"How could I love only one man? They break too easily."~ Illaoi, The Kraken Priestess
Yo! There will be a 10 chapter mass release for the New Years. And maybe something extra if I'm done with it. And for the mass release on the 31st I will not be uploading a chapter on the 29th. Cut me some slack please.
Anyways, last chapter had Shen arrive. Not something you could have expected but he will be one for the main players for the next arc. Just because Riot refuses to show him love doesn't mean I cannot.
Check author notes at the end.
Enjoy the chapter! And leave some stones if possible, I'd appreciate it if we break into the popularity rankings once.
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"What do you know about Ionian spirits and the spirit world?"
Caalyx's eye looked at him, "Ionian spirits are presumptuous little shits and the spirit world is a world overlapping our own but housed only by spirits. The land of the Yordles is a part of this world."
"How would one get to that world?" Gregori asked. A world without humans would... in theory.... be safer than a world with one.
"Targon and Ionia." Caalyx replied, "Two entrances. But rarely worth it. These lands are not meant to housing humans. Spirits don't need food or water. And they don't conform to human morals. I'd put my trust in a man who would harm me than a spirit who seems like they wouldn't."
"Then have you heard of the Eye of Twilight?" He asked, his eyes adjusting to the dark tunnels.
"Yes." Caalyx answered, "Men trying to maintain balance. A vain endeavor. There is no true balance in this world. A sad sad role. One that they try to achieve with all their effort."
"One of them came to me an hour ago.... said that the spirits require our presence for the Darkinwar soon to happen on Ionia." Gregori explained.
Caalyx chuckled, "The last battle in the First Lands! That is hilarious."
"We will be heading there as soon as our work here is done." Gregori continued, "The children will have to go back home on their own. Or.... if they wish to..... they can stay here."
"Send them to Shurima." Caalyx replied, "It is quite a bit better than sending them on their own."
"What Shurima?" Gregori sighed, "Shurima isn't a proper land.... not in hundreds of years."
"You know what I mean." Caalyx rolled his one eye, "Azir must have rebuilt something and we need to let him know."
With a clear mind Gregori refused, "This is the same Azir who watched your general overthrow you. The same one who couldn't complete his own Ascension and consequently ruined his entire nation. I wouldn't trust him. Even if he is your family. If we are to meet him..... then WE do it. Not my children. Us."
Caalyx growled, "You don't know anything about him."
"Do you?" Gregori asked calmly, "You did not see him for nearly twenty years before he fell, and hundreds of years have passed now.... you think he would be the same man you remembered? Do you truly believe that he wouldn't have changed?"
Caalyx's eye closed and only the sound of footsteps echoed through the tunnels.
"Lets discuss this after we finish our work here."
-x-
"You know... lugging a giant monster out seemed like such a chore until those who lived looked at me like I was their savior." Rell muttered as they got to the tram.
"That's my dad you are talking about." Jinx grunted.
Daani chuckled, "Or what's left of him anyways."
"We could go to the depths. That Viktor fella might be able to heal him."
The group turned to Daisy.
She frowned, before acting offended, "What? I'm not stupid."
"Is Ambessa dead?" Sydell asked as he walked to Annie and Mel.
Mel glared at him, "Don't talk about my mother like that."
"Alive." Annie answered him.
"Lets get going then." Sydell replied, "We can't waste too long here."
"That's the monster?" Annie asked.
"Apparently it's Jinx's father." Daani said as he walked up to them. "But I agree with Sydell, we can't spend anymore time here."
"What about my mother?" Mel rose to her feet.
Sydell shook his head, "We leave her here. She doesn't need protection. If she is alive.... her soldiers will get her out of here. We do not have that luxury. The lesser people that see us the better."
Mel took a shaky breath before nodding, "Okay. Lets go. I need to talk with Viktor."
The group walked into a new tram and took it to the other side.
As they left, Ambessa's eyes opened, and caught the blurry figure of her daughter, "M...Mel?"
After reaching the other side, Jinx spoke up, "We need to tell Vi."
"Why?" Daani asked.
"He was her father too." Sevika answered for her.
"Then one of us needs to go topside." Faye pointed out, "And currently all ways to Piltover are blocked."
Sydell began walking away from the group, "Not all..... I can get up there. I'll bring her down here. We meet at the depths and then go straight back to the Last Drop."
Daani ran up to him and told him of the man in the prison and everything that happened down there. Sydell filed that information away for later.
As the group ventured down to the depths, he continued to the Bridge of Progress. Looking at the blockade and the number of guards at the bride itself, he moved to another location.
The bathyspheres that brought them down here.
It was a steep incline.
He checked the eyes he placed on his father and Caitlin, his father was inside the tunnels if the darkness was anything to go by and Caitlin was sitting at her desk going to documents. Documents he did not quite care for. What he did care for was Vi. And she was in the bed behind Caitlin.
His eyebrows lifted a tiny bit. The two were in a relationship. Interesting. But it didn't quite matter for now.
Focusing on the task ahead of him, he continued walking toward the rock face in front of him and continued walking.
When the face was inches away from him, he lifted his leg and placed his foot on the wall. The second foot followed. And he walked upward. One foot in front of the other as if gravity had no hold on him. The wind blowing from Zaun upward to Piltover pushed his clothes upward, as if he was being held up by the winds.
Unfortunately for Sydell, he wasn't invisible. The the sight of someone walking up the rocks like it was natural was not something Zaunites expected to see that day. The moonlight shone upon him, illuminating him in the darkness.
The walk continued for forty minutes.
And those forty minutes created a legend in Zaun. One of a man blessed by the winds. The blessing of Janna. Still existing. Still flourishing.
