The Good Life: Creeping Sedition (ch. 85)

“You're alive?! You're alive!” Jayce erupted with joy the moment he saw me, crossing the distance between us and delivering a back breaking hug. That brought the others attention to us in the Council’s chamber. I patted Jayce on the back, my gaze bouncing between the others -- Heimerdinger was all but bouncing in his seat when he saw that I was okay. Mel, Cassandra, and Hoskel, however, had much more reserved reactions. Still pleased, of course, but reserved. 

“Barely,” I admitted, gently exiting the hug. And it was only then that Jayce noticed the sling my arm was in and the bandages. All completely unnecessary. Physically at least. It was actually quite necessary for the sake of subterfuge, though. I needed an explanation for where I'd been, and it was hard to get mad at someone who was visibly injured. Jayce sputtered out an apology, but I was quick to wave him off. “Rumors of my death were exaggerated, at least. Which is more than I can say for some.” 

“It is a relief to see you, my boy!” Heimerdinger said with relief coloring his tone, visibly sagging with relief. It was almost enough to make me feel bad. “When we never found a body… after finding young Asami…” he trailed off, looking genuinely distraught. 

“Yeah. Asami. I heard. And about Viktor,” I said, sparing a glance at Jayce to find him openly grimacing. It hadn't been that long since the attack, barely twelve hours. And Viktor was one of many that were still in surgery. I would make sure that he pulled through, but the sickly man had very little hope of ever being able to walk unassisted again. Of course I would be doing something about that. With my carton of eggheads half empty, Viktor was on my short list for recruitment.

And his injuries were a useful lever to bring him to my side. 

“It is a relief to see you again, Law,” Mel started, interlocking her fingers as she peered at me from above them. “In fact, we were just speaking about you. You, and the role that Vought Industries had on the attack on our city.” Her voice was light, but the accusation was there. 

Heimerdinger puffed himself up, “Councilor Medarda, you can't seriously be making this accusation now? The boy is barely on his feet! And he is simply too brilliant to nearly lose his life in his own plan!” 

“I'm not making accusations, merely asking for some… clarification,” Mel rebutted, gesturing for me to approach. Jayce offered an openly measuring look, having complete faith in me as I approached the round table, finding myself at the center of it. Most of the tables were left unoccupied, the Council’s seven members having been cut down to four. “Since the attack that devastated our city, there have been a number of follow ups. Our reserves of fuel, which give us power, have been destroyed. Critical infrastructure, additionally, has been firebombed.” 

I tilted my head at the news, but I was unsurprised. Silco was clever enough to take advantage of the opportunity that fell in his lap. 

“The fissure miners are striking, so there's no hope of us recovering our stores. We have, at best, five days of reserved fuel,” Hoskel added, his expression twisting like he had just bitten into a lemon. 

I knew where this was going, so I finished for them. “But the Undercity still has power,” I said, making Mel's eyes narrow a fraction. “Yeah, that's because I, allegedly, left a window open and a blueprint for a fission reactor escaped after a stray breeze picked it up. It must have been the will of Janna herself, because, wouldn't you know it, the blueprints took it straight to the Undercity and into the hands of a talented engineer. I guess they must have gotten a better look at them than I thought.” 

Cassandra leaned back in her chair while she pinched the bridge of her nose while Mel leaned forward like a predator that smelled blood. Yet, even as Mel spoke, there was a sweetness in her voice. “I see. And who would be this Undercity engineer that caught a glimpse of highly classified and dangerous technology?” 

“Ah. Well, I bumped my head during the whole… city being destroyed business. I seem to have some form of amnesia as I can't remember. Shame about that, huh?” I replied, offering a shameless smile while Heimerdinger facepalmed while Jayce was fighting a smile and losing. 

“Yes. A shame,” Mel replied flatly. I got the very distinct impression that she didn't believe me. 

