Replies to my Reviews

Torukeru: The first kind. None of that reincarnation stuff.

Hexylen: I never considered how even in Runeterra, creation-themed powers are still considered 'broken'. I wonder how badly the mage haters would freak out~

Orian Durante: The 'infernal' variant of Shimmer has some relation to THE Avenger... and also to the LoL skin. Hehehe~

The child panted as she walked deep in the caves, her usually pristine dress scratched and dirtied as she periodically clutched at her chest.

Her family would definitely be worried by her absence, but she could no longer stand the stares.

Those merciless vultures who called themselves nobles and looked down on her for being born of a maid and having a weak heart on top of that.

It was only a small mercy that both her father and elder sister had genuine love for her.

"Grrr..."

The child stopped as the dark cave suddenly lit up in brilliant light, a flame appearing before her. It was the most beautiful fire she'd ever seen, a mix of shimmering azure and royal gold.

Then the flames swelled in size and heat, revealing a massive dragon head.

The child gasped in shock and fell down from the surprise, completely awed instead of terrified.

"Oh... To think that a human child could look upon me with marvel rather than fear." The dragon's voice was deep and resonated through the child's body, commanding every bit of her attention. "You are quite far from home, hatchling. Do you not have a brood that worries for you?"

The child grimaced as she clutched her chest again. "I do... But the way I am, I'm just a bother to Father and Sis..."

"...I see. So it's not that you're completely foolhardy... You're just unable to live long due to that defective organ beating in your chest." The dragon correctly surmised. "Do you wish to die here unnoticed?"

"It's not that I want to die." The child fretted. "I just don't want to bother others when I do so. And I know it's soon. The pain's been getting worse and it was so hard to breathe just a while ago."

"Quite the pitiful fool you are, hatchling." The dragon chided. "But coincidentally, this works in my favor. Make a pact with me, hatchling."

"A-A pact?"

"Yes. In exchange for a strong heart and much more, you will serve as my herald. From what I've ascertained from your scent, it seems that your homeland is rather close to Oshra Va'Zaun. There is someone I am waiting for in that region and it would be good to have a resident of the land as my human host. Do you agree?"

"O-Okay."

"Good. Now rise and give me your name."

The child stood up, gulping as the dragon's full form revealed itself, it's massive and scaled body nearly filling up the tunnel-like cavern. "I-I'm Artoria of House Pendragon."

"'Pendragon'? A fine name." The dragon commented. "I am the Sunshine Handler, Vogel Chevalier. Kin to the Star Forger, Aurelion Sol. Now come to me..."

Vogel leaned forward, stretching out one of his glowing claws.

"With this pact we make on this date..."

Aiming for Artoria's chest, Vogel pressed his glowing claw gently against it.

"...to be joined together is our fate!"

Then he pushed his claw clean through, blood spilling onto the floor as the glowing claw completely skewered her chest and destroyed the defective heart.

Opening Theme: Bones

~Gimme, gimme, gimme some time to think~

A blast of toxic smoke blew by, revealing neon graffiti art of Shirou, Ekko, Vi and Powder in their young ages against a wall.

~I'm in the bathroom, looking at me~

Another blast of smoke revealed teenage versions of Vander, Silco and Benzo roaring in solidarity against Piltover Enforcers during a protest before a sudden shift showed adult Vander and Benzo with their children while Silco stood alone.

~Face in the mirror is all I need (ooh)~

A third blast of smoke revealed Vander and Silco charging at each other, the former with his gauntlets worn while the latter had a knife, the both of them appearing demonic with burning smoke escaping their mouths.

~Wait until the reaper takes my life~

~Never gonna get me out alive~

~I will live a thousand million lives (ooh)~

A flock of birds flew away, flying past a painting of a young Artoria and Caitlyn chatting amicably, while Jayce and Viktor followed them as they both read intensely from the same book.

~My patience is waning~

~Is this entertaining?~

Morgana and Mel smiled as they shook each other's hand in a painting, both having puppet strings over the rest of the Council.

~Our patience is waning~

~Is this entertaining?~

Heimerdinger stood short in a painting, Jayce and Viktor at nervous attention behind him.

~I-I-I got this feeling, yeah, you know~

Now as sculptures, younger Shirou and Artoria held blades against each others' throats, before suddenly defending the other's back as grown ups.

~Where I'm losing all control~

Grown up Caitlyn shoots her rifle while Jayce charged ahead with a sparking hammer.

~'Cause there's magic in my bones!~

Grown up Ekko held up a stopwatch, riding a hoverboard while he left afterimages.

~I-I-I got this feeling in my soul~

Grown up Powder (Jinx) and Vi stood back to back, the former shooting a gatling gun while the later sported a pair of gauntlets superior to Vander's.

~Go ahead and throw your stones~

Grown up Artoria held up her sword, the weapon ablaze as something draconic hovered behind her.

Grown up Shirou had a pair of blades in both hands, an unseen woman floating behind him as wind blew about protectively.

Together, they charged ahead.

~'Cause there's magic in my bones!~

"A New Era Awaits"

Artoria Pendragon liked to hold herself up to a standard.

Her House was descended from actual royalty after all and she had the heart of a dragon beating in her chest.

She'd spent a good part of the day thrashing most of the 'competition'.

