So, yeah…
I'm back. Sorry for the long wait but, truth be told, life's been shit recently. Basically all of July. My cat died, I fucked my knee up and my Dad had a cancer scare which was pretty stressful to deal with. There was a whole host of other things as well that I'd rather not mention, but I'm doing a lot better now, and I like to think that'll come through with this chapter, even if there might be a mistake here or there. It's one I've been looking forward to for a long time, and I'm hoping you all enjoy it!
See you at the end!
A heavy tension settled down on the station's briefing room as Caitlyn's volunteers filed in, a few dozen or so Enforcers who she, Vi and Lieutenant Calloway had personally gathered for this operation. The room itself was bare-bones, with five long, ten-person wooden benches spread in a line across the length of the space, along with a speaker's podium and a revolving whiteboard at the front. The last two Enforcers entered the room with Calloway following behind them, shutting the door with a resounding click before leaning against the wall. He folded his arms across his chest with an expression that was too relaxed to be natural, and Caitlyn's stomach did a little flip, her heart pitter-pattering in her chest.
She'd hoped she was the only one feeling nervous about this whole thing.
Her Enforcers finished finding their seats a few seconds later, turning to the front with expectant, almost nervous looks in their eyes. But as Caitlyn's gaze drifted over those in the front row, seeing nothing but casual determination in their faces, she wondered if she wasn't projecting her fears a little. Every Enforcer in front of her had been doing this job just as long as her, if not longer, and Caitlyn knew for a fact they'd all been in a firefight or three. That didn't mean they were as skilled as her, as investigators or as marksmen, but they were genuinely decent Enforcers - otherwise she'd have fired them when she became Sheriff, like all the other Enforcer's she'd kicked to the curb after they failed to meet her standards.
Caitlyn glanced to her right, seeing Ekko leaning against the wooden podium with a bored look on his face. His left arm lay flat on its surface and he supported his head with his right; resting his chin on his palm as his eyes roamed across the room, taking it all in with a dispassion she'd only ever seen from him this side of the river. She was pretty sure he didn't hate everything about Piltover, but his opinion on the Enforcers department was clearer than day. To him, they were the Council's lapdogs and nothing more, no matter how much Caitlyn did to fix that. The fact that Ekko was a Councillor himself was not lost on her, and she doubted it was lost on him either, but grudges and biases didn't vanish overnight. Or maybe, in Ekko's case, never.
He wore the same gear as usual, dark trousers and a white tank top with a brown-steel breastplate over the top, along with heavy black boots and an orange bandana around his neck to tie it all together. He looked halfway between a mechanic and a soldier, which was exactly what he was, she supposed. The green bat hanging from his hip only furthered that image, three feet of steel forged into the shape of a clock's hand, and Caitlyn didn't miss the way he kept glancing down towards it - making sure it was still there. Even now, after all that had happened since Silco's death, Ekko still didn't feel safe amongst the Enforcers; like they'd drag him off to Stillwater the second his guard dropped, sentenced to a life beneath earth and sea with nothing even resembling a trial. And as much as it pained her to admit, Caitlyn didn't blame him. They'd done the same to Vi, his friend and the woman she loved, all those years ago…
Caitlyn had been so young when Marcus dumped her in that prison, barely even a woman, let alone an Enforcer, but the guilt threatened to drown her all the same.
She sucked in a sharp breath and buried those feelings as deep as she could, drawing a hand to her chin to cover the motion, like she was deep in thought. Then Caitlyn's eyes fell to the back of Ekko's waist, to the final machine in the little presentation he'd given Jayce, Viktor and Heimerdinger two days ago. That such a small, almost unassuming device could hold so much potential, so much power, almost sent Caitlyn through a loop when Jayce had told her about it at the station later that same day. Time travel was something out of science-fiction novels and that's where she'd always thought it would stay, even with the advent of Hextech nearly a decade ago. Now it sat less than ten feet away from her, the cracked emerald gemstone that made it all possible floating in its glass and steel container, like it didn't have the ability to shift time itself with the press of a button.
Vi had told her Ekko was brilliant, just as brilliant as Jayce, even, but she hadn't truly believed it. Not until she'd learned of the Z-Drive. Not until he'd presented her with one of new personal shield generators, which would soon become standard issue for the Enforcers and the Firelights, and asked her about helping set up Hextech air-filters down in the Undercity, sometime in the near future. Then Viktor combined Ekko's transmutation technology with Jayce's own healing device and built himself a machine that would, eventually, completely cure the disease that had nearly taken his life. And that had all happened in the last two days!
If all of that didn't put Ekko in the same league as Jayce, Viktor, Heimerdinger and even Jinx, then Caitlyn didn't know what would.
Caitlyn's gaze slid from Ekko and towards the woman standing to his right, face set in a subtle grimace with her oversized steel hands resting on her hips, its massive fingers almost wrapping entirely around her waist. It was an odd mix of comical and intimidating, though she doubted anyone here was brave enough to laugh at her Deputy. Vi kept her eyes fixed on the back wall of the briefing room in a way that screamed nervousness to Caitlyn, and she wasn't all that surprised. Vi was far from socially inept but eight years in Stillwater had left her woefully unprepared for speaking in front of a crowd. Even if she wasn't expected to do all that much speaking this time around.
She reached up with her right hand and, using the edge of one of her gauntlet's plates, pushed her goggles a little further up her brow, pushing stray locks of crimson hair away from her eyes in the process. Then her eyes darted towards Caitlyn, inadvertently meeting her gaze, but she didn't shy away. Vi just smiled, a small and barely noticeable thing, (they were pretending to just be colleagues, after all), before looking back at the Enforcers assembled before them.
"This everyone?" Ekko asked as he turned towards Caitlyn, and she gave a curt, professional nod. He just smirked, standing up straight and planting his palms on the edges of the podium. "Right: you all know who I am and why I'm here, so let's get on with it." He said with what Caitlyn knew was a deliberate lack of respect, and she saw Calloway roll his eyes at the other end of the room, letting his head fall back against the wall with a silent huff. Caitlyn wasn't sure if Ekko noticed or not, but if he did he certainly didn't care because he carried on without pause. "Four days ago my scouts found the location of one of the Chembaron's major factories down in the Sump. The Chembaron in question is Margot, leader of The Vyx, who, for those of you who haven't done your homework, used to specialize in every kind of sex-based business there was. Apart from a few places in the Lanes, The Vyx ran every whorehouse in the Undercity, and they sure as hell have their stakes in whatever high-class and reputable brothels you have this side of the river. I know you guys get all uppity about that stuff, but don't pretend it doesn't go on up here." He said with a barely hidden laugh.
"Councillor." Caitlyn breathed, reprimanding him and urging him on all at once.
Ekko shot her a look, one that spoke of amusement and barely hidden contempt, before he fixed his gaze back on the Enforcers before him, expression growing just a little more serious. "They're also involved in the majority of trafficking Topside and the Undercity, human or otherwise, to be put to use in their own businesses or sold to whoever's willing to pay. After Silco's death however, Margot, like the rest of the Chembarons who used to work under him, began to fight for his position, and that means diversifying, and expanding their own territory. Now they run all the drugs, weapons and cybernetic augmentations a Sump-rat could possibly want - just like the rest of the Chembarons."
