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thesorcerersapprenticeu · 2 days ago

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Chapter 15: Lovers from the Past

The fight on the bridge is over. With Jinx's almost lifeless body in your arms, you run through the Undercity - your destination is clear: Singed. Even though you haven't seen each other for years, you have no other choice. And so, after a long time, Sorcerer and Sorcerer's Apprentice meet again.

But you're not here to relive old memories - you're putting him under pressure, even threatening to kill his daughter if he doesn't help.

Later, you enter the bar to fetch Vi. Sevika stands in your way, but you defeat her easily. However, Jinx has her own plans and is not prepared to let her go.

---

I'll keep it short this time - the endnotes are particularly important this time, so make sure you check them out!

wc: 5.8 k

---

Magic is a miracle.

So complicated, yet so simple.

In some parts of the world, it is a source of beauty, hope and healing. In others, it is a weapon, as cruel as death, as cold as the end itself.

Magic saves lives, gives people abilities beyond their wildest dreams. But it is a double-edged sword - because it is fueled not only by knowledge, but by emotions. To be a king, a soldier or a Royal Guard, you have to learn to master these feelings.

But it is no lie to say that the most powerful magic, the most iron will and the most brutal aura come from the darkness. From pain, anger, loss - from that which makes humans monsters and yet somehow gods.

But why are you thinking about it right now?

Why, while you carry Jinx, her almost lifeless body that feels heavier with every step? While her breathing becomes weaker, her skin colder and time slips mercilessly through your fingers?

Your gaze wanders forward, the roads are uneven, but you keep running ahead at full speed.

Maybe because you have to remind yourself.

Magic brought you here - in all its beauty and cruelty. Magic gave you the power to protect her. But magic also brought you to this world of loss and blood.

You can feel the memories of the debris of the past surfacing in your mind, each image a splinter stabbing into your soul.

And yet magic is all you have.

You concentrate, your aura forms around the two of you like a second skin, keeping the cold away from her, even as it eats away at your insides.

Magic is a miracle.

You open the door, breathing lightly, although the march here has taken its toll on you. Behind you are Silco and some of his men, exhausted but determined. As you walk forward, you hear their heavy footsteps, but they fade into the background of your consciousness. Your focus is on the room in front of you.

Singed's Labor.

The air is thick with chemicals, a heavy, acrid smell that you recognize immediately. The walls are lined with shelves full of test tubes, flasks and instruments. Liquids of all colors - some glowing faintly, others looking like liquid poison - bubble in apparatus whose purpose you no longer even question. It's chaotic, a visual mess, but you know that behind every little arrangement there is a methodologist, a man who has every detail under control.

And there he is.

He sits at his table, his silhouette slightly bent forward, his hands gripping a small vial containing an unidentifiable, pulsating liquid. He turns around slowly, his movements mechanical, almost like a machine.

Your gaze hits him.

For a moment, no one says anything. The sounds around you - the hissing of equipment, the occasional drip of liquids - seem to fall silent. You stare at each other, and in that moment, time is frozen.

His face. The bandages that usually cover his scars are missing. You can see them all, the deep cuts and burnt areas that look like a map of his past. One eye is missing, the empty socket looking like a silent witness to his own experiments. The remaining eye, cold and analytical, fixes you while he recognizes you.

It takes a few seconds for the spark of recognition to flash in his gaze. His posture barely changes, but you realize that he recognizes you. His voice, low and hoarse, breaks the silence.

"So it's you."

---

"Her injuries are severe. She suffers from a severe concussion," says Singed with his characteristic calm as he carefully ties Jinx onto a stretcher. His movements are precise, almost mechanical, as he examines the wounds.

"You think we can't see that?" Silco, cutting and full of rhetoric, his gaze full of anger, but his voice restrained.

You just stand there and watch as Singed continues to work while Silco stays close, fixing Jinx's limp form with a look that shows both concern and a will to control. Singed is checking her injuries and already seems to be putting together a procedure in his head - you can tell by the way his hands run over the instruments he's preparing.

You analyze in the same way, and you don't like it. The fact that you and Singed come to the same conclusions is worrying.

Jinx will be able to survive, you know that. A little Shimmer to support the function of her organs and a method to stabilize her blood flow. But that alone is not enough. Her body will need to regenerate faster than it naturally can. Without accelerated cell division, she won't be able to produce enough blood cells. Without that - her end.

