Archive of Our Own

"We can speak now." Viktor relaxed a little. He thought of the little vials that he saw exchange hands at the market. He could not be sure that there weren't any of Silco's people among the sellers and buyers. 

"So, that was an Undercity type of market? Wow. It...was not what I expected. " Jayce glanced around at the woods they were in. "I don't know what to think of it. How do people even know that it's happening?"

"Whispers in the streets. Rumors from people who have been before. This one in the poisoned woods happens fairly often. There's more...hidden ones that I don't know much about. Those don't happen often."

"Did you get what you need?" Jayce asked as they left toward another area of the Undercity, further away from the Vastayan settlement. 

Viktor nodded. "There's a natural spring here somewhere. It won't be too good for our health, but we do need to wash up- and make some plans."

"I'll deal with Piltover." Jayce was stubborn. Viktor would need to try and convince him. The springs were hidden slightly away from the poisoned woods. The water sparkled deceptively. 

"Don't go too far from where we are." Viktor warned. "These springs flow down to the cave rivers. It can get quite deep." 

"We'll need to get further inland after I return from Piltover." Jayce settled quickly into the lukewarm water. 

"I'm going with you." Viktor shivered a little. The water here was like all the natural springs in the Undercity. A little too cold for him, but Viktor had always felt the cold more sharply than others. "I've made up my mind, Jayce. If you are that determined to go alone, then know that I'd be following, whether you know it or not."

"Viktor..." Jayce sighed. Viktor met his eyes. 

"I'm feeling a lot better now, Jayce. Almost back to how I was before...all this. I just needed some rest. Please. Believe me when I speak about myself."

"You were in pretty bad shape, Viktor. I'd- I'd hate to see you get hurt again." He said. "But...you are right. I can't stop you, so I'd rather have you with me."

"You know topside better than I do." Viktor washed his hair as well as he could. "You'll be my guide once we're there."

Jayce nodded. The shadows of the branches had obscured most of his face, but Viktor could still see the troubled expression that came across it. "Actually, I was thinking- I'd like to discuss with you, it might be dangerous, but-" he paused for a brief moment. "I'd like to visit my mother. Not for long, but I...if I could, I'd like to see her again." 

"...of course you should go see your mother, Jayce." Viktor said, softly. "She would have missed you."

"She'd like you." Jayce said. "I know she would."

They followed the path charted out in the map, stopping at small settlements and out of the way parts of the Undercity. Perhaps Viktor should not have spent most of his time holed up in the Lanes. He would have been more well equipped to navigate the Undercity then. 

"So, this is Piltover? Topside..." Viktor had been topside before, but he had always gone through the dams. This was a completely different view. He could see almost all of the city, and he has to admit that it was...breathtaking. It stood tall and proud, a stark contrast to the broken stones and rotting spires that he knew. For a moment, he understood the urge to burn it all down. To show them what it was like. 

"Viktor?" Jayce's voice brought him out from his introspections. "Follow me. We need to look like we belong. There's a clothing store near here."

Viktor nodded, and followed Jayce. The other man looked a little guilty as he took the clothes off the racks. "We'll return these later." He mumbled. 

"If we get the chance to." Viktor whispered back as he pulled the coat against himself. "Where are we going now?"

"We'll take the first morning train. We're lucky it's progress day today. Everyone dresses up and all the train rides are free." Jayce slid an ornate mask onto his face, and passed its matching pair to Viktor. "No one should be able to recognize me this way. Besides, my hair has gotten much longer now."

"Good idea." Viktor replied. 

Viktor looked out the window through his mask. He'd never seen the sky so blue before. Tinted with the pinks and oranges of sunrise, without the cloud of smog that usually blocked the view. "We'll need to wait until this afternoon's speech. Everyone will be there, especially the Councilors. That should give us enough time." 

The train stopped, and the early celebrants of progress day straggled out in twos and threes. The courtyard was filled with small stalls and displays in the process of being set up. Viktor had attended the progress from two years prior, but at that time he had only stayed for long enough to get what he had wanted. Only for a few minutes at most, before he disappeared into the crowd and made his way back to the Lanes. "How long would the speech be?" 

"It depends on Professor Himerdinger's mood, I suppose." Viktor's hand tensed around his cane when someone glanced for a moment too long at them. He recognized the gait of an enforcer, even when out of uniform. "When he gets into it, he really gets into it."

Sometimes, a crowd was the best hiding place one could ask for. Their masks hid their faces, and their stolen clothes hid the signs of his Undercity origins. The streets started to fill. 

Jayce handed him a pastry. "Can't go breaking into someone's house on an empty stomach." He whispered. 

"Hm." Viktor smiled. "Be careful, someone could hear us." He bit into the sweet thing, feeling the sugar from the candied fruit burst on his tongue. So Jayce remembered his tastes, then. Viktor glanced around at the stalls and displays as he followed Jayce toward the Kiramman estate. All those trinkets would be pretty but useless in the Undercity. Their mechanics are what interested him. There were things that he could create from them that would help him save lives. 

"There's a patch of woods surrounding the Kiramman estate." Jayce beckoned. "We should approach from the south side- it would lead to the back of the estate, where my chambers are- were."

"Where you kept your gemstones?"

"Ah, no." Jayce shook his head. "They would have taken anything of mine from there as well. I put one somewhere in the gardens. Just in case."

"Smart." Viktor said. "Were you expecting to be caught?"

"I'm not sure if I did or not." Jayce continued as they slipped away from the main market and into the emptied side streets that lead into the woods. "But I'm happy that I had the foresight."

Viktor found himself fascinated by the greenery, even as he kept his focus on the mission and followed Jayce. Even his breathing felt less labored here. He stood still for a moment, feeling the cool breeze on his skin. 

He opened his eyes, and continued on. They fell silent as they neared the estate. "Most of the enforcers would be guarding the council chambers." Jayce lowered his voice. 

"Still, we should be careful." Viktor whispered. He had made some changes to his cane the day after Silco's display at the Last Drop. He hoped that he did not have to use it, though he cannot deny that there was a small part of him that wanted to see what would happen if he did.

He had only glanced at estates like this one from a distance. It was huge, and it loomed over them. Ornate decor surrounded the gardens. "Jayce?" He pulled him behind a bush.

"Yes?"

"Who is that?" 

The girl was partially hidden behind a carefully sculpted tree, but Viktor was still able to make out a vague silhouette. 

"Shit." Jayce cursed under his breath. "We need to wait."

Viktor stilled himself, and forced himself to relax. They waited for what felt like an eternity. 

"She's gone now." Jayce said.

"Are you sure?" Viktor glanced around the corner. He really would prefer not to get caught in Piltover. Stillwater prison. No one walked out of that place the same person they were when they went in. 

Jayce nodded. "Do you have it with you?"

"Yes." Viktor pulled out one of the remaining pieces of their creation. Most of it was lost in the chase in the cave, but they managed to hold on to some. "Are we in the general vicinity of the gemstone?"

"It should be around here. I can't guarantee it fully."

"Nothing can be fully guaranteed to happen." Viktor felt the mechanism vibrate slightly in his hand. "But it does seem that we have found what we were looking for." 

Jayce nodded, and headed toward the direction Viktor was pointing toward. "What you said earlier..."

"It would be risky." Viktor replied. "But you should go see your mother. Tell her that you are..."

Jayce smiled. He held up one hand, and Viktor could see the faint blue glow of the gemstone from behind his fingers. "Let's go before it's too late." He answered. 

Viktor took one last look at the estate before he left. He narrowed his eyes as a shadow flitted across the corner of his view, before he turned and followed Jayce.