By The Cthonaut
Arcane Fanfiction
All Rights to Arcane/LoL belongs to Netflix and Riot Games
Authors Notes
Chapter 5, my friends!! Halfway through the first season. Yes I'm treating it like seasons. I'm still gonna use some elements from the show but also some of my own flair, taking inspiration from certain comic books as well. Let's just say it's about to get dicey in Runeterra. With Noxus coming to knock on Piltover's door. And now…enjoy the chapter!!!
Chapter 5: The Ball-itistic Night
At the ball
Jayce was chatting it up with a few of the elites at a table. Vi and Caitlyn were on each side of him as they held his arms. The two ladies were just doing it to keep up the appearance with Jayce, but secretly liked it.
They were gossiping about money and their businesses. Normal rich people stuff.
Vi had to keep herself from falling asleep. Caitlyn slapped her on the back with a huge smile on her face. Vi growled.
Jayce had to keep them from killing each other. He then turned his attention back to the conversation.
Then one of the snobs brought up the Batman. "I hear he is making quite a difference, going after the Shimmer warehouses."
"Well I think he is a criminal. No man should be above the law. That's why we have the Enforcers." Another said as she sipped her wine.
The one who brought it up turned to Jayce. "What do you think, Mr. Talis?"
Vi and Caitlyn looked at Jayce as he cleared his throat. "Well…any man who spends his nights running along the rooftops dressed as a bat doesn't belong in Stillwater but rather...an asylum."
"Especially since he wears tights." Vi snickered.
Jayce simply chuckled.
The guests have taken notice to Vi. They knew she wasn't of Piltover High Society or anything of the matter.
She had too many scars, her hair was not the appropriate length.
A woman then asked. "How did you meet this young woman, Jayce. Surely a man of your caliber hasn't been spending time in the brothels.
Vi raised an eyebrow. "A brothel!! Who do you think I am, lady?! A whore?!" She gritted her teeth.
Jayce raised his hand slightly to calm Vi. "Miss Violet here is one of my closest friends. Sure, she may not look like much but...I trust her with my life."
He held her hand.
Vi began to calm down as she held Jayce's hand.
Unfortunately it wouldn't last as Jayce saw something out of the corner of his eye.
Council members had arrived and were being escorted into a separate room.
Jayce stood up. "Sorry, folks but...I must use the restroom." He looked at the girls. "Don't wait, up for me."
They nodded.
The man made his way to a private area. "Let's see..." He looked around and found a large case. He opened it and inside was his suit. "Perfect."
He suited up and scaled the building, crawling to the skylight that gave him a view of the hallway. Inside the Council walked down into a room.
Jayce looked around, finding a vent. Using his strength, he removed the grate and made his way inside. This led him over to the meeting room. And inside…damn.
He witnessed the Council sitting at a large table with the fucking Chem Barons of all people. Jayce knew they were working together. But to actually see it was staggering. But he still continued to watch.
Another door opened and inside walked Silco who was accompanied by Sevika. The crime lord sat at the end of the table, holding a briefcase.
Phin scoffed "Where is the Head Councilman? We were supposed to start-"
He was cut off as Viktor emerged from the shadows. "He has been here this whole time." He walked over to the table using his cane.
Behind him was his aide, Mel. She had been helping Viktor with his leadership duties.
Sitting in a large chair, Viktor began to talk. "Let us begin. How is the chemical production of Shimmer?"
Silco smoked in his cigar. "Production had gone up 40 percent since last month. We have leaders from nations like Filord and Ionia reaching out to begin negotiations. They want to use the drugs as boosters for their soldiers."
Viktor nodded. "I have recently struck a deal with Noxus. In exchange for some of our last generation Hextech, they will give us a huge supply of men to test the latest experiments on."
Renni raised her eyebrow. "What experiments?"
Viktor smirked as he pulled out a device. "Have a look." He pressed a button.
From the shadows came a large man who was so decked out in machinery, you could not tell what was flesh or what was machine. On its back was a canister and a tube flowing purple liquid into his skull.
The Council members looked in shock, mainly Cassandra. "What…is this?" She asked.
"This is my prototype super soldier. One of many new bioweapons I am developing. With us giving our old technology to our rival nations, we know how to defeat them. Once we have them weak... we will march upon them, laying waste. Runeterra will be on top." Viktor explained. "I call him…Bane. He is very much awake and aware. Powering him is a large amount of Shimmer."
