Vi was utterly and completely bored with herself. The first week of their trip to Ionia revealed little to help them solve the mystery of who Jinx's new partner was. So far all they had learned was that the traps were the handiwork of a maniac called the Golden Demon. Karma wasn't in the Tuula region at the time of the Golden Demon's rampage, but she had reliable sources on his handiwork. Not to mention the Elder from Tuula was very cooperative, showing the two Piltoveran cops everything they needed to know about this masked man, even his name. Jhin.

Vi was currently studying a sketch of the man himself, in full costume. She had no problem believing that Jinx would work with someone just as unhinged as she was, for a time. She only had two questions at this point. Where are they? And will we get there before one of them kills the other? She thought as she turned the picture over in her bare hands. She had left her gauntlets in her room this morning, as Ionia proved itself to be incredibly boring.

Piltover had criminals at least once a week, and when things ran dry Vi could always let off steam down in Zaun. As a result she had grown used to wearing her gauntlets every time she went outside. But in Ionia, things seemed to be peaceful all of the time, and her gauntlets only served as a hindrance. After three days Caitlyn had insisted that the gauntlets weren't necessary, but after a whole week with no activity Vi finally relented. She was still wearing her powered suit however, as it doubled as a spine brace.

She winced in pain as pain flared up in her spine, a cruel reminder that she came just a little too close to being paralyzed. Vi bit through the pain and didn't let it show on her face. She heard a snap as the toothpick she had in her mouth broke under the pressure of her bite. She was itching for action, specifically any action that involved putting Jinx into the dirt with a well-aimed punch. Whether said punch sent Jinx to the hospital or morgue started to not become a cause of concern. She frowned, as she knew she ought to be better than this, as one of the tenants of the Piltover Police Core was to never kill unnecessarily. But isn't it necessary? She thought as she started thinking of Jinx's manic smile instead of Jhin. She's a menace to society, and she'll find a way out of any prison we throw her into.

She shook her head to clear her mind, and winced as the sudden movement prompted more pain flaring from her back. She had turned down painkillers as they would have made her sluggish and unfit to fight in an emergency, but she was starting to wonder if she was in any condition to fight now. If I have to, I'll do what I need to. She promised herself as she looked up from the picture and took in everything around her for what felt like the first time.

She was leaning on a wall next to the door, in a room that looked like it was made entirely from wood. The wood was different for the walls and floor, and the ceiling even had an artisan design to disguise the wood it was made from. In the center of the room was a table, and around it sat Karma, Caitlyn, and four other Elders of the regions of Ionia. They were currently in animated conversation, however the subject matter was of no interest to Vi, as they had already gone through all of the information about Jhin in the first 4 days of their visit. Caitlyn was currently telling them about Jinx, and the threat she and Jhin could be if they were truly united and not just working loosely together only to break up the next minute and try to kill each other.

However Elder Rovar, the elder of the Tuula region, vehemently denied that Jhin was on the loose, as Vi imagined it would make his fabled prison look bad. Caitlyn was a bit more optimistic however, and was currently debating with him as to why he could actually be on the loose, and what it could mean for Ionia. Vi blew out her breath irritably. The only reason they were even talking about this instead of checking out the prison themselves was because every elder held full authority over their regions, and had to ask permission from another elders before sending military personnel or, in Vi and Caitlyn's case, foreign law enforcement. The only two groups that could go into any region they wished were the Wuju Bladesmen and the Kinkou Order.

"Elder Rovar," Caitlyn began again, showing none of the irritation that Vi knew she had, "We have reason to believe that Jhin was not only missing from your prison, but was also causing trouble in Piltover. The traps, the evidence of exotic gunpowder at the sites, and my partner's eyewitness account of seeing the man there himself."

Rovar turned to Vi, his small eyes studying her closely inside its nest of pinched fat that could be called a face. "Are you certain?" The large man asked, his eyes somehow narrowing further.

Vi entertained the thought of his eyes sinking completely into the ocean of blubber, but managed to keep from cracking a smile. "Yeah, I saw him. He looked exactly like this." She held up the picture. "And you can't tell me this wasn't him. From how you described him, from his habit to whisper when he speaks to his obsession with theater, that was Jhin."

"It could have been a pretender." Rovar insisted. "An admirer in fact. The real Jhin would have no reason to even go to your little city."