Hoskel, however, was far more easy to read as he slammed his fists onto the table. “We should throw you into the blackest pit in Stillwater! Do you have any idea what you've done?” 

“I'm guessing that you recently got a letter from the Undercity putting the screws to you. Something along the lines ‘here’s a very long list of demands that you must comply with if you want us to share our electricity with you.’” I reasoned, pretending like I hadn't just gleaned that information by reading the letter in question which lay in front of Heimerdinger with my Room. 

“Something to that effect, yes,” Mel echoed. “Shall I take that as a confirmation that you've been colluding with them?” 

“Nah. It's just the smart play for the Undercity to make at the moment. They've got their boot on your necks, and they're going to let you feel it,” I shrugged my shoulders dismissively. “So, throwing someone in prison for leaving a window open seems a little excessive. Especially when you could use all the help you can get. The city is wrecked, the Undercity is rising up, and I'm guessing Noxus smells blood in the water… seems like you have enough problems on your hands without throwing away solutions.” 

“Is that what you are? A solution?” Mel questioned sharply. “How are we supposed to trust that when your technology became active during the attack on our city?” 

I had an answer to that. It would be so easy to make Asami out to be the bad guy in this situation. She hadn't invested herself into this world, likely fearing that if she came to know the people in it that she wouldn't be able to write them off as acceptable casualties if it meant taking me down. So while my reputation was great, her’s… wasn't. But, to paint her as the villain, I would also need to make All Might the villain. And that wasn't something I was sure I was willing to do. 

All Might had made my dream come true. I finally got my fight against a true genuine super hero. Making him out to be the villain felt so incredibly disrespectful. 

But… needs must. 

“Because Asami made a deal with someone in exchange for materials and tech,” I answered easily, making all of the councilors suddenly lean forward. “Everything that she created came from someone else and they were feeding her information to sound smarter than she really was.” Oh, she'd be fuming mad when she heard this slander. “The reason why we've been on the outs for the past couple of months, as your spies no doubt told you? It was because I found out, and I was trying to boot her out of my company before she could do any damage to it. I failed, in case that wasn't clear.” 

“Then who- who attacked us?” Heimerdinger asked, and there was a note of desperation in his voice. 

To that, I could only shrug my shoulders. “I have no idea. Honestly, I don't think the battle was an attack. It was a clash between two parties -- one side was whoever Asami's benefactor was, and the other was whoever was opposing them for whatever reason. I'm doing a bottom up sweep of my company to see if there's any information left behind, but…” 

“Naturally, the Council shall help you with this… investigation,” Cassandra spoke up, leveling a look at me that told me it wasn't a discussion. 

I begged to differ. “I appreciate the offer, but no thanks. I don't need your agents getting their grubby little hands on half finished plans and mistaking shit for gold.” I replied, making her lips thin. 

Hoskel, as it would seem, was the pit bull in the political arena. “That wasn't a request, boy. If you want to do business in this city, then you will answer to us.” 

Heimerdinger saw that the mood was turning and hastily spoke up, “Gentlemen, gentlemen -- there is no need for threats.” 

“Quite right, Professor,” I agreed, offering a lazy smile in Hoskel’s direction. I didn't really blame him. I understood him. He was a weak man that found himself in a position of control and power, and now that illusion of control was ripped from his grasp. He was lashing out, trying to regain the illusion… but, much like a dream -- once you woke up, it was gone. “Especially when I react so very poorly when threatened. It's a bad habit of mine of escalating a tad too much. Such as… well, I could simply leave, couldn't I?” 

There was a very loud silence in the wake of the question. Mel was the first to break it. 

“And give up all that you've accomplished here?” She asked, not quite probing but close. She was testing the waters, trying to see how serious I was. 

“A year and some change of my life? Please,” I snorted dismissively. “I'm like a cat. I always land on my feet. Even disregarding that my reputation will precede me, I can just as easily rebuild elsewhere. Bilgewater sounds like it could be a fun place to visit. Or I could approach Noxus. I'm sure that certain clans would love to get their hands on fusion tech, or the weapons I could develop with it. Especially with that whole invasion of Ionia going on… not to mention any other targets they might have.” 

