Darkness surrounded Cassandra.

"Seriously Powder do you know what's going to happen if... No WHEN the enforcers find out what happened to her!? We need to get rid of her and the box!"

Darkness and Voices.

"No uh! I found her fair and square! They're mine! I've already spent too much time trying to fix them for you to tell me I have to throw them away!"

Very annoying voices.

"I'm not telling you to throw her into a river! We need to take her back to the topside... and give her the box; we can't have anything tying her back to us."

They sounded… so young. Children?

"No! I lick it so it's mine!" A girl? Said.

"Damn it Powder, stop licking things that don't belong to you! You are going to get poison one day. And the box doesn't belong to you! It belongs to the councilwoman!"

A boy? Where was she?

"Well, I licked her too! So that means that she is mine and whatever she owns is also mine!"

The last thing she remembered was going on a business trip...

"You what!"

No… not a business trip, it was something more personal?

"Yes! And I will do it again to prove to you that the box and she belong to me!"

The box? Yes, The box! That stupid box that councilwoman Medarda had gifted her a couple of meetings ago. The one her husband seemed to adore and wouldn't stop gushing around. The one she may have accidentally had destroyed the only copy she had of the startup sequence in an accident involving very hot coffee and her daughter's rifle.

"No! Bad Powder! Don't lick people!"

Seriously! Why did the designer make it so the box would lock itself up if you imputed the wrong sequence after 5 times? Was it some kind of scheme to make people pay them to unlock the box because nobody else knew how? If that was the case then she was going to bring that matter to the council and pass a law about it!

"Mine!"

Of course, that would mean that she had to admit to Councilwoman Medarda that she lost the sequence in the first place and she would sooner eat her on the chair of the council than to do that. No, her husband had gone to a medical convention and was expected to return in a week. Plenty of time for her to fix the box, her contacts had told him of an old mechanic that lived outside the city that specialized in unlocking Varissiate. He charged quite the amount but was very recommended to those in the know.

*Slurp*

Something wet hit her face, moving slowly from her forehead across her left eye and into her cheek.

"God damn it Powder"

Yes, she was supposed to take the box to the mechanic, but something happened…

"Oh? Is that envy in your voice Ekko? Is the Little Man jealous I didn't lick him? Come over here!"

Did she board the wrong ship? No that was ridiculous, the journey was only a couple of hours long at most via airship. Even if it felt longer because of that stupid mask.

Wait, why was she wearing a mask?

Think, Cassandra, think!

"No! No! No! Powder get away from me! Don't lick me! I'm pretty sure your saliva is toxic at this point"

Toxic?

Toxic! She had to wear a mask because the air was toxic! Why?

Why was the air toxic?

Yes! She remembered the air was toxic because she was over Zaun! The mechanic lived outside the city's border on Zaun's side.

"Hey! I resent that remark, I wash my teeth two times a day! Now stop running Ekko and take your licking like a man!"

What happened? Was she kidnapped?

"Never!"

The last thing she remembered was floating above the undercity, then a green cloud.

Metal hooks started lodging themself around the ship's borders and the pilot ordered something.

After that, there were only flashes of lights, screaming, a lot of motion,

A metal claw,

A drop of blood...

A howl…

Then nothing

Except for that damn sound.

*Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiisssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss*

Her eyes opened as she surged forward, only to wince as pain invaded her entire body.

Her head in particular was killing her. Lights danced around her vision, not allowing her to focus on her surroundings. Two blurry figures froze at the edge of her vision, they both seem locked in one another.

"Shit, she woke up. Powder get off me! And drop the weapon, we don't need to blow her up!"

Those words managed to snap Cassandra back to reality, her vision focused allowing her to finally see the bodies of the voices she's being hearing.

There was a black-skinned boy with white hair hideously styled as what some of her younger colleagues called a "Mohawk" in front of her, beside him or more accurately on top of him there was a tall girl with twins braided blue hair draped all over him. Both of them were younger than her daughter but what struck her out was how pale the girl was, for a moment she thought that maybe she was allergic to the sun. Then she noticed that she was holding a gun.

Well, a crude version of a gun. Nothing like the fine craftsmanship her daughter and occasionally her used, but still probably a functional gun.

The kids were staring at her with wide eyes, frozen. Then the boy managed to snap out of it, shrugging off the distracted bluenette who stumbled around before managing to stabilize herself, funnily as she regained her balance the gun never pointed away from her general direction.