Silco nodded. "Yes, you took inspiration from my Chem-Tanks. I see you are putting Chemtech to use."
Cassandra then said. "But what of the citizens that live in those lands? So many innocent lives lost."
"Necessary casualties." Viktor added.
Phin then asked. "What of our Shimmer or Chem weapons? What is the purpose of us giving them away?"
"It's simple. War is the most lucrative business in the world. Once we have our empire, we pit others against each other. We play both sides."
Chross then spoke. "Well, I for one am in agreement. If it means there is money to be made." He chuckled.
Councilman Hoskel added… "You're forgetting one key factor: the Batman."
"It's true. He has crippled a large number of our Enforcers when he broke Prisoner 516 out."
Silco took a puff of his cigar again as he spoke. "Yes. The psycho dressed as a rodent. He will not be a problem anymore. Singe has developed a new form of Shimmer that can make the mind...hallucinate."
Smeech cackled. "That's right. I took care of him. Gave ol' Batsy some real frights." The feline laughed.
"It will not be enough." Sevika finally spoke. "I've watched him fight…his punches are unlike any I've seen…except for one…Vander."
Silco looked up. "Impossible. I highly doubt anyone can match his ferocity. Except maybe that girl."
"He took out two of my strongest guards. You are underestimating him just as you did Vander." Sevika argued.
Before Silco could respond, the metal monstrous man looked up at where Jayce was.
"Shit..." The vigilante said as the creature grabbed a large object and threw it at Jayce.
The vent ripped open as Jayce fell in.
The Barons and Councillors stood up as the Batman stood before them.
"Oh my god, he's real…" Cassandra thought aloud.
Phin looked at Smeech. "Took care of him, did you?" He growled.
Jayce pointed at them. "This ends now."
Viktor chuckled. "You can try…but you must deal with my pet first." He signaled for Bane to deal with the intruder.
Bane growled and went to attack Jayce, but then he started to clutch his chest as his heart was giving out.
Bane choked on his own fluids and dropped dead.
Viktor sighed. "I will have to fix that on the next Bane. But for now..." He vanished into the shadows.
Jayce ran to grab him but...he somehow vanished.
The others ran in different directions. Jayce had to choose one to chase.
He chose the fat one, Hoskel. Perfect target.
Hoskel ran out into the main ballroom. "He's after me!! Help me!!" He was tripping over his own feet as he tried to escape into the street. Enforcers followed close behind to see what the matter was.
Jayce had taken the roof to chase after him and glided down into the street just as Hoskel burst out of the doors. When the vigilante tried to grab him, the Enforcers stopped him.
"That's enough, you psycho. Hands where we can see them." Marcus, who led the Enforcers said.
Jayce pointed to Hoskel. "That man is a criminal and he must face justice."
"The only criminal I see here is you. Last chance. Surrender before I make you." Marcus glared.
Jayce nodded and began to beat them down. Moving with speed and brutality, he began to deliver blow after blow to the corrupt officers. Once the officers were down, Jayce and Marcus began to trade blows, ending with Jayce shattering Marcus' femur. He screamed in pain as he dropped.
Jayce began to approach Hoskel.
Partygoers walked outside to see what was going on.
One of the Enforcers grabbed a heavy weapon. "This should do the job." She died as she loaded the incendiary ammunition.
Hoskel yelled. "Fire!!"
The Enforcer fired, sending a large flame surrounding the Batman.
The citizens covered their faces as the fire was bright and very hot.
Vi and Caitlyn ran out to see.
"Oh no…Jayce..." Caitlyn covered her mouth.
Vi squinted and said. "Cupcake, take a closer look."
Caitlyn did and her eyes widened.
Walking from the flame…was the Batman. He had his cape wrapped around him and the tails were blowing in the wind. It gave him a demonic look.
The citizens gasped as they saw this. He was no ordinary man. He was otherworldly
The Enforcer dropped the weapon and ran away. Hoskel growled. "You coward!!" He turned and saw Jayce grab him by the neck. He stammered. "W-what are you…"
"I am vengeance…I am the night…I am Batman!!" The vigilante growled. He pulled his grappling hook from his belt and repelled away with Hoskel in tow.
The citizens talked amongst themselves.
"Did you see that?"
"Must have been a demon dragging him to hell."
"We won't be seeing him again."
Vi and Caitlyn quietly left so they could find Jayce.
Meanwhile, there was a group of Firelights watching from a rooftop. One of them looked at their leader. "What do we do?"