"I believe we can save her, but the process will be demanding," says Singed, interrupting your thoughts. His tone is neutral, almost as if he's talking about a scientific experiment, not a life. You don't like the word "we" in his statement. It hints at a shared responsibility that you don't necessarily want to bear, and not with him either.

And then he adds, with a calm, almost cutting firmness:

"Sometimes death is a mercy."

The sentence hangs in the room, heavy and unyielding. Silco turns to him with a sharp look, his anger almost palpable.

"She can take it," Silco growls, his voice full of determination.

Singed steps away from the stretcher for a moment and picks up a syringe, which he slowly fills with a green liquid. His movements are calm and methodical, but you already know what he's planning - you can tell by the way his gaze wanders past you.

"And before I begin, I must know," says Singed in a voice that carries both professionalism and gravity. "Are you prepared to lose her?"

At this moment, Jinx gasps softly, a faint sound that nevertheless draws the entire attention of the room. Your eyes fix on her form as she lies there, fragile and yet unbroken.

"She won't die, doctor. She cant," Silco replies. His voice is rock solid, without a doubt, and he leans over her and presses a gentle kiss to her forehead.

"I understand," Singed mumbles without wasting another second. He pulls up a chair and positions it behind Silco. It only takes a moment for you to understand what's going to happen.

"Please understand, this is for your sanity," Singed says, his voice softer, almost regretful, and he raises the syringe without Silco noticing.

Before Silco can react, Singed stabs the syringe into his neck. The effect is immediate. Silco's eyes widen briefly before they glaze over and his body slumps. You're not sure whether it was pain or surprise that was in his last look before he slipped into unconsciousness.

"I, too, once had a daughter," Singed murmurs quietly, almost to himself, as he gently lowers Silco onto the chair.

That makes you two the only ones who are still awake.

Singed looks around, his laboratory in perfect order, ready for what is about to happen. He checks the instruments, the test tubes, the protocols - an orderly place in the midst of chaos.

"You've grown." His voice breaks through the silence, slow and deliberate. It takes you a moment to realize he's talking to you. "Not much in stature, though. But your appearance... that compensates for a lot."

Your gaze remains cold, your hands buried in your coat pockets. One of them is clutching a steel ball, and the aura surrounding you begins to thicken - a silent warning signal.

"I see... you've unlocked some of your talent and potential." He appraises you with an almost scientific interest. "But I daresay you're still far from your peak. Maybe ten percent, if I'm being generous."

If Jinx wasn't tied here next to you and you didn't need his help, this would probably be the moment when a steel ball would have severed his head from the rest of his body.

"How much shimmer do we need?" You cut through his words, ignoring his comments. Your voice is calm, but it carries the weight of an ultimatum.

Singed hesitates, his eyes scrutinizing Jinx and returning to you. "Hm... you should know that for yourself, shouldn't you? I've taught you everything you need."

Your grip on the steel ball tightens, and a low hum of your aura fills the room. The temperature seems to drop as your anger seeps through, and even Singed, who is usually so unflappable, suddenly seems nervous.

"Hey..." Your voice is low, almost a growl, as your aura radiates a menace that no one can ignore. "If you continue with your game..."

Your gaze meets his, cold and determined. With an outstretched index finger at him and a sinister aura. "... Then I'll kill her. And you're next."

The room falls into an eerie silence. Singed's face remains composed, but a drop of sweat trickles down his forehead. He slowly raises his hands, not in surrender, but in appeasement.

"Three milliliters of pure Shimmer," he finally says, his voice even. "Mixed with blood thinner and a stabilizing solution. Anything more and her heart will fail."

"Then do it." Your tone is cutting, no more patience in your gaze.

Singed turns away, his hands routinely reaching for the necessary containers. You watch his every move as he prepares the serum. Your gaze remains alert, analyzing his every action, ready to intervene at the slightest deviation.

"I hope you understand," Singed begins without looking at you, "that this is a risky operation. Even if she survives physically... Her spirit could break."

You squint your eyes, your heart is racing, but you don't let it show. You step closer to Jinx and gently place a hand on her shoulder.

"She's stronger than you think," you repeat firmly, your gaze fixed on Jinx, though part of you is unsure. "And we don't need a stabilizer."

Singed pauses, the serum in his hand, and slowly turns to face you. His brow furrows, a hint of skepticism in his gaze.

