture!" Viktor shouted. "You're a fool if you believe that humans need their emotions to be humans! What separates us from other species is our ability to speak and think, not the emotions!"
"What separates us from other species is that we are able to express those feelings and the fact that we all have a different personality. This is what makes each of us unique and that's why not all humans are the same!" Caitlyn shouted back.
In the meantime, Vi watched in utter shock. She had never seen Caitlyn shout as long as she knew her. It was kind of hot if she wanted to be honest. But this was not the only reason why she was so shocked. The subject of discussion threw her off. Viktor had a point and his intentions were good but he perceived this the wrong way. Somehow, she was glad that the PROJECT corporation had taken away the technology before he could finish it off.
Viktor sighed. "There's no point in fighting. After all, none of this is going to happen, at least not soon enough. Do you have any other questions?"
Caitlyn took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. "Well, yes. We're working on a case in which some PROJECT traces are involved. I would like to know if it would be possible for a human to outsmart them."
Vi looked at her. Is this why they had come here? What was Caitlyn thinking of doing? She needed to find out soon.
"Under other circumstances, I'd say no. But it's different now. Those initials have rebelled, as predicted because I was unable to perfect this technology. So yes, I'd say you would. They aren't as special as you'd think they are. It's just that they're physically superior than you."
Caitlyn nodded. "Thank you. There's one last thing I would like to know."
"Sure, ask away."
"Is it possible to remove their armor? Like, at all?"
Viktor gazed at her. "Well, about about that…" he paused. "You need to know that before the PROJECT corporation began with this project, they were a small company called G/NETIC that specialized in cloning, therefore they didn't know how to implement the technology to their subjects so I gave them a hand. While at it, I added a feature that didn't exist originally. I thought that I could help the initials to hide, blend in with the rest of the humans so they couldn't be used as weapons from those fools."
Caitlyn and Vi shared a look. This was an unexpected turn of events. None of them believed they'd found a solution this easily - or so it seemed. They wouldn't know until they tried it. But first, Caitlyn needed to asked something else.
"If they were a small company, how did they find the funds for such a project?"
"You'd be surprised what sort of people are interested in such activities. Not just businessmen. Even the underworld is willing to invest in new technologies. Have you ever heard of Norman Rose? He has made quite the investments in this particular field," was Viktor's response.
Caitlyn had never heard of him before but that didn't apply to Vi. "He's one of the most dangerous Godfathers in the city," the cop said. "He's been under the police's randar for a while now but he cannot be touched."
"See? This is what I mean. Anyways. Would you like me to demonstrate the application I secretly added to the PROJECT initials?" Viktor inquired, tilting his head to the side.
There was a prolonged silence. This would change everything and would turn around the tables. "Sure," Vi spoke eventually.
Viktor nodded and approached her. Before he could do anything, he examined her again. Vi was uneasy. "A pity. You'd be so great," he muttered to himself before pressing his palm against the triangle that glowed onto Vi's chest.
Suddenly, the armor started withdrawing back to the triangle, slowly revealing Vi's body beneath it. She looked in awe as her skin re-appeared after months. She thought she'd never see it again as long as she lived. Thankfully, she wasn't naked; the clothes she wore the night she installed the ATLA gauntlets were still there, maintained just like her body.
"Your body doesn't work like the rest of the humans," Viktor explained. "You don't need to eat nor sleep. But on the exterior, you look just like any other human. If you want to wear your armor again, you just press the PROJECT triangle. Only you and I can activate it. Use it wisely," he advised before walking away. "However, remember this. You can never incarnate back to what you used to be. Your body will be like that forever."
Vi looked over at Caitlyn who was smiling! Smiling! What more surprises did this day beheld for her? Despite his warning, Vi couldn't care less. She felt free. "Thank you," she whispered.
"No need to thank me." Viktor waved her off. He had already picked another of his inventions and had started trying to fix it. He looked at them one more time. "Be careful out there. This company is willing to go the extra mile just to get what they want. And it might be able to outsmart the PROJECT initials but that doesn't mean that it's going to be an easy thing to do. Don't underestimate them. Ever. They are not perfect but they're still strong. Who knows, maybe sentiment makes them even more dangerous."
"Thank you, professor," Caitlyn thanked him again before motioning at Vi to leave. Viktor didn't look at them as they helped themselves out. He continued tinkering with his device. Only when the door of his lady was shut behind, he stopped momentarily.
"Peculiar…" he whispered to himself.