The leader of the Firelights then turned, taking a step towards the whiteboard behind him and gripping its edge in one hand. Then he spun it around, revealing a collage of notes and sketched-out floor plans, along with some black and white photos depicting the outside of a large, almost decrepit looking warehouse, nestled in between two others. Ekko gave them a moment to take it in before speaking once more. "Of course, since Margot specialized in the sex industry, willing and unwilling, she had to be quick if she was going to capitalize on Silco's death, and where the other Chembarons already had the facilities needed to diversify their merchandise and the like, Margot had nothing. After all, why would a sex-trafficker need a bunch of factories? She managed to get some in time from the looks of things, but doing it so fast meant she wasn't able to properly hide her operations, and we ended up discovering this one."
Ekko gestured to the photograph of the factory with two fingers. "This was taken just outside the factory, down in the upper levels of the Sump. And these", he continued, pointing to the penciled floor plans, "were drawn by the two volunteers who infiltrated the factory. All they had to do was put on some dirty clothes, dust themselves up a bit, and hang around that area of the Sump before one of Margot's people offered them some work. Then it was just a matter of showing up and memorizing as much as they could before hunkering down in the Sump for the night, rinse and repeat a few days, and we get all this nice intel when they get back to base. Floor plans, the locations of storage areas, along with some pretty disgusting stories of how Margot and her lot treat their workers…"
Caitlyn saw Vi's eyes widen, turning to Ekko with raw concern on her face, but he just lowered his gaze for a moment, the almost ever-present cockiness on his face vanishing like lines in the sand, lost to the tide. The only thing Caitlyn could see on his face was rage - a cold, unrelenting ury, like the bitter chill of midnight. "Not everyone in that factory is there by choice, if you call choosing between starving and working for a Chembaron a choice. Orphans with nowhere left to go, men and women trying to pay off debts that just keep growing - even people The Vyx dragged from the streets, from their homes, and put to work, because Margot knows they can't do anything about it." Ekko's eyes shot up towards the Enforcers, whose expressions ranged from disgust, anger and a cool detachment that said they'd seen it all before, and had learned to put aside their emotions so they could get the job done. He then strode towards the podium, gripping its wooden edges once more. The Firelight's gaze roved across them all for a moment, eyes narrowing with a frustration that Caitlyn wasn't sure she understood, before he let out a heavy breath. "The things she and her people do to them is beyond evil, and I for one want her to rot in the deepest, darkest pit we can find."
Ekko shut his eyes for a second, tilting his head to the left and rolling his shoulders, before looking back towards the Enforcers. "And since she goes to that factory at exactly three in the afternoon every day, spending at least an hour there, we'll have more than enough time to take her down today. My Firelight's will handle the rest of the patrols 'round the Lanes, so we'll have enough people to go down there and shut down that entire factory. Sure, the rest of her assets will be taken by her remaining lieutenants or whoever, but getting Margot off the streets will be more than worth it." He said, before his eyes flickered to Vi. "Speaking of. Deputy?" Ekko drawled, an amused lilt to his voice.
Vi rolled her eyes with a tight frown before stepping towards the podium, though she notably kept her hands off of it, on account of her massive arcane gauntlets. Ekko stepped past her as she did, taking the spot she'd stood in a moment ago and folding his arms across his chest. "We'll be splitting up into three squads, led by me, Councillor Ekko and the Sheriff. Our scouts, led by Ekko, will neutralize the lookouts his people pointed out, before we breach the building. The other entrances are sealed up tight, which I'm guessing is paranoia on The Vyx's part, so we'll be going in through the front door."
She then stepped back and pressed a single, massive finger to the factory's floor plan. "The main factory floor is located in the center of the building, with the supplies and storage rooms surrounding it, so we take those first. When we get into the factory, the Sheriff's team goes left and sweeps that part of the building, while my squad will take the right. Ekko's guys will be in charge of holding the perimeter and watching over the areas we've already gone through, along with keeping an eye on the suspects we arrest. Some of his squad will be stationed outside the door leading to the factory floor, and it's their job to make sure no one gets in or out of that room. Our two squads will converge when we've swept the rest of the building and move on to the factory floor. We don't know if there are any back doors or escape exits in there, but we'll work with what we've got, and hopefully we'll catch Margot and whoever she has there off guard." Vi's gaze roamed across the Enforcers gathered before her, looking up towards Calloway for a moment before lowering again. "Any questions?"
The room fell to a brief silence as Caitlyn's Enforcers looked towards each other, before a tan woman in the middle row, Aiela, spoke up. "I get we're arresting as many perps as we can, but not everyone in there's gonna be looking for a fight. How do you want us to handle it?" She asked, leaning forward towards the bench.
Vi's answer was quick, like she'd known this question would be coming and had rehearsed the answer, or she'd been asking it herself as well. "If they don't draw on you, let them go. Most of them are just working there - if they want to get out of danger and go home, let them. Anyone who tries their luck goes down, though. We can't afford to be second guessing here." Aiela nodded her understanding and Vi fell silent, waiting for someone else to ask a question.
"I heard there's some new gear for Enforcers going down into the Undercity." A man named Deacon in the back row asked. As far as Caitlyn could recall he was technically the least qualified experienced Enforcer in the room, having joined the Enforcers around three months before Caitlyn did, but his strong record set him apart from a fair amount of his seniors. "Are we going to be seeing any of that gear for this raid?"
Vi turned to her, her brow raised, and Caitlyn took a step forward. "Well, I'm not sure what you've all heard, but it is true that us Enforcers will be getting some additional standard-issue gear soon. It's Councillor Ekko's own design and, with the help of Councillor Talis and his partner, it is currently being mass-produced so each Enforcer gets their own. Right now, however, we only have enough to outfit a few squads, so we're saving them for important missions in the Undercity. Missions like this." Caitlyn said, gesturing back to the whiteboard with her hand. "I was planning on saving the explanation for when you receive them in the next couple hours, but now is as good a time as any. They're Hextech devices which we're now calling Overshields. They're steel bracelets that go around a wrist and generate an arcane barrier that protects you from harm, but I cannot stress this enough; these barriers are not infinite. The shield is designed to last for a single hit before dropping so the device doesn't overload and potentially detonate, but they can safely defend against three attacks and absolutely no more. If that happens the Overshield will need one or two seconds to regenerate. Now that may not sound like a long time, but think about how quickly bullets start flying in fights like this. It only takes one." She explained, holding up two fingers to her temple.
The Enforcers glanced around at each other, looking to see if anyone was going to speak up, the excitement that had filled the air when they were told they'd be getting their own Hextech vanishing without a trace. "Look, guys", Vi spoke up, "the Sheriff's right, but don't let it throw you off. I mean, think about it, we've all done stuff like this before, and that was without fancy magic shields. The Overshields are a last resort sort of thing, so as long as you don't do anything you wouldn't do without them, you should be fine." She finished and the tension in the room lessened, at least to the level it was before. Her words weren't a guarantee of safety and they all knew that, but that was the job - as long as they stuck to their training and remained cautious, the Overshields would take the hits they couldn't avoid. It was as simple as that.
"Right", Vi said after a moment, clapping her hands together, "let's sort out the squads."