The leader spoke. "I think it's time we reach out to them. We leave them a meeting spot." He got on his board and flew off with his goons behind him.
A few minutes later…
"Wake up." Jayce said.
Hoskel groaned as he woke up. He was hanging upside down over a building with Jayce holding him by the leg. He screamed. "Please don't kill me!! Let me go!!"
"As you insist." Jayce dropped him but caught him on a grapple line. Hoskel screamed again.
The vigilante pulled him up. "Talk!! Or I'll leave a mess for the Enforcers to clean up."
Hoskel nodded. "Okay okay!! What do you want to know?"
"Why did you have Joshua Talis killed? And do not lie to me." He snarled. (Jayce's dad doesn't have a canon name so we made one up.)
Hoskel began to explain. "He was close to uncovering Piltover's biggest conspiracy. One that would cause mass panic and hysteria." He said as he was hanging.
Jayce then asked. "What is it?"
"Underneath Piltover...is the source of the Arcane energy. It is not just magic...but bits and pieces of a long dormant machine god. We discovered its tomb many years ago and sent samples to be studied at the academy."
"That's impossible. The Arcane was magic." Jayce said.
Hoskel laughed. "There is no such thing. It is simply science."
"And you chose to hide it, as well as your business dealings with the Chem Barons. The same people who flood our streets with drugs and weapons. Even worse, you're giving them Hextech. That alone is grounds for treason." Jayce said as he held the line."
"Oh they are not aware of this secret. It has been told to the most important people in power. Not even Silco knows of it. Once we get control of it…nothing will stop us." He smirked.
"You are sick."
"Whatever. It has made us very rich and keeps us safe. Once we are at full strength-" He was cut off as Jayce dropped him.
"Already heard everything." He began to walk away, leaving Hoskel dangling and calling for help.
Jayce made his way back to his base of operations at the forge in the cover of night. He entered through the door as he removed his cowl.
Inside, Vi and Caitlyn were waiting.
"Hey, girls..." He greeted them both as he went to remove his suit.
Vi crossed her arms. "Not very subtle, are you?" She said sarcastically.
"I consider it theatrics and deception." He removed the top layer of his armor.
"Whatever it is, it exposed you. Piltover knows you exist, Jayce. That is a problem we do not need." Caitlyn explained clearly aggaited.
Jayce walked out wearing his normal clothes. "I know, but I learned more tonight than we have in days." He walked over to a board he had set up. "That information has much more value than you understand and you'll see why when I explain it all." He picked up a piece of chalk and began to write down everything he learned.
The girls sat there, still pissed but open to hearing him out.
Once Jayce finished writing, he explained in great detail everything that was going on. "The council is doing back door business with the Barons. They're sending over their technology to experiment and create a new breed of super soldier."
"That's madness!!" Caitlyn exclaimed.
Vi shrugged. "I wouldn't put it past them. They have been doing shady shit for years. I wouldn't expect anything less from Topsider assholes. All of them."
Jayce and Caitlyn simply raised their eyebrows at Vi's comment.
"No offense to you both." She said quickly.
"None taken." Jayce smirked as he continued on. "Hoskel told me there's something bigger.
Something they're hiding from the Barons. Underneath the city lies the tomb of a dead god. Something they hope to control. If this is true…we are all screwed." He said.
"Not even they would be THAT insane." Vi said.
"Viktor would be…he's always had that insane look in his eyes." He rubbed his chin.
"We still need physical proof of this claim. Until we get it, we have nothing against the council." Caitlyn told him. "You can't even be sure that Hoskels information was the truth."
Jayce shrugged as he put the chalk down. "That's all we have right now. As for the next step…" He turned to Vi. "Did the Firelights give you any information about where we are supposed to meet them? Any signs, indicators, maybe even a certain building."
Vi sighed. "No...I haven't heard anything yet."
Jayce replied. "Then let's get ready to go find them." He instructed as he got ready to go.
Vi and Caitlyn looked at each other then back at Jayce.
"Jayce, you've been going nonstop. Your wounds from the fire are not even healed yet." Caitlyn said as she touched his shoulder.
"Caitlyn, I'm fine. I've been through worse."
"Jayce, you almost fucking died!! Do you not realize that? Your body needs to rest. Take it easy. We understand you're dedicated to the mission, but you're going to destroy yourself before you even take one of them out." Vi scolded him. She sighed and also touched his shoulder. "Please…just for tonight, take a break."
Jayce took a deep breath and nodded. "Fine…I'll take it easy…but only because you both asked nicely." He chuckled.