When her friend had suggested this, Artoria had wanted to refuse, only for Morgana to pressure her into it.

Stupid big sis.

She'd have to remember to switch her shampoo with slime later. At the very least, her final opponent would actually stave off her boredom for a bit.

"Ladies... gentlemen... and Zaunites..." Artoria resisted the urge to smile when the Zaunite in question smiled and gave the announcer a rude gesture for that distinction. "We have finally reached the finals of the 9th Annual Weapon Meister Tournament!"

The announcer gestured at the Zaunite. "In this corner, we have Shirou of Zaun, wielding a replica of an Ionian katana, which is so unlike what is expected of a brute of Zaun!"

There were loud boos and roars, the few cheers only being from those who had placed bets against Artoria. How she managed to keep from rolling her eyes was a miracle.

The announcer gestured at her now. "And in this corner, we have Lady Artoria of House Pendragon, wielding the replica of a Demacian longsword! A noble weapon that befits her lineage!"

Shirou raised an eyebrow before looking at Artoria directly. "Why's he sucking up to you?"

There were many, many reasons for why the announcer felt like sucking up to someone of her House. In the end, she simply responded with a shrug.

"Are both participants ready?" The referee asked.

"Yes."

Artoria nodded along with her opponent's statement, hefting her wooden longsword ready.

"Then, begin!" The referee shouted, giving the signal to start.

Artoria moved first, approaching quickly with her sword raised-

*CLACK!*

The entire area resounded with the crack of wooden blades against each other, as her opponent went on the attack, forcing Artoria on the defensive as each strike was faster and more decisive than any of her previous opponents had used on her. In fact, the only ones to have ever attacked her with greater speed were both Morgana and Camille.

However, Artoria had been trained by one of Piltover's most skilled combatants. Smoothly deflecting one of his blows, Artoria brought down her longsword to cleave into his shoulder.

Shirou was fast, much faster than Artoria herself. It was a testament to both his speed and skill that he'd been able to roll away from the attack that would've at least cost him a usable arm after she'd broken his collarbone.

A few meters away, Shirou rolled to his feet with a level of grace that couldn't have been born in Zaun.

In fact, with a name like 'Shirou', he was most likely a foreigner from Ionia who had Zaunite citizenship somehow.

Even in his brilliant golden eyes, Artoria could see the difference. There was none of the usual toxic rage or the steel cold pragmatism.

Instead in his eyes was a warm mix of excitement and respect. Whatever misgiving a Zaunite might have usually had against Piltovans, he certainly hadn't brought it into the fight.

And Artoria was grateful for that, her body flooding with adrenaline as she prepared for his next attack.

Immediately after she did so, Shirou went on the offensive again, his wooden katana cracking hard against Artoria's guard.

As the battle went on, Artoria was soon able to get a brief breakdown of her opponent's fighting style.

It seemed to be a mix of Ionian swordplay and Zaunite brawling tactics.

If Ionian styles were focused on skill and speed in order to land swift and critical strikes, Zaunite brawling tactics were focused on strength and durability with the superior one being the one who possessed more than the others.

Shirou was using a terrifying mix of them, being both swift and durable enough to cover most of the weaknesses that usually plagued both styles.

Artoria herself was well aware of how similarly a Piltovan would fight like a Zaunite, no matter their differences. However, her teacher had taught her that no matter how similarly the two sister nations fought, there was an undeniable difference.

"Precision is the difference between a butcher and a surgeon."

But still...

Shirou moved in for another attack, Artoria deflected it. And then another, and then another.

She could see the frustration and fury growing in his eyes, but behind all that was clear restraint.

Was he...

"Hey, are you holding back on me?"

When he looked at her with some surprise, Artoria forced down her blush after realizing that this was probably the first time she ever spoke to him.

"What are you talking about?" Shirou finally replied after Artoria was forced to block a hit to her head.

"You're holding back!" Artoria accused as she blocked yet another strike, this time taking an opportunistic swipe at his neck. "If you want to win, you have to give it you all! Did you seriously come all this way with an attitude like that?"

"Goldilocks, I am a Zaunite participating in a Piltovan sporting event." Shirou rolled his eyes, which sparked some indignance in her. "If I fight you with my 'all', I'll be disqualified and arrested quicker than I can say my own name. As much as I'd like to go all out, it doesn't really say much for you guys that you're the first one giving me trouble despite me holding back against three other people earlier."

Alright, Artoria could understand his reasoning, but still... "Do you think you can beat me like that?"

"Have you ever gotten into fights that would have ended in your death if you lost?" Artoria's rising rage was stopped cold. "Because I have, almost every day. Unless you're able to make me feel like I'm about to die if I lose, you're not going to get me to go all about. In fact, let me show you..."

Then moving faster than she could react, Shirou closed the distance and stabbed clean through her-

Artoria was distinctively aware that Shirou actually hadn't moved. The wooden katana in his hand was still free of blood. But for a terrifying instant and without speaking a single word about it, Shirou had made it absolutely clear that he was capable of killing her with just that wooden sword in his hand and Artoria didn't doubt him in the slightest.

Behind Artoria, she could hear a couple of the spectators faint dead away, having never experienced actual danger in their lives, compared to Artoria's experience.