The boy approached her slowly, a cocky smile appeared on his face as his eyes gleamed with confidence. A metal pipe rested on his shoulder while he swung a ticking pocket watch in the other. Clearly, he was trying to intimidate her.

His attempts were...cute. She saw talent but the kid couldn't hold a candle in comparison to the other council members... Well, most of the other council members.

She had been playing the game for almost 20 years now, if the boy wanted to play she would indulge him. Composing herself, she straightened her back ignoring the soreness of her body, and sent the boy an unamused glare, one that always worked on her daughter. The boy stopped for a second, not wasting the opportunity she pounced.

"Who are you? Where am I?" Her brain throbbed causing her to caress her head with her hand. "And why is my cheek wet?"

The boy was taken aback by her stone but he managed to recover quickly. Pointing his makeshift weapon at her he replied.

"Silence Pillie, we make the questions around here." He glanced at his companion after a brief moment the girl lowered her gun, disgruntled as if an entire conversation had occurred between them. Clearing his throat he continued.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" He pointed his makeshift weapon at her "And trust me you don't want to know why your cheek is wet."

He was blunt, straight to the point. Honestly, it was kind of relaxing in comparison to the usual lying and scheming that was generally implied at a council meeting.

Not seeing the point in lying, she checked that her council's necklace was still resting in her neck, thankfully it was; with a quick motion of her hand, she held it high enough for everyone in the room to see it.

"My name is Cassandra Kiramman, proud councilor of Piltover" There is a flash of recognition in the boy's face, in the girl not so much. Putting on her most calm smile she spoke gently "And I would really appreciate it if you could tell me where I am?"

"Shit, I was really hoping I was wrong" The boy muttered to himself lowering the pipe before turning to his friend, girlfriend perhaps? "What mess have you gotten us into Powder."

The now named Powder simply shrugged her shoulders.

"Well, Mrs. Kiramman in case it wasn't obvious we are in The Lanes, but a better question would be: How does a woman of such a high position end up down here in the first place? Don't you think so?"

It was a fair question but it was one that she could answer unfairly if she wanted and she really should but she was a strong believer that a semblance of trust is needed for every negotiation to succeed.

And nothing helped build that trust that just the right dose of truth.

"Well, Mister...?" She trailed, expecting an answer from her unnamed host.

"You can call me Ekko, Ma'am." The boy said.

"Mister Ekko," Cassandra continued. "I was heading in a personal business outside the city's undercity side of the border when my ship was boarded by criminals and attacked."

"Wait, did you say personal airship? " Ekko interrupted "and it was boarded? In plain daylight?"

Cassandra nodded.

"That doesn't make any sense!" He exclaimed "Only the Flyboys are the ones dumb enough to raid Piltover's airship but they only do it at night and always cargo ships"

Ekko turned towards Powder, she was sure that both of them were having a complete conversation using only their eyes.

"What?" Powder finally said out loud. "He didn't have anything to do with this! He would have said something to me! Plus no sane zaunite would risk making him angry by attacking a councilwoman, probably was someone from topside that saw an easy chance to get rid of her"

Ekko seemed unconvinced but didn't press any further. It seems that He was a delicate subject that should not be touched, still, she needed answers. The girl may be right, perhaps it was someone from Piltover that wanted her gone, she had made many enemies during her career.

She needed more information.

"Excuse," She cleared her throat gathering their attention. "As I was saying the last thing I remember was that my ship was attacked, so could you tell me how I got here?"

"Ask her," Ekko shrugged, pointing towards Powder, who in the short span had wandered back towards the workbench. "This is her house, I just came to make sure she hadn't blown herself up or something."

Powder twisted herself to allow her swiveling chair to rotate quickly, she began blowing a raspberry every time she faced him. It was only after the third twirl that Powder answered the implicit question.

"Don't look at me," Powder answered as her chair finally stopped moving. "Somebody left you near my doorstep down below. It was a pain in the ass dragging you up here but not as much as taking off and putting your clothes back on for the bandages, so you are welcome."

"...Thanks?" She honestly didn't know if she should be offended or not.

"Any other clue you can think of," Ekko asked, Cassandra did her best to remember.

A flash of red eyes.

"Yes," A shiver went through her spine as she talked. "I can't remember much after the green gas, but there was something there with us… it was It was big and hairy"

*Awooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo*

"And a horrendous howl." Ekko's eyes widened, he gave a glance towards Powder before turning back towards her.

"Was there by any chance claw marks?" The boy asked.

"Claw marks?" The question startled her a little, she tried to remember. Flashes of images bombarded her head.

Screams

Blood

A metallic clawed hand

Death.

