Hello all Storm here with a new chapter and a Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! Here we'll be getting more of a look at Talon along with Naruto, Satsuki, and Jinx doing some investigation. So, without further ado.
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A figure carrying a very long ōdachi blade was seen approaching Talon's headquarters, only find themselves soon surrounded by dozens of Talon Troopers rushing outside and surrounding them. Though the figure didn't once stop walking, even as all the soldiers aimed their weapons at them and prepared to open fire. But just before any of the soldiers could fire a single round, the figure grabbed their sword hilt and began drawing, partially revealing the seven foot long blade.
Not a moment later, all of the soldiers soon began falling over dead, some looking to be sliced to pieces and others simply sent crashing into the ground by the sudden intense air pressure. Hitting the ground hard enough to kill them, while the figure merely kept walking as they sheathed their weapon.
*Later*
It wasn't long before the entire base had descended into chaos as the figure had begun cutting down anyone in his path, no matter who they were. With those still alive either evacuating personnel or falling back while sealing all the doors and corridors off, hoping to at least slow down the attacker.
The attacker currently going against Sigma, a living weapon and Talon Agent with the ability to manipulate gravity. While a short distance away were the bodies of Talon Council members Maximilien and Sanjay Korpal, the former having been decapitated with Sanjay having a permanent horrified expression on his face.
Sigma launched several of his Hyperspheres around the room, having them bounce across the walls with the figure watching them, which Sigma saw as his chance as he gathered up a large amount of debris.
"I have you!" Sigma said, sending the ball of debris at the figure, getting his attention just as his Hyperspheres collided against them, triggering a large explosion on impact.
Before Sigma could think he succeeded, the debris was suddenly sliced in half, the Talon Agent gasping in pain as a large diagonal slash appeared across his body, nearly cutting him in half. With the figure now standing behind Sigma, turning his head as he fell to the ground dead. The figures head then snapped towards a pillar, before speeding towards it swinging his sword, slicing right through the pillar, just as purple flash of light appeared behind it.
While a short distance from the figure, Sombra, another Talon Agent and hacker, appeared at one of her Translocator Beacons with a smirk on her face at dodging his attack before aiming her pistol at him.
"You…missed?" Sombra said, only for her confidence to be replaced by confusion when she suddenly felt herself falling.
The hacker only having a moment to realize what happened when she saw the lower half of her body falling to the ground, along with her now lifeless upper body.
Looking around the figure didn't see anyone else before raising his sword into the air, with it soon starting to glow brightly. Not a moment later, the figure slammed his blade into the ground, releasing an omnidirectional energy wave that ripped through the base around him. Destroying the walls and doors blocking him, allowing him to continue dealing with anyone still alive.
*Later*
Soon enough, the entire Talon base was on fire as the figure merely continued on his way, knowing there were still Talon members left to deal with. Until soon enough he entered what looked like a council chamber, where he saw a single person sitting at the table. Recognizing them as the de facto leader of Talon, Doomfist.
Doomfist was a tall, muscular man with dark skin, a shaved head, white face paint and light brown eyes. With him wearing only mechanical black and gold sandals, white pants with matching colored mechanical kneepads, a red sash, and a red wristband on his left wrist. While his right arm and right side of his chest had been replaced with cybernetic enhancements, along with wearing the eponymous Doomfist Gauntlet.
With Doomfist regarding the figure calmly, despite how his base was currently burning around him and that they'd killed nearly all of his soldiers and allies.
"I must say, I did not expect that Shinra would have SOLDIER send you, The One-Winged Angel, Sephiroth." Said Doomfist while standing up and looked at Sephiroth.
Sephiroth is a tall man with a muscular build, long silver hair with bangs parted to either side of his face, and green cat-like eyes. He wears a long black coat with silver pauldrons, black boots, and black pants. The top of his coat is open to reveal his chest, with his leather SOLDIER suspenders crossed over it.
"Do you have nothing to say? No last words you wish to share?" Doomfist asked while holding up his gauntlet, confident that he would be able to kill Sephiroth.
The One-Winged Angel regarded Doomfist calmly, until he closed his eyes with a smirk appearing on his face.
"What use would it be…to speak with the dead?" Said Sephiroth opening his eyes, with a sudden pulse being released from his body, making Doomfist grunt at feeling himself be pushed back, but stood his ground and narrowed his eyes at Sephiroth.