After all, Artoria had never gotten this reaction from a fellow human being instead of the large predators she and her sister hunted in their spare time.

It was only luck that allowed Artoria to notice the slight change in Shirou's stance and demeanor. The look on his face was... well... the last time Artoria had seen a look even remotely like that was that time some maid had carelessly insulted Artoria within earshot of Morgana.

'Now that I think about it, I never did see her aga- No, focus!' Artoria winced as she suddenly blocked a brutal overhead slash.

If Shirou had been fast before, now he almost seemed to teleport into his blows as Artoria blocked three bonebreaking strikes every two seconds.

'Shit.' Ignoring the usual mental rebuke her friend would've physically given her for crass language had she been present, Artoria came to the realization that she couldn't just defend anymore. She had to break up his momentum.

Preferably with an unexpected way...

A moment after he struck for a fourth time, Artoria struck out at him with her left fist, which forced him backwards and threw him off balance for a brief moment. He almost immediately recovered, but that was enough time for Artoria to step into the offensive.

Shirou sported a maniacal grin as he brought up her sword to block and probed out with a side kick.

On and on the fight continued, neither one of them able to land a hit as Artoria's attacks were still too slow to hit him and Shirou's attacks were too weak to penetrate her guard.

Artoria herself was getting tired, but he was starting to draw back more and more.

The look in his eyes was changing. Still excited, but changing. Now it was more bloodlust cut with... approval?

Artoria suppressed the weird shudder that passed through her body with such a gaze focused on her.

Then Artoria saw him bunch up, as if preparing for one last attack.

Shirou broke into a run, then surprised everyone when he tossed his katana up into the air. The moment her eyes instinctively followed the weapon, Artoria realized her mistake.

And was barely prepared for the mental jarring she experienced to her adrenaline-heightened senses when Shirou loudly clapped his hands two inches from her face.

Toppling back, Artoria reacted on pure instinct and lashed out with her free hand, being rewarded with the feel of the Zaunite's shirt in her grip. Reeling him close, Artoria smashed her forehead into his.

Her teacher had once decried this as a desperate and foolhardy 'last resort' move even when effective and at that moment, Artoria completely agreed through the pain in her skull.

Staggering back, Shirou winced and clutched at his forehead, only to choke as he was suddenly body slammed, his katana being pinned with one of Artoria's knees as she straddled him and slammed her longsword into the ground, two inches away from his throat.

"Congratulations." Artoria practically purred with a flushed face. "You lost and didn't die for it."

"Th-The winner and overall champion of the 9th Annual Weapon Meister Tournament!" The announcer snapped out of his daze to cheerfully do his job. "Artoria of House Pendragon!"

Even with the loud cheers ringing her ears, Artoria only had eyes for the boy beneath her.

Shirou's amber eyes were wide with realization and shock as they locked onto her. For a long moment, they stayed in place, holding each other's gaze, before he smiled and laughed before releasing a husky sigh. "It's my loss, then. I guess I wouldn't mind being conquered by a girl like you."

'Oh... Oh my...!'

Artoria's face flushed as she practically leapt off Shirou, allowing him to get up. Unbidden, many images popped in Artoria's mind, all involving the two of them with less clothes involved and being fueled by the literature she had purchased and her friend had purchased in secret with their allowances.

"You're the most skilled swordsman I've ever seriously fought in my life." Having no idea of the mental damage he'd just done to her, Shirou bowed his head to Artoria, causing a small hush over the crowd. Understandable, considering that she had never seen a Zaunite offer any form of respect to a Piltovan.

"I'd say the same of you, Shirou." Showing true sportsmanship and poise, Artoria bowed back as well. If he was being respectful, it would be horrible form to not reciprocate. "You're the strongest Zaunite I've ever heard of."

"Not really." Artoria pouted as Shirou sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. Artoria believed that someone this strong didn't have any right to be cute as well, ignoring how she herself fitted that category even better. "There's still the Hound of the Underground-"

*BOOOM!*

Everyone's attention was suddenly caught at the sight of one of the penthouse buildings in the far distance exploding with blue lightning from within.

'Isn't that in the academy district?' Within her chest, there was a rumbling growl that made her realize it's abnormality. There was no scientific weapon that could produce lightning in such a manner, which either meant an accident or... 'Mage attack?'

"Let's fight again another time." Shirou suddenly spoke up as he snatched up his silver medal from the official and ran off, picking up the little boy that had been cheering for him all this while.

Acknowledging that the Zaunite probably had to get home before a blockade was implemented, Artoria grabbed her own golden medal and ran off.

Heading straight towards the destroyed building.

By the time Artoria reached the building, there was already a crowd forming. Artoria grimaced after she realized which building had been destroyed.

"Excuse me?" Artoria grabbed a shoulder of one of the panicked students. "Where's Jayce Talis?"

"I heard he was right next to the explosion itself!" The blond young man bit out, eyeing the sparks in the bluish smoke that was still pluming out of the building. "I hope nobody died..."

"Tori! Tori!"

Artoria turned just as her friend slammed into her, crying into her chest. "Caitlyn! What happened?! Is Jayce okay?!"

"It's not fair!" Caitlyn spoke up as she pulled away, wiping her tears as she began to pace back and forth in worried anger. "Even though it was the fault of those thieves and nothing happened before, they're arresting him! They're calling him dangerous just because of the stuff he was using for his research!"

