A giant spark flew up in the air, illuminating the room they were in. When it faded, Jhin uncovered his eyes, and Viktor, the Machine Herald, was standing before him. He was tall and bulky, hovering over Jhin like a shadow. His third hand on his shoulder twitched and kept repositioning itself, as if it were trying to look at him. Those beaming yellow eyes stared hotly at Jhin, observing the man that lay before him.
Jhin was speechless to say the less. This man, this thing, commanded so much power by just standing there. He was rarely intimidated, but Viktor seemed to cast fear into him.
"Viktor..." he whispered, averting his eyes from his gaze.
"Ah, you recognize me," he smiled, or at least seemed to. His voice and accent sounded strange when saying words in a cheerful manner. He turned around, walking back toward the sparks and welding sounds that lay behind a curtain. Jhin slowly followed him, careful of all the wires and hunks of metal that seemed to hang from the ceiling.
"Jinx," Viktor called, and the skinny girl to Jhin's left awoke from her sleep. Her eyes fell on Jhin, and she smiled wickedly.
"Hiya Jhin~" she cooed sourly. His face went to instant disgust as he continued to follow Viktor."Yes, Vicky?" Jinx replied, as childish as ever.
There was a small silence, then,"Why don't you go make us some tea?" Her face suddenly dropped, then rose again, but she didn't argue. She merely skipped and mummed a cheerful tune as she made her way to the back, leaving Jhin and Viktor alone.
"Kids," Viktor sighed, shaking his head. Jhin looked at him with surprise at his calmness, as if they were old friends."Although the pet names aren't all that bad," he added, walking over to a small table. He took a seat and beckoned Jhin to sit with him. They stared at each other some more, both observing the other.
"She was quick, wasn't she?" Viktor said proudly. It took Jhin a second, but then he remembered the battle at the theater. Jinx was known for being quick and slippery on her own, but when he thought about it, she did seem faster.
"Very," Jhin breathed, folding his arms. Silence once again fell between them, their words held tightly in their mouth.
"Nice place," Jhin said, looking at the millions of wires and cords that hung off of metal pieces in the workshop. Sparks flew as the lights struggled to keep glowing.
"Thank you," Viktor replied. It really seemed like he was thankful. There was a loud crash from the other end of the room and a fit of laughter. Viktor sighed again and continued to listen. Jinx suddenly came sprinting out from the corner, holding a tray with two misshapen cups and an odd teapot. She set it down on the table in front of them with exaggerated motions, and bowed facetiously.
"Your tea," she said, taking on a fake British accent.
"Thank you..." Viktor said unsurely taking one of the cups. Jhin did the same and took a small sip of the scalding liquid. It tasted like the cup itself, metallic and old, but the water itself was soothing and it had a nice peppermint flavor. Jinx scurred off again, seeming to be interested in something else. Once again, the silence fell between them as Jhin slowly drank his tea.
"So you've taken interest in Orianna?" Viktor said, catching Jhin off guard. He wasn't too sure what to say.
"More or less. She's an interesting one, and not as tough as she seems, poor girl," he said, taking a longer sip. Viktor only nodded, eyeing his cup. Silence clung to their awkward conversation, and Jhin couldn't pretend any longer.
"Viktor," he said, putting down his teacup. He looked at him with curious eyes, contrasting with his overall threatening look."Why am I here?"
He only sighed and continued to stare at Jhin.
"I'm here to help you Jhin. I've noticed your little problem-" he gestured towards Whisper in its holster," and I think I can offer you some assistance."
"So you captured me?" He said defensively. Viktor let out a chuckle, but Jhin couldn't find the humor. Being in a somewhat relaxed state, he could feel the soreness of bruises creeping on his arms and legs.
"I killed two birds with one stone," he said matter of factly, but didn't care to elaborate. Silence once more.
"... You can help me?" Viktor smiled, or at least seemed to. He stood up from the table, leaving his full teacup to sit cold. Jhin stood up too, draining whatever was left of his, and following Viktor towards a curtain. He pulled on it, revealing multiple machines that were welding and building without any control. They seemed to be working on small canisters, making them fairly quickly and setting them down on a bench. Viktor walked over to the bench, and instantly the machines stopped moving, as if waiting for a command. He picked up one of the red and black glowing canisters and handed it to Jhin.
"It's a dancing grenade," Jhin said, recognizing the design. It was one of his main attacks, other than his regular bullets. As he turned the heavy glass in his hands, he could feel the power coursing through it. It felt good.
"Exactly," Viktor said."A better replica of your poor design." Jhin internally hissed at the stinging asteism.
"They definitely feel powerful," he said, moving the canister in his hands. He could see it now, dancing between enemies and then bursting into a blinding white explosion on the fourth fall.
"This is all fine," Jhin started,"but not what I was looking for."
"I'm aware," Viktor said, walking over to yet another pair machines."You want something to help Whisper, or more specifically, something that will penetrate even the best of armor." Jhin only nodded at his precise accusation, ready to see where he was going with it.
"How would you solve your problem?" Viktor asked curiously, obviously leading to something.
"Well," Jhin said, taking a moment to think."I would create stronger bullets, so I don't have to risk modifying my gun."