"That I can say…we agree on!" Said Doomfist before launching himself at Sephiroth, firing multiple pellets from the knuckles of his Hand Cannon, though none of them reached Sephiroth, instead falling to the ground once they were close enough.
Doomfist then pulled back his fist and charged up his gauntlet, giving a shout as he rushed towards Sephiroth, knowing he wouldn't be fast enough to dodge or strong enough to block. Only for the Talon Leader to be left stunned when the silverette merely raised his Masamune, blocking his punch with the flat side of the blade. With Sephiroth not looking the least bit fazed by the attack or seemed to even be trying in keeping Doomfist back.
Then with a flick of his wrist, Sephiroth parried his arm, leaving Doomfist open as Sephiroth swung his blade and slice right through Doomfist's right arm at the shoulder. Crying out in pain and clutching where his arm once was, Doomfist gasped in pain when Sephiroth delivered a palm thrust to his stomach, feeling several ribs breaking at the strike. Crying out again as he was sent flying across the room and crashing through a wall.
Groaning in pain, Doomfist struggled to stand back up, feeling as if every bone in his body had been shattered. Though the moment he looked up, the Talon Leader couldn't stop himself from gasping or moving back until he hit a wall. As he saw Sephiroth looking at him through the hole in the wall, the One-Winged Angel looking down at him as if he was little more than an insect to step on.
'This…this is…this is no man…' Thought Doomfist as shock, horror and realization began dawning on him that this wasn't any ordinary man.
He hadn't been facing a man at all, none of them had been the moment he arrived, what they had been facing was something that couldn't be stopped, reasoned with or subdued. They had been foolish enough to try and face a force of nature, thinking they had a chance.
'No…no this is not a force of nature…he's…he is the devil.' Doomfist thought in horror as the flames consumed Sephiroth, but could still see his shadow through the fire.
Doomfist was completely frozen and paralyzed at the sight of Sephiroth, unable to move or say anything, even as the base began falling apart around him. With this being the state the remaining Talon Troopers found him in as they had to carry their unresponsive leader away.
*Present Day*
Doomfist sat in Talon's new headquarters in the council chambers along with Reaper, who'd returned to personally attend this meeting, and the only other council member to survive Sephiroth's attack, Moira O'Deorain.
Moira was a woman with pale skin, short red hair that was swept back, and dual-colored eyes with the right being red and the left being blue, which also had a metal plate around it from her cybernetics, along with her nails having grown into claws and her right hand looking sickly pale with blue veins running up to the fingertips. With her wearing pointed black shoes, black reinforced armored dress pants, lightly armored black robes with large sleeves and glowing purple designs, a rebreather attacked to her collar, a device strapped to the back of her head, and a large device on her back with glowing purple tubes going under and over her arms to behind her.
"So, we are ready to launch our assault on Piltover and Zaun?" Moira asked with a raised brow.
"You sound skeptical Moira. Do you doubt we will be able to deal with them." Said Doomfist, looking at her with narrowed eyes.
"Of course not, we have rebuilt our numbers after that…incident six years ago, but nowhere near what Talon once was. And we had lost several valuable members, leaving us with only Reaper and Widowmaker as our best fighters." Replied Moira while glancing at where Doomfist's arm once was, the man having refused to get a replacement after his defeat against Sephiroth and the loss of his gauntlet.
With Doomfist clenching his fist at the reminder of his humiliating defeat, the moment having become his own personal shame at how effortlessly Sephiroth defeated him and then taking his gauntlet as a trophy. Having completely stripped away his pride and self-respect, leaving him a blubbering mess once he'd snapped out of his catatonic state.
"We are prepared. The Enforcers within Piltover are little more than criminals in uniforms, having never experienced a true threat to them before. There are only a handful of those that would prove to be threats, ones that you, Widowmaker, and I can handle, Moira." Reaper said, with the geneticist nodding at his words.
"You would know, having been spying on them for so long." Moira stated, accepting that they'll be assaulting the two cities soon.
"Yes, we will crush them all and claim the Hexgates and Hextech for ourselves." Said Doomfist, refusing to pass up the chance to further bolster Talon's power.
'And soon we will rise again stronger than before, and I shall be one step closer to my revenge. Soon you will fall by my hand, One-Winged Angel.' Doomfist mentally swore, knowing he won't rest until he has had his revenge against Sephiroth.