Artoria blinked in shock. "WHAT?!"

The male student next to her seemed just as shocked before grimacing as he fingered the gauntlet on his left arm. "No offence to Talis, but I'm taking this as an omen. Better go check on my own research material before they start any surprise inspections..."

"Can you please speak up for him?"

Looking around the maid helping her dress up, Morgana Pendragon gazed at her little sister who was seated nearby. "Maybe."

"Come on, Gana." Artoria rolled her eyes, which caused Morgana no small amount of amusement. "Jayce is being put on trial for something some Zaunite thieves caused."

"No, Mr Talis is being put on trial for possessing illegal equipment." Morgana dutifully corrected her little sister. "You're surprisingly passionate about this."

Artoria flopped onto the couch, her unladylike demeanor not surprising the few maids in the room as every servant already knew of their employers' habits. "Sorry, it's just that I'm reminded of the Zaunite I fought back then."

"The one who got 2nd place in that tournament?" Morgana tilted her head forward to allow the sapphire necklace to be put on by the maid. "How does he connect to the trial?"

Artoria opened her mouth to answer, only to pause as an idea occurred to her. "I'll tell you if you actually give your support to Jayce. I'll understand if it all fails, but you have to at least try."

"...you little shrap." Morgana growled as she turned to glare at Artoria, barely trying to hide her growing smile. "Bribing me with a tease of information? And here I thought you sucked at politics."

"We should hit them back!" Sevika slammed her hands against her table in outrage. "We've got the numbers to beat them!"

After the Enforcers' very enthusiastic and extreme search for Vi and her crew/little siblings throughout the Lanes, many representatives of the various groups in Zaun along with a few others had gathered in The Last Drop for a little conference.

"Yeah, let's teach them what it means to mess with us!"

"Let's do that!"

"We can take them!"

Except the conference was quickly turning into screaming fest for war.

Vander listened to them all with a frown as he lit up his pipe, taking a deep breath of the potent substance. "You sure that's what you want?"

At the sounds of affirmation, Vander felt the weight on his shoulders increase as bad memories rose up. "We crossed that bridge once before. We all know how that ended."

"You're just protecting your kids!"

Barely stopping himself from looking at the kids in question, Vander stopped leaning against his counter and stood fully. If he just happened to put his large frame between them and the idiot who just spoke, that was just a coincidence.

"I'm protecting our people." Vander stressed as he looked around at everyone in the bar, looking from Sevika with her snarl, to Huck with his nervous grin, to Babette with her creepy old appearance to Benzo with his reliable presence. "I'd do the same for anyone of you. We look out for each other. That's the way it's always been. This will blow over."

"The Vander I knew, the one who built the Underground, wouldn't be afraid to fight." Sevika protested.

Vander took another breath of his pipe as he approached Sevika, the smoke curling out through his beard as he leaned into her personal space. "Do I look afraid?"

"No." Sevika herself leaned forward, glaring at Vander eye-to-eye. "You look weak."

With a whistle, Sevika left the bar with her gangsters.

"Why isn't he doing anything?" Claggor complained as The Last Drop started to empty of it's guests.

"We kicked the Enforcers' butts with just the four of us." Powder added, somehow forgetting that said 'kicking of the Enforcers' butts' really involved a lot of running away instead. "Imagine what the whole of the Lanes could do!"

"We don't have to imagine, Powder." Shirou snapped. "Weren't you listening to Vander? Did you forget where you, Vi and I lost our birth parents?"

Powder shrunk back, looking guilty. "I-I'm sorry."

"Easy, Shirou." Vi interjected. "Powder's got a point, though. Whether Vander wants to or not, people are going to push back sooner than later just like Sevika proved. I just don't understand why Vander's trying so hard to ignore that."

Of course Ekko took that moment to squirm uncomfortably.

"Don't do it, Ekko." Shirou promptly beseeched.

Vi thought otherwise. "Spill it, Ekko."

"Don't spill it, Ekko."

Ekko nervously wrung his hands, looking between Vi and Shirou's expectant gazes. Then he had the effrontery to cave when Vi cheated and held Powder forward like a bribe, the bluenette's curious gaze finishing him off. "Um... Okay, well... Vander's got a deal... with the Enforcers..."

Vi blinked in disbelief while Shirou smacked his palm into his face. "...what."

In the chamber with most of the other Councilors, Morgana hummed as she looked through the details of the trial today. 'Maybe if I put emphasis on the thieves, I might be able to lessen Jayce's sentence of expulsion. Sure, it might put some more pressure on Zaun but that won't really matter to us anytime soon.'

"Good morning, Councilor Pendragon." Mel Medarda greeted as she walked past, a noticeable swing in her hips as she passed by.

"The same to you, Councilor Medarda." Morgana greeted back with a smile. "Any new schemes recently?"

"You won't hear about those from my lips." Mel chuckled as she took her seat.

The doors at the other side of the Council Chamber opened, revealing Jayce Talis being escorted forward by Sheriff Grayson of the Enforcers. As Jayce approached their table alone, the windows activated their metal covers and slowly blocked off the sunlight from the chamber. Then when Jayce stood in their middle, a spotlight shone down on him alone.