Caitlyn folded her arms across her chest and listened as Vi listed off each Enforcer present, forcing down her fear and replacing it with the strength and certainty of cold steel. Being a sharpshooter meant reducing her world, removing all distractions until the only things that remained were her, the gun in her hands, and the target at the end of the barrel. It was a mindset she tried to leave behind in her day to day, so she didn't lose sight of the bigger picture, but in times like this she appreciated its simplicity. Something like that was a power in and of itself. She didn't need to think of the future, of what would come from this operation, win or lose. Caitlyn would dedicate the entirety of her being to this single task, the only thing on her mind being the safety of her Enforcers, of Ekko and Vi, and how, together, they could take a Chembaron of the streets they were ruining.
But that wouldn't be for another couple of hours, and Caitlyn had one last thing to do before they went down into the Undercity.
That was how Caitlyn found herself alone in her office nearly fifty minutes later, looking over the most recent reports from the Enforcers who'd patrolled the Lanes. Everything was in order, all the documentation having been filled out correctly, if not neatly, but that was normal when it came to Vi's paperwork. Caitlyn had done her best to show Vi the ropes when she'd first joined the department, but the fact was that she'd been incredibly busy learning the ins and outs of being Sheriff, so she might not have done as good a job as she could've. She'd go over the finer details with Vi when things weren't looking quite so hectic in the Undercity, but she was doing a fine enough job so far.
The contents of her report were nothing out of the ordinary, either. Other than a couple scuffles with some criminals throughout the patrol, it had gone about as well as she could've hoped. There was nothing there to explain why Vi was upset; no incidents with civilians in the Lanes, no problems with her fellow Enforcers - nothing. Of course, Vi wasn't the type of person to put something like that in a report in the first place. Vi didn't really care about little things like details, not as much as Caitlyn did, but there wasn't much she could do about it right then. Something like that would only come with time.
There wasn't any written evidence to explain what was wrong with Vi today; only what Caitlyn had seen after she'd returned from her midday patrol. Her downcast eyes, the way her shoulders slumped on their walk back from the Hexgate, along with her zoning out every now and again during their discussion - they all told Caitlyn the same story. But all they did was confirm what she already knew - it wasn't what tipped her off in the first place. That was a little harder to explain.
Seraphine hugged Vi.
Vi offered her a handshake and she'd just… hugged her. There was a part of Caitlyn that wanted nothing more than to chalk it all up to Seraphine being socially inept, but how could she? Maybe she was being friendly and maybe she misunderstood what Vi was going for there, but Caitlyn didn't deal in maybes. She dealt with facts - with certainties, and the only certainty there was that Seraphine knew far more about people than Caitlyn ever could, because she was a Mage. Seraphine was Piltover's first and only Magicborn, with the ability to hear thoughts or emotions in some capacity - she wasn't sure how it worked, only that it did. She would've liked to talk about it a bit more but they were interrupted by Vi's arrival, and, either way, Caitlyn made a promise not to push on Seraphine's problems; up to and including magic, even if she hadn't realized it at the time.
But Caitlyn didn't need the specifics of her magic, not when the answer was staring her right in the face. Seraphine, a Mage with some form of mental magic, decided Vi needed a hug. That wasn't something Caitlyn could just ignore.
And considering she couldn't find the answer in today's reports, the only thing left to do was ask. Vi didn't enjoy talking about her feelings, which was why Caitlyn had tried to find out what was going on through today's paperwork. She had to help her. Even if it risked upsetting Vi, Caitlyn would make that choice in a heartbeat.
The only thing left to do was wait, and she didn't have to wait long.
Caitlyn's office door shot open and she looked up from her own paperwork, forms and files that she was trying to get a head start on, and winced as the door handle slammed into the adjacent wall, the bang of metal and plaster colliding reverberating through the room. It hadn't gone through the wall, thankfully, because she sure as hell didn't want to explain that to the station's caretaker. The man was vicious. Caitlyn hadn't had any run-ins with him but Vi had once gotten a little too enthusiastic with her gauntlets in her second week as an Enforcer. It may have been something as simple as scuffed paint on the outside of the building, but Vi still shuddered every time they walked past his office.
Speaking of, Vi stood in the doorway with her right gauntlet held up and her index finger extended, her expression a mix of guilt and embarrassment. At any other time Caitlyn might've found it cute. As it was, with her Enforcers peeking in from behind Vi and staring at the two of them, Caitlyn waved her in with a stern grimace. Vi let out a nervous chuckle as she gently shut the door behind her, and it was all Caitlyn could do to force down a sigh. "Oh. Hello, Deputy Vi." Caitlyn droned, her expression carved from stone. "I didn't hear you knock. Come in, come in. Can I get you anything?"
"You're not as funny as you think you are." Vi snarked, clearly forcing down a smile, moving towards Caitlyn's desk and sitting on one of the two chairs opposite hers. Vi took a quick glance around her office, taking in Marcus' old furniture that she still hadn't gotten around to replacing, before meeting her eyes with a sly smirk. "Sorry about the door. I know how to control the gauntlets' strength, but I guess that's the problem with wearing them as much as I have, you know? They're so light that I forget I'm wearing them sometimes, and, well… you saw what happened." She explained, and Caitlyn nodded with a smile.
"There's no need to apologize, Darling." She said, leaning back in her chair and plucking her top hat from her desk, drawing it across her lap. "As long as you recognise the issue and try to improve. Think of it like practicing proper gun safety: people can do it ninety nine percent of the time but that one percent, that one time they get lazy or forgetful - it could be the difference between life and death."
Vi slumped in her chair, her head lolling back as she looked to the ceiling, her arms hanging at her side. "Please, Cupcake. I can't take a lecture right now." The redhead pleaded, and Caitlyn watched from across the desk as the Atlas Gauntlets slipped from her fingers, knuckles impacting the floor with a dull thud.
Caitlyn drew in a deep, worried breath, running her fingers along the brim of her top hat. "I didn't mean to upset you." She apologized as Vi reached up and adjusted the cracked goggles on her brow.
"I know, I know. It's okay… I'm just worried about the raid later." Vi admitted, rubbing her eyes with the heel of her right hand, the other tugging at the fabric of her striped trousers.
"You look tired." Caitlyn said quietly. She met Vi's gaze and waited for a response, even if she wasn't exactly sure what she wanted to hear. Why would've been a start, at the very least. Vi kept silent however, letting the moment of quiet stretch out until Caitlyn spoke again. "What's wrong?" She asked, filling those two, simple words with all the love and concern that she could.
Vi let out a sigh as she ran a hand through her hair before leaning forward, resting her forearms on her knees. "You know what's wrong. This raid… anything goes wrong later, it's on me." Her eyes were fixed on the floor, her words barely more than a whisper. "It's not like I haven't been responsible for people before - honestly, I'm pretty much used to it by now. But the last time I led the Enforcers against the Chembarons like this, half a dozen of them died. Gods, it sounds shitty to say, but I didn't really care about them when it happened. But I've had this job for a little while now and I… I don't want these guys to get hurt. Can you believe it?" She asked with a disbelieving laugh. "After everything they did to me, I'm afraid I might let them down."
"Of course I believe it." Caitlyn said, placing her hat atop her head as she stood. "You're a good woman, Vi. One who cares about the people around, even if they wear this uniform. I think you're just having a hard time reconciling the Enforcers from before to the ones around us now. There were always good people in the force, don't get me wrong, but it's hard to see that when there's just as many bad ones - when the Sheriff was as corrupt as they come." She said, walking around the desk as she spoke. She stopped just left of Vi and leaned back against its wooden edge, folding her arms across her chest with a smirk. "But now that we've taken steps to root out that corruption, we can see the Enforcers as they were meant to be; not as they were."
