*Chapter 2: The Pink Devil in the Lanes
Tyler had never been to Zaun before—at least, not like this.
Sure, he'd watched Arcane, studied fan wikis, even read some comics. But that was all safe, behind a screen. Fictional. Controlled.
This?
This was real.
The Lanes pulsed with life and decay. Every alley breathed chemicals. Pipes coiled like metal serpents. Glowing green slime trickled down cracked walls. Shadows weren't just dark—they watched. People lurked in them.
And now he stood among them. Barefoot. Pink-skinned. Alien-eyed.
A monster, technically.
A few passersby glanced at him, hesitated, then quickly looked away. It wasn't the reaction he expected. Not screams or panic. Just... avoidance.
Like they'd seen worse.
Tyler chuckled. "Guess I fit right in."
---
He ducked into a shadowed alley between two rusted ventilation towers. Alone now, he sat cross-legged on the floor, breathing slowly.
Time to test the gift.
> Reality bending, he thought. Limited. But how limited?
He reached out to a crushed tin can beside him. Focused.
And then—willed it to float.
Nothing happened.
Tyler furrowed his brow. "C'mon. Float, damn you."
The air shimmered faintly. The can twitched—then lifted, slowly, awkwardly, like a drunk balloon.
His jaw dropped. "No way..."
He made it spin. Then stretch. The can warped, turning into a jagged disc. He snapped his fingers. It crumpled into dust with a pop.
Tyler laughed. Not a normal laugh. A Buu laugh—bubbly, unhinged, and high-pitched. It echoed down the alley.
"I'm a freakin' wizard, man!"
---
Next test: space.
He eyed a broken pipe overhead, dripping steam. Reached out—and bent the steam's path. Not with touch, not with force. Just... intent.
The stream curved like a snake, then spiraled. Tyler grinned and released it—it snapped back to its original path.
> I can rewrite physics in short bursts. Bend space. Alter momentum. Control vectors.
He stood, more confident now. And curious.
He wandered.
Zaun was a twisted jungle of iron and neon. Children played near toxin puddles. Merchants sold fungus-laced candy. Enforcers—barely adults themselves—walked with rifles they barely knew how to use.
A gang passed him—spikes on their jackets, tattoos glowing faintly with shimmer veins. One of them stared at him a moment too long.
Tyler stared back. Didn't flinch.
The gang moved on.
> Good.
They're not sure what I am. That's power too.
He moved deeper into the city. Every step uncovered something new. A stitched-up girl selling fire-breathing lizards in glass jars. A preacher ranting about Hextech gods. A shimmer den that pulsed like a heartbeat.
He turned a corner and found an abandoned plaza—open space, broken columns, old murals painted over by graffiti.
A perfect place to test destruction.
He pointed at a crumbling wall. Focused.
> Dismantle.
The wall didn't explode. It just... unraveled. One brick at a time, silently, like gravity got turned sideways. They floated, then shattered in midair.
Tyler exhaled. The effort left a strange pressure behind his eyes—like a mental nosebleed.
> Okay. Not free. Definitely comes at a cost.
But it was worth it.
This power—it wasn't flashy. It was subtle. Reality answered him like a suggestion it couldn't quite ignore.
And he hadn't even scratched the surface.
---
The sky above Zaun was dark, but alive with the glow of Piltover's underside. Shimmer smog floated like ghosts. Distant sirens echoed.
Tyler looked up at the light.
> Piltover won't know what hit it.
And Zaun... well, maybe it needs a little chaos.
He smiled to himself and whispered:
"Let's see how far I can go."
Then turned and walked into the dark.