Work Text:
Work on the hex gates was always going to be arduous. The moment that the council understood that matter could be transported (pseudomagically) across any distance, they were bound to demand to see a greater, more practical application of the science. At first, their requests were simple, and Viktor found them to be interesting challenges not all too different from puzzlework.
Bolbok inquired whether or not they could, theoretically, set up a gate that could transport dockworkers to and from the docks directly to the warehouses on the other side of town. He reasoned that it would increase their efficiency and morale, while lowering the hours they worked. That sort of advancement hardly took three months. Two to stabilize the gate enough for human transfer, and one to create a “receiver” for the gate to transfer to.
Building it took months more, but the process of discovery involved hadn’t been all that complex. What was complex was developing a system of gates and receivers that could transmit mankind from one end of the world to the other. Still, it was fun in its own way — and spending more time with Jayce Talis was never a bad thing for Viktor.
Jayce was kind, charismatic, and warmer than the sunlight outside of their study window. In the months after their discovery and rise to fame, he took the burden of the public, allowing Viktor the peace he needed to focus and discover himself… but, somehow, he managed to be so magnanimous that Viktor almost always got the credit he deserved.
The warmth in his cheeks the first time Jayce pulled him up on stage to explain to a crowd just how Viktor managed to stabilize their discovery was unforgettable. It was burned into his mind as perfectly Golgoth’s Theorem was, like some sort of foundational pillar of his process. It was a fond memory, and one that Viktor happily placed upon his desk in a chocolate colored picture frame. He glanced up at it whenever his notes grew fuzzy beneath his eyes and it focused him.
This occurred often.
The process of creating global transmitters was not a simple one.
“We’ll need to create receivers in every major city,” Viktor thought aloud, marking upon his whiteboard with a streak of bright chalk. His cane lingered beneath his free hand as he struck through his thought process for an interested looking Jayce, whose hands were cupped between his spread knees. The light outside of their window was dim by then, cut by cloud cover and the dying of the day. “Though, this creates a new problem…”
“It could be used for something we don’t want it used for,” Jayce acknowledged.
“And then suddenly we are brokers of war, not trade,” Viktor agreed, conducting an imaginary symphony with his chalk. “Though, I do have an idea…”
Jayce smiled and shook his head.
“When don’t you? Hit me with it, Viktor.”
“We use a global transmitter, and local receivers. That would allow us to create a network based around Piltover’s existing transit system without granting autonomy to either Noxus or Demacia. Ionia may not accept that, but…”
“How would we do it?”
“Well, in the instant before an object passes through our gate, it is deconstructed… and then moved, whole. We would direct that deconstruction through the gate to one of our checkpoints in Piltover, pause it, and inspect it. That would allow us to control what comes and goes.”
Jayce fixed his nose between a finger and a thumb.
“Would that hold up? That’s like pausing something in time, isn’t it?”
“No, not quite. We would not be able to interact with it in any real way. We would, however, be able to measure its properties…”
Jayce snapped.
“You’re a genius. We could use the Hextech Magnifier I made to verify dockworker transport… it would save us years of development time!”
Viktor smiled and rolled his eyes.
“You know, it doesn’t count as a compliment when you’re promoting your own work,” he teased. “Perhaps you could simply call me a genius next time, and leave it at that?”
And then Jayce was laughing and it felt like the sunlight burned twice as bright. He threw an arm around Viktor’s shoulders and regarded the work on the board as a proud father might, not that Viktor remembered his father. The night passed in a blur of motion, the both of them working out equations and solutions in equal measure until they managed to implement Jayce’s Magnifier into Viktor’s modified transmission network.
It took nearly a full year to perfect, but as always, the foundation of their work was completed in one night of blistering discovery. Triumph chased triumph, and the first receiver was built in Basilich. Demacia, still so wary of magic, did not allow one to be built directly within their city — but instead allowed one to be constructed at the base of the Greengale Mountains, near the river. That way, they could still transport their goods the traditional way after receiving them via Hexgate.
Gate after gate followed. Noxus, two years after their discovery, held seven Hexgates. Demacia held two. BIlgewater had one of its own. Even Shurima held three, in Kenethet, Marrowmark, and Zirima. It was remarkable to know that their invention was capable of salvaging cities nearly wiped out by the difficulty of their trade, and that global culture could truly flourish because of what they, together, had done.
Victory after victory led Viktor closer to the spotlight than he ever thought he would be, and Jayce was there every step of the way to make sure neither of them went blind. Viktor was not one for socializing, and he was far from a suave socialite. Even dressed in a fancy, white suit, pinstriped, wearing a tie so green it could have been made from emerald, he did not fit in. He considered that as he regarded himself in the mirror before one of Headmaster Heimerdinger’s dinner parties.
Jayce, by contrast, did not seem to have the same problem.
Flashing in white and red, his shoulders filled out his jacket and his smile could have won awards of its own. He was the stark opposite of Viktor, and it was hard not to notice… but he never commented upon himself.
“Hey, I love the tie, man,” Jayce said, swinging an arm around Viktor’s shoulder in the mirror. Before Viktor knew it, Jayce was fixing his tie, adjusting his collar, his thumbs dangerously close to the slimmer man’s chin.
“You are the one who picked it out,” Viktor joked. “I may be the better scientist, but you are the better fashionista, I suppose.”
“Big talk from the guy who accidentally sent himself to Noxus last week.”
“They were not very fond of me, I think.”
Jayce patted Viktor’s cheek, a low snort humming out of his nose.
“Yeah, you’re a bit of an acquired taste.”
“It is a good thing that you are not, then. We all have our skills. You are the handsome one, I am the smart one, and those are the burdens we bear.”
“You’re gonna say that to the guy fixing your outfit? Next time, I’m letting Bolbok pick your blazer.”
“I am sure I would look very striking in one of his metal brassieres. I hear they are all the rage in Zaunite social circles, now. The undercity would love me.”
“I’ll make sure to keep that in mind the next time we present an idea to the council,” Jayce joked. “My partner Viktor here is polling real great with all the arsonists. You should see his numbers with the shimmer dealers.”
“I am quite a popular man,” Viktor replied, leaning just forward enough that he could smell the pull of Jayce’s cologne. It was heady, like wine, but fleeting all the same.
“I’m sure you are.”
Jayce stepped away, clapping a hand on his partner’s shoulder and gesturing toward the door.
“Now, come on. We’ve gotta get a move on or we’re going to be late.”
“Jayce, we can teleport.”
“You think I’ve got the memory of a goldfish? We’re not taking a daytrip to the Bloodcliffs, Viktor. Come on. We can walk.”