"Jayce Talis, you are accused of illegal experimentation and endangering the citizens of Piltover. What do you have to say for yourself?"

Jayce sighed heavily. "The materials were far more dangerous than I was aware of and I now know my actions were against academy regulations. What I did endangered people. It was reckless and for that, I am sorry. I ask for the Council's forgiveness and I hope that I can continue my studies."

"As Jayce's patron of many years, I can speak for his character." Councilor Cassandra Kiramman chimed in. "I believe that one day, he will be a great contributor to our society."

"I can't ignore the fact that his materials still destroyed a building." Morgana spoke up. "While I acknowledge that it was more of those thieves' fault than his, that doesn't change the fact that the source of the explosion was more of his doing than theirs due to the volatile resources he had gathered."

"If you were a scientist or even had so much of a hobby involving craftmanship, you can't make anything without breaking a little something every now and then." Heimerdinger defended with a joke.

Councilor Salo scoffed as he took a fresh bite of his snack. "I sincerely hope that a blown up building doesn't really count as a 'little something' to you."

Mel steepled her fingers. "Do you have anything to show for your work besides an explosion?"

"Uh, no." Jayce answered. "It came to nothing."

"So you're saying your study was meaningless."

Jayce's eyes snapped towards Mel, the remorse in them replaced with indignance. "It was revolutionary!"

Mel noticed and seized that bit immediately. "Revolutionary, how? All I see is a boy meddling with things he doesn't understand."

Salo rolled his eyes ignorantly. "The academy seems to have loosened it's standards."

"This is a fine line." Councilor Shoola tapped her golden nails impatiently. "If we condone this, what's next?"

"The Council has more important matters to deal with."

"Perhaps we can just finish this."

Morgana watched silently as Jayce trembled with each barb thrown at him. 'Anytime now, Mr Talis. Give me a personal reason to defend you.'

"I was trying to create magic!" Jayce finally snapped.

Heimerdinger winced.

Salo stopped chewing his snack.

Shoola stopped tapping her fingers.

Morgana's mind went eerily blank, her breath hitching. 'Oh... Oh, my...' "Magic, you say? What a boldly interesting claim..."

"Arcane talents are something you're born with." Shoola frowned heavily. "They can't just be... fabricated."

"Actually, I believe that it is possible." Jayce refuted. "I've spent years pursuing that ideal."

Mel raised a curious brow as she looked towards her fellow Councilors. "Has anybody else tried this before?"

Morgana shrugged. "This is complete news to me. I barely have any experience with magic in general beyond that one... memorable family trip to Targon."

She forced away the memory of her little sister's limp body in very bloodied clothes.

Councilor Bolbok made some sort of mechanical garble before speaking. "The-arcane-is-the-curse-of-our-world. My-race-was-nearly-destroyed-by-it."

"Surely we, the pioneers of science, can use it for good." Jayce stepped forward passionately. "We're the champions of discovery! Why fear it when we can master it?!"

"Jayce, enough!" Heimerdinger warned.

"This is the City of Progress!" Jayce kept talking, unwilling to stop in his tirade. "Think of the wonders we could create. Let me prov-"

"ENOUGH!" Heimerdinger snapped. "You don't understand what's at stake!" The yordle sighed as his angry expression turned sadder. "But how can you? That's a burden that only I here carry. I have seen this power in the wrong hands. It corrupts... consumes... lays waste to civilizations... I have seen trees rendered to ashes... Rivers evaporated into steam in seconds... An entire city reduced into a crater... That can not- That must not happen here, my boy. I won't allow it."

"...Heimerdinger is right." Shoola nodded her agreement. "Piltover was founded to escape the warmongering of mages, not cultivate it."

"The-Ethos-is-clear." Bolbok concluded. "He-must-be-banished-from-Piltover."

"Hold on, Bolbok. You're overreacting." Morgana spoke up again. "I still haven't heard an answer to this burning question I have. Mr Talis, assuming that you succeeded in your endeavor to harness magic through science, what were you going to do with it? We would like to know your intent in 'pursuing this ideal for years'."

Jayce blinked at that. "W-Well, when I was just a boy, my mother and I were trapped in a blizzard in the mountains. We nearly died that day and my mother even permanently lost two of her fingers to frostbite. The only reason I stand here alive, is just the miracle that a mage happened to be there at that moment and hear my cries of help."

Among the crowd in the shadow, Morgana noticed a worried looking woman at the forefront caressing her prosthetic fingers absentmindedly.

Jayce fondled his something on his wrist fondly. "That mage saved us with his magic, instantly teleporting us out of the blizzard in an instant. My intent, Councilor Pendragon, was to at least replicate that phenomenon so that it can be used by others to escape situations as dangerous as those. After all, it would've be so, so frighteningly easy to die back then and there."

"The power to travel far distances in an instant." Morgana mused outwardly, her mind already made up. Even if Artoria hadn't already asked her to, there was no way she would let this gem escape her grip. "I can really see the appeal in that... Not to mention the profit..."

Mel perked up at that, her smile shrewd. "Revolutionary, indeed."