I gave them a moment to unpack that statement. That I was, in fact, willing to walk away. And that I had something they needed. 

An advantage in warfare. I'm sure they were already working over Jayce to get him to produce Hex-Tech weapons. And I'm sure that he was digging his heels in. Which was an opening that I could exploit. 

I could see it in Mel's eyes that she didn't like it. She was used to being the one strong arming others. “How very… mercenary of you, Mr. Trafalgar. I suppose you picked that up in the Undercity, hm?” She couldn't let me get the last word in. Not without appearing weak, even everyone in the room knew that they were going to comptitulate. 

“You could say that,” I admitted, hearing Hoskel grind his teeth while Heimerdinger let out a quiet sigh. 

“This is not what I wanted for this city. For this Council. Piltover was meant to be a shining beacon of progress. And instead… war is on the horizon, and the best of us are at each other's throats!” He said, thumping his small fist on the table, as angry as I had ever seen him. 

Cassandra offered a small nod, “Heimerdinger is right. Now is a time that we must stand together, presenting a united front to our enemies who circle outside our door. Enemies, who have perhaps already struck the first blow against us as we still don't know who destroyed our fuel reserves.” 

Tension grew in Mel, though she hid it masterfully. The emotions that she swallowed weren't all concern and anger, though. There was a deep seeded resentment that was welling up inside of her that I had nothing to do with. Whoever was coming to Piltover at its weakest hour, it was someone she knew and had a history with. 

“Then let us discuss our next moves. As a united front,” Mel agreed, and Heimerdinger smiled, pleased that we were all once more working together. And, I honestly think he considered the discussion closed. 

It wasn't. 

While I intended to maintain my identity in Piltover, I was taking the kids gloves off. Joining the Council wasn't exactly a priority for me at the moment, so long as mine was the dominating voice on it. 

For my fission reactor and my weapons? 

I'm sure I could use that as leverage on Mel and Cassandra. However, for members like Hoskel, and Salo? Those two, I would be replacing with synths. 

I looked Heimerdinger dead in the eye with a smile, “Sounds good to me.” 

There was only enough room for one of us at the top. So, if it was going to be me… then Heimerdinger would need to fall. And, if I was reading the room right… 

I might not even have to do a thing. 

…

My company was pretty much destroyed. My warehouse slash factory got blown up, so production was cut off at the knees. Asami really had done a number on the city, but Sukuna had done a bigger one. While he showed a shocking amount of restraint during his fight in terms of casualties, there had been a lot of collateral damage in terms of property. Half of Zaun was flooded with that vile smog called the Gray, important industries had been gutted, and the main source of work down there, fissure mining, was halted either because of the damage or because Silco was using the opportunity to squeeze Piltover.

But that wasn't to say that I had to start from scratch. I had connections. 

“Getting yourself appointed to the Council? Not bad,” I remarked, seated across from Silco in his office. Jinx was nowhere to be found at the moment, so either Silco was such an ice cold bastard that he didn't care if she died, or she was fine. And probably making sure that his grip on Piltover's balls didn't slip. 

“Shall I take that as a confirmation of my ascendence?” Silco questioned, a dry note of amusement in his voice as he lit a cigar. 

“I would,” I admitted, propping one foot up on a knee. “What's left of the Council was very disappointed to hear that I can't magic up a fission reactor out of my ass. So, they're going to cave. Of course, as soon as you flip the lights back on, they're going to pull the rug out from underneath you.” 

“I'm well aware of Topside's habits,” Silco said, telling me he saw that coming from a mile away. And the reason why I was here. “I suppose this is where you offer your own influence amongst the Council to shield me from the worst of their sabotage?” 

“Got it in one,” I agreed without shame. “And, of course, I'd have a lot more influence to give if my factories weren't a bunch of rubble.” 

