JAYCE
Jayce had never seen the hospital as packed as it was, and in such a chaos, made even worse when he learned some of the doctors were at their homes when the cultists invaded. The sole fortune was that the hospital itself was about close to the former Council, and thus behind the blockades that fought Urgot's zealots.
Corridors, the lobby, the rooms and wards, most of them were almost filled to the brim with the victims lying down, nurses and medics working overtime to stem bleeding, operate on cut off legs or arms, trying to alleviate the pain, even though most of the supplies had run out, clearly a sign Piltover wasn't *ever* ready to handle such a level of emergency. In fact, Piltover wasn't ready to handle any of this... savagery. Most of the victims were civilians, as the wounded enforcers had to be treated on the outside purely for lack of room.
Only one section had remained clear of all the chaos, and it was exactly the one where the Warden-Marshall was committed to. The doctors had deemed it 'too lucky indeed', the way her mechanical legs, all the way to the waist, were all destroyed by Urgot's grinding mechanism - any inch further and the fatal bleeding was ensured, as all the damaged mechanical waist had done was unleash a short circuit within that ran across her body. The pierced diafragm by the chained hook was something entirely different, as the bleeding could be contained in time and only pierced through the side of the intestine and slightly damaged a liver. If she indeed had not been rescued and immediately taken from the hospital, it was doubtful a half-mechanical being such as her could live through the night.
Jayce could still hear the screams, muffled by the walls and floors around him. If anything, it was at least worth waiting out until Camille could be conscious again, in spite of all she did. As hard as it was to admit, he *did* need Camille, especially for the next steps, from either facing the vultures of the Daily Pilt whom were having a field day to immediately solving the issues regarding security, especially with about more than half the enforcer personnel gone.
Especially with that airship, with that purpled cloud that rapidly incinerated everything and would've Jayce and Camille too, if not for the shielding the Hammer had created on time.
The purple of Shimmer and it's explosion that Jayce knew could only belong to one party - the very one whom had also destroyed the Council and killed several enforcers on the bridge, a night before. And now clearly had thrown her lot in with the cultists.
Vi's sister.
Jinx.
And for that, she had to be brought in by any means. And if now Vi couldn't see that, the point of no return just crossed, she'd *never*. For it was one thing to consider what had happened, as on the Council, as an act of miscommunication, in spite of Vi stating Silco's words, that 'they can all burn'.
Another was something as deliberate as this, clearly an act of war.
As much an act of war as the thing that spearheaded the city's invasion, which was developed by the Chem-Barons. No one else would have as much resources needed to produce a war machine as the one he and Camille had met, and certainly no one from topside.
To think *this* was what he vouched for independance from Piltover days ago...
If anything, weren't for the death all around, he'd at least thank Jinx for that rocket. It was as if the Celestials and Aspects had sent the wake-up call, to *prevent* him from making a fatal mistake. Who knew what else they had down there, and what did survive the earthquake, and how they'd deploy it?
And even if Piltover did have Hextech - and it'd be eventually be made into an arsenal - how it'd survive?
Camille's point was proven true the worst way possible. The idea of granting Zaun independence, regardless of Silco's demands, was indeed an irresponsible, rash act, brought by the shock of the child killed on that raid. The child that, as Vi well said, *knew* what was signing up for, and his death indeed got to the Councillor.
The only thing he wished was that Mel was there to see that, what the fissurefolk indeed had wrought. Eventually, enough *had* to be enough, at that point.
Jayce then heard the steps as the guarding enforcers stepped in as well, he noticing them blocking the one whom just arrived, as weary as him, from entering.
Ambessa Medarda.
"Let her pass.", Jayce said, and thus the enforcers moved out of the way as the Noxian general walked in.
"I heard of the fight in Central.", Ambessa started. "So how is she? Just some broken nails the city will be mourning for a day?"
"Suddenly interested in her welfare now, general?", Jayce asked back, in sarcasm.
"Yes, I am.", Ambessa returned the same sarcasm. "And we all came off the same battlefield, so you *can* tone it down, Jayce."
Jayce looked aside for a couple of seconds before facing the general. "Doctors called it lucky.", he said. "But she might be out for a while. That ought to make you pleased."