"The problem with that, is that modern magical bulletproof gear can take up to 6,000 SW's, so even if you could get a bullet strong enough, it would blow your gun to smithereens." He smiled smugly, happy that he could subtly brag about his knowledge. To Jhin, it seemed less impressive. In fact, he was just dragging out the supposed build up to his reveal.
"Okay," Jhin said, folding his arms."So we would modify my gun?"
"We would modify your gun, with magic," he corrected.
"It already is though," Jhin said quietly, and Viktor only shook his head.
"We would modify it with dark magic; magic that is uncommon to manufacturers that would be strong enough to pierce it. As well as the bullets."
"Alright..."Jhin said, trying to comprehend what he was saying."That would take a lot of energy and money though," Jhin looked around the workshop," and that doesn't seem to be something you have right now."
"We would use a battery, something that could charge regular bullets with a burst of magic and energy." He started rummaging through a shelf, until he found a battery that was glowing purple. It was rather large and bulky.
"You want me to strap that to my gun?" Viktor only laughed deviously.
"That's the best part." He walked over to a workbench towards the corner of the room, one that Jhin did not remember seeing. When they walked over to, Jhin noticed a series of wires and cables, shaped in the structure of the human body.
"Is that-"
"That's what you'll be wearing. It circulates energy and magic like blood, constantly moving it through your body. It's connected wirelessly to your gun, meaning that you would literally be giving your gun life, whilst making yourself physically stronger." He explained it all slowly, as if giving a presentation he'd been practicing.
Smiling, he added,"If you're wondering, the energy that would be circulating through you is the same type of energy I gave Jinx to make her faster and stronger. That was just an injection, while this would be an endless cycle."
Jhin nodded, staring endlessly at the wires. He had always thought about upgrading his own self, with the recent developments in technology, but he had an argument that always won against any of those ideas.
"What's that?" he asked, pointing towards a pile of computer chips at the edge of the table.
"That would be for your brain. It will limit your emotions, making you more willing to kill."
"Willing to kill?" Jhin said, confused by his choice of words.
Viktor paused, as if looking for the right words."Empathy won't get in your way." The use of empathy caused Jhin to think of Orianna, and he started to wonder how much Viktor knew.
"I see," he nodded, continuing to stare. He asked the question that had been on his mind from the start."What do you want for this?" he asked.
"What do you mean?" he mused, once again aggravating him. He knew exactly what Jhin meant.
"No one just gives this high tech away to someone for free."
"Ah, Khada," he said, including Jhin's first name for the first time."You see, I'm willing to help anyone achieve upgrade, especially when I know who they are." He seemed to be staring into Jhin's soul, as if he did know every detail."But you're right. All I require, is one simple favor."
"Which is?" Jhin said eagerly.
"You get Orianna here for me. Simple as that," he smiled. Jhin thought about it, of how he would try to convince Orianna to come to this wretched place. A bigger, and more obvious question entered his mind.
"Why do you need me to get Orianna?" he asked suspiciously.
"Because," he started," she trusts you. I know exactly how close you two have gotten." A chill ran up Jhin's spine. Instead of preceding, he decided to stay quiet at the comment.
"You can have all of these upgrades. Just bring her down here, and then you can go on your way." Viktor seemed to notice Jhin's doubts as he continued to stare at the hardware."I know it will be hard," he said, placing a surprisingly comforting hand on Jhin's shoulder."But you'll be teaching her a great lesson in human emotion." Jhin looked up at him, puzzled."You'd be teaching her betrayal."
He turned away from Viktor, hearing an echoey chuckle from behind him. He honestly liked Orianna, as she seemed to have grown on him, but he had always thought himself willing to trade anything to achieve perfection. Why was this making him have doubts? Why was a silly robot making him reconsider all of his past goals and dreams?
"Okay," Jhin said, acting cooly. Viktor, slightly surprised, just smiled.
"Perfect," he said."Now, let's get you into this gear." His metal hand on his shoulder leaned down and started to untangle the wires.
"No," Jhin said quickly, and both figures stopped and stared at him."I just want my gun. I doubt I'll have to use it."
"Alright..." Viktor said, putting down the wires and chips. Jhin put a hand on Whisper, who was sitting patiently in his holster. He felt reassurance of the presence of his weapon, something that he for some reason desperately needed.
"Jhin," Viktor suddenly said, turning to him. Jhin looked at him back, willing to listen."I don't want you to see me as a bad guy."
He was perplexed at his words."I don't," he said, but Viktor only shook his head.
"I admire you Jhin, how you are above all of these... people." He seemed to gesture to all of Runeterra."And I only want to continue that. You inspire me, and give me hope for the future." He said it in such a sincere way, that Jhin genuinely smiled. Instead of a looming figure in front of him, he saw a lonely scientist.
"Why I want Orianna," he continued,"is for personal reason only. We've been in this rivalry, and I want to straighten things out." Jhin was still suspicious at that part. There wasn't a chance that it was going to be a peaceful encounter. He nodded his head again, and Viktor seemed somewhat satisfied. He pointed towards the exit, which had just enough room through the rubble to get through. Jhin opened the door, feeling the cold night's breeze on his body. It brought him insecurity and he desperately wanted to go back to the smoky heat of the workshop.
"Farewell!" Viktor called as Jhin slinked away. He smiled weakly, as he walked through the lamp lit plaza of Zaun. Conflict aroused in himself, as he knew he had an impossible decision to make with too many consequences.