A/N: It's been a while, I'm aware, and this time I can't really make too any excuses. I just didn't write, and I apologize to you guys for that. Hopefully I'll be back for now, but I can't really promise a regular update schedule unfortunately, though I will try to continue writing and updating as much as I possibly can. I apologize for the incredibly long pause, but I think I needed a break from everything for a while. Additionally, the votes are in, though I won't tell you who won because of spoilers, but if you guys want, I can write the other pairing, and include it at the end of this story as bonus chapters. If that's something you'd like to see, send me a message, and I will work harder to get this story out for you guys to read. Thank you all for your patience, and as always, feel free to leave a review with comments and criticisms so I can improve my writing in the future.
Chapter Seven: A New Beginning
Location: Zaunite College of Techmaturgy
Thump thump.
Thump thump.
Thump thump.
"A…heartbeat?", a confused Stanwick asked.
The stone pulsated in Stanwick's hand as he held it far from his body. The familiar pink glow fading in and out with each beat.
"Yes, yes." Viktor responded, "Found in the waste fields, by Blitzcrank."
"But…how could anyone dispose of such a curious organism?"
"I haven't the faintest." Viktor said, scratching the back of his neck, unsure of what it could mean. "I was hoping you and I could research this…thing…and possibly figure out why it was disposed of."
"Hm. That reminds me." Stanwick began, turning to Viktor, "I've been thinking about this for quite some time, and this discovery of yours has done nothing but help my decision."
"W-what decision might that be?" Viktor asked nervously.
"I want you to go to Piltover for the year." Stanwick said, putting the stone back in its case, "And I want you to present Blitzcrank to the Progress Symposium."
Viktor's eyes widened at the statement. He had no idea that Stanwick would present him with such a tremendous opportunity.
"B-but the Progress Symposium is meant only for the finest techmaturgists that Runeterra has to offer.", he stuttered, "It is meant for those who would change the world with their discoveries. How could I show up with a simple cleaning robot?"
"Weren't you just telling me earlier tonight that you had plans for this 'simple cleaning robot'?" Stanwick responded placing his hands on Viktor's shoulders, "You told me that you would make Zaun the cleanest city in Valoran. Possibly Runeterra. If you take Blitzcrank to Piltover, you could not only clean up Zaun, but the entire planet. You don't think that's an achievement worthy of changing the world?"
Viktor's head began to spin, he had no idea how to respond to Stanwick's compliment. He turned his head towards Blitzcrank, and began walking towards it. He ran his hand up along Blitzcrank's arm.
"We could…change the world.", he whispered.
"The trip will be completely paid for." Stanwick spoke up, "You'll have enough time to fix Blitzcrank's programming, and maybe even enough time to work with this stone here."
"If you really think that I'm ready for this…" Viktor said, still staring at Blitzcrank, "Then I accept your offer."
"Excellent." Stanwick exclaimed. "We'll go over the details tomorrow. But for now, let's grab a drink. To celebrate!"
"Absolutely sir." Viktor turned around, his face glowing with pride, and shook Stanwick's hand as they began striding out the door of the lab. As they left, Blitzcrank slowly woke up, and walked over to the stone's case, staring at it for a few minutes.
"WE COULD CHANGE…THE WORLD." The golem said, before returning to its post and going back to sleep.
Tomorrow…
Viktor woke from his bed at dawn, hardly able to stay asleep due to his excitement. He quickly threw on his work clothing and lab coat and sprinted out the door towards the college. He grabbed a cup of tea from the college's coffee shop and began working on Blitzcrank. After a few hours, he was met by Stanwick, who stepped into the lab with a cup of coffee. He looked at Viktor and began laughing.
"If you fix everything now, there'll be nothing left for you to do in Piltover." He exclaimed.
"I can't help it." Viktor said, looking back at Stanwick, "I just can't contain my excitement."
As Stanwick approached him, he noticed several dark bags under Viktor's eyes.
"Have you had any sleep?" he asked,
"Not much." Viktor responded sheepishly, "It's hard to sleep when all I can think about is what I need to prepare."
Stanwick chuckled, "Don't worry so much. I'll make sure you have everything prepared before we head off."
"Wait-we?" Viktor asked, confused.
Stanwick chuckled again, "I've been invited as well. They told me to bring someone that I thought was an equally amazing scientist. So I picked you, though of course, all of your research is yours to present. I've got some research of my own."
Viktor let out a sigh of relief.
"That makes me feel much better." he said, relaxing his body, and sitting down at a lab table.
"I thought it might." Stanwick responded, sitting across from him. "Now, let's go over the details; A week from tomorrow will be when we will be leaving, and we'll be taking the monorail." Stanwick pulled two tickets out of his coat, and put them on the table. "We'll be leaving that evening, travelling first class, and we'll be docking the following morning. Once we leave the station, that will be when we will part ways for a while. You will be heading downtown to the Sheriff's College of Engineering and Techmaturgy. Once you arrive, speak to the Dean, and show him this letter." Stanwick handed Viktor a letter with a wax seal. "This is your invitation to the Progress Symposium. Once you show this to the Dean, he will provide you with your living arrangements for the year. I will be heading Uptown to participate in the construction of a new Laboratory for Hextech research."
"Hextech?" Viktor asked, "Doesn't that involve incredibly volatile and dangerous experiments? I thought we gave up on perfecting that years ago."
"Well, that's exactly it." Stanwick responded, "That's what I've been invited to the symposium for. I believe I've found a way to use the technology safely, and that's why I asked if I could help build a laboratory for it."
"…Incredible." Viktor mumbled under his breath, "I had no idea that was possible."