And with Hextech and the Hexgates, he'll be that much closer to getting it.
*With Naruto, Satsuki, and Jinx*
Meanwhile, Naruto, Satsuki, and Jinx were currently looking through an abandoned base, having been sent here by Silco to investigate it. The crime boss having recently learned some unknown faction had been operating in Zaun, and potentially in Piltover, and wanted them to find out who. But so far, the trio hasn't found anything about who they are or where they came from.
"You find anything Satsuki?" Naruto asked, looking at the ravenette, who was searching for any data that could have been left behind.
"Nothing, whoever these guys are, they're definitely professionals, not leaving anything behind that'd point to who they are, where they came from, or what they were doing." Replied Satsuki, making the Uzumaki sigh but figured that'd be the case.
"What about you Jinx? Find anything?" Said Naruto, with Jinx poking her head out of the room she was in.
"Nope, nothing in here. But look at what I did find!" Jinx said excitedly, showing Naruto and Satsuki some gadgets she was able to find.
The two looking at what they were, seeing one looked like a grappling hook and another looked like a mine, though they also looked to be pretty damaged as well.
"What do these do?" Satsuki asked, grabbing the mine and looked it over.
"I found a few blueprints for them; the mines are apparently supposed to stick to any surface and release poisonous gas when someone gets close to them and the grappling hook is kind of obvious. But none of the stuff works, though that doesn't mean I can't use it! I'm thinking of making it so Pow-Pow can also fire different kinds of grenades and mines!" Said Jinx, planning to use this stuff for her own inventions and improve her weapons.
"Huh, that'll be useful, we'll be sure to keep an eye out for anything else that you could use." Naruto said, with Satsuki nodding in agreement, making Jinx smile happily before they continued their search for anything noteworthy or looked like it could be of use.
*With Marcus*
Marcus sighed as he returned home, throwing his keys on the table by the door before looking into the mirror. Frowning at his own reflection until his gaze turned towards the sheriff's badge, causing him to glare at it before ripping it off and slamming it down. Hating the reminder it always brought him, hating how he betrayed the woman it belonged to, hating how he's now Silco's puppet to control, and hating how his daughter was so proud of him, not knowing what he's done.
But he never had the courage to escape Silco's grasp, only ever to fantasize about taking the crime boss down, yet unable to actually make a move to do anything. He hated it, but knew there was nothing he could do, while only wanting to try and be a good father.
Though he was pulled from his self-loathing when he heard his daughter laughing, making him smile slightly and went to go check on her. Reaching Ren's room, Marcus peeked inside to see her building with her thin wooden blocks, stacking them up like a house of cards. But Marcus's eyes widened when he saw another shadow moving in the room, making him open the door more, only to be horrified at seeing Silco and two of his men inside his daughters room.
'No, no, no, no, no, no, no!' Marcus thought in panic and horror that Silco was here.
"Ah, about time daddy joined us." Silco stated, looking at Marcus with a smile, one that seemed friendly but the sheriff knew it was anything but.
"You were so busy, little Ren here saw me in." Said Silco, pinching Ren's cheek lightly, making her giggle lightly while Marcus's fear continued growing.
"Let's talk outside." Said Marcus, putting on a brave face, hoping to get them away from his daughter.
"Can't you see we're playing?" Silco said as he and Ren built up the blocks while giving him a look that gave a very clear message, they wouldn't be going anywhere.
"You remember our old friend Vi, don't you?" Said Silco, making Marcus tense at the mention Vi, still believing she's locked up in Stillwater Prison.
"She was about your age. Daddy here told me she left with on a long trip and sadly it seemed wouldn't be able to return." Silco said, smiling at Ren, while glancing at Marcus who gulped, hoping he didn't know the truth.
"But it seems she's come back and daddy here must have forgotten to tell me. I was hoping he could tell me, how long he's known she's been back." Said Silco, giving Marcus a warning look.
"She's…in a safe place." Said Marcus, hoping to cover up his lie.
"Yes, I'm sure The Lanes are a safe place for someone like Vi." Silco stated, not amused that it seems Marcus wasn't even aware Vi was in Zaun, with the sheriff's eyes widening at this.
"That's…that's not possible." Marcus muttered, knowing it'd be impossible for Vi to have escaped from Stillwater.
"There's an Enforcer with her, a girl. Roughly the same age." Said Silco, with Marcus thinking it over and who it could be, only for realization to dawn on him.