Caitlyn and Vi walked away from Viktor's lab, feeling completely numb. When they were far away enough, Vi suddenly came to a halt. Caitlyn stopped besides her.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"Nothing." Vi shook her head. She looked at Caitlyn. "You were right. Bloody hell, you were right!" The excitement ran through her as she picked Caitlyn up and span her around, both laughing like teenagers, before bringing their lips together in a fierce kiss. "Holy shit, you were right," Vi mumbled against Caitlyn's lips.
"Well, I don't want to say that I told you so, but I told you so." Caitlyn grinned once Vi put her down.
Vi rolled her eyes playfully. "Alright, Miss-Know-It-All. We get it. Get over yourself."
"Well, I wish I could stay here and brag all day long but I'm afraid we've got some business to attend to," said Caitlyn as she retrieved her rifle and turned it into a motorcycle once again.
Vi sighed. "You're right, we should get going. Oh, just wait a second. We don't want your friends freaking now, do we?" She grinned as she pressed the PROJECT triangle and her armor re-appeared in less that a minute. "If all this shit was installed in this godforsaken triangle, no wonder why it hurt so much." Vi winced at the memory.
"I'm sorry that you had to through this." Caitlyn frowned.
"Don't be sorry for something that doesn't change." Vi waved her off. "Come on, let's go."
A while later, they were pulling over outside the TPA headquarters and rushing back to Caitlyn's and her team's office where they awaited for them.
"Where have you been?" Shen asked once they showed up.
"I'll tell you in a second." Caitlyn placed her rifle onto a table. "You'll need to sit for this."
"Caitlyn, what's going on?" Riven asked, taking a seat around the meeting table.
Caitlyn glanced at Vi before she started explaining where they had both been and why they had left without any word. It was time that they all knew the truth. Caitlyn also had explained what had gone through between her and her boss as well as the Jhin incident back at the Runeteran museum all those months ago. The only thing she didn't mention was Vi's armor. This was more personal information and didn't contribute anything to their task at hand.
"Why are you telling us all of this now?" Twisted Fate asked once she was done.
"Because I wasn't allowed to tell you any of this. I was simply trying to protect you. But it doesn't matter anymore. And maybe because it's time I was honest with you all." Caitlyn shook her head. "I hope that you can forgive me."
Everyone fell into deep silence. Caitlyn didn't blame them; it came like a shocker for them to know that their partner kept secrets from them all this time.
"It's alright, Caitlyn. We understand," it was Shen that spoke first. "You simply did what you thought was best. We appreciate your honesty."
"Well, I'm not entirely sure if you speak for everyone here," Caitlyn deadpanned.
Riven grinned. "Don't be silly, Caitlyn. That's not the worst thing you've ever done to us. Am I right, Tobias?"
"Sure." He nodded.
Caitlyn looked embarrassed. "You'll never let that one go, will you?"
"Nope. Months stuck doing paperwork? How can that be forgotten?" Riven joked. "But seriously, what are we doing now? What's the plan?"
"First off, we need to keep in mind that we can't trust the PROJECT corporation, Cayton nor anyone else here for that matter," Caitlyn explained. "The problems started when they wanted us to get involved into finding the PROJECT deviants while our goal was something else entirely."
"Exactly," Vi agreed. "The point was to arrest Ezreal, not be used as pawns from the company."
"Thank you, Vi," Caitlyn thanked her. "We should focus on finding and arresting Ezreal."
"But aren't the PROJECT initials part of the problem?" Twisted Fate asked. "We can't just ignore them."
"You're right, Tobias. No, we can't. But we don't need to fight them either. We all saw where that lead us. There's no point in that."
"So, what do you suggest then?" Shen questioned.
"The PROJECTS are just obstacles we need to overcome. We don't need to fight them and we don't need to capture them either. That is not our business," Caitlyn stated matter-of-factly.
"Isn't it though since the PROJECT corporation was willing to helps catch Ezreal?" Riven asked puzzled.
"No, Riven," Vi responded. "They just wanted to use us in order to get what they want. They couldn't care less if we die or live, that much was proved. I didn't expect that attitude from your boss though." She shook her head. "
"With a good plan and with the right preparation, we can succeed," Caitlyn claimed. "Viktor said it himself that those initials aren't perfect and that they're only physically superior from us."
"In other words, you say that we should try and outsmart them," Shen spoke.
"Yes, that's exactly what I mean."
"It's not impossible with Caitlyn in our side!" Riven exclaimed.
Caitlyn smiled softly. "No, Riven. This is something we're going to do together. Now, I believe that the first step is locating them once again."