Vi drew in a deep breath through her nose, shutting her eyes even as her shoulders relaxed. "It's not perfect now, but I think you're right." She said, meeting Caitlyn's gaze with so much pride in her eyes that she had to force herself not to look away. "With you as the Sheriff and the support from the Council and the Firelights, we could actually do some real good for this city."
Caitlyn brushed her hair behind her ears and leaned down, coming face to face with her girlfriend with a smile that even she would admit was a little too pleased. "You make it sound like we haven't done that already." She hummed, reaching out and cupping Vi's cheeks when she made to respond. Then she closed the scant distance between them and pressed her lips to hers, closing her eyes as Vi brought her hand to the back of her head. Their lips moved in concert for a moment as Vi's tongue tried to find hers, but Caitlyn pulled back before things could get any more heated. She couldn't hide her smirk as her Deputy let out a needy little groan, trying to tug her back in for a second before giving up. Caitlyn huffed out a laugh and took Vi's hands in her own, clasping them halfway between their chests. "I love you so much. I know I don't say it as much as I should-"
Vi interrupted her, tugging their hands towards her and shaking her head. "You say it. That's all that matters to me."
She ran her thumbs across the back of Vi's hands, glancing down at the floor for a second as whatever courage she'd found up and left her. "Would you mind telling me what's wrong?" She asked, throwing caution and fancy words to wind as she bit the bullet, more than aware it might just blow up in her face.
Vi went still for a moment, the air escaping her in a shaky, near silent hiss. But she didn't pull away. "I told you what's wrong." She mumbled, hands growing tight around Caitlyn's, but she kept hold of her.
Instead, she took a step forward so she was directly in front of her before squatting down, looking up and into her steely eyes. "You told me part of what's wrong, but I know you well enough to tell that you're holding something back. You don't have to tell me everything; hell, you don't have to tell me anything. But if you want to talk about anything, or if you think it might help to get things off your chest…" Caitlyn offered, watching as Vi's jaw tensed and relaxed. Her eyes were filled with something old and desperate and lonely; something Caitlyn had seen numerous times since meeting Vi. Down in Stillwater, before their meeting with the Council, literally the entire night after Jinx kidnapped Caitlyn - their journey back to Piltover after Silco's death, their meeting with Jayce and Viktor, and the night they'd spent together. Caitlyn did her best to help every single time she saw that look in Vi's eyes, but the simple fact was that a few heartfelt conversations wasn't enough to mend the broken heart in her chest. She just needed to keep on helping, in whatever way Vi allowed her to.
Violet shut her eyes and nodded with a tight grimace, her brow drawing together as she released a breath. "I haven't heard anything about Powder since becoming Deputy." Vi admitted quietly, head tilting to the floor. "I ask around about her every time I go down into the Lanes. I check with every source I have. But either no one's heard anything or they're not telling me and I don't know which is worse!" She cried but, despite the clear anguish in her voice, there were no tears in her eyes. Vi drew in a breath and steadied herself, opening her eyes and fixing them on the bridge of Caitlyn's nose, unwilling or unable to meet her gaze. "I'm trying to be patient but…"
"But the longer you wait the less of a chance you have to find her." Caitlyn finished for her, nodding as she squeezed her hand comfortingly.
"Every day I don't find her is another chance she winds up dead somewhere. Gods, Caitlyn." Vi let out with a hollow sounding laugh. "Me and my guys only go down into the Lanes, but do you know how big the Undercity really is? There's the rest of the Entresol, the Promenade at the top of the Undercity, and you remember the Sump. She could be anywhere down there, waiting for something, anything - for me to come find her! Or-or she could be hiding in Piltover. It wouldn't be all that hard for her." Vi rambled, the words spilling out of her.
"Vi…" Caitlyn whispered, but her girlfriend pushed on.
"She could've left the city for all I fucking know! It's been over a month, Cait." Vi said, voice nearly breaking. "She could be halfway to Shurima or the Freljord by now, and there's fuck all I can do if that's what happened! What am I supposed to do? Fuck, I've been doing the same shit for weeks now, and I've got nothing to show for it! And if she… if she…" Vi stammered, but Caitlyn knew exactly what she was trying to say.
If she died because I couldn't find her in time.
"I don't know what I would do…" Violet trailed off, her gaze falling to the floor, and Caitlyn watched as the walls rose around her once more.
"Whatever happens", Caitlyn said quickly, before Vi could shut her out, "we'll get through it together. Together."
Vi looked up towards their intertwined hands, her thumbs tracing gentle circles into the soft skin below her knuckles, before a sad determination settled in her eyes. "Help me find her? Please?" She begged, shaking their joined hands. "I know you've offered before and I-"
"Of course I'll help you." Caitlyn accepted with a warm smile before standing up to her full height. She squeezed Vi's hand one last time before walking back to her side of the desk and reaching into the drawer on the right, retrieving a pen and one of the blank notepads she kept as a spare. Then she sat down in her chair once more, laying the two objects on the desk before her and adjusting her top hat. "As the more experienced detective, I have to show you the ropes; don't I?"
Some of the life returned to Vi's face and she leaned forward, eyes only a little watery as the corners of her lips turned up. "Right, right - of course. How could I forget? You're Piltover's own super-genius detective, and I'm the bumbling assistant you constantly have to explain things to. I'm pretty sure Ekko's read books with that exact same story."
Caitlyn let out a chuckle as she began to jot down notes on everything Vi had told her so far, gaze fixed on the paper before her. "Reality is often stranger than fiction, Darling. Besides, I wouldn't call you bumbling, just… intellectually challenged." She corrected with an impish smirk, glancing back up at her and enjoying the indignant look that flashed across Vi's face, holding a hand to her chest and feigning offense.
"Intellectually challenged!" Vi gasped in a way that was far too dramatic to be genuine. She was clearly fighting back a laugh as she spoke. "Well, how's this for educated? Go. Fuck. Yourself." She leaned forward, the harsh emphasis on her words failing to hide the mirth dancing in her eyes.
"I thought fucking me was your job?" Caitlyn asked innocently, staring Vi down for a moment before the two of them burst out into laughter.
"Thanks…" Vi said after a long moment, both of them still snickering but beginning to calm down. "I think I needed that." She admitted once they'd fallen silent again, before cutting Caitlyn off right as she was about to respond. "I love you too. I didn't say it back just now but I really, really do."
Caitlyn just smiled. "I know, Violet." She said quietly, the sound carrying across the now quiet office, before coughing and sitting straight in her chair. "Now, we have some time to kill before the raid: more than enough time to compile information and create the outline of a plan. Starting with points of interest in the Undercity and Piltover." Caitlyn set out, pen gliding across paper as Vi began listing various places in the Lanes, and why her wayward sister might want to visit them.
While she wouldn't call this fledgling investigation a distraction, not when it was something so important to Vi, Caitlyn would welcome the change in objective. At least for the couple hours they had left. And when the time came for the three squads to descend into the Undercity, Caitlyn led by example, with her head held high and her fear hidden under as much calm and confidence as she could muster.
…
The Undercity was a dark place.