"No stabilizer?" he asks, as if the thought is inconceivable to him. "And... what are you going to do to stabilize them during the process?"

You don't answer directly. Your gaze is cool, your focus is on Jinx. Instead, you pull your spellbook out of your coat pocket in one fluid motion. The leather of the cover feels familiar, reassuring, as you open the pages.

Singed watches you, confused and fascinated at the same time, as a gentle aura appears around your hand. The energy spreads out, permeating the room with a warm, golden glow. It clings to the stretcher, spreading over Jinx like an invisible protective shield.

"Doctor Blythe..." you murmur, almost reverently, as the magic takes shape.

A powerful, supernatural being materializes before Jinx's eyes - a giant doll whose appearance is both reassuring and eerie. Dressed in a nurse's uniform, it hovers directly above Jinx, its presence filling the room with an inexplicable authority. She pauses barely ten feet above the stretcher, her massive hands spread out as if assessing the situation.

Singed opens his eyes, his analytical mind failing him for a moment. "What... is that?" he mutters, his voice a whisper that fades into the room. "Did you just... conjure that? Magic?"

The doll moves. Its mechanical fingers, fine and precise, slowly unfold, each equipped with a surgical instrument. The soft hum of magic intensifies the tension in the room as the puppet prepares its work.

"This is Doctor Blythe," you explain calmly, your eyes fixed on Singed as your hands continue to hold the book to direct the magic. "She's going to stabilize Jinx - physically, at least. Your job is to prevent a more severe concussion. I'll take care of the rest."

Singed nods slowly, though the confusion remains on his face. He doesn't dare to question further and turns his focus back to the serum.

Doctor Blythe's mechanical fingers gently descend on Jinx. The surgical instruments at their tips begin their work precisely and synchronously. With a mixture of mechanical precision and magical healing, she closes the gaping wounds, stops internal bleeding and even repairs broken bones.

Time passes slowly, each minute dragging on like an eternity. Singed administers his serum, monitoring the vital signs, while you concentrate on keeping the doll alive with your magic.

Jinx opens her eyes several times, briefly forced into consciousness by the shimmer. Her lips move as if she wants to say something, but the words remain unintelligible. A shiver goes through you every time her gaze wanders to you - so much pain, so much confusion.

You work without exchanging a word. No talk about old times. Not a word about the days you spent in his lab, the lessons he taught you or the wounds he inflicted on you. The room is filled with an unspoken hatred that hangs between you like a dark cloud.

Singed seems to sense it. He says nothing, as if any wrong word could put him in danger. Your anger, so evident in the intensity of your aura, leaves no doubt that one misstep could cost him his life - or worse, his daughter.

After just under an hour, it's finally done. Wounds closed, bones mended, bleeding stopped. Singed puts the last tool aside and wipes his forehead with a cloth. Doctor Blythe withdraws, her fingers remain in standby mode. You let the doll slowly disappear, your magic ebbs away, and it slowly bursts like a balloon, but without a sound.

Jinx lies motionless, her breathing shallow but steady. Her body shows the scars of the ordeal, but she is alive - kept alive by your magic, Singed's serum and Shimmer, which now flows through her veins. A bittersweet victory.

"She'll survive," Singed finally says, his voice almost a whisper. "But the Shimmer will have side effects. She's... changed now."

You nod, your eyes fixed on Jinx, who looks calm despite everything. "Changed or not," you say, your voice calm but firm. "She's alive. That's all that matters."

For a moment, your eyes and Singed's meet. You don't see much in his eyes - just the emptiness of a man who has long since given up on the world. But in your eyes he recognizes something else: fire, unshakeable determination, and the aura of a power that inspires respect and fear in him.

Jinx begins to cough, and immediately all your focus is on her. Her head moves slightly, her lips form silent words. And then you see it - her eyes, now a bright purple. An unmistakable sign of what she has been through.

"Better get out of here before he wakes up," Singed says, pointing a small knife at Silco, who is sitting unconscious on a chair. His words are matter-of-fact, almost indifferent, as if the chaos that has taken place here is nothing unusual for him.

You don't answer, you don't say thank you. Your voice remains silent as you help Jinx up. She leans heavily on you, her legs weak and trembling. You leave the lab, step by step, without exchanging a word.