"This should take a while." Twisted Fate sighed.
"It doesn't really matter. Good work takes time." Caitlyn shrugged. "Do we all agree to this approach?"
"We don't have much to lose, do we?" Riven asked. "I'm in!" She declared.
"I'm in too. I think that goes without question," said Shen in his turn.
Tobias rolled his eyes. "It's not like I have a choice, do I?"
"Nope, not really." Vi grinned. "Let's do this then!" she exclaimed.
It was days later when Shen found himself walking in the dark as droplets fell onto him, moistening his dark hair. He paid no attention to that. It had been a busy day - pretty much like the previous days, maybe weeks even - but surprisingly enough he wasn't that tired, until not physically.
From the day that Caitlyn had spoken to them, he felt the guilt sitting on his throat. He hadn't spoke about meeting Akali to any of them. It was supposed to remain a secret. But it affected him seeing Caitlyn being honest with the group.
Plus, it didn't help that Akali kept swirling in his mind. He would think of her often as she suddenly appeared in his thoughts. This had started a while ago, the first time he saw her alive and breathing after all of those years. It had upset him, of course. But if anything, Shen was really good at hiding his emotions. This hadn't been any different.
He wasn't surprised that she hadn't come to find him as he asked either. Akali had always been his most rebellious student back in the day. That's why she took her own path, a decision he had accepted. Had he known she'd get tortured and manipulated like that, he wouldn't have let her leave. But how could he even know? Back in the day, he was a mere teacher. The Timeline Protection Agency came way afterwards. What hurt him more was that he had to act like a douche to her but he was well aware that there was nothing else he could have done. It was obvious that she didn't remember him at all. He didn't blame her for having no recollection of her past. Only one he blamed was the PROJECT corporation. These were the real monsters, not the PROJECT initials.
Shen only wished their reconnection had been under different circumstances.
Regardless.
The rain poured harder as time went by. Shen looked up the sky when a lightning stroke, shedding light momentarily. He sighed. He quickened his pace, hoping he'd arrive home faster that way. He was super unlucky that there weren't any ubers passing by nearby. But the rain became stronger and Shen had to stop in the entrance of a block of flats until it stopped. He leaned against the wall and waited patiently. After all, he was renown for his patience.
"You shouldn't be out here in this rain."
Shen jumped at the sudden voice. His arm instinctly went for his blade but he lowered it when he realized that it was Akali, the person that haunted his thoughts.
"Neither should you," he responded. "What are you doing out here anyways?"
Akali didn't respond straight away. "I know what you're trying to do. You need to stop while you can."
"Is this a warning?"
Akali rolled his eyes. "What do you think it is?"
Shen sighed, running a hand through his wet hair. "I can't, even if I wanted you."
"There's a bigger game going on, Shen. You need to step out of this before it's too late."
"Answer me this," Shen said, ignoring her. "Do you usually go to your enemies and warn them off?"
Akali was silent for a moment. "I owe you, that's why I came. Don't think for a moment that anything has changed between you and I."
"Just for the record, I couldn't really do anything else. You wouldn't listen to me, I knew that." Shen chuckled. "I wasn't wrong. You haven't changed that much, after all."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean nothing."
Silence.
"You could have ratted me out to your friends. Why didn't you?" Akali asked.
"Because a master would never hurt their student."
Akali was confused. "I don't understand."
"It's alright. I don't expect you to." Shen shook his head. "I wish in time you will. But I don't get my hopes up. You're welcome, by the way."
Akali stammered something inaudible. "Does that mean you knew me before?"
Shen smiled sadly but mostly melancholically. "Better than anyone else."
The rain slowly stopped. The two of them remained still and silent, just looking at each other, trying to guess what went through their heads.
"I'm sorry," Shen sliced through the silence, coming closer to Akali. Somehow she didn't back off. She only watched him as he came closer. He was way taller than her but that didn't mean she bring him down if she wanted to. However, it didn't seem to be the case as Akali noticed the tears glistering in Shen's eyes. "I'm sorry for letting you go," he whispered. He reached for her head. Without any trouble, he managed to open her mask. Akali was frozen, unable to move or push him away. Before she knew it, he leaned forward and gave her a kiss on her forehead. Then, he stepped back.
"The text time we're going to meet, we're going to have to fight each other," he said. "Don't hold back for a second. I won't forgive you if you do," he warned her.
Shen stretched out his arm to check if the rain had stopped. Then, he disappeared before a very troubled Akali's eyes.