That wasn't some grand, sweeping judgment of the city on Caitlyn's part, but a literal statement of fact. The Lanes was damn near the beating heart of the Undercity, but no amount of neon fixtures and street lamps could compare to light of day. It could come close, sure, but even Vi was willing to admit the place was sixty percent shadow. And the Lanes were the brightest part of the Undercity - at least the parts that were underground. In comparison, the rest of the Entresol level had enough lighting to be comfortable, but even the highest parts of the Sump were about as well lit as the night sky.
That meant there was enough light to find your way around, but also enough darkened streets to get quite a few people across that part of the Undercity unseen.
Not an impossible amount, but when Caitlyn knew the location of every scout and guard on the outside of Margot's factory, getting forty Enforcers past them was almost insultingly easy. Especially with Ekko and their scouts taking each of them out before they could raise the alarm. And if the guards had somehow gotten word inside before they could be detained, the people in the factory were being remarkably quiet about it. As it was, they continued their plan to breach.
Caitlyn stood to the left of the large factory doors, holding the Hextech pistol Viktor had made for her in her right hand. She hadn't gotten much use out of it yet, so she hoped it lived up to her standards. Her rifle had been damn-near perfect so far but who knew when it came to Hextech; it was magic, unpredictability was a staple at this point. It resembled the standard issue pistol given to all Enforcers, as that was what Viktor had based the design on, but looks were almost always deceiving. If not for the gunmetal gray and gold plating, then for the blue lights that glowed out from the glass lining along the barrel. Caitlyn had gotten some practice with it at the shooting ranges she frequented, but none of that compared to a genuine field test. Either way, she'd find out soon enough.
She adjusted her top hat with her left, glancing towards Vi who was standing straight ahead of her, mirroring her position with her steel fists raised. Ekko stood a good ten meters from the entrance, emerald bat in one hand and the chain that would start his time machine - the Z-Drive - in the other. Their respective squads stood behind them, the Enforcers lining up with their weapons ready and their Hextech Overshields glowing brightly on their wrists. Their arcane light shone through the sleeves of those who'd worn them under their uniform and Caitlyn's own Overshield hummed with a gentle, reassuring power that traveled across her wrist, and she took what little comfort she could from it.
Then, with her heart hammering against her chest, Caitlyn raised her fist.
Vi stepped out in front of the entrance with narrowed eyes before slamming her fist into the double doors, letting out a cry as the Atlas Gauntlet shattered whatever locks were keeping them closed. The steel doors flew back on their hinges and hit the factory walls with a resounding slam, right as Vi strode into the factory with her arms spread wide. "Knock knock!" She called with a grin just the wrong side of feral, raising her fists once more as Caitlyn darted in behind her, their squads hot on their heels.
Trained eyes darted over the room they'd breached, spotting over thirty wooden and steel crates that had been laid out in neat rows, probably so the workers currently filling them could get around easier. Caitlyn noted the large sliding doors at the far end of the room and the two steel doors in the left and right wall, before glancing up and seeing the galvanized walkway built a few meters up into the factory walls. There were a couple steel ladders leading up to them, along with open doorways on the second level that led to walkways in the other parts of the factory. It was an observation deck of sorts, most likely for members of The Vyx to watch over the merchandise and make sure their workers were following orders.
Before all that, though, Caitlyn's eyes fell to the workers spread across the room. Men, women and children, haggard and worn, were carrying vials of Shimmer and other chemical compounds, loading them into the crates alongside Chemtech weapons that Caitlyn had never seen before. The rest were clearly members of the Vyx, armed and patrolling the room as if they were waiting for the first sign of insubordination. There were three on the walkway with Chem-powered rifles and two on the ground floor. One held a simple pistol but the other held a large, spiked metal bat. She slapped the smooth part against her palm with a small, vicious smirk, and Caitlyn's chest tightened when she saw the blood dripping from its tip.
Huddled by the wall across the room, a boy who couldn't be older than sixteen clutched at his leg with bloodstained hands.
Then the workers started to scream, and the guards on the walkways raised their rifles. Caitlyn raised her pistol as well: a smooth, two handed motion that she'd practiced a thousand times over, and by the time the first gang member on the left shouldered his rifle, she'd fired. The magically empowered bullet tore through the stale air, leaving a line of blue light in its path as it hit the space just above his eye and sending him to the floor. Jayce and Viktor had built non-lethal settings into both her weapons so she knew he wasn't dead, but she had a feeling he wouldn't be getting back up any time soon. Not when he hit the metal walkway like a brick and sent his rifle clattering to the floor below.
The other two to his right, a dark skinned woman with short hair and some kind of hairy Vastayan, were training their sights on Vi when they realized their mistake and scrambled to turn their guns on her. After all, Vi needed to cross the distance to use her weapons on them, but Caitlyn only needed to move her hand. She didn't need to aim, not when they were standing still from less than fifty meters away. Two sharp cracks echoed through the factory as one bullet slammed into the woman's forehead, instantly knocking her unconscious, and the other hit the Vastayan right in the cheek. They let out a sharp, bestial grunt as they were knocked out, their head smacking against the wall behind them.
Caitlyn saw the woman with the bat charge Vi from out of the corner of her eye, raising the spiked weapon above her head with a shout. Vi drew her right foot back and turned her body aside, allowing the bat to skim past her and hit the floor. Vi completed the turn and launched her left fist up into the back of the gangbanger's head, pressing forward with the Atlas Gauntlet and driving her head into the concrete. She went out like a light, bat clattering to the floor even as blood spurted from her broken nose. As that happened Caitlyn aimed her Hextech pistol at the final guard, aiming the barrel directly between his eyes with a furrowed brow. "Think it through." She called, and the guard paused midstride. He'd apparently tried to close the distance but barely got two steps in, and his eyes flickered to the pistol in his hands, halfway raised to her. Then he glanced at the arcane weapon in hers, faint blue smoke drifting from the barrel, and quickly dropped his gun. "Good call." She said as he raised his hands.
Then, barely five seconds after she and Vi had breached the factory, their squads stormed into the room, boots drumming loudly against the concrete. Caitlyn's squad poured in from the left while Vi's entered from the right, each taking up position by the doors on their side - just like they'd planned. The reports from the Firelights were worth their weight in gold, it seemed. Vi tapped a metal finger on her shoulder and Caitlyn turned to her, locking eyes with her but keeping her gun trained on the last conscious guard as Ekko and the squad he was leading rushed in. They quickly spread about the room, guiding the terrified workers out of the building and securing the guards that had attacked them. Lieutenant Calloway rushed forward and handcuffed the guard in front of Caitlyn, dragging him away as she lowered her pistol. "Don't die out there." She said, just loud enough to be heard over the shouting in this room and the others in the factory.
"You too, Deputy." Caitlyn said succinctly, nodding as Vi turned and jogged off to the right, rejoining her squad. She turned as well, glancing at Ekko as he darted through the air on his hoverboard, securing the room with his Enforcers. She reached her squad a moment later and stood directly in front of the door, glancing down at her pistol. Each magazine held twelve rounds and Caitlyn had fired three, so she'd probably be fine for the next room, but she would have to reload soon. The Enforcer closest to the door reached out and gripped the handle, nodding at Caitlyn as her eyes flicked to the Enforcers behind him, ready to breach. She nodded back and he flung the door open, and she dove in.