"Caitlyn. She's a Kiramman. Just like them, she does whatever she wants. I…I can't control her. She's not even an Enforcer anymore." Said Marcus in his defense, making Silco roll his eyes as he stood up.
"Then of what use are you, if you can't control one teenager?" Silco demanded, finding Marcus's uses were slowly running out.
"I'll track her down. I can fix this. Please." Marcus said pleadingly, wanting to show he's still useful, knowing if Silco considered him useless then he's good as dead.
"Don't bother, you'd only be giving me more problems to deal with. And besides, everyone makes mistakes, right? What's important is that we don't repeat them. My people will handle tracking Vi and this…Caitlyn. Do we understand each other?" Said Silco, knowing if he did that then there'd only be more trouble if Marcus did something foolish like capturing Vi again.
With Marcus only able to nod quickly, gasping when Silco looked at his daughter before kneeling down and grabbed one of the blocks. Looking like he was about to place it on top, Silco instead dropped it, causing the entire thing to come tumbling down.
"Oops. Ah, so sorry. Accident happen." Silco said while looking at Marcus before standing up, motioning his two followers to join him, the three leaving with the sheriff following after them.
Once they were outside, Marcus grunt when Silco had his men grab his arms and restrain him, while the crime boss finally let his annoyance fully show.
"Ten years you've been lying to my face. I hope you have a good excuse, for yours and little Ren's sake." Said Silco.
"I swear I didn't tell anyone where she was! I had her locked up in Stillwater, nobody knew she was there or even why, the guards and warden only saw another prisoner, they didn't care who she was! There was no way she could have gotten out!" Marcus said trying to explain himself.
"Yet she did get out and is now running around Zaun." Silco stated, putting his hands on Marcus's shoulder, making the man tense.
"You know, I actually suspected you lied to me about killing her, what with that business with your late predecessor and your sudden desire to grow a conscious. But I gave you the benefit of the doubt, after all, your uses as Sheriff of Piltover was too valuable to lose." Said Silco, having his men release Marcus and turned around.
"Though I'm afraid that may not be enough to protect you anymore, especially with how this might affect Jinx. Perhaps you'd be willing to explain things to her yourself, I'm sure you're dying to tell her why you had Vi locked up for so long." Silco said threateningly, with the sheriff paling at the idea of Jinx coming after him.
"Th-that…that won't be necessary. I'll…I'll stay out of your way as you handle things." Said Marcus, making the crime boss nod.
"Yes, you will. You just continue being a good sheriff and father, after all, we wouldn't want little Ren to thinking lying is a good thing, now would we." Said Silco before he and his men took their leave, while Marcus quickly went back inside.
Unknown to them, they had been watched by a crow sitting in a tree, that soon flew off once Silco had left. Eventually reaching Jayce's and Viktor's lab, where it landed on Itachi's arm and looked him in the eye, allowing the Uchiha to see and hear everything it had.
"Well, the news isn't all that reassuring, but it seems like Marcus is Silco's only hand in Piltover at the moment." Itachi said turning to Jayce and Viktor as he deactivated his Sharingan, with both nodding at this.
"That's good to hear, in a way that means only one Enforcer is working for Silco. But it's still bad that that one Enforcer is also the sheriff." Said Viktor, knowing it's still bad the sheriff is corrupt.
"Agreed, but now we at least know Marcus is corrupt. That just means we have to gather evidence, something I'm sure will be easy for you Itachi." Jayce stated, given with his background and abilities, gathering evidence should be child's play for the Uchiha.
"Indeed, it will be." Replied Itachi, all of them pleased at how fruitful the investigations been.
Before their attention turned to the door when they saw Elora, Mel's assistant, enter the lab.
"Councilor Talis, Councilor Medarda has extended an invitation to you to attend the theatre with her." Elora said while holding out an invitation to Jayce, much to his surprise.
"Oh um, uh, tell Councilor Medarda that I accept her invitation and will meet her there." Replied Jayce, accepting the invitation, with Elora nodding before taking her leave.
"That was certainly…unexpected." Jayce stated, not expecting a sudden invitation to the theatre.
"Yes, it was. If you don't mind, I'd be willing to accompany you Jayce as a bodyguard." Itachi said, making Jayce and Viktor look at him.
"You expect something to happen?" Questioned Jayce, with the Uchiha shaking his head.