She gasped.

"Yes, there were claw marks," She said as she tried to recover her breath"but they were big...I remember the claws, they belonged to a beast but it was covered in metal? How is that possible"

Both Ekko and Powder looked at each other then turned towards her.

"Well Mrs. Kiramman, I guess you are now part of the few people who has seen the Uncaged Wrath of Zaun and lived"

"Oh! You met Mr. Singed runaway pet!"

Both said at the same time, then stopped and looked at each other in surprise.

"Singed made that thing?!"

"Uncaged Wrath of Zaun? Who was the dork who came with the name? It's like calling me the loose cannon or something stupid like that."

Both said again at the time, but this time something caught Cassandra's attention.

A name that as a councilwoman she was bound to know.

"Did you just say Singed? The Mad Chemist?" Her tone of voice was reaching highly aggressive levels she barely managed to conceal, like the one she used the time her dear daughter Caitlyn decided to finish her school project by cutting down her favorite dress the night before a very important council meeting. "Is that war criminal still living in the city by any chance?"

It seemed that her tone betrayed some of her emotions as both children gulped at her words.

"Ehhhhhh….. No?" Powder tried to deny but it sounded almost like a question, wait a moment did her eyes change color just now? Ekko on the other side simply hit his head with his palm.

"It doesn't matter, I must return to Piltover as soon as possible and summon the coun-Argh!" She tried to stand up and immediately regretted it.

"Not with that leg you will not," Powder said pointing to where Cassandra's legs were hiding under her blanket.

With a swift motion, she threw away her cover to reveal that her left leg was heavily bandaged. Well, that explained the constant pain she was feeling.

"She does have a point Powder" Ekko interjected "We need to take her back to the topside, if word spread around that a Councilwoman is missing and was last seen heading towards Zaun then the truce may be as good as dead"

"Truce?" Cassandra asked but was ignored as Ekko and Powder continued with their conversation.

"What about asking Silco?" Powder said.

The industrialist? What did that man have to do with anything else?

For a moment Ekko was quiet, but she could see his body tensed as soon as the name was mentioned.

"I don't think that would be a good idea, Pow" It was a miracle the girl didn't notice the hostility in Ekko's voice, but it was gone as soon as it came. "Besides, the fewer people know where Mrs. Kiramman is, the better."

"Okay..." Powder pouted. "Well, how about calling Markus and have him take her back to the topside?"

"Excuse me?" Cassandra muttered in disbelief

"Yeah," Powder continued "I know where Silco keep his tubes that only reaches the sheriff office I can probably grab one and send a message without anyone noticing me"

"Can he be trusted?" Powder nodded at Ekko's question, still ignoring her.

Was it normal for kids of the undercity to have meetings with Piltover Sheriff?

"Okay," Ekko quickly wrote something on a piece of paper and gave it to Powder. "I know a place that's private and close enough to the topside for the meeting, tell him to meet us there in 3 hours, that would be enough time for us to move Mrs. Kiramman."

"Oki Doki!" The bluenette snatched the paper from his hand and dashed away from her house leaving the injured councilwoman deep in thoughts alongside the boy.

Who are the ones behind the attack on her ship?

How could such a creature exist hidden from the council?

Why did Markus give someone from the undercity his mail tube?

It was times like these that she remembered where her daughter had gotten her inquisitive nature.

The questions must probably have been written on her face judging by the look Ekko gave her.

"What's on your mind, Counselor?" the boy asked.

"Well, I was wondering why had a direct mail line to Sheriff Markus," She voiced her concerns hoping to elicit an answer "a privilege that is usually reserved to only government officials."

"Silco rules the underground" Ekko responded bluntly. "He has a monopoly on the supply of Shimmer and down here? He who controls the shimmer controls the city."

Her eyes widened at the new information. Some years ago when Shimmer began appearing in the lower levels of Piltover the council had ordered an investigation to figure out the ones responsible.

Silco was one of many prominent members of the undercity that were investigated but had come clean out of it, soon the sightings of Shimmer began to disappear from the top side and the investigation was dropped in favor of most concerning problems the city had.

Now she knew that it was a mistake and if Silco had a direct line of communication with the law officer in charge of the investigation then she could start painting a picture of what had happened. And she didn't like one bit of what she was seeing.

"And Sheriff Markus?" She asked hoping to get more answers.

"Silco has a deal with the enforcers" Ekko answered "He keeps trouble from going into topside and in exchange they look the other way when it comes to his business. Honestly, with how sacredly both sides enforce the truce I thought it was something the council knew..."