See, it wasn't standard procedure to send one Enforcer in before the rest of the squad, but Caitlyn and Vi weren't standard Enforcers. It wasn't arrogance to say that their skills in combat were a cut above the rest of the force, whether that be with guns or fists, and their access to Hextech only furthered that gap. Sure, they all had the Overshields Ekko designed, but those didn't do nearly half as much as Vi's Atlas Gauntlets or her Hextech firearms. But regardless of skill or equipment, they were Sheriff and Deputy - that meant they had to lead by example.
The bark of gunfire rang in Caitlyn's ears as she dived into the room, rolling forward and onto one knee as bullets whizzed by overhead. They hit the wall behind her with loud pings before clattering to the floor, and Caitlyn took a rapid glance around the lengthy room. The space was filled with boxes and shelves that formed two unorganized aisles, each holding a variety of chemical and material components that she didn't know the name of, along with another steel door in the back right corner of the room, but her eyes fell to the seven gunmen rapidly turning their eyes to her. There were four near the back of the room, pulling guns off a table in the left corner and spreading out across the space, probably hoping to take cover behind the metal crates dotted around.
The three closest to her had been the ones firing, two hiding behind steel containers near the center of the room and another pressing herself to the wall, making herself as small a target as she could. They'd been aiming to where the chest of someone standing up would be, hoping to catch the Enforcers entering off guard, which was why Caitlyn had rolled in, avoiding the killbox entirely. Instead they were the ones rushing to lower their aim while her hand snapped up, never leaving her hip as she leveled the barrel of her pistol at the woman by the wall.
Caitlyn pulled the trigger and sent an arcane bullet straight into her nose, shifting her hip and hand towards the second armed gangster before the first even hit the floor. Caitlyn fired again and hit him just above the eyebrow, the bullet gliding over the top of the box he'd tried to use as cover, making him drop his rifle as he collapsed with a thud. The trail of blue light left in its wake was halfway to fading when she shifted a third time, turning her weapon on the man hidden behind a crate halfway across the room. He'd almost managed to level his shotgun at her when her bullet took him across the jaw, sending him careening back into the wall and knocking him out before he could make a sound.
And then, before the remaining four could open fire on her, Caitlyn dove forward and behind a metal cabinet by the left wall - one that was just thick enough to hide behind. She jumped to her feet as gunfire rang out once more, pinging off her cover and keeping her pinned. "Hold!" She shouted, just as the first of her Enforcers made to follow in behind her. The cramped space and the exposed entryway made calling in her whole squad a terrible idea, even with the Overshields. Thinking fast, Caitlyn tore the top hat from her head and lobbed it down the room, narrowly missing one of the shelving units and hitting the back of a low box. "Frag out!" She screamed, and she didn't even try to hide her smirk when the bullets stopped flying and the people shooting at her literally scrambled for cover, if the sounds of crashing glass and clanging metal were any indication.
Caitlyn rushed out of cover with her Hextech pistol held in both hands and took aim at the slowest of the gangbangers, who had thrown his own pistol down and was trying to get under one of the shelves. Honestly, she wasn't sure if his survival instinct was something to be mocked or praised. She settled with shooting him in the back of the head, knocking him unconscious before he could realize he'd been tricked.
Three left. Caitlyn counted as she sucked in a breath before dashing down the right aisle, shooting the unlucky fool on the left who'd peeked out from behind the box she'd used as cover right between the eyes. She continued rushing forward before dropping into a slide, right as one of the last men stepped out from behind a cabinet near the back of the room, taking his legs out from under him as the shotgun he held went skittering off to the left. He fell face first right as Caitlyn's gaze shifted to the table in the left corner, where the gangbangers had grabbed their weapons from, and to the woman currently huddling beneath it, her rifle held in shaking hands.
Caitlyn fired a bullet directly into her cheek as she completed her slide, letting the momentum carry her onto her knees as she spun back to the man she'd tripped. He'd planted his hands to the floor and was about to push himself up, so she put a bullet just behind his ear and watched as he slumped back down.
The rapid thud of heavy footsteps sounded ahead of Caitlyn, her Enforcers filtering into the room and restraining the gunmen she'd fought, but also from beyond the wall behind her. Caitlyn let out a curse beneath her breath as she glanced over her shoulder and to the other door in there, hearing the gangsters shouting in the next room as they rushed to storm this one.
Shit. Caitlyn thought with a hiss, passing her pistol to her left hand as she pressed her back to the wall just right of the door.
She'd taken too long. It had taken her less than ten seconds to clear out this room and she still hadn't been fast enough, and their plan of breaching each room one by one was about to go up in flames. Now The Vyx were getting the drop on them and Caitlyn didn't have the time to warn her guys; to tell them to get out or even take cover.
Fine. I'll just have to improvise.
Caitlyn reached over her shoulder with her right hand, holding her pistol at her side in her left, and drew out her Hextech rifle. She unfolded it with a flick of her wrist, hearing the quiet clicks of metal as each section snapped together, and the door to her left flew open, slamming into the adjacent wall. Caitlyn heard her Enforcers cry out a warning as the first gunman rushed into the room, a tall, well built man with mechanical arms, bringing some kind of assault rifle to bear.
He pulled the trigger right as Caitlyn drove the barrel of her rifle up into the underside of his gun, bullets flying into the ceiling as he pulled back with a cry, instinctually trying to put distance between the two of them. Caitlyn kept pace with him as she jabbed her pistol straight into his stomach, pulling the trigger and sending him stumbling back with a rough scream. Being the first in meant having a bunch of people following you, something Caitlyn was counting on as she drove her shoulder into the man's chest and shoved him back through the doorway, straight into the person behind him.
"What-" The woman following him shouted before six and a half feet of unconscious criminal fell atop her. She was quick on her feet, Caitlyn would give her that, but by dodging his falling body she also left the only cover she had, leaving the side of her head exposed. Caitlyn fired the last round in her pistol and hit the woman straight in the temple, throwing her off her feet as she slumped, before looking past them and to the remaining gang members. Three stood less than two meters from her, two women and a rat-like Vastayan man, already closing the distance as they tried to rush into the other room.
No time to reload. She thought as she dropped her pistol and swung her rifle up, catching the stock in her left hand and pulling the trigger. The head of the criminal closest to her snapped back as she fell but Caitlyn was already turning, levering another round into her rifle as she stepped back. The gangbanger just beside her got her pistol up in time to receive a bullet to the jaw, but the Vastayan had decided to abandon his rifle entirely, flinging it off to the side and charging Caitlyn directly. Her rifle would be nearly useless in such close quarters and he knew it, pinning his hopes on overwhelming her in hand-to-hand combat.
He was correct: she wasn't much in a fist fight, but she was game. Caitlyn stepped towards him and slammed the butt of her rifle into his gut, using his own momentum against him as he doubled over her weapon, eyes bulging as spittle flew from his lips. He let out an agonized groan as she shoved him back before thrusting her right hand up, driving the stock of her rifle into his chin and quite literally knocking him off his feet. He lifted a good few inches off the ground before slamming back down, landing flat on his back and kicking up a spray of dust.