Inadvertently, Sydell's actions had increased the Zaunites belief in Janna, giving her just enough power to send a gust of wind through the tunnels to guide Gregori to the Darkin, a speck of whose energy she sensed. But this didn't happen till later, when the story spread in the coming days.
To verify the authenticity of the story, quite a few Zaunites tried to walk up the rock face, only to fall on their backs as they failed.
Stepping onto Piltover, Sydell continued on his way to the Kiramman estate.
"State your purpose." An enforcer stood in front of him.
Sydell pointed to beyond the gates, "I'd like to meet Miss Kiramman."
"She doesn't have the time to meet someone like you." The enforcer shook his head.
"Walk up to her and tell her that Stillwater prison had been broken into and the one who bought this information would like to talk to her." Sydell continued ignoring the enforcer's attitude.
The enforcer laughed.
"Stillwater cannot be broken into boy. Just go on your way."
Sydell just looked at the man with a deadpan expression.
"Jacobs!" Hurried footsteps sounded behind him.
The enforcer, Jacobs, looked away from Sydell, "Dowin?"
"Stillwater has been breached! The councilors are being summoned to an emergency meeting." The new enforcer said as he hurriedly continued to his next destination.
Jacobs swallowed before turned to Sydell.
"Now tell Miss Kiramman that I'd like to meet her." He smiled, "It'll only be for a small moment."
The enforcer led Sydell inside and sent word to the maids working in the estate.
Moments later, Caitlin and Vi came down the large staircase and spotted Sydell.
"Sydell." Vi spoke.
Caitlin stepped forward, "What brings you here Sydell? And has Stillwater been broken into?"
"Yeah." Sydell smiled. "The Noxian soldiers and enforcers did a little raid in Zaun.... I assume in response to the actions of the Jinxers up here."
Caitlin nodded while Vi clenched her fists.
"I can tell you Jinx did not have a hand in that." Sydell clarified, "But the raid..... they took Isha and Briar. Witnesses and not participants. You'd need to have a chat with your enforcers regarding that by the way."
"Just say what happened." Vi barked angered by the stalling.
"We broke in." Sydell answered.
Every eyebrow in the room shot up.
The enforcer stood next to Sydell took a step back.
"We didn't kill anyone but it didn't quite go as planned." Sydell continued.
"What happened?" Caitlin asked.
Sydell sighed, "There was another party with a vested interest of breaking out." He raised his hand stopping Caitlin from speaking, "Don't worry. He is still in his cell. He locked himself in and we didn't bother letting him out afterward."
"How many dead?" Caitlin asked.
"On both sides?" Sydell shrugged, "I'd say a majority of the enforcers in Stillwater are dead and two floors of Zaunite prisoners and protestors as well, the ones in the lower floors missed it as they were in the elevator at the time."
Vi sucked in through her teeth, "How? You said that you didn't take any lives."
Sydell leaned against the nearby wall, "The man created something. An experiment. With the body of a Zaunite. I did not see it fight but it stood toe to toe with Briar for a while. And I can tell you this. Briar is a force of nature. Only Annie could probably beat her and that is because she is special. But this experiment.... it left behind carnage. Bodies torn, shredded like leaves. Its claws ripped through metal like it was nothing."
"What about this monster?" Caitlin asked, "Has it been killed?"
He took a deep breath, "That's where the problem begins..."
"THAT'S where the problem begins?" Vi repeated, her hand rising to her hair.
"The Zaunite which was used in the experiment was the problem." Sydell began explaining.
But the enforcer cut in, "What does it matter?"
Sydell eyed the man with a glare enough to make him back down, turning his attention to Vi he spoke, "It matters when the Zaunite used in the experiment was the Hound of the Underground."
"No.." Vi whispered as she took a step back.
"Jinx confirmed it. Especially after it called her Powder. Sevika also confirmed it, if you'd like a second opinion." Sydell spoke, "Which is why I'm here. To get Vi."
"Vander's alive?" Vi's voice hitched.
Sydell winced, "If that's what you'd call alive..... then yes. But he is not how you remember him. We are trying to see if he can be returned to his previous state..."
"If the experiments involved replacing body parts he cannot be returned to normal." Caitlin tapped her foot in thought.
"Have you heard of this fella by the name of Viktor?" Sydell asked.
The eyes turned to him.
"Helped create Hextech?"
They nodded.
"Apparently, he has been healing people down in the depths. I've seen it personally. People in wheelchairs walking. People with metal implants losing them as their body regrows. I don't know what magic he is using but it is worth a try." Sydell explained.
"Viktor is doing all of that?" Caitlin asked.
Vi stepped forward, "Take me there."
"That's why I came here." Sydell turned around, "Jinx said you deserved to know more than her."
Vi stilled, "If this is a trap..."
"What'd I gain from it?" Sydell cut her off, "You think my dad would be fine with something as dangerous as breaking into Stillwater? I dread the moment he returns."
"Vi go." Caitlin placed an arm on her shoulder. "I'll handle things here and join you in the depths."
Vi nodded and began following Sydell, "Oh yeah and Ambessa got smacked around like a toy when it attacked. Left Mel quite shocked."
Caitlin let out a dry chuckle, "That's something good at least." But her mind was heavy, the deaths of so many enforcers was a huge problem.
Morale was at an all time low in Piltover. With Jayce missing, the constant attacks, and now the death of enforcers..... people would be leaving in droves. And the worst was that they would be afraid of joining the enforcers. That last few years the rate of death had shot up, high enough for the citizens to think that this job was suicide.
The large salaries and bonuses would only get so many applicants.
She sighed as she watched the backs of Vi and Sydell disappear.
Maybe they were right.
Maybe it was suicide to be an enforcer.
The one shaking next to her certainly thought so.