The room falls silent as soon as you are gone. Singed remains motionless, his eyes wandering between Silco, the instruments, and the door through which you disappeared. The expression on his face remains unreadable, but the encounter with you still echoes in his mind.

After minutes of silence, he finally breaks it himself. A single word, almost a whisper:

"...terrifying."

You and Jinx move slowly through the dark corridors of Zaun. Her steps are heavy, but she mumbles something occasionally, her voice brittle. "Was it... bad?" she asks quietly.

"It was nothing you couldn't survive," you reply calmly, although the images of the fight and the operation still reverberate in your mind. "You're here, Jinx. That's all that matters."

You reach a small abandoned area where you gently place her on an old crate. Her eyes, now purple and smouldering, scrutinize you. "You haven't given up on me," she murmurs, almost in disbelief.

"Never," you say, and there is a truth in your voice that does not allow for discussion.

Jinx blinks slowly, as if trying to catch your words. "Are you..." Her voice is quiet, almost uncertain. "Angry?"

You pause for a moment. Your gaze wanders from her healed wounds to her bright purple eyes, which seem to draw you into a trance. But your mind is elsewhere.

"I know about the Corpse."

Ekko's words echo in your head. The moment on the bridge, the chaos, the explosion - he could have killed Jinx. Just one more blow, just a moment longer, and she wouldn't be here now.

And you? You were watching. Once again.

You're angry. At Ekko for almost doing it. At Vi and Caitlyn for just disappearing instead of trying to resolve the situation. You knew what was going to happen and yet they did nothing.

If things had turned out differently, you might have let them have the crystal. You wouldn't have decided to steal it.

"You're really creepy..." gasps Jinx, her voice weak but her usual smirk on her lips. "When you're angry."

You take a deep breath, trying to tame the rage inside you. But it's there, burning and unyielding. You crouch down slightly so that your eyes are level with hers.

"You almost died," you say softly, your voice barely more than a whisper. "And there was nothing I could do but watch."

Jinx looks at you for a moment, then laughs - softly, almost mockingly. "Pff! That almost sounds like you're not proud of me. I survived, didn't I?"

Your jaw tightens. "That's not the point, Jinx."

"Oh no?" She leans back slightly, her tiredness obvious. "Then what's the point?"

You close your eyes for a moment. She doesn't understand. Or doesn't want to understand.

"I almost lost you again."

She freezes, her grin disappears for a split second before she puts it back on. But this time it's not as convincing as usual.

"But you didn't."

You shake your head. "Not this time."

"Well look!" Jinx grins triumphantly, as if this is all a game she's just won. "So, what's the next move?"

You look around as if you would find an answer somewhere. But the reality is different. You have the crystal, Jinx is alive - but what else? The situation between Piltover and Zaun continues to escalate, war is inevitable. And Vi and Caitlyn... They've disappeared, simply taken off without even trying to resolve the situation.

But that's not what Jinx is getting at. You can see it in her attitude, in that spark in her eyes. She doesn't want to talk about politics or consequences. She wants to act.

"You must already have a plan, right?" you ask, almost resignedly.

"Of course!" Jinx beams, as if she's been waiting for that very question. "We'll kidnap Caitlyn and Vi and pay them back!"

A brief moment of silence.

"And then?" Your voice is calm, but your gaze bores into hers.

"Then..." Jinx shrugs her shoulders. "Then we'll just do what we want."

If you were in a clearer state of mind, you would have laughed - or freaked out because it's the most illogical, risky plan you've heard in a long time. But your thoughts are clouded, your anger at Vi, Caitlyn and Ekko mingling with a deep-seated love for Jinx.

"Good..." You take a deep breath. "How's it looking?"

"You go into the Last Drop and get Vi." Jinx leans back with a broad grin. "I'll take care of Caitlyn in the meantime... and pay her a little surprise visit."

You nod. No more questions. No hesitation.

You part, both with the same goal in mind - but maybe, just maybe, with completely different ways of achieving it.

---

The streets of Zaun stretch out before you, dark and shrouded in mist as you approach the Last Drop. Your every movement feels heavy, as if the weight of the past is dragging you down. Memories flood your mind - old faces, old voices, old wounds you never quite closed.

Even for someone like you, whose perceptive faculties are sharper than most, it's getting to be too much. Too many thoughts, too many unanswered questions, too much knowledge that's running through your head as if it's overwhelming you.