Caitlyn let out a heavy breath as she worked her rifle's lever, chambering another round before bending over and retrieving her pistol. She slid it into its holster before taking a quick glance around the space, seeing that it was a storage room like the one before, except this one held weapons and ammunition instead of raw materials. She recognised them for what they were, rifles and machine guns and all manner of explosives, but the technology used to create them was pretty much beyond her. She could take apart and put back together most conventional ballistic weapons, but the key word there was conventional, at least by her own standards. Guns like these that utilized Chemtech, with weird tanks and pipes that carried all sorts of different coloured liquids, might be commonplace down in the Undercity, but she had little to no experience with them. For all she knew, they didn't even fire bullets.
More shouts echoed from behind her, Enforcers barking orders and the like at one another, and she turned around, peering through the open door. The criminals she'd beaten were being detained, one or two coming to consciousness as her squad secured the room, but most remained still as they were dragged up to sit against the wall, or whatever bit of furniture they could find. A couple of Enforcers had broken off from the rest, rushing towards the doorway she was currently stepping through, and they stopped in their tracks as they saw her.
"Sheriff!" One of them, Kalen, called, his rifle held across his chest. "Are you…" He trailed off as he looked her over, searching for injuries but finding none. The sound of gunfire echoed through the factory, though Caitlyn couldn't tell if they were coming from the loading area they'd breached first or the side of the warehouse Vi and her squad were clearing out. Whoever it was, she hoped they weren't having too much trouble.
"This was nothing I couldn't handle. Don't worry." She said with her best, reassuring smile. Kalen looked past Caitlyn and into the armory behind her, eyes widening as he saw the five bodies left in a heap by the door, and his mouth hung open. "I trust the room is secure?" She asked, breaking him from his stupor.
"Uh… I mean, yes Sheriff!" He called, and he and the other Enforcers with him stepped aside as she walked past, folding and holstering her rifle as she went. "Fifteen guys… Fuck me." Caitlyn heard him mumble from behind her, likely looking over the room they'd breached less than a minute ago, and she had to force down a smirk.
"Anyone find my hat?" She asked instead, and one of the Enforcers just ahead of her perked up, reaching behind a crate to their right and holding up her top hat - a little dirty but otherwise undamaged. Caitlyn held out her left hand as she drew her pistol, and the Enforcer tossed it to her. She caught it by the rim and slid it back atop her head, adjusting it slightly before ejecting the magazine from her pistol. Then she pulled a second mag from her belt and slid it into the pistol's grip before storing the expended one in its place, holstering it after a moment. "Thank you." She said as she walked past her Enforcers, most working on securing the room, but more than a few turned to her with barely-concealed awe in their eyes. "Lock this place down while I meet with Ekko's squad. It's high time we ended this." Caitlyn announced as she stepped back into the loading bay.
She was greeted by the sight of workers fleeing the factory, pouring out of the sliding doors opposite the ones they'd entered through. They'd been closed when they'd come in, most likely being thrown open as the workers made their escape, which saved them the trouble of tearing them down in a minute. Caitlyn spotted Vi just across the way, giving orders to Calloway before rushing across to meet her, darting through the veritable tide of men and women and coming to a stop a few feet from her. "What's going on?" She asked.
Vi rolled her shoulders, clenching and unclenching her gauntlets. "These guys started coming out right as we split up." She answered, before turning to their left as Ekko flew down beside them. He hopped off his hoverboard and caught it in his left hand, holding his emerald bat in the other.
"Yeah, and a bunch more goons came through with them after you guys left. Fun times." He laughed, and Caitlyn's eyes fell to the blood on his knuckles. "No injuries on our side, but a couple of your Enforcers took some hits. Nothing got through their Overshields though, so I guess we can call this field test a success, right?" Ekko said with no small amount of pride in his voice, though Caitlyn could tell he was putting it on. His eyes were too focused for it to be genuine, but, even then, she'd spent enough time around the leader of the Firelights to see he put on airs in dangerous situations. Ekko was a lot like Vi in that regard.
"The field test isn't done, Ekko." Caitlyn responded, gesturing at the wall to their left and moving over. They followed as she drew her rifle, unfolding it and setting up its sights. "Do you know how many we've got in there?" She asked as the final few workers ran out the building, the sound of their footsteps rapidly fading as they disappeared into the darkness of the Sump. Even still, Caitlyn heard screaming coming from within the main factory floor, along with some aggressive shouting. No gunshots, though, but Caitlyn had a sneaking suspicion that wouldn't last.
"More than five." He answered with a grimace. "Tried to fly in but I nearly got shot down. Had to use the Z-Drive to get out of there." He said, gesturing to the device on the small of his back, and Caitlyn nodded with a hum, even though she wasn't exactly sure what that meant. "I definitely saw Margot in there, though, so we know my scouts were on the money."
"Brilliant." Caitlyn said as she brought her rifle up to her shoulder, peering through the sights as she flicked a switch just below the ejection chamber. The clear glass of the scope filled with dull blue light and she aimed her rifle at the wall, where the main section of the factory just past it. She shifted the rifle left until she saw a series of orange and green humanoid shapes - people.
Viktor called it thermal imaging, saying it tracked heat that people gave off, but Caitlyn didn't really understand the science behind it. All she knew was it let her see her targets through obstacles, like smoke or, in this case, steel walls. She counted out the group in the center before scanning the rest of the room, spotting one up in the air before lowering her rifle. "There's seventeen on the main floor and one up top, probably a marksman up on a high walkway. I think a few might be hostages, though. Some are laying down on the floor and there's one that I think is being grabbed. We can't just rush in if there's civilians in there. Okay, here's the plan." She announced, glancing around as the Enforcers on this side of the room huddled around them. Those on the other side stayed where they were, not wanting to run out past the door and risk getting shot, even with their Overshields. "I'm going to go in and try to get them to let the hostages go, and maybe surrender while they're at it. Ekko, if they start shooting, I want you and every Enforcer you can get to go in guns blazing."
"What about me?" Vi asked.
"You're gonna get on that walkway and wait for my signal, which also happens to be when the shooting starts." Caitlyn explained. "Then I want you to beat the hell out of the guy up there."
Vi smirked, dashing over to the nearest ladder and literally launching herself up it, before disappearing through the open doorway to the left. "You sure this is a good idea?" Ekko asked, sounding more concerned than she'd ever heard from him; at least towards a 'Piltie'. "They're probably just gonna shoot you."
"Maybe." Caitlyn admitted. "But I can't not take the risk - not with innocent lives on the line. I'll be fine." She said in an easy tone, collapsing her rifle before stowing it. "And if I'm not, you literally have a time machine." Then, before he could reply, Caitlyn stepped towards the open door, resting her hand on the grip of her holstered pistol as she stopped just before the gap. She took a moment to listen, picking up a mix of shouts, sobs and hushed words that she couldn't quite make out.
"Hey, Margot?" She called. "Mind if I come in for a chat?" The bark of gunfire roared through the building as multiple bullets hit the floor a few feet from her, sending up dust and shards of broken concrete. Caitlyn waited for the sound to die down before speaking again. "Listen, you've got nowhere to go. The only reason we haven't gone in there yet is because we know you're using your workers as human shields. I'm going to step out in a moment with all my weapons away, see if we can't organize your peaceful surrender, and you're not going to shoot me. Do you understand?"
A moment passed in tense, absolute silence.
"And why the fuck should I do that!" A shrill, feminine voice called out. Margot.