Both of them smiled and nodded. "Thank you, Jayce…we just do not want you to wear yourself out. We know you will save our world but you can't do it all at once. Let's get you home to rest." Caitlyn suggested.
"Alright…let's go." Jayce nodded.
The trio headed back to the house. Ximena was currently away for business so Jayce had control of the house while she was gone.
Vi's stomach rumbled. "I'm starving."
"How about I cook?" Jayce suggested as he walked over to the cabinet, pulling out various pots and pans. He went to the icebox and pulled various ingredients.
Vi hopped up and sat on the counter. "What are you making?"
"Some glazed ramen." He said as he started to cut vegetables.
Caitlyn sat at the bar. "I had no idea you could cook. I remember when you burned dumplings in the kitchen." She teased.
Vi chuckled. "You burnt dumplings?"
Jayce blushed as he put the vegetables in the pan. "It wasn't that big of a deal."
"You almost blew up my house!" Caitlyn exclaimed.
Jayce tried to protest as Vi cracked up.
"I did not almost blow up your house, it wasn't that big a deal."
Caitlyn raised her eyebrow. "It was premade. All you had to do was heat it up, you used a blowtorch!"
Vi burst out laughing. "This just gets better and better." She wiped tears from her laughter.
"I was fifteen!" Jayce tried to make it better, but failed.
Vi just about bust a rib. "You were fifteen?!" She was on the floor laughing so hard.
"Oh yeah, what were you doing at age twelve?" He asked haughtily, and started stirring the noodles.
"Breaking and entering into some Piltover pricks office study thing, stole some pretty jewels…however it did blow up after… cause of my sister dropping some weird blue orb thing." Vi said acting like it was nothing.
Jayce's eyes widened and stopped stirring the ramen. "What?! That was you!"
Vi looked up at him. "That was your office?!"
"That was the accident that got me caught by the Academy and kicked out. Viktor came in afterwards and…" Jayce trailed off
"Stole your technology. Your research." Caitlyn finished his sentence.
"Ya...that's right.." Jayce leaned against the counter.
Vi stayed quiet but, noticed the pot sizzling and tapped Jayce.
He snapped out of it and went back to cooking. Once it was done, he plated up the food and all three of them ate.
"Mmm so good." Vi said as she ate. It was one of the best meals she had ever had, even as she was eating like a barbarian.
Caitlyn cringed as she blew her food, eating with proper etiquette. "You really must eat with proper manners."
Vi looked up, mouth full of food. "High society isn't for me." She continued to eat.
Jayce ate normally. After he swallowed, he spoke. "We will rest tonight and tomorrow..start new. We need to find out where they are hiding this thing."
Caitlyn nodded. "We need to assemble our allies."
There was a knock at the door at that moment.
Jayce went and answered it. Sitting on the doorstep was an envelope. He raised an eyebrow and picked it up, bringing it inside.
The girls stood beside Jayce as he opened it and began to read it.
"What does it say?" Vi asked.
"Its coordinates…the Firelights are ready to meet. Tomorrow night at the old cannery." Jayce explained.
"Well…it seems we finally have something." Caitlyn smiled.
Vi smiled as well. Finally they had another lead.
Jayce nodded and started to yawn. He was exhausted.
Caitlyn touched his cheek. "You need to rest."
Jayce chuckled. "Looks like you read my mind…I'll show you ladies to the guest rooms so you can sleep."
He led them upstairs to separate rooms. They said their good nights and headed for some long nights rest.
All was quiet in the city...except for the Tower.
Viktor took an elevator to the lower levels. "Soon…the world will be ours, my master…" He exited the elevator and standing before him was the large corpse of the dead god. Its name was unknown by others except Viktor. "You will live again, Lord Mekhane…and no one will stop us." He smirked as his eyes flashed orange. Viktor was no more…he was now the herald to the Machine God.
He was truly living up to his title: The Machine Herald.
Authors Notes
Sorry for the wait!!! Life has been really busy. But now the chapter is done. And I promise it will soon get interesting. Had to have everything happen as if it was an episode. So it is revealed who Viktor is truly loyal to: his god. I have plans for it. And yes, Mekhane is from SCP. It's been in my head for a while. Thank you all for reading and I hope you all have a nice day!!!!
Editor Notes:
Oh baby, will it get interesting!!! I'm so excited for you all to read what we have in store for you all.
*Hip bump* peace out! Have a FANTASTIC day and/or night!