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Back at the Firelight Sanctuary, a pillar of blue light lanced down from the ceiling, sending the refugees into a panic.
"Is it a Hex-leak?" "No, it's magic! Actual magic!" "In the Sump? Impossible!"
The whispers died down as the light faded, revealing three exhausted figures. Ekko stepped off his board, his mask hanging loose in his hand. He looked at the familiar towering trees and the faces of his people, stepping back in disbelief. "We actually made it... we're back."
Chen unbuckled Jinx from his back, setting her down. He was still buzzing from the adrenaline, his ribs aching. "What were you thinking back there? You trying to get a grey screen?"
Jinx didn't snap back. She looked up at him with wide, watery eyes, her bottom lip trembling. She looked small, fragile, and utterly wronged. She didn't say a word, just stared at him like a kicked puppy.
She's back to being Powder, Chen thought, his anger melting instantly. He couldn't scold her when she looked that heartbroken. He didn't realize that deep inside her mind, Jinx was cackling to herself. So easy to bait~
Ekko walked over, his eyes sharp with curiosity. "You can use magic? Are you a mage, Chen?"
"I wish," Chen grunted, tossing his dented streetlamp to the floor. "If I were a mage, I wouldn't be bruising my knuckles with a piece of scrap metal. I'd have just turned Silco into a toad."
Ekko frowned. "Then what was that? How did we just skip half of Zaun in four seconds?"
Chen couldn't exactly explain Summoner Spells or game mechanics to a kid who hadn't even invented the Z-Drive yet. "Hexgate tech," he lied smoothly. "You'll see it in the papers in a few days. Don't worry about it."
As the others went to celebrate their narrow escape, Chen checked his stats. The mission had been a goldmine for Grasp of the Undying. Between the kiting and the stuns, he'd procced it over a dozen times. His health was now sitting at a comfortable 1,100. He was finally starting to feel like a real tank.
But the real prize was waiting in his HUD.
Main Quest: Destroy the Shimmer Factory (Completed) Reward: One random Champion Ultimate Ability.
Chen rubbed his hands together, his heart racing. Give me the 'Steal Man' special! Give me Sylas's ultimate! If he could hijack other people's abilities in this world, he'd be a god. He tapped the icon, held his breath, and watched the RNG spin.
Ability Learned: Unbreakable Will (Alistar - R) Effect: Instantly cleanses all crowd control and grants 55% damage reduction for 7 seconds. Cooldown: 120 seconds.
"Unbreakable Will..." Chen sighed, half-disappointed, half-relieved. "Now I'm really a tank. No damage, but I can take a nuke to the face and keep walking."
He'd hoped for something flashy like Sett's Show Stopper, but in a world where Silco was hunting him, being unkillable was a pretty good consolation prize.
The next day, Ekko issued a lockdown. "Nobody leaves the sanctuary. Silco is out for blood, and he's put a massive bounty on a man named 'Jax'."
Chen, naturally, ignored him. He sneaked out of the back tunnels with Powder in tow. He owed her a meal.
"Hehe, froggy meat, hehe," Powder drooled, leading him toward a stall run by a massive, fish-headed man who looked like he'd gotten lost on his way from Bilgewater to the Sump.
"Two bowls of Gromp stew, boss!" Powder chirped.
Chen looked at the severed, warty frog head floating in a jar on the counter and felt his stomach do a slow roll. The smell was... pungent. "I think I'll pass, Powder. That looks like a biohazard."
Powder didn't listen. She grabbed a succulent, dripping piece of meat and shoved it directly into Chen's mouth.
"Mmm—wait—Mmm!!" Chen's eyes widened. It was like stinky tofu or high-end blue cheese. It smelled like a swamp, but it tasted like heaven.
As they ate, the fish-headed boss leaned over the counter, his eyes darting around the alley. "Powder, you've got some nerve showing your face here. Silco's got the whole city looking for you."
Powder giggled, her mouth full of frog. "It's Chen's fault. He kept listing dishes and I got greedy."
The boss turned his gaze to Chen, his brow furrowing. "Are you... Jax?"
Chen nearly choked. "Jax? No, I'm—"
"Save it," the boss grunted. "You're the guy who pulled Powder out of the fire and wrecked the foundry with a streetlamp. If you aren't Jax, then I'm a Piltie Councilman. Word is, you're number one on Silco's list now. Be careful, kid."
Powder patted Chen's shoulder, a mischievous glint in her eye. "The boss is cool, he's a friend. You can trust him... Mr. Jax."
"Stop calling me that," Chen groaned. Then, he turned to the fish-man, his tone becoming serious. "Boss, you seem to know what's going on. I need information. What's the status of Hextech in the Academy?"
The boss froze, his eyes widening. "Hextech? That's not a word for the Sump. How do you know about that?"
Chen leaned in, his voice a low whisper. "I need a meeting with Heimerdinger. Can you get me a contact in the Academy, or do I have to kick the front door down myself?"
The fish-headed man stared at Chen, realizing the "streetlamp kid" was planning something much bigger than a gang war. "What exactly are you trying to build, Jax?"
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