"Elder Rovar," Caitlyn cut in, "Surely you have no problem with us simply going to inspect this prison. If he's there than that's that, we simply have to follow Jinx's trail instead of Jhin's."

Elder Rovar blustered. "You dare insinuate that my prison isn't adequate? That any unarmed and scrawny man can just get up and leave? I'll have you know that my monks are trained well in martial arts, nobody can just get up and leave!"

"We all are fully aware of your prison's proud name." Karma said gently. "In fact we still tell stories to our children, telling them to never fear evil, for once evil gets locked in Tuula, it might as well cease to be. However these visitors from Piltover merely want to see the glory of Tuula Prison first hand. Surely you won't object to that?"

The man took a deep breath and resembled an inflating balloon for a moment. Vi snorted a laugh at the resemblance, but Rovar didn't hear her. The sigh was like watching air leak out. "I will permit a visit to Tuula Prison." He motioned to the scrawny man standing behind him. "My assistant, Lyner, will accompany you."

Vi rolled her eyes at the unwanted tag-along. Caitlyn could probably arm wrestle the guy, yet for some reason he had a reason to be sent along with them. As those at the table discussed details, Vi was formulating plots to get rid of him on the way when the hairs on the back of her neck rose as a chill went down her spine.

She had seen something. Out of the corner of her eye. It passed the window outside, but at an angle where nobody could see it. Nobody except her. Holding her breath, she leaned close to the door then, and placed her ear against it cautiously. Breathing.

An eavesdropper! Vi thought quickly, and her anger quickly turned into a rush of excitement. I may not have my gauntlets, but you're paste.

She placed a hand on the knob, and silently turned it. Vi shook her head slowly, waving her fiery pink hair around. Caitlyn caught the movement and her gaze slid over to Vi. Vi winked, and with a finger traced an invisible path from her eye to her ear, then pointed at the door.

Caitlyn's eyes widened for a second, then she looked back to the meeting and rejoined it, adding more things to talk about whenever the conversation ran down.

Vi took a moment to steel herself for the pain, then yanked the door open with her left hand while delivering a solid punch in the jaw to the person on the other side with her right. Sure enough, the force of the punch sent shockwaves of pain through her body, and Vi gasped. The cloaked and masked figure spun with the impact, then after taking a moment to gather its bearings, it took off running.

Caitlyn bolted from her seat but Vi was already gone, chasing the eavesdropper down. The figure ran down the hall to the the balcony overlooking the inner plaza. Skipping the stairs, it jumped to the floor below. Landing cat-footed, it ran down another hall. Vi practically flew down the stairs, her powered suit giving her the strength in her legs needed to run fast enough to keep pace with him despite his shortcuts. It is a he. Vi thought as her muscles burned from adrenaline. She caught a glimpse of his masculine figure when he landed on the floor below. The cloak billowed out from him, and Vi could see the smooth chest clearly as he ran beneath her balcony.

The chase continued through some rooms, split up by paper dividers. Vi shoved aside every single one, using her enhanced strength to knock every one aside as she kept the billowing cloak in sight. She ran past some stunned onlookers and even leaped over one as he walked between the man and his pursuer, oblivious to what was going on.

The jump was a mistake, and Vi realized this as she was in the air. She attempted to land on the balls of her feet to make the shock as small as possible, but nothing could stop the icy spike of pain to stab through her back. Her jaw locked tight, refusing to let out a scream. She was going to catch him, no questions asked. She had lost time reeling in pain, and feared that she lost him.

Remember Vi, think two steps ahead of the criminals. Caitlyn's words came back to her, so Vi quickly guessed that he was headed outside to deliver the information to an unknown party. Vi turned and ran to the right, thankful that she had at least paid attention to the layout of the building. This path would lead to a wall, but it led straight outside, and judging by where the man was headed, it was clear he was intending on taking the southern exit. She'd cut him off there.

Sure enough, after a few moments she arrived at the wall. A bash with her shoulder broke the wood and let her stumble outside into the chill night.

The moon was full, and it illuminated a dark figure coming out of the southern exit just as she predicted. She walked in front of him to block his path, cracking her knuckles, keenly aware that her hands were bare. "Where do you think you're going?" She asked in an amused voice that belied the pain she was feeling. "You forgot your knuckle sandwich!"