And then comes a thought that you had long buried.

Should I check on them?

'You' - your family. No, not Vander, not Vi or Powder. But your real family. The scientists in Piltover who treated you like an idiot as a child. The ones who never accepted you because you didn't fit into their world of logic and cold research.

After all these years, you've never tried to look back. Never tried to find out what happened to them. Why not?

Was it pride? Anger? Fear?

Maybe it doesn't matter. Maybe it doesn't.

You feel the familiar tingling in your aura as your emotions flow uncontrollably into your magic. You need to focus - you have a job to do.

And yet...

Would it really be so bad to take a look?

What am I doing here anyway?

Damn! Why am I like this all of a sudden?

All the years you've been alone - even with a teacher by your side - your mind has never been as out of control as it is now. Not even in the worst battles, where seconds felt like minutes, have you felt as lost as you do right now.

You feel powerless.

And this despite the fact that - according to your own well-founded assessment - you could probably defeat any opponent here in Piltover with ease.

And that's exactly what makes you angry.

Damn!

Ekko.

You could have decapitated him then with a single, lightning-fast attack. No spell needed, just pure, focused aura - one move, faster than the eye can see, and it would have been over.

The same with Silco. Or Singed. Or Vi. Or Caitlyn.

None of them could harm you.

Not really.

Because you've been through more than all of them put together. Endured more pain, shouldered more guilt, suffered more consequences than they ever could. Your magic is just an extension of that - an extra that serves your unyielding will.

Nobody would stand a chance in a fight.

But that's not the point.

You breathe out, try to collect yourself. You need a clear head, otherwise you will make mistakes.

Then your eyes turn back to the road.

The shield of the Last Drop glows in the darkness, its faint glow bringing you back to reality. But it's not the light that catches your attention - it's the people.

They leave the bar in a hurry. Some cast nervous glances back as if they were fleeing from something.

She's already inside.

Vi...

Of course she does. She wants revenge against Sevika.

And that means chaos.

A battlefield spreads out in front of the entrance to the Last Drop. Silco's men - highly armed, pumped full of Shimmer, ready for war - lie on the ground. Defeated. Most of them are still breathing, but you can feel it: they are on the brink of death.

Vi took care of her. Alone.

You look at the bar, then close your eyes briefly. For a single moment, you expand your aura - not strongly, just a wave, barely noticeable to someone without training. But it's enough for you.

Three auras.

Jinx. Vi. Sevika.

But there is something else. Magic.

Hextech. Two charged objects, not as powerful as when a real magician would let his life energy - his aura - flow through them, but still unexpected in a place like this.

You enter.

Your steps are silent, your presence hidden. First observe.

Sevika and Vi fight.

Fists meet flesh. Blades cut through air and skin. Screams echo through the room. The smell of blood, shimmer and fear mix into a cocktail of madness.

Sevika's new weapon - a blade-like extension of her mechanical arm - whizzes through the air. Vi dodges, blocks, counters, but she loses her rhythm. She was always impatient, always too direct. She had no defense.

She will lose.

You seize the moment. While the two of them focus on each other, you glide through the shadows, moving along the bar - invisible to their eyes.

And then you touch Sevika's glass.

You quickly reach for your spell book, wrap it in your aura and place your fingerprints on the glass with a light touch.

The spell is set.

Harmless - for now. But if the condition is met...

If she touches the glass, I've won. Getting Vi won't be difficult either.

And then comes the moment you've been waiting for.

Vi goes to the ground.

A brutal blow, directly after a devastating combo from Sevika, drops her to her knees. Her face hits the ground hard and blood drips from her mouth. But you know better - she's not done yet. Vi doesn't give up that easily.

You keep moving, keeping your distance. Your gaze remains fixed on Sevika, who is now slowly walking to the bar. She stretches out her hand to reach for a glass - but not the right one.

The wrong glass.

A loud crack as you deliberately step on the wood with your foot.

"What are you doing-!"

She reflexively turns towards you, but she can't finish her sentence because your steel ball is already flying towards her.

Not a powerful, charged throw - just enough to divert their attention.

Sevika raises her mechanical arm and the ball bounces against it with a dull clonk. Perfect. She flinches briefly, and just then she reaches for the other glass.

I win.

She raises the glass, downs the liquid and looks directly at you. Neither of you says a word. Only the heavy breathing of her and Vi fills the silence.