"I've made my decision on you, Mr Talis." Morgana sat back into her seat. "I move that Mr Talis be suspended from the academy and be made to put in a two-month period in which he will continue on his research with proper guidance. Should he succeed, all charges will be dropped and he will be allowed back into the academy as an accomplished Pioneer of Science. While the arcane is dangerous, we'd be pretty blind to dismiss the fact that science can be just as so in the wrong hands as well. All in favor?"

Morgana raised her hand, causing a spotlight to be shined on her.

Cassandra raised her hand almost immediately, getting a spotlight as well.

After a few seconds, Mel put up her hand as well.

Heimerdinger frowned at this, his hand still down.

"Heimerdinger, you shouldn't let your bias cloud your judgement." Morgana gently chided. "I only know of him due to my sister's friendship with him, but even I don't think he is a person who would misuse magic. Do you believe he is that kind of person?"

"...no." Heimerdinger sighed and reluctantly put up his hand, gaining a spotlight as well. "No, he is not."

Vote: For (4), Against (3)

With that definite result, Jayce's career was saved from the chopping block.

"Now then, Mr Talis, you may continue your research on this. However, you will not be allowed to go at this alone." Morgana craned her neck, looking into the shadow where the crowd were- "There you are. Viktor! Step forward!"

Viktor stepped forward until he was just behind Jayce, leaning on his walking stick.

"Viktor, you possess an extremely keen mind and have significant authority as Heimerdinger's assistant. Therefore, I would like for you to become Jayce's partner in this project." Morgana ordered. "Under your authority, you and Jayce will finetune and complete this..."

"Hextech." Jayce finished. "I named it Project Hextech."

"Project Hextech." Morgana acknowledged. "Do you have any objections, Viktor? I chose you because you because not only are you incredibly intelligent, you also possess a flexible mindset that Mr Talis will need to help pioneer this project."

"None at all, Councilor Pendragon." There was no denying the swell of pride that Viktor tried to hide as he bowed forward in gratitude. "It would be my honor to realize such a marvelous theory."

"Then this meeting is adjourned." Heimerdinger concluded, causing the metal covers on the windows to recede. "I may not completely approve of this, but I do wish the both of you nothing but the greatest of fortune."

"If we do not see any improvement after two months, your suspension will be changed into full on expulsion." Morgana waved Jayce goodbye. "Tick-tock, Mr Talis. A new era awaits with your success."

Silco held up the most recent vial of Infernal in his hands, observing the glowing reddish orange liquid. "Will he live?"

"Long enough." Singed clarified from his seat.

Too far away to hear the conversation, Deckard kept his gaze fixed at the underwater world beyond the glass. Or rather, the monstrous lifeforms swimming a few meters a way.

"Beautiful, aren't they?" Silco surprised the teenager as he approached, gazing at the sea monsters with reverence. "Yet, up there on the surface, nobody even knows they exist."

"They're monsters." Deckard responded. "I'm Zaunite, but even I would've been glad to have never known that they were down here below my feet."

"Even so, there's always a monster everywhere. Even inside each of us." Silco stated, before holding up the vial.

Deckard took one look at the vial and made the smart decision when presented a container of ominously glowing liquid. "What? No... No! That'll obviously kill me! Or at least do something really bad!"

Silco hummed before snatching Deckard's knife quicker than the boy could react. "I'd like to let you in on a very important secret I learned when I was about your age, boy. You see, power, real power, doesn't come to those who were born strongest, or fastest, or smartest."

Silco tossed away the knife dismissively and started to slowly circle Deckard. "No. It comes to those who will do anything to achieve it."

Silco gazed into Deckard's eyes before holding up the vial again. "How willing are you to do what it takes to achieve power, Deckard? Are you willing to let your inner monster out?"

Deckard looked like he wanted nothing more than to smack the vial out of Silco's hand. He desperately at the side where the two other men were, only to despair when Singed gave a smirking nod and Mundo raised his thumb up.

Gulping loudly, Deckard grimaced as he took the vial, worrying about how unnaturally warm it felt in his cold hand before popping it open and drinking it empty.

He only got to swallow two thirds of it before the pain hit.

"Gah!" Deckard screamed in mind searing pain, uncaring for the vial that dropped from his hand.

Said hand was the first to change, the flesh reddening horribly until it blistered and burst as smoke started to pour off Deckard's form until it became a misshapen charcoal like substance that slowly burned and spread through the rest of Deckard's body. The moment Deckard was nothing more than a human-shaped lump of charcoal, his body heat spiked as 'cracks' appeared allover his body to allow blood red flames burst out.

And throughout all of this, Deckard hadn't been allowed to die.

He wouldn't be allowed to die.

"GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGHHH!"

And then...

There was Fire.

"You okay, Vander?" Shirou asked after serving the latest drink.

"...no." Vander sighed as he despondently flicked a blue message cannister with golden details back and forth. "Things are a right mess."

At the sound of the bar doors opening, the two workers greeted genially, only for their good mood to die at the sight of the three Enforcers approaching them.

It wasn't just the two. Every single person in the bar did their best to make the Enforcers unwelcome with just their glares, especially when Shirou was shoved out of the way by one of them.

"What can I get you chaps?" Vander asked with a false smile.

Marcus, if Shirou remembered correctly from the bit he and Ekko had spied on previously, took off his rebreather. "Four of those slum rats will do."

Both Shirou and Vander glared at Marcus, who turned to order one of the Enforcers. "Search the place."