“I would imagine so,” Silco agreed with a small nod, his eyes measuring and judging. “Naturally, with so many miners out of work, they would seek alternative forms of employment. For a fair wage and reasonable hours.” 

“That they would,” I nodded, knowing the game by now. For a guy who flooded his streets with drugs, Silco was a pure patriot at heart. Near as I could tell his drug trade was just a means to an end, with the end being to gain enough power and influence that he could consolidate the Undercity so he could one day turn it into the nation of Zaun. And now that he was actually inching closer to that goal, the ruthless crime boss mask was starting to slip, just a bit. “The hours would be long and the work demanding. All of it, of course, being financed with the Council's hexes, as Vought Industries is a company of vital interest to Piltover's national security.” 

That got a shadow of a smile from Silco. He rather liked the idea of making Piltover foot the bill. “I shall speak to the union leaders on your behalf,” Silco agreed, and I think I caught him in a good mood, because I had expected more back and forth on the specifics. 

In that case, I might as well go for broke. “There is one more thing that I would like to discuss with you. Singed.” 

That took the edge off of his good mood, but he merely raised one thin eyebrow at me, prompting me to elaborate. “I would like to borrow him for a project of mine. “ 

“What, precisely, would this project be?” Silco questioned and I offered a thin smile. 

“My people captured one of the people who turned our city into a battleground,” I fibbed, and I felt Silco's interest immediately spike. He hid it well, but there was a hunger in his eyes for information. “They were enhanced. Similarly as what you see with those that take a combat strain of Shimmer, but this grants them unique powers. Enhanced durability, strength, and speed. I would like Singed, along with an associate of mine, to distill this serum from our prisoner for the purposes of replicating it.” 

Silco bought himself a moment by taking a drag from his cigar and blowing out a ring of smoke. “How long would this project last?” 

“Roughly six months to a year would be my estimate,” I answered swiftly. Shaun and Curie were both familiar with Compound V. Recreating it, especially when we had samples to work off of? That dramatically shortened things up. Kimiko, Marie, Victoria, and Popclaw had all been transferred over to the makeshift prison that I was keeping Nobara and Rumi in, alongside the girl Cinder had barbecued, who looked like she was going to survive her injuries thanks to our stimpacks. 

Additionally, I would be helping the research out. I could directly siphon off some Compound V from our less valuable sources, like Popclaw. I had already procured some from Soldier Boy and the Deep's bodies. 

“...And you would share this discovery?” Silco questioned, and my smile grew. 

“A rising tide lifts all ships, as the saying goes,” I replied evenly. I sensed his doubt. And I sensed his intention to betray me. That was hardly unsurprising, and I didn't hold it against him. Not exactly. He saw an edge that he could gain, and he wasn't keen on sharing. Because he couldn't imagine that I would be any different. 

And he was right. He was just mistaking what I valued most in this. I trusted Curie to work Singed over and bring him over to our side while they recreated Compound V. Even better, I imagine Singed had already begun his attempts at recreating it to create more of the serum that flowed through my veins. 

“And, speaking of rising tides -- I'd like to bring Jinx into the company. I'm developing weapons to be used on those pesky Noxians, and I think she'd smooth things along,” I said, making his eyes narrow a fraction. 

I could sense his mind mulling over the back to back offers. He wanted this serum that gave powers, even if he barely understood it. Likewise, he wanted weapons. Silco was smart enough to look a gift horse in the mouth, but he was also greedy enough to accept a gift horse under the assumption that he could at least get some use out of it. 

It was something of a shame, I thought to myself as Silco presented a hand, affirming that he would agree to the deal. I liked Silco. And I'd like to recruit him alongside Singed and Jinx, but I understood him better than that. Silco was a man who valued control and influence. He spent his entire life under the boot of another, and he wanted to become the boot. 