"No, it's just a precaution. Since with your recent decisions after joining the Council, I'm not sure there are many people who are your biggest fans." Replied Itachi, given Jayce has been rather forward in rooting out the corruption in Piltover.
"I can't argue there." Jayce muttered, having not been very subtle since joining the Council, simply caring about removing the corruption before they looked at Viktor when he started chuckling.
"Sorry, but…it's time like these I'm glad you're the face of Hextech and not me. Far too much attention and decision-making to do." Said Viktor with an amused smirk, making his friend roll his eyes.
"I'll remember that next time I have to give a speech, I'm sure you'll be an amazing speaker." Replied Jayce before they three laughed lightly before he and Itachi took their leave to head for the theatre.
*Later*
Jayce and Itachi arrived at the theatre, where they were escorted to a private box where Mel and Elora were waiting for them, with the show soon starting.
"I haven't been here in years. Not since my parents brought me for the winter fest." Jayce said, smiling at remembering it.
"We're not here for the performance. Your House is in trouble." Stated Mel, handing him a glass of champagne, making the inventor look at her in confusion and concern.
"That merchant formerly enjoyed certain leniencies with regards to her trade in exchange for her generous Academy patronage." Mel said, motioning to a merchant sitting with Councilor Bolbok.
"By leniencies, you mean corruption?" Jayce rhetorically asked bluntly, with Mel shrugging.
"Hmm, Amara's harmless. Oh, look at those two stooges." Said Mel, motioning to Councilors Hoskel and Salo.
"Councilors Hoskel and Salo. Don't they hate each other?" Questioned Jayce in confusion, given all the time he's seen them they can't stand each other, now they looked like they've been friends for years.
"Hmm. But they share a taste for the finer Noxian spirits, technically an illegal import." Mel replied, raising her glass to them once they saw her looking.
"I tightened our security." Jayce stated as he began realizing the purpose behind the invitation.
"And in so doing, put a target on your back. There are those who covet your power over the wealth the Hexgates afford. And would take any opportunity to seize it from you. You've just made yourself everyone's common enemy, Jayce." Said Mel, wanting him to understand the situation he's now in.
'It's time like these I'm glad I don't have to deal with politics anymore.' Itachi thought, relieved he's not being torn in every direction while trying to stick to his morals and beliefs, he just hoped Jayce would have better luck than he did in the end.
"I can't compromise the safety of the Hexgates for collateral." Jayce stated, refusing to let the Hexgates be used for selfish desires or fall into the wrong hands, not with how dangerous they could be if misused.
"No one's asking you to. These are simply favors amongst friends." Mel said to assure him he'll still have the final say involving the Hexgates.
"I never wanted anything to do with politics. You pushed this on me." Retorted Jayce, having only ever wanted to be an inventor and help Piltover thrive with Hextech.
"You're a symbol of the future now, Jayce. Whether you like it or not. With that comes the potential to shape your own destiny." Said Mel, putting a hand on his shoulder, being able to understand with her own upbringing.
"The Council assumes you'll fail. Time to prove them all wrong, once again." Mel added just as they heard a knock at the door, with Elora opening it to show the merchant, Amara.
"Welcome, Amara. How's little Rohan?" Asked Mel, smiling politely at the elderly woman.
"Councilor Medarda. Councilor Talis. Heh, he's just as precocious as ever." Amara replied, getting a laugh from Mel.
"I had quite a shock this morning. Enforcers banging on my door, no offense Enforcer Uchiha." Said Amara while nodding at Itachi, who simply waved it off.
"Oh, I hope you'll understand, Jayce had to make a show of safety. But he's here now to negotiate all his deals personally. Councilor Talis is willing to reinstate former trade privileges to those who share his vision. Can we count you amongst them?" Mel asked, helping to set things up for Jayce.
"Councilor Bolbok seems to think other arrangements would be more profitable." Stated Amara, making Mel scoff at this.
"The man's a fool. With him, you'd be investing in the past. With us, you'd be investing in the future." Said Mel, with Jayce grabbing the railing tightly before releasing a sigh.
"You know, Councilor Medarda's right. The Hexgates are only the beginning. In fact, we're currently looking for new partners in our Hextech research, and as a supporter of House Talis, you'd be the first in line to any advancements." Jayce said, with Amara looking intrigued at the offer while Mel smiled proudly at him.