Then...

A twitch.

A barely noticeable tremor in her hand.

"What..." Sevika blinks, her voice full of suspicion. "What did you do-?"

She can't finish the sentence.

Her grip on the glass weakens. Your fingers tremble. Her muscles suddenly feel light - too light. Her bones seem to give way and the glass slips from her hand in a helpless movement.

It breaks on the floor.

"Damn it! WHAT ARE YOU-?!"

Panic sets in, but it is already too late.

The magic unfolds its full effect.

Sevika's mechanical arm suddenly starts to get heavier and heavier. Too heavy. Heavy enough that the flesh on her shoulder slowly gives way and begins to separate from the metal. She cries out, staggers, and with a deafening crash her arm hits the floor - as if the weight had torn her skin.

She takes a panicked step back, her foot hits one of the splinters of wood from the fight. But instead of simply stumbling, the small piece of wood pierces effortlessly through her entire foot as if it were made of soft wax.

She cries out once more.

Her free hand shoots forward, desperately searching for a grip on the counter. But when her fingers touch the wood, they deform.

They literally melt.

As if her flesh would give way at the slightest touch, her hand contorts, her fingers sink in as if the wood has dissolved all her stability.

Sevika gasps, her chest rises and falls frantically. But not another word escapes her lips.

She begins to fall.

And that is your sign to come closer.

You walk slowly towards her, with an almost bored calm in your demeanor. Meanwhile, Sevika struggles to hold on to the counter, her heavy-breathing body full of desperation and anger. But control? She lost it long ago.

"Vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin, also known as ascorbic acid," you say in an almost casual voice.

Sevika gasps and lifts her gaze to you, her eyes full of burning hatred, but also with a hint of panic.

"It is important for the formation of bones, teeth and connective tissue. If it's missing..." You pause briefly, as if giving her a moment to think. "That's what happens."

You slowly lift your foot - and then lower it onto her deformed hand with deliberate force.

The result is predictable.

Sevika's flesh gives way as if it were nothing more than melted wax. Her fingers deform under your kick and a pain-filled scream escapes her throat.

"You-! You're just too much of a coward to fight normally!" she yells as she tries to pull her hand away, but control of her body has long since slipped from her grasp. "All this time with your damn tricks, with your weird toys, just because you can't do anything!"

Is she really that stupid? I won the battle a long time ago.

You just shake your head, your gaze remains fixed on her - cool, emotionless, as if you were talking about something that doesn't even concern you.

"You're right," you finally say. "But for someone like you..."

You take another step closer, lowering yourself slightly until you are standing right in front of her.

"I don't need anything special."

You like it - you'd be lying if you said you didn't. Victory tastes sweet, almost intoxicating, especially against someone like Sevika.

A traitor.

One that Vander sold to Silco.

One that helped change everything.

Even back then, when you dropped the monkey bomb with the Enforcer gadget, she was the one who threw herself in front of Silco. She had made her choice - and today you have made yours.

"Y/N, stop."

The voice breaks through your thoughts, forcing you to leave the moment.

Slowly you straighten up, turn around - and your eyes meet Vi's.

Her blue eyes burn into yours, full of determination, but it only takes you a moment to see it: She's finished.

Her aura is weak, her body weakened. She couldn't fight you even if she wanted to.

And then - you feel it.

The third presence.

A faint grin appears on your face.

Perfect timing.

Vi sees your grin and a spark of panic flashes in her eyes. She knows it doesn't mean anything good - but it's too late.

"Bravo, Sis."

Jinx is already behind her.

Before Vi can react, the blow from her gun hits hard against her head. Vi collapses, unconscious on the floor.

Now it's just the two of you.

Sevika, destroyed and helpless, a shadowy reminder of her former strength.

Vi, defeated, an echo of her former invincibility.

And Jinx, leaning casually against her weapon, watches the scene with undisguised amusement.

"You two have really done something," she says as her gaze falls on Sevika. Then she grins wider. "But you really do look like shit."

You take a deep breath as the intoxication of the fight slowly sets in.

But there is still work to be done.

"And now?" you ask calmly.

Jinx shrugs her shoulders. "Well, now let's pack up our present."

Jinx shrugs her shoulders, but just as you're about to pick Vi up, she raises a hand.

"Or... wait a minute."