"We certainly did not!" She exclaimed almost as if she was being offended by the claim that the council world approved those actions.

She and the sheriff will have a very serious conversation about his relationship with as soon as her wounds are healed up. A very ster-

"You have a family?" Ekko interrupted her thoughts

"Excuse me?"

"I know that look in your face, you are thinking about taking on Silco or the Sheriff...So let me ask again, do you have a family?"

"What are you implying?" Her eyes narrowed, she knew well how to spot a threat, it was almost a prerequisite of her job.

"Look Lady, as much as I hate to admit it Silco is someone you don't want to mess with." Ekko said, sitting in the chair in front of her.

"The last man that went against him owned a bar, had 4 children and a lifelong friend." Cassandra noticed how his hands had begun shaking before forcing himself to stop. "After Silco was done with him, the bar was under Silco's control, two of his children and his lifelong friend were dead alongside him, his elder daughter disappeared without a trace and the youngest…."

Ekko stood up, slowly walking towards the Powder's workbench

"The youngest was taken in by Silco, slowly going insane by all the drugs that son of a whore has given to her" The rage in his voice clued her in of whom Ekko was talking about.

"Is that what happened to your friend?" Her voice sounded calm but on the inside, her rage was all but consuming her. House Kiramman had always been a firm supporter of children's rights in both topside and the undercity, her grandfather had funded most of the city's orphanages and it was a point of pride for her that as the head of the family she had led many law projects to restrict the use of child workers in the city.

"You noticed too?" Ekko sighed "Her paleness? Mood swings? How sometimes her eyes change colors?". Seeing her nod the white-haired boy continued. "I know the enforcers had seen what shimmer does to the addicts, but do you know what its true effects are?"

Cassandra shooked her head, she saw how the drug mutated and disfigure its user and understood how addictive it was, but she never knew why people started taking on the first place knowing the consequence.

"Most people use it as a party drug, get high and feel like the king of Runeterra for a while before crashing down. Overdose and your body begin to mutate." Ekko explained to her. "But if you get the right version of Shimmer in just the right amount to someone then it begins to change you… You become faster... Stronger."

He turned around looking directly at her.

"With that dosage, even a little girl can take a squad of enforcers and win." She could see the hate raging in his eyes. "And almost all of Silco's top lieutenants have it."

"He is using her as a test subject?" Cassandra interrupted almost in disbelief. "He kept her to exp-"

"It's more than that," Ekko interrupted her softly. "Powder's a genius , she may not be book smart like most of you Piltovers but she can be quite ingenious when she wants to."

Ekko grabbed a box that sat on the top of the workbench and put it on her lap, Cassandra recognized it as that stupid music box that started the whole situation.

It was unlocked, the whole purpose of the trip, not only that but it was opened; she could see the inner mechanisms.

"I think this yours right?" She nodded. "Powder modified while you were sleeping so it can play other tunes. She was showing it to me when you woke up."

She could feel her jaw almost hit the floor when she heard that statement. The Varissiati were infamously known for being extremely difficult to manipulate in any way. It was a point of pride for their brand that only a few could repair one of their boxes. That was the reason Cassandra had to pay a small fortune upfront for the mechanic to unlock her husband's box and a random girl from the lanes not only did it but modify it?

"Yes, I was also surprised when she showed it to me" Ekko quipped amusingly seeing her face. "Not sure if that made the price to plummet or increase significantly"

"Unfortunately" Ekko's voice returned to his somber tone "Powder isn't only good at fixing stuff she also has quite the talent to break things" In his hand was a cylindrical object with what looked like a metal jaw attached.

It took Cassandra a second to realize it was a grenade. With a flic of his finger, Ekko removed the ring and the jaws started moving up and down simulating a biting motion.

Without care Ekko threw the grenade over the railing and into the abyss below the wind-drill, a few seconds later an explosion shocked the platform causing Cassandra to fiercely grab the couch she was laying on...

"On a good day, Powder can be quite the genius," Ekko muttered so low she almost couldn't hear it "But on bad days, Silco just needs to point in a general direction and watch the fireworks. Trust me, stay away from Silco, for your sake and your family."

Ekko left her alone after that. No doubt to unleash his frustration somewhere else.

It was fine, it gave Cassandra time alone to analyze the new information she had.

Just her and her thoughts.

By the time Powder came back with a wheelchair calling for her and Ekko, she had been thinking for a while.

Cassandra Kiramman had an idea, one that if done correctly would change Piltover's future forever.

And nobody was going to stop her.