"Because my colleagues will kill you if you do. If I don't kill you first." Caitlyn threatened, praying to whatever gods existed that she didn't have to make that choice. Killing someone… it wasn't something she ever wanted to do, but if it was the choice between the life of a Chembaron or an innocent person… "I'm coming out now. Make your choice."
Caitlyn stepped out of cover and strode into the main factory floor, hands at her side as she walked. She glanced around the room, taking in all the different machines that even she could tell had been poorly installed. She shifted her gaze forward, down the wide aisle stretching across the center of the room, seeing the sniper level a rifle at her from the corner of her eye. She saw workers spread out and huddled on the dirty floor; a bunch of men, women and even a fucking child holding their hands over their heads with their eyes screwed shut. They each had a leg chained up to a machine, which was why they hadn't run when the shooting started, and Caitlyn felt an unfamiliar rage burning inside her chest when she saw that some of them were crying.
She then looked to the gang members standing before her, spread out in a vague half-circle and using parts of the machine as cover. Pistols, rifles and shotguns were aimed at her, but Caitlyn fixed her eyes on the short woman just ahead of her, gaunt with short white hair and four dots tattooed on her forehead. Margot stood with her left arm wrapped around the throat of another woman, taller and somehow even skinnier than her, dressed in dirty leather trousers and a torn tank top with matted brown hair. She didn't have a chain around her ankle like the rest of the workers still here, which meant Margot had grabbed her to use as a meat shield when she'd tried to run.
Fucking coward! Caitlyn hissed inwardly even as she kept her expression cool, locking eyes with the frightened woman Margot held captive. "Don't worry. You'll be out of here soon. You all will." She called out to the rest of the terrified hostages, never taking her eyes off the woman in front of her, and Margot behind her.
"Oi! The fuck are you playing at!" Margot hissed, digging her fingers into the woman's side and showing Caitlyn that she was unarmed. If she wasn't, she'd have held her weapon to this person's head, a warning not to come closer. And why would she be armed, in her own factory surrounded by her own men. It wasn't like they'd expected forty odd Enforcers to come crashing in, taking out all their forces in under two minutes.
Heh. Shows what they know.
"I'm talking to the people who matter here." Caitlyn said casually, pressing the palm of her right hand to her hip, just above her pistol. There was an almost audible shift in the tension as she did that, but no one dared fire - just like Caitlyn knew they wouldn't. "Which doesn't include you, just in case you were wondering."
"Who the fuck do you think you think you are?" Margot hissed, her eyes wild as she glanced around the room. She was probably searching for a way out of this, but she'd soon learn there wasn't one.
"Caitlyn Kiramman: Sheriff of Piltover." She announced with a nasty smirk. "And I'm your only hope of leaving this building alive."
Margot snarled, making an ugly woman even uglier as she spat to the side, turning back to her with a sneer. "You Piltie whore! None of your fucking titles mean shit down here! Your legitimate authority is worthless here."
"And yours isn't?" Caitlyn asked, gesturing to the people chained up around them. "You can go on about Piltover all you want, it doesn't change the fact that you're literally using these people as slaves." She hissed, before letting out a sigh. "You don't respect my authority and I don't respect yours, which leaves us exactly where we started. You open fire on me, you die. You hurt any of these people, you die."
"But if I give myself up, spill everything I know about the shitshow going on down here, I get to live out my days in Stillwater?" Margot snarked, scorn filling every word.
"You'll get a fair trial, that I can guarantee you."
"As if!" Margot shouted, arm tightening around her hostage's throat, and she let out a gasp. Caitlyn's hand slid just a little lower, edging closer towards her pistol. "The Spider will have me killed before I see sunrise!"
The Spider? Caitlyn kept her confusion off her face, because she showing uncertainty in a situation like this was a sure fire way to get shot. She had to appear in control, all knowing - like none of this was fazing her. Anything less and Margot would start getting ideas, and no matter what happened after that, people would die. Caitlyn wouldn't allow that. "We can protect you."
"Not from him… He…" Margot mumbled, glancing down as her grip slackened for an instant, before rage entered her eyes once more. "Things around here were so easy before you and that fucking traitor came along. We had Marcus under our thumb, doing every little thing we asked. Business was booming, and your little council was none the fucking wiser."
"Marcus is dead. You're dealing with me." Caitlyn intoned, slowly drumming her fingers along her hip, her left arm hanging at her side.
"You'll die just as easily." Margot laughed, before a cruel smile crept across her face. "Hell, I bet he'll reward me if I bring him your head…"
Margot glanced about the room again, eyeing up her goons and probably running the numbers on shooting her way out of this. "He probably would. Come and try it." Caitlyn hissed, meeting Margot's eyes. The Chembaron looked away, color draining from her face. "Don't play games with me. You think I'd just walk in here if I didn't think I would walk out again? I'm not like Marcus: I don't lead from the back, and I stand in front of you now, alone. The only question you should be asking is are we faster than her?" She said, heart pounding in her chest, but her body was still and her hands were steady. She glanced at the gunmen almost surrounding her. "Well? Are you? Do you think you can kill me before I've killed all of you?"
Gods, Caitlyn wasn't sure where all this was coming from. This intensity, this ferocity. Maybe it was the adrenaline, or maybe it was the terror she saw in the eyes of Margot's hostage. All she knew was it burned. It burned in her chest and screamed at her, telling her to set it free, and there was a small part of her, vengeful and furious, that wanted Margot to just try.
"Go on. Try. Your. Luck."
Margot met her eyes one last time, and while Caitlyn would never know what she saw there, it terrified her.
She let go of the woman and threw her hands in the air, and it didn't take long for her goons to do the same. Margot's hostage practically sprinted out of the room, past the Enforcers outside and into the Undercity proper.
Caitlyn didn't watch her go.
She kept her eyes on the Chembaron as she clambered onto her knees, hands trembling above her head. There was a mix of fear and resignation in her eyes, like she was accepting her fate no matter how much it scared her, and if it had been anyone else, Caitlyn might have pitied her.
"Good choice." Was all she had to say.
Her Enforcers rushed in a moment later, guns raised as they barked out orders, telling them to lay down with their hands behind their backs. The criminals couldn't comply any faster, offering no resistance as they were handcuffed and pulled to their feet. Caitlyn watched as Margot was restrained and marched out of the room with the other prisoners. She watched as Vi strode into the room and tore the chains off the remaining workers, setting them free with smiles and whatever comforting words she could offer, all while Caitlyn's mind whirled with the new information.
The Spider.
There was a new player down in the Undercity, and Caitlyn had a feeling catching him would not be nearly so easy.
So there we are! Big things going down in the Undercity, and from the looks of things someone's trying to take Silco's spot. Bonus points if you can guess who it is. It was hinted at the past few chapters as well, so it's not impossible to guess.
Anyways, this chapter was Caitlyn being the badass I wish she'd been in the show, if not for her losing her rifle after one fight and getting the shit kicked out of her basically the rest of season. Honestly, I think it's just the writer's way of balancing things in the story. We all saw how easily she took out Sevika, and that she hit the same tiny spot on her arm three fucking times even after she started running. Girl's a gun-fighting monster, which I did my best to portray here. Like Vi, who's a one of a kind boxer even without the Atlas Gauntlets, Caitlyn's still the best shot in the city even without all the Hextech - at least in this story.
Now, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and I'll see you all with the next one soon, where we'll finally pick back up with Jinx. Oh boy…