Shirou clenched his fist as the Enforcer headed right for the door without preamble while Vander served Marcus a glass. He had zero doubts that the Enforcer would actually pay for it.

"I nearly forgot." Marcus gave Vander a knowing smirk. "Heh. He had some stories."

Marcus snatched Vander's lit pipe out of his loose grip, prompting the large man to swell and lightly punch his counter at the subtle insult.

Just the sound of Vander's fist was enough to prompt the other antsy Zaunites in the bar to their feet, with Shirou snatching the pipe back.

"Whoever you think you are, you better watch yourself." Shirou snarled as he returned the pipe back to Vander and waved the others down. "There's a fine line between confidence and arrogance."

"I could say the same to..." Marcus halted as he observed Shirou's features. "I know you... You're that guy who nearly won that weapon fighting tournament. The Ionian pretending to be a Zaunite."

Marcus leaned against the counter intrigued. "What's someone like you doing amongst these trencher trash?"

"Hey! The people you're calling trencher trash saved me and raised me as one of their own." Shirou snapped. "That's more than I can say for you Piltover killers when you guys are the ones who gunned my parents down!"

"Easy, Shirou." Vander placed a reassuring hand on the mage's shoulder before turning to Marcus. "You'll have to forgive him. Very few people would be able to keep their murderous rage in check when confronted by someone who aligns himself with the people who murdered their friends and loved ones."

Marcus nervously swallowed before putting on a shaky smirk. "And how are you doing? If the stories I've heard about you have any truth to them, shouldn't you be the same?"

"I always make sure to remind myself of how hard it is to clean blood off cast iron." Vander gestured to his jury-rigged gauntlets hanging above the counter. "But when the rage becomes too much... Well, 'hard to clean' can easily become 'not that hard to clean'."

Well, only an idiot would've mistaken of that threat for anything else. At that moment, the Enforcer that had entered into Vander's home came back up.

Without the children.

The sight of him giving Marcus a shake of his head soothed Vander and Shirou's worries while stoking Marcus's rage.

"You people down here all the same, mistaking arrogance for bravery." Marcus turned around to glare at the gathered gangsters, with his subordinates flanking him. "You think you're standing for something? We all know that there's a crime behind every coin that passes through this place."

Marcus turned around to stare down Vander. "You're just a small man in a little hole the world forgot to bury..."

A quick swipe of his baton smashed his drink to pieces, letting the flaming liquid and shards fly around. "And I'm gonna bury the lot of you!"

Shirou darted forward and dragged Marcus by his rebreather, before roundhouse kicking one of the other Enforcers hard enough to daze him through the mask.

When the third Enforcer charged forward, Vander grabbed him by the neck and slammed him facefirst against the counter before moving to restrain the second one similarly.

Now left alone with Shirou, Marcus hastily pulled out his gun only to have it snatched out of his hand as he got restrained and choked.

"Now, then." Shirou breathed heavily as he pressed Marcus's pistol against the shaking man's skull. "How do we go from here?"

"Easy, Shirou." Vander warned, not budging despite the two Enforcers' struggles.

"I know, I know." Shirou dug the pistol deeper. "I just want Mr... what's your name even?"

"M-Marcus." Marcus stuttered through the arm choking his neck, especially uncomfortable due to how shorter Shirou was compared to him. "L-Let go of me!"

"Now why would I do that?" Shirou's voice took on a mocking tone. "You see, down here in Zaun, we take death threats seriously. With that in mind, what would you do when some snob from the uppercity comes down here, insults and disrespects our boss so casually, and finally threatens all of us with those words of yours... Did you seriously believe that you would get to walk away unscathed?"

Shirou held him there for a few more seconds before kicking him away while Vander released the Enforcers. "You came here for a search and turned out to be unlucky. Be grateful that this is all you're getting away with after your attitude."

"You..." Furious at the implied dismissal, Marcus growled as he rubbed his neck. "You think you can get away with this?! You think you can challenge the full might of Piltover's Enforcers?!"

"What's with that attitude?" Shirou tilted his head. "Even if you're right that challenging you guys could bring us trouble, you do realize that there's a strong chance that you three in particular still might not leave this bar alive?"

Marcus looked around and finally realized how closely the gangsters in the bar had surrounded them. When the Enforcers warily flicked their batons open, Marcus finally made a smart decision and waved his hand to make them stand down.

"Excellent choice, that." Vander commended.

Looking like he very much wanted nothing more to strangle the both of them, Marcus swallowed instead before speaking with a hint of trepidation. "Give me back my gun."

"This gun? Why should I?" Shirou made a show of showing it off, already memorizing everything he could see on it in order for him to Trace later. "I really don't feel the urge to return something you're likely to use to kill me right here and now."

"PFTHAHAHAHAHA!"

"He's got a point there!"

"You'd really have to be crazy!"

"Then again, he's the one that got it snatched from his own hand!"

"Haha! I can't- Ha! I can't fucking breathe!"

The gangsters had finally cracked, letting out their pent up tension with mocking laughter at the humiliated Enforcers.

"Shirou, give the poor man his gun back." Despite his straight face, Vander was seriously fighting the urge to burst into chuckles.