You stop, your eyes narrow slightly. She has that certain tone in her voice - playful, but dangerous.

Jinx grabs Sevika by the shoulder and pulls her a little further, as if she were nothing more than a broken toy. A guttural, painful crack echoes through the empty bar, and you are sure that your spell has broken several bones in her shoulder and ribcage.

"I-!" Sevika gasps, pain contorting her expression. "I'll kill you both!"

Jinx laughs out loud, almost manically, while you just smile slightly yourself. An empty threat, nothing more. She can't move, only has one arm left, and if Jinx really wanted to, she could crush her skull with a single punch - thanks to your spell, it wouldn't even be a challenge.

"For a loser, you sure make a lot of noise..." Jinx grins as she nudges Sevika with her foot. "Until Silco's men collect you, you might as well just lie here. But..."

She stretches out her hands, her fingers trembling slightly as if she can no longer hold back an impatient tension.

"My fingers are just itching."

You watch them carefully.

Jinx is unpredictable, you know that. But you can read her behavior better than anyone else. And you can see it in her eyes - it's not just an impulse. It's a plan.

"You bastard betrayed Vander." Her voice cracks, a hint of real, unfiltered hatred creeping in. "That makes one less good person on this planet."

Your eyes meet for a brief moment. Her violet eyes pierce you, shimmering in the faint light. But she smiles.

"Time for a tournament!"

You blink. A what?

"What kind of tournament?" you ask skeptically.

"The right question!" Jinx beams as Sevika writhes weakly beneath you.

"Hey-! Wait a minute! What do you want-?"

Sevika fights through the pain, her voice a strained gasp.

"Are you joining in too, Y/N?" Jinx looks at you with sparkling eyes. "In the tournament of the strongest?"

You squint your eyes. "What are you talking about?"

"She betrayed Vander in cold blood, didn't she? He died in the factory because of her." Jinx grins broadly. "A sacrifice costs a body part!"

You just look at them. Somewhere in your mind, where logic and rationality still reign, you don't understand anything right now.

"The tournament is on!" shouts Jinx enthusiastically. "We'll kick the pig's body now... and whoever makes her howl the loudest until Silco's men arrive wins!"

The silence that follows is heavy.

Sevika isn't the only one shocked - you are too.

"You're... joking?" gasps Sevika.

You slowly get to your knees and sigh. Deeply. Long and drawn out. The whole situation is so absurd that you try to make sense of it - in vain.

I thought we were just paying Caitlyn and Vi back.

"Hey, aren't you joining us?" Jinx looks at you expectantly, her violet eyes sparkling in the dim light of the bar.

You shake your head. "I thought we were going to get Vi. Not that we're torturing Sevika to make ourselves feel better."

You take a deep breath and try to organize your thoughts.

"I'm sure Vander wouldn't approve of that either."

Silence.

Jinx says nothing. Neither does Sevika.

But your mind is working at full speed, prioritizing, ordering, searching for the common thread in all the chaos.

Vander...

"I see..." Jinx's voice is quieter, as if you've hit a nerve.

Slowly you stand up, your hands wander into your coat pockets, feeling the familiar cold of the steel balls, the weight of your books.

And then it comes - the memory.

The cold floor of the factory. The metallic smell of blood in the air. The trembling fingers running over Vander's lifeless body. Your own harsh breathing, mixed with sobs that you couldn't hold back at the time.

All this because of Sevika.

Your grip on the book with the Corpse Parts map tightens.

You slowly raise your eyes and feel a strange smile playing around your lips. A strange mix of control and madness, anger and clarity.

"Hey..." Your voice is calm, but the tension in the air is growing. You push back your sleeves, exposing your wrist.

"What do I get if I win?"

Jinx blinks - and then she starts to grin.

"Hehe! I'd say you get to pick!" She stretches out her arms, cracks them, and flashes you a huge smile - a smile that's far too innocent for what's about to happen.

And that was it.

Jinx laughs and closes the door.

You laugh and kick.

Sevika writhes beneath you, groans and grits her teeth, but it doesn't stop you.

Every kick, every blow, every hammering of your boots on their battered bodies is rewarded with a laugh or a saying.

It feels like when you were children.

When you just kicked an old, broken ball and threw it against the wall again and again until your feet hurt.

Vander.

Can you hear that up there in heaven?

Our requiem for you.

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