She swung out with a fist, then suddenly dropped to the floor and attempted a leg sweep. She was well-versed in street brawls, but was also well aware this person was likely trained in professional martial arts. She couldn't afford a long confrontation with her back feeling this way, so she was determined to end it quickly.

Unfortunately the man was quick. He leaped over Vi's leg sweep and landed behind her, he took off running, not bothering to launch an attack her way. Vi looked up in dismay as the man was getting away, with potentially damaging knowledge.

The man made it 5 paces before a lightning bolt dropped from the sky directly onto his head. Vi jumped in alarm, the thunder only making her shock worse. "What?" She said aloud, not fully believing what she saw. She looked up and confirmed her suspicions. There wasn't a cloud in the sky.

"Rest." A calm voice said behind her, and she turned to see a man in dark ninja garb standing behind her, offering a hand to help her up. "We'll take it from here."

Vi took the hand, as she doubted she would be able to get up on her own at the moment. Once she got her footing she looked back at the man stumbling around in the darkness with smoke coming off of his clothing. "We?" She asked finally, picking up on the plural pronoun's use.

Another ninja, this one clad in green, leapt from a high building and landed in front of the man. A single punch straight to the face sent him to dreamland. The man fell backwards, and revealed that the green ninja was a woman. "Nice one." Vi said appreciatively, recognizing a good punch when she saw one.

A tiny ninja clad in purple dropped from another building, and landed next to the blue ninja. "Bullseye." The ninja said in a higher voice that made Vi think of a child. Sure enough, when she looked down she saw a young boy in purple ninja garb. She looked to the man in blue, the woman in green, and the child in purple, and understood. "Oh, I got saved by a ninja family. Neat I guess."

The woman in green flushed, and the blue ninja chuckled without mirth. "You misunderstand. Kennen is not our child." He nodded to the child. "There is no need to disguise yourself around her. She's a friend."

Vi was still trying to understand that last part before the child suddenly turned very furry. "Yikes!" Vi shouted, pointing to the now decidedly not human creature. "What is that?"

The ninja answered. "This is Kennen. He is a yordle. A mystical race of small furry creatures that are like us in all but looks and longevity."

Vi nodded slowly. "Oh, so... they're common in Ionia?"

"You could say that. Ionia is a very spiritual place, and yordles are spiritual beings. Needless to say their appearance causes some questions, so most yordles use their innate magic to disguise themselves. Kennen is in fact a full adult." He held up a hand to Vi's next question. "A yordle's disguise is not perfect however. A strong spiritual sense will allow you to see through them."

"I see." Vi suddenly felt very tired. Her adrenaline was starting to run out, and in its wake it left fatigue and leftover pain. She leaned against a wall, next to the hole she smashed to get out. "So he's Kennen. What about your names?"

"My name is Shen." The flippin' ninja answered. "The Eye of Twilight."

"Akali." The woman answered. "The Fist of Shadow."

"I'm the Heart of the Tempest." Kennen piped in.

"I'm Vi." Vi answered, amused by their extra titles. "I don't have a fancy title." She grew serious. "So who was that guy you fried?"

"An agent of the Cabal." Shen answered. "This organization has spread its tendrils of corruption throughout Ionia, and yet we're no closer to finding out anything about key members or where they are stationed then we were when we started our investigation."

"This guy was going to report our last meeting. I'm glad we stopped him, who knows what might have happened if they knew about our plans."

"What plans are those?" Akali asked.

Vi frowned. "Nice try, but it's on a need to know basis. Thanks for the help, but you don't need to know."

"Understandable." Shen replied. "In a gesture of good faith, I'll tell you why we're here. We are from the Kinkou Order, A-"

"Oh I know about them." Vi cut in. "I heard about them during my stay here. You guys are the enforcers of balance here, right?"

"That is correct."

Vi became solemn. "Sorry about the rest of your order. The elders told me that you're all that's left."

"They are correct." Shen said. "But enough about the past. Our current situation is dire. We just came from an investigation of Tuula prison, and a very dangerous criminal has escaped."

Vi's heart quickened in excitement. "Was it Jhin?"

Shen's eyes widened slightly, the only indication of his surprise. "Yes, how did you know?"

