"The only time I have a drinking problem is when I spill it!"~ Gragas, The Rabble Rouser
Enjoy!
I'll upload another chapter tomorrow.
And yes. This chapter features a change that is quite obvious from the episodes.
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As Mel focused on her runes, Daani slid in next to Sydell and threw his arm around his shoulder.
"What is it?" Sydell asked.
Daani didn't bother looking at him and kept his eye on those in the room, "You have an eye on that place."
Sydell frowned, "What do you mean?"
"You left an eye there." Daani answered, "Spying. Gathering information."
"My eyes are on the Kiramman and our father." Sydell replied. "I will not be changing that."
Daani chuckled, "We both know that's not what I mean."
Sydell didn't reply.
"Spiders." Daani continued despite the lack of replies. "I'm a Vastaya you know. Though I don't necessarily communicate with insects... I can feel their general location..... And there were a lot of them crowding around you when we were leaving the place."
"Spiders aren't insects." Came a reply.
Daani smiled, "Doesn't take away from the fact that you moved them."
"I'm keeping watch." Sydell answered. "They listen to me. And no one here goes out of their way to kill them, so they are pretty much the perfect spies."
"Uh huh." Daani agreed. "Continue."
Sydell sighed, "They watch. Then share. That shared information goes from spider to spider and then to me." He looked up, "They are speaking right now."
Daani followed his sight and spotted a set of eyes aimed back at them. A spindly looking spider. Thin lanky legs propped up on a web. Its grey body standing out in the darkness.
"What's she saying?" Daani asked.
"He." Came the correction almost immediately. "He says that one more person has been given magic."
"One more in this time?" Daani asked.
Sydell shook his head, "Spiders don't remember things like us. He says one more.... but it has been around eighteen people since then. Nineteen now, with that extra one more."
Daani rested in his chair, "Feel like the act of one of those Aspects."
"After seeing how good it is... people spread word. Children bring their parents. Parents bring their families. And they will all join this group." Sydell spoke slowly, "We need to talk to one of the members again get some more information."
"If they talk about this Viktor guy like that one Aspect-" Daani began.
"Taric." Sydell cut in.
Daani nodded, "Taric. If they talk about him like our aunt.... then we might have a problem." He fell into thought, "Any way we can get this information to dad?"
Sydell shook his head, "None as of now."
"Spiders." Briar called from where she was looking at Mel draw the runes.
The two turned to her.
Briar answered without looking at them, "Spiders can get to daddy."
The two turned to each other slowly. Daani snorted, "She's smarter than the two of us."
"Speak for yourself." Sydell spoke as he pushed himself from his chair. "Alright." He called out loudly. "Lets get going. No need to waste time here."
"Mel isn't done with the runes yet." Faye answered.
Sydell nodded, "But she can finish them later. Let us investigate this place first."
"Jinx?" Daani called up the stairs.
"She isn't there." Briar answered for him. "Both her and Isha snuck out a while ago."
Sevika rose to her feet, "I'll look around for her. Wait until then. Currently Zaun is hunting for Jinx and Piltover does not want that."
Sydell sighed.
Hunting was the right term.
But it wasn't just hunting for pleasure. It was for purpose. The lack of powerful Chembarons left the Zaunites scrambling for a figurehead. Someone who could lead them in these uncertain times. And in this power vacuum, someone had the bright idea to put one of Zaun's biggest troublemakers on a pedestal.
Jinx went from Zaun's most hated to their most loved for her Anti-Piltover stance. It quite helped that she was raised under two of Zaun's once leaders. Vander and Silco. That placed her as the best possible option. And the people ate it up.
Her acts of defiance against Piltover over the years and her recent fight with the other Chembarons had led to the rise of another group. The Jinxers. The blue-haired Jinx followers.
A few days ago, they had set off color bombs topside by using their ventilation shafts to send it straight up. All the color still hadn't been cleaned up. And Piltover was angry. Very much so.
Sydell and Briar had gone up to speak with Caitlin and get Jinx out of any problems but she popular consensus topside was still that Jinx needed to go and Zaun needed to be brought under control. And from Sydell's eye on Caitlin, he heard her speak about how Ambessa had been using this to gain more supporters for her cause. And she was extremely successful. Most of Piltover was now on her side and any semblance of control Caitlin had was now slipping from her grasp.
"Briar go with Sevika." Sydell said. "You can smell them here."
Her head hung low, "Do I have to?"
"Yes." Sydell answered, "It will be hard but.... we need to get this done."
"Fine." She answered.
The two of them who had been sensitive to Zaun's smell had now gotten used to it. But they still preferred to stay under the magic that let them breathe easier.
"Can you even smell them in this...." Daani tried to get the right word, "This smog?"
Briar nodded sadly, "I can."
"Then get going." Sydell told the two of them. "The faster we get them the earlier we return after our little trip."
"We could go without Jinx." Daisy said from behind the counter.
Sevika's eyebrows rose in alarm.
"We won't let her drink. Don't worry." Sydell waved her off.
Daani shook his head, "We can't. She know Zaun like the palm of her hand. Every single route."
"Better than me." Sevika interjected.
"Better than her." Daani gestured. "If there is a problem.... she can get us out."
-x-
It didn't take long for the two to run into a problem.
"They went different ways." Briar frowned. She pointed to the left, "Jinx went that way. And Isha.." She turned to her right, "Went there."
Sevika looked left and stayed silent for a moment, "I know where Jinx is."
"Then I'll go get Isha." Briar nodded and began walking in her direction.
And Sevika was right. Jinx was tinkering with something in her old spot. The one place she always came to in order to clear her mind. The ventilation windmill in the south.
"Jinx." She called out.
But Jinx didn't turn around rapidly tinkering.
"JINX!" She called out louder.
The tinkering stopped. "What?"
"The children need you." Sevika answered.
"Again?"
"One more trip to the depths."
Jinx finally turned around, she frowned as she asked, "Something catch their fancy?"
"The two boys were discussing something in hushed tones and our new guest wants to talk to this Viktor." Sevika answered.
She placed the item she was tinkering on back down and pushed herself up, "Of course little miss 'I get everything I want" wants something." She patted the dust off her thighs. "Lets get going then."
Meanwhile, Briar ended up surrounded by a whole lot of Jinxers and Zaunites. All yelling and chanting.
Ignoring the bunch of people in their area, she pushed through the crowd toward the little helmet in the middle.
"We need to stand up against Piltover!" A man standing near the big statue nearby yelled to the group.
"YEAH!" The crowd roared back.
"Isha." She said as she grabbed the little girl's shoulder.
Isha's head shot upward in fear before calming down.
"We have to go now." Briar informed her, "We are going back down to that place. Come."
Isha smiled and nodded.
Together the two began to push their way out.
But things did not go according to plan.
"YOU ARE ALL UNDER ARREST!" A voice called out.
Everyone turned to the voice.
A squad of Piltovan enforcers arrived. And then a bunch of Noxian soldiers surrounded them, slowly pushing in.
"Run." Briar yelled as she grabbed Isha and sprinted through the crowd trying to escape.
But in the commotion, Isha slipped from her hands and was captured but some of the enforcers.
Briar stood at the edge almost about to escape but spotting a crying Isha, she stilled.
"Daddy will be so mad." She said out loud and rushed into the encirclement.
"Haul them into the cages." The enforcers yelled as they moved everyone into cages. Briar slid into the group that Isha was in and slid next to her."
Isha looked at her in fear.
"Don't worry." Briar smiled, "They will get us out of here."