"Hardly.", Ambessa replied, bluntly, as she noticed Jayce staring down, not just wearied, but also feeling the weight of all that's occurred. "If it's worth anything, Jayce, let me tell you this: Only idiots dare say something like this gets easier the more it goes on. It's a lie, it doesn't. All you can do is harden your heart to it."
"Even to what's down there?", Jayce asked, referring to the chaos that is the hospital downstairs, and only got a silent stare from Ambessa in return. The Man of Progress shook his head. "You were right, at the end. Your strategy would've worked better as the main plan, especially in saving all those enforcers. Would've prevented all this...", he shook his head and closed his eyes.
"And you think Ferros would've listened, instead, if you pushed?", Ambessa asked, shaking her head slowly a second later. "She said it herself: *she* had the final word. And now she's paying for it. Just accept it and focus on up ahead."
Jayce, staring at her, shrugged and nodded, seeing indeed her valid point. "And how was it, on your end?", he asked.
"You almost lost your Hexgates.", Ambessa said, as Jayce stared at her, his attention caught. "Some lady with an iron arm whom refused to say her name and her crew were preparing to bomb it, take advantage of this whole mess. You're welcome.", she shrugged.
"Iron arm?", Jayce asked, a second later, and Ambessa nodded. He tried searching his mind to anyone possibly similar, until he remembered that day on the workshop, fixing the Gauntlets Vi used. How she explained of the one whom broke them.
Sevika. Silco's former lieutenant, now in charge of his outfit. Unless someone else wore an iron arm too, there wasn't much people on that list fitting the profile.
That made him stare at the Noxian general, again. "You once said something about having to accept certain realities, didn't you?", he asked.
"I have.", Ambessa answered, reading through his intentions. "Still, it's hardly an allowance to whatever it is you're planning..."
"I'm not planning anything. Not yet, at any rate.", Jayce said, looking away, as Ambessa stared at him for a moment. She could sense something, from that question alone, and that might become yet another headache to all that mess...
"I've arranged for Mel to be taken off the Central Precinct.", the general said, a couple of seconds later, as Jayce stared at her again. "And yes, I'm *aware* of what this might incur. The 'Warden-Marshall' can play with the lives of the people here all she wants, but I'll be damned if she thinks I'll let her gamble my daughter's life after this debacle."
The Man of Progress' heart raced a bit again at those news, in spite of that discussion back at that interrogation room, as well.
"Will I be able to see her, then?", Jayce asked.
"I can arrange that.", Ambessa answered, a second later. "Just don't mind if you have to wait a bit more for that."
Jayce nodded. It was fair, at least. More fair than Camille ever arranged, that is.
"I'll take my rest.", Ambessa said as she departed to leave. "You should too, you did pull enough today. Leave the rest of the weight to the others."
Jayce shrugged as Ambessa walked away. Another fair point as well. He took a breath before he started to walk off as well, to brave off the chaotic crowd on his way to outside the hospital, right as a small crowd was gathered up and went lively as they saw Jayce leaving the premises.
It was of little wonder that journalists were indeed called 'vultures' - always *flocking* to where ever there was a fresh corpse.
"Mister Talis!", one of the reporters called, as he and the others were barred by enforcers guarding the premises. "Mister Talis, could you please answer our questions?"
"He'll answer when he gets to answer, back off!", the blocking enforcer's tone was bras.
The enforcer felt a hand pushing him aside, some seconds later, the enforcer noticing it was Jayce himself, whom walked up to face the journalists.
"I won't answer any questions, I'll just make a comment, you make sure to write it down.", Jayce said, determined, his face deadly serious, as he gathered his breath to let it out loud. "Today, this day, I don't think this city will *ever* truly heal from it, and it surely *won't* be forgotten. That's how deep this scar is. But one thing I always did is to put my gold where my mouth is. That's why I tell you this: I'll be damned if anyone, *anyone* ever thinks that *any* of this will simply go unanswered! Be sure to write that down."
Some flashes from some cameras almost blasted his face as he turned around to leave and the journalists quieted down to write his comment down, the blocking enforcer watching the Councillor's back, walking hard steps towards his home.
