"To Zaun, then. Blisters and Bedrock."
"Blisters and Bedrock!"
Clinking their glasses together, Vander, Silco, and Felicia drank. Felicia drank orange juice, having just discovered she was pregnant with Violet, Vi, a child from Connal, her lover in the Sump mines.
"Say," Felicia began, setting her glass down and glancing at Silco. "I heard you've been visiting a lady too. Is it true?"
"Yes," Silco answered, then shrugged. "But not as lovers, like you and Connal. A mutual arrangement is all it is."
Vander chuckled. "Guess bozo-one finally bent."
"Hardly," Silco replied, looking down at his swirling drink. "We all have indulgences that need to be satisfied every now and then."
Felicia and Vander exchanged glances before Felicia sighed, leaning back. "As long as you don't take it too far and leave a poor girl stranded, I don't see a problem with it."
Leaning in with a grin, she elbowed Silco. "Though, that 'mutual arrangement' is how Connal and I first got started too, y'know."
Meeting her gaze, Silco smirked and snorted. Felicia rolled her eyes before they went back to their drinks.
------
"I'll visit. But I can't stay," Silco said with a frown to Relia. After Blisters and Bedrock, this bombshell came, and Relia could see his expression twisting. But it wasn't out of happiness.
"Why not? Nothing will change! The Undercity will be as dangerous tomorrow as it is today!"
Biting his inner cheek, remembering Felicia's words, he spoke coldly, though it wasn't directed at her. "Only foolish opportunists believe that."
"How can you say that? I am carrying your child!"
"Yes, you are. Staying away from us will be the better choice."
Tearing up, Relia slapped Silco.
------
"This is the child?" Silco asked, arms folded as he stared down at the baby in its crib.
Relia scowled and glared at him. "His name is Varyn. What? Don't approve of it?"
Silco shook his head. "It's a good name." He paused before continuing, a little more remorseful. "I'm sorry I wasn't by your side when you gave birth. I was working with corrupt Topsiders to secure funds for the revolution. Delays prevented me from returning."
"Bastard, I know. A few thugs showed up here," she muttered. She swayed in place, rubbing her arms before asking, "Are you going to stay longer? And not for pleasure or convenience…"
There was a brief moment before Silco nodded.
------
"Our dream is here at last! Zaun is within reach!" Silco barged into the house while Varyn was away, his voice filled with excitement. "Within a few months, we'll finally have our freedom! No more picking up leftover scraps!"
Relia silently watched as he paced back and forth. Silco's eyes were beaming but none of it was directed toward her.
"I secured the funds from the shipping nobles. It wasn't easy but we'll have trade routes immediately established after we crush Topside. Weapons… I'll have to work with the Dredge Forgers. Food and water can be negotiated and—"
"Silco."
"What?" Silco stopped, his eyes still wide from ranting to himself.
"What about Varyn?"
"Varyn?" Silco breathed, shaking his head dismissively and brushing it off with his hand. "Do what you want."
Relia bit her lower lip, her expression bitter. "Still the same, huh? You don't care."
"Relia," Silco exhaled in frustration. "The future of Zaun is worth more than a single child!"
Unable to look at Silco any longer, she turned away. She wiped at the tears forming before turning back to see his exasperated expression.
"Remember when I told you I was pregnant? Let's go through with it. Don't come back. I don't want my child dragged into your problems."
Standing there dumbfounded, Silco gestured outwardly. "Do you think you're special or something? I'm trying to build a better future for all! I'm doing you a favor by offering you and your child a place by my side!"
"Our child, Silco. Our child. Get out."
------
~Timeline if the protagonist never entered Varyn's body after the Bridge of Progress Battle~
Standing outside the burning home of what was once Relia and Varyn's, Silco stared down at the two burials beside it. His expression was cold. One eye glinted orange from chemical burns and fresh scarring, his face was fatigued, and anger simmered beneath the surface.
"He passed away from sickness and you couldn't bear it. I am surrounded by weakness and pathetic excuses."
Turning away, he passed an older man who was nearly bald. His solemn eyes rested on Varyn's burial, and he sighed wearily. "I am sorry for your loss."
"I don't need your pity, doctor. I need results."
------
~Timeline with the Protagonist~
"Why don't you say hello?" the doctor asked. "You told me you've never spoken to him. That he's never seen you. Perhaps he can still be used?"
In the distance, Varyn stood outside the house. He looked confused, scared, and lost, like a child who couldn't find his way home.
"Relia wanted him to be safe," Silco spat. "Weakness has been carved into his soul… just like Vander. It is a waste of time."
"And yet," the doctor said quietly, "here you are. Watching from afar."
Turning sharply on his heel, Silco's ominous orange glare bore into the doctor's indifferent gaze.
"I don't need your opinion, doctor. I need results."
------
After ordering a few of his men to begin shouting and create a distraction, Silco watched as Orson stormed out of Relia's home. He struggled to control his breathing, jaw clenched. Murderous intent poured off him as he stood behind the farthest shack.
Over the past weeks drifting into months, he'd heard about Varyn's growth. Chembaron Karvyq's dealings had been trivial to him and he didn't believe anything would come of it, even if Lucian killed Karvyq.
But he hadn't expected this. Nor had he expected to hear that Varyn became the new Chembaron. What Lucian was doing was plain as day to him, considering their lost promises and assets after the failed revolution.
After reading a report that Varyn had returned home from delivering goods, Silco stroked his chin in thought before looking out into the dark abyssal sea and watching a monster-sized fish swimming beneath its surface. Behind him, the first drippings of purple liquid settled into vials.
"How long?" Silco asked, not turning away from the water or the report in his hand.
"It will take time," the doctor responded, flicking a large syringe filled with green fluid. "Perhaps a year to scale to the production you require."
His tired gaze turned toward Silco. "Are you going to retaliate?"
Silco drummed his fingers against the armrest. "That's what Lucian wants. I'm going to observe for now. See if the bird can fly on its own."
A wet squelch echoed as the syringe pierced a rat inside a small cage. It squealed and thrashed, its joints distorting before it finally fell still. The doctor's studious gaze followed every mutation before he opened a dissection kit beside the table.
"Progress," the doctor murmured, lifting the scalpel.
"Demands a tolerance for suffering."