"How can I say no to such an auspicious offer?" Said Amara after a few moments with a smile as they shook hands before taking her leave.
"Hextech partners?" Mel asked in amusement.
"Has a nice ring, doesn't it?" Said Jayce, feeling like he's starting to better understand what to do.
"Mm. Your audience awaits, Councilor." Said Mel, motioning to the entire theatre, with Jayce nodding before he left to get started, stopping when Itachi put his hand on his shoulder.
"Looks like you know more about politics than you thought." Itachi stated, making Jayce smile and pat his friend on the back before exiting the booth,
Once Jayce was gone, Itachi turned towards Mel and Elora with a neutral expression.
"Excuse my bluntness Councilor Medarda, but what exactly are your intentions towards Jayce?" Questioned Itachi, wanting to finally know what Mel's intentions towards his friend were, with the Councilor looking at him in intrigue.
"Why do you wish to know my intentions towards Councilor Talis?" Mel asked, knowing that they were acquainted, but didn't think they were close enough that Itachi would openly question her intentions.
"Because he's my friend. Jayce and Caitlyn were both the very first friends I made after arriving in Piltover, they trust me and I trust them, so I like to make sure they're alright and aren't being taken advantage of. And I don't wish to see Jayce get hurt and lose anyone else that I care about." Itachi replied, surprising Mel at hearing this, but also further intrigued about what he meant.
"Well when you put like that, I'll be honest as well. At first, I only supported Jayce because his Hextech intrigued me, if he could succeed in creating it and what it would be capable of, while Jayce was just a potential investment. But now I truly want to help Jayce succeed and reach his full potential, it's why I nominated him to join the Council and have full control over all Hextech before someone else could try swooping in to get control of the Hexgates. And why I'm helping him now, to better understand what he needs to do to ensure he keeps that control." Mel replied honestly, having grown to genuinely care about Jayce and wanted to make sure he reached his potential.
Itachi looked at her for a few moments before soon nodding, seeing that she was being completely genuine.
"Then I'm glad that he has you to help him learn." Said Itachi, making Mel smile before turning her attention to the other booths, watching Jayce meet with the other Councilors and building his connections.
*With Naruto, Satsuki, and Jinx*
Jinx search through the base for anything that could prove useful, but it seems like she, Naruto and Satsuki have collected everything that could prove useful. Pleased that they were able to find a few more damaged gadgets and blueprints, knowing she'll be able to make so many new gadgets of her own and upgrade her current weapons.
'Still no idea who was here or where they came from.' Jinx thought, until she felt her foot hit something.
Looking, the bluenette saw she accidently kicked something underneath a cabinet, crouching down Jinx picked it up, confused to find it was a bent and twisted piece of metal painted white. Noticing there was also a red insignia on it, a red outline of a shield and a stylized T, with the top two points having elongated points and the bottom being a spike, making it look like an upside down sai.
'Could this be an insignia or something? Maybe for whatever group was at this place.' Thought Jinx before standing up and went to find Naruto and Satsuki.
"Hey, I found something!" Jinx said after finding her adoptive siblings/lovers, getting their attention as they saw the piece of metal.
"What is that?" Satsuki asked as Jinx handed them the metal.
"No idea, but look at the insignia, it doesn't look like one we've seen before. I figured it may belong to the group that was using this place." Replied Jinx, with Naruto and Satsuki nodding in agreement as they looked at the insignia.
"That could be it, let's bring it back to Silco and see if he knows what it is. Good job Jinx." Said Naruto, smiling at the bluenette, who returned the smile.
After searching the base a little longer, the trio took their leave with what they found to return home, only to stop when they heard a familiar sound overhead.
"This just got even better!" Jinx said, grinning madly as she grabbed Pow-Pow, looking up to see six Firelights flying down towards them.
"And it looks like the Little Man has decided to come himself." Added Satsuki, activating her Sharingan as the Firelights surrounded them, all of them tense at seeing all three of Silco's main enforcers here.
"Why are you all here?!" Said Naruto, looking at the Firelights Leader.
"We came here to investigate, after learning about someone infiltrating Zaun. The fact you three are here just proves it." The leader said since anything that interested Silco also interested them.
"Well hate to disappoint, but we already got dibs on everything inside! But please, try something boy savior!" Said Jinx, making the leader clench his fists, only for Naruto to put a hand on her shoulder along with Satsuki's.