"Fiiiiiiine." Shirou drawled before locking the safety (To think that this maniac had a loaded gun in his clothes without the safety on) and tossing the gun. "Bye."

Growling heavily, Marcus finally left with the Enforcers in tow and laughter chasing their heels.

"Um, sir?" One of the Enforcers finally spoke up. "What do we tell Sheriff Grayson?"

"She'll probably punch our teeth out or smash our heads through a wall." The other Enforcer shuddered. "Remember what happened to Homer when she found out about him extorting that new shop?"

Marcus scoffed despite the shiver he got from the upcoming lashing he would definitely have to endure. "I can handle Grayson."

"What the hell were you thinking?! Going into The Last Drop like that?!"

'I think I might've spoken too soon.' Marcus winced as he was slammed into the wall hard enough to crack it.

"Do you have any idea how badly you've fucked up?!" Grayson swore as she pointed down at him, too lost in her outrage at her lieutenant's stupidity.

"I was getting results!" Marcus got up and smacked the hand away. "Or did you forget what the Council ordered us to do? Besides, thanks to that brat, I got laughed out!"

"According to the reports I got from your accomplices, that boy made it quite clear that you were being allowed to walk away with your lives after spending most of your time in there talking down at them." Grayson crossed her arms and sighed in exasperation as she leaned back against her table. "How could you be so moronic? Do you want war to break out? Is that what you want? Because if that boy hadn't made fun of you while adhering to Vander's orders, there would've been doubt in Vander's authority. And if Vander loses his authority, Zaun loses the tiniest semblance of peace and order it has. And if Zaun loses that, there's nothing holding them back from resuming where they left off on the Day of the Bleeding Bridge."

Marcus scoffed at that. "If I recall correctly, that ended in Piltover's victory. No doubt thanks to our superior weapons and discipline."

"I think you and I have very different views on how that day ended." Grayson shuddered as her bad memories rose up. "I was there, Marcus. I had been dispatched to help calm down a riot of violent protesters, only to see my comrades gun down desperate people. Have you ever fought a person filled with desperation and rage, Marcus? Because the Zaunites are filled with that now. A Zaunite who's overcome with hatred and resignation will claw at even the most powerful enemy, not giving the tiniest regard to their welfare, lives or reasoning. Completely uncaring of what they would lose or gain. On that horrible day, there was an entire bridge filled with those kind of people. On that day, Zaun's population went down by a hundred and six people while Piltover lost forty. I must stress out the fact that these were civilians against an armed, trained military force with 'superior weapons and discipline'."

Marcus gulped.

"And now," Grayson rubbed her fingers against her throbbing forehead. "I have to deal with the fact that my subordinate went on to not only piss off the unofficial head of the undercity, who you know survived and walked off that wretched bridge completely by his own power, but also stir up the whole city with your harassment."

By now, Marcus was nervously toeing the ground. "I... I can fix this. I can make this right I swear-"

*CLANG!*

The two Enforcers turned to the message chute just as a cannister slid in. A cannister which looked exactly like the one she'd given Vander.

"Maybe..." Grayson allowed herself to start breathing properly. "Maybe it's not too late. You, the Council... You all seem to believe that Zaun is utterly inferior to us, but that is a horrible delusion. If civil war breaks out between us, the Day of the Bleeding Bridge is going to be nothing but a prologue to something worse."

Grayson frowned as she and Marcus arrived at Benzo's shop, at which Vander had suggested to meet, along with a small unit of Enforcers. 'Where are they?'

The door opened up, revealing Benzo and his two boys, the drunken man held up by the elder one.

"Can I help you- Oh, hey, Marcus." The redhead, 'Shirou' no doubt, instantly zeroed in her shaking lieutenant. "You sure didn't take time to come back with backup."

"Shirou..." The younger one warned, nervously clutching at Shirou's sleeve.

"I know, Ekko. I know..." Shirou gently patted the smaller boy's head, suggesting a brotherly relationship that Grayson hadn't noticed the last time she'd seen them yesterday.

"Benzo." Grayson finally spoke as she addressed the drunken man. "Where's Vander?"

"...what's it to you, miss?" Benzo shrugged, the drunken flush in his cheeks doing little to hide the suspicion in his eyes. "I'm pretty sure Vander needs more than a day to answer your little inquiry."

"He did answer my inquiry." Grayson raised up her personal cannister. "Just an hour ago."

"""What?""" All three Zaunites replied together in genuine disbelief, causing Grayson to get nervous. As Vander's Right Hand, for Benzo to stare at her cannister like that meant...

"Vander... hasn't given up the thieves, has he?" Grayson realized to her mounting paranoia, her hand instantly moving to her holstered pistol. "Then who-"

"That... would be me."

A man answered as he stepped out of the smog in the distance, a reddish orange eye glinting ominously in the haze.

"S-Silco?!" Benzo blinked rapidly, instantly shielding his boys behind him while Grayson and her Enforcers took up their arms. "What are you doing here?!"

"I'm just here to finally put an end to this detestable era." Silco smoothly replied. "A new era awaits us all... and you're all in the way of it. Deckard, start with the Enforcers' leader."

And that was the last Grayson heard before a flaming monster straight out of the Void flung itself out of nowhere towards her, it's claws inches from her face.

KingVessel: Hahaha! Leave a review!