"Enough about that," Stanwick exclaimed, "Why don't you go home and get some rest? You'll need it."
"Yeah," Viktor said, "Maybe I…should…"
As he trailed off, his head collapsed on the table, and he fell asleep.
Noticing how deep Viktor's sleep was, Stanwick stood up, and walked over to Blitzcrank. He opened the golem up and began taking notes, and making blueprints.
Viktor destroys his blueprints after he assembles his creations, he thought, so I guess I'll have to make my own.
After finishing his notes, Stanwick closed the golem back up and left the lab.
The following Saturday…
Viktor had paid little attention to the stone over the week, and instead, focused his efforts entirely on the steam golem. Viktor had begun to teach his creation sentience, though he still had a long way to go before Blitzcrank was perfected.
As the day went on, Stanwick arrived at the college, and began preparing his research to be transported.
"Have you even gone home since I last saw you?" He exclaimed upon seeing Viktor.
"Of course!" Viktor responded, "I've just been working here more."
"Viktor." Stanwick said, "You realize we leave tonight, right?"
"Yes, yes." He responded, "Everything's ready to go, I just need to finish with this last upgrade,"
Stanwick chuckled, "Well, as long as you're prepared. But hurry, we've only got a couple hours until we need to leave."
"I'll be done in just a few minutes." Viktor said dismissively.
Stanwick then returned to what he was doing, and began counting cases of experiments and tools. After everything was prepared, he and Viktor began to head out, with Blitzcrank following. As they arrived at the station, Viktor spent a few minutes looking at the night sky of Zaun. He had never left the city before, so this was rather hard for him to do. After a few more moments, it was time to board the train, and Stanwick lead Viktor to his seat, and Blitzcrank to the cargo hold. While he was there, he opened up Blitzcrank one more time, taking notes as he did so, making sure Viktor didn't come by to check up on him. He then closed the golem back up and returned to his seat. After a few more minutes, the train began leaving.
Once it was in motion, Viktor took a few moments to soak in the luxuries of first class travel. He had a seat independent from the others in his section, which was able to spread out into a bed with a heated mattress and table. Every hour, a server would come by his seat and ask if he needed any food or drink, and each time he would just order water. Due to nervousness, his stomach was getting upset, and he couldn't eat anything without regurgitating it almost immediately.
"What's wrong Viktor?" Stanwick called from across the aisle.
"This is all just so incredible." He responded, "But it's just hard to take in. I've lived in Zaun my entire life, and as much as this is an amazing experience, it's also very nerve-wracking."
"I promise that it will be a great opportunity for you." Stanwick said, "Piltover has such an incredible amount of diverse and fantastic technology, that you'll start working and forget all those worries of yours."
"I sure hope so." Viktor said, and began staring out the window.
After a few hours, the train docked on its final stop, and the stewardesses began changing everyone's seats into beds. Viktor's nerves kept him awake all night, so he just sat up in his bed and stared out the window again, though eventually his weariness overcame his nerves, and he fell asleep for a few hours.
In the morning, Viktor and Stanwick awoke to a message over the P.A. system:
"Good morning passengers, in just a few short hours, we will be making our final stop in Piltover. Please enjoy breakfast in our food car in the meantime. For our first class passengers, breakfast will be served to you in your seat, so please be patient, and enjoy the rest of your trip."
Viktor and Stanwick were both served a breakfast of eggs and steak with orange juice and vodka. Though Viktor opted for a non-alcoholic beverage for breakfast. He picked at his food, not really having the stomach to eat it.
"Was the food not to your expectations?" one of the servers asked Viktor.
"N-no, I'm just not all that hungry right now, thanks." Viktor responded, handing the plate to the server.
"I apologize that you did not enjoy your trip." The server said back, "Is there anything we can do to improve your experience next time?"
"Oh. Not really." Viktor responded, "It's not really your fault-that is. Just nerves is all."
"I see," the server said, "There are still a few hours before we stop. If you would like, you may still use our massage car, on the house."
"I…think I'm okay," Viktor responded, "Thank you for the offer though."
"Very well," the server said, "The offer still stands until we stop if you change your mind."
At that, she left with his plate, leaving him staring out the window at the Piltover's horizon. Despite his nerves, Viktor was awestruck at the view. The monorail was high enough in the air that the view made Piltover look like one, giant machine with many parts. There was an aerial platform that stuck out above the city with several buildings on top of it including houses, factories, and restaurants. Though as the train came closer to the city, Viktor noticed a very large building in the center of the platform with glass windows. Large machines could be seen from the outside, as well as rooms full of young adults working. It was nothing like the polluted factory city of Zaun. He could see why it was named the City of Progress.
Finally, the train docked at an aerial station, allowing the passengers to safely exit the train. After getting off, Viktor made his way to the cargo hold to check on Blitzcrank. It seemed as though the golem made it safely, so Viktor woke it up, and brought it out of the station.
"Well," Stanwick said, "It's time for us to go. Do you have everything with you?"
Viktor dug through his suitcase and found his symposium invitation, showing it to Stanwick.
"Good," he responded, "You know where to go, right? It was the big building with the glass windows that you saw as we were arriving." Stanwick pointed towards the aerial platform.
"I think I'll be fine." Viktor said.
"Great." Stanwick said, "Remember, don't lose yourself. You have a goal, and that's why you're here. Don't lose sight of it."
"I won't." Viktor responded, shaking Stanwick's hand.
"Good luck."
At that, the two engineers parted ways.
As soon as Viktor was out of earshot, Stanwick took a cell phone out of his pocket and dialed a number.
"Yeah, it's me." He said into the phone. "We're here…yeah…proceed with the plan. You know what to do."
End of Chapter Seven