"How about we share some information, we've already searched this place, saving you all the trouble, and since this unknown group has been snooping around Zaun, I'd say our interests align at the moment. And since you were in the information gathering business, maybe you'd be able to know who was here with what we have, Ekko." Naruto said, making Ekko frown behind his mask before looking at the other Firelights, who looked at him for what they should do.
After a few moments, Ekko sighed in annoyance before lowering his hood and taking off his mask. With Ekko having dark skin, pure white hair that was shaved on the sides of his head while the rest was put into dreadlocks styled as a mohawk, brown eyes, and white face paint that resembled a goblet or hourglass. With him wearing brown boots with leather straps wrapped around them, dark green overalls, an off-white shirts, and a dark green hooded coat.
"What did you find out?" Ekko asked reluctantly, willing to hear them out, but only due to Naruto and Satsuki having his respect, albeit begrudgingly, for having their own honor and code despite working for Silco.
And despite what she's become, Jinx was also still his childhood friend, even if he tells himself that Powder is gone.
"Honestly, not much, whoever these guys are they're good at covering their tracks. But we did find this, we think it's their insignia." Replied Naruto, tossing him the piece of metal with Ekko catching it and looked it over.
Only for his expression to turn into one of horror when he saw the insignia, with Naruto, Satsuki and Jinx seeing he did recognize it.
"So you know who uses that insignia." Satsuki stated, with the Firelights Leader nodding shakily.
"Y-yes, this…this belongs to the Talon organization. I…I only heard them mentioned a few times by Vander and Benzo, th-then after they died and I created the Firelights I learn more about them. But only bits and pieces, though what I know for sure is if Talon's taken an interest in Zaun and most likely Piltover as well, then I doubt things are going to stay peaceful here for much longer." Ekko explained before tossing the metal back at them, with the trio's eyes widening at hearing about Talon, while Ekko pulled his hood up and put his mask back on.
"We don't like or trust each other, but trust this. Tell Silco to destroy every last drop of Shimmer, because if Talon gets their hands on that stuff or Hextech, then we're all dead." Said Ekko before he and the Firelights took their leave, while Naruto, Satsuki and Jinx looked at the insignia.
"…Well…that's fucking ominous." Jinx stated, the Uzumaki and Uchiha unable to help but nod in agreement.
While the Firelights flew back to their hideout, one of them looked at Ekko.
"Should we have told them about Vi being back in The Undercity?" The Firelight asked, only for Ekko to shake his head.
"No, I want to try and confront her myself first, if I can. And I don't want to try competing with them in finding her first, especially since they'll probably find out anyway with the commotion going on or from Silco himself." Ekko replied, wanting to confront his old friend if he can, but now had to worry about the chances of Talon showing up as well.
He just hoped that whenever it happens, they'll be prepared and ready for whatever comes at them.
So, what did you think, good. Yep we see a flashback to Sephiroth attacking and nearly wiping out Talon, including killing Sigma, Sombra, two council members, and crippling Doomfist, along with taking his gauntlet as a trophy. Before we go to present day and see the remaining council members Doomfist, Reaper, and Moira discussing their plans of attacking Piltover and Zaun, as well as the state Talon is in after Sephiroth's attack, with them having rebuilt their numbers, but nowhere near where they once were. Then we see Naruto, Satsuki, and Jinx investigating the base Reaper and Widowmaker had been using, searching for anything useful with Jinx also finding some stuff for her own inventions. Next we go to Marcu who finds Silco in his home, confronting him about his lie of Vi being dead and that she's now in Zaun, along with the threat of sending Jinx after him if he tries anything else. With neither of them being aware of one of Itachi's crows watching them and reporting back to him, Jayce, and Viktor letting them know only the sheriff is corrupt, before Jayce and Itachi go to te theatre to meet Mel who begins helping Jayce grow into his new role as a Councilor and build connections. Finally we see Naruto, Satsuki, and Jinx finishing their search managing to find something with the Talon insignia before they're confronted by the Firelights, with Naruto choosing a peaceful option and seeing what Ekko knows about the insignia leading them to learn about Talon and how dangerous they are before the Firelights leave, with Ekko planning to prepare for both Talon and confronting Vi. So, for those that like the story, thanks for your support. For those that don't or at least don't like the direction taken, you're more than welcomed to drop the story. But thanks for giving the story a chance anyway and once again Happy Thanksgiving!
Storm out