Chapter Text
Jayce, Viktor, and Mel, stood there, in the middle of the council room, heads down. Except for Mel's, of course. She still believed she could talk her way out of this.
She was wrong. Once Heimerdinger had made his decision, the others followed him.
They thought her a traitor for helping the two sneak into the academy.
And so, with Mel stripped of her power and, with Jayce and Viktor, the three were exiled. They retreated across the bridge. The enforcers would dare not search for them deep in the undercity.
They could go back for the equipment later.
The group could tell that they stood out from everyone else, their clothes too clean, their accessories too shiny, their teeth too clean, and the colors of their outfits. Mostly whites, with was more common in Piltover than the city below.
Mel could tell half the people roaming these streets would love to bash her head in right about now.
As she thought over several different plans for what they would do next, Mel guided the others into an empty alleyway. They had to talk.
"Where are we supposed to stay?" she asked. "We clearly aren't very welcome here. And we'll have to go back for all of your equipment later on."
Viktor muttered to himself before responding to Mel. "I know a few places. Sometimes I come back to check on things, so I have a good idea of the Lanes."
Jayce interjected. "I heard enforcers have been in and out of here recently. Maybe with all of the enforcers concentrated here, we can go back for the equipment tomorrow."
"Tomorrow? Jayce, I cannot teach you to sneak around in less than 24 hours. You will surely be caught!" said Viktor's accented voice.
"We need that equipment, Viktor. If we can make hextech a reality, we won't need to talk in dingy alleys! The people of the underground will love us!" responded the golden boy.
"Jayce, we need to focus on getting settled. We can't go back for the equipment." Viktor was not leaving any room to argue, hobbling away at the last syllable, leaving to find somewhere to stay.
So Mel and Jayce followed.
Viktor looked around as he walked, looking for somewhere to set up camp.
Jayce saw a familiar building.
The sign outside read Benzo's in wooden letters, barely held together by screws and nails. Peering inside through the window, Jayce expected to see the man who ran the shop at the counter.
All he saw was the child who had taken over for Benzo when he had to get something upstairs.
And the child was sobbing. The young boy was on the floor, his small body wracked by violent sobs.
Jayce instructed Mel to wait outside. Viktor was a trencher, and the boy knew Jayce. It would be best if Mel stayed back.
"You okay, little guy?" Jayce asked, hand hesitantly hovering over his shoulder.
The boy, startled, scrambled backwards, hitting his head against the wall. Jayce could hear a faint ouch! as the kid rubbed the back of his head.
Jayce immediately retracted his hand, a guilty expression on his face.
"Sorry if I startled you, I was just trying to check on you..." Jayce muttered, rubbing the back of his neck.
Viktor was busy looking at all of the gear and the scrap in the shop.
The child wiped his face, smearing dome of the snot on his sleeve.
"What're you doing back down here?" he murmured, dusting himself off as he stood up. His vulnerability was no longer.
"Long story," Jayce answered. "But me and my friends'll be here, most likely, permanently."
The boy snorted. "As if. You'll be running back topside within the week, if you're still alive by then!"
"We could bet on it, with some conditions."
"Like what?"
"You help us find somewhere to stay, teach is the basics, and if we leave before the week's over, I'll leave 10 gold cogs here. If we're still staying, I'm assuming you don't have money to spare, so teaching us more would be great," Jayce proposed.
The kid thought it over before spitting on his palm and holding it out for Jayce to shake.
Hesitant, Jayce shook his hand, immediately wiping his palm on his pant leg after.
"Name's Ekko, by the way, but you can call me Little Man."
"I'm Jayce, Viktor is the one looking around, and Mel is outside."