"I had a run-in with him in the city of Piltover, assisting one of our local crazies. My partner and I followed his trail here for answers. The elders told us that last they heard he was locked up in Tuula prison."

At that moment Caitlyn rushed in through the southern exit, armed and ready. "Where did they go?" She asked, coming to a stop when she saw the three ninja. "Oh, the Kinkou Order's here. Excellent. They can help us."

"Wait you know them?" Vi asked.

Caitlyn shook her head. "I only heard of them in the meetings we had. Pictures were also passed around. You'd have recognized them too if you were actually in the meetings." She looked down and saw Kennen. "The elders have also told me that you're actually a yordle."

Kennen sighed and dropped the disguise completely. "Why did we tell the elders Shen?"

"Because if we didn't, Karma would have seen through your disguise sooner or later and have reported your identity to the other elders anyway."

Vi turned to Caitlyn while the ninja were conversing. "Cait, they just came back from Tuula. Jhin's gone."

Caitlyn took in a sharp breath, muttered "I knew it", and spoke at regular volume. "Alright, we have the proper intel, we just have to inform the elders of this. They can decide where to take it from-"

"No." Shen interrupted. "We cannot allow the Elder of the Tuula region find out that we know about Jhin's disappearance. While we were there, the monks all held up the illusion of Jhin's incarceration, and nearly imprisoned me when I found out the truth. This is not a recent escape. Jhin could have been gone a long time ago, and the last few years could have all been a deception that the Tuula elder is likely a part of."

"Because the elders hold no secrets with each other," Akali put in, "we cannot reveal this to any of the elders, understand?"

Vi nodded, and Cait took a moment before nodding. "The Tuula Elder did insist we take his assistant with him to inspect Tuula prison." Caitlyn observed.

Akali and Shen looked at each other. "It is fortunate our paths have crossed." Akali said. "Now we must find Jhin."

"And Jinx." Vi put in, punching her palm. "When are we leaving?"

"You're in no condition to go anywhere." Caitlyn insisted. "Look at how hurt you are from a simple chase. Jinx is dangerous enough, and Jhin is currently an unknown. I can't allow you to come."

Vi growled. "You can't honestly expect me to sit here while you get to go off with ninja."

"I'm sorry but there is no other way. Besides, if we both leave without the elder's assistant, and if he's in on this, he'll be tipped off. I need you to stay here and tell them that I'm on a short visit to the famous spa in the Navori region, and that we'll be ready to go to the Tuula region when I return. We'll use hextech radios to stay in touch, but I need you to rest and recover. The sooner you get better the sooner you can help. Okay?"

Vi impotently clenched her fist, but she knew Caitlyn was right. "Fine. But don't have all the fun without me. I mean it."

"Right." Caitlyn said with a smile. "You know me, I wouldn't dream of having fun on a mission."

Vi couldn't help but smile back. "Yeah, I forget I'm the reason missions are even fun. Take care of yourself, cupcake." With her final words, she spit on her palm and held it out to shake.

Caitlyn drew back. "How about no?" She said as she maneuvered around Vi's hand and gave her a quick hug. "Get well soon, my friend." She turned to Shen and said, "When are we leaving?"

While Shen went over details, Vi turned and walked back inside, formulating lies to tell to the elders.

Vi popped a handful of painkillers into her mouth and snuggled into bed. Or at least attempted to. Due to her suit doubling as a brace, she had to wear it in bed, and it was incredibly uncomfortable. With any luck, Vi thought, The painkillers will make me numb to this.

The elders were a little confused and a little disappointed when Vi told them that the eavesdropper had gotten away, and that Caitlyn had fumed so much over the botched chase that she left for a famous spa in Karma's hometown to cool off.

Navori was close enough to the Ionian capital that nobody thought of it as odd, especially because Ionians often traveled long distances for enlightenment or other spiritual needs.

Next to Vi's bed was a small table holding a bottle of painkillers from Piltover and a hextech radio tuned to Caitlyn's. Even though she resigned herself to be bedridden, Vi was determined to remain vigilant. She kept her bedroom door locked, and her gauntlets next to her bed in a hextech anti-grav case.

Good luck Cait. Vi thought as the painkillers started to take over and push her into sleep. Save some Jinx for me.