He would never truly accept my lead or my ambitions. What's more, while Singed was more mercenary in nature, so long as Silco was around, Jinx would never truly be on my side of things. 

So, even as I shook his hand, I knew it deep in my gut. 

Silco was a piece that I was going to have to remove from the board. Sooner or later. 

…

“Ah. You mean we lost Cate?” I asked Robin, settling in at one of the few safehouses that we had intact in Piltover. In the basement below us were our prisoners -- Rumi, Nobara, and Maki. The guy, who was named Megumi, had been taken by Sukuna. So, I imagine he was dead. Kimiko and Marie were both with Curie in Singed's lab. The three girls were in an artificially induced coma, at least until we got things back up and running. 

“It would seem so,” Robin admitted, sounding vaguely apologetic. “Starlight managed to rescue her. I'm uncertain if either are still in the city or not.” 

“Hm. I should have done more to bring her over to our side. Definitely shouldn't have left her isolated on the Fallout side of things. That was just asking for a knife in the back,” I muttered, reflecting on past mistakes. If I had handled Cate correctly, or killed her back when I rescued Robin, then Asami's little rebellion wouldn't have been a fraction as successful as it was.  

“That is my fault,” Robin said. “I had plans for her, but I failed to implement them. We were separated too often, and I know that you think mind control is too easy and boring.” 

“Eh, no need to apologize, Robin. I'll just chalk it up as a learning experience,” I reassured her, flashing a smile her way. “Though, it does mean we're going to have to kill Golden Boy by the time we link up the portals. Or find Cate before then. Either way works for me,” I muttered, pinching my chin. 

It was something of a concern that Starlight and Cate could still be active in the city. Worse if they left to some other part of Runeterra. That was something I was going to have to be careful about. Cate being in the wind with a willingness to use mind control to fuck me over? That was a recipe for disaster. I would probably need to patrol the city on occasion to see if I spot her. 

Then again, it was possible that Cate and Starlight had slipped through the third Dias that Asami had built somewhere. I doubted that it would be in Piltover, though. Rumi had spent some time away from the city, so maybe she would know. I just needed to convince her to talk. Which, honestly, I imagined would be a tall task. Rumi didn't strike me as the type to break under torture. 

Which left me draining the information from her brain. Doable. Dangerous, though. I would need to do some practice on those that I didn't mind losing. Rumi was someone that I wanted to recruit more than I wanted what she knew -- and she was almost there. She just needed a few more touches here or there, and she'd flip. By now, she would understand herself well enough to know that she wanted to fight and fuck, and it didn't really matter if the cause was just or not. 

“It may be best to give Cinder a guard,” Robin remarked, somewhat reluctantly. “Starlight has unfinished business with her that she might attempt to settle while she's bedridden. Without Yoruichi, we've been… exposed.” 

I hadn't realized how much of a safety net Yoruichi was until she was gone. I always knew that she was stronger than me. It started as a sneaking suspicion when she dealt with a handful of helicopters with no issues at all. And as my haki developed, that suspicion was confirmed. It always felt like no matter how bad things got, if I really wanted her to, I just had to ask her for help and she'd save my dumb ass from whatever consequences were biting me in the ass. 

And now that safety blanket got ripped away. 

“How do you think she's doing?” I asked Robin, and she offered a thin smile. She knew I didn't mean Cinder. 

“I'm sure she's taking care of herself. She might be challenged, but Yoruichi never struck me as the kind to back down from that.” She reassured me, and that was why I wasn't worried, per say. Yoruichi was strong. Provided that she wasn't on an airless moon where she'd die of asphyxiation or something like that, I couldn't imagine Yoruichi losing. Even against me and Sukuna. So, this was just her getting put in time out for being careless, and I was sure I would make fun of her for it when we saw each other again. “Speaking of which -- you need your rest as well, Law. You've had a… challenging day. A brush with death, your transformation, and that power you unlocked…” 

I pursed my lips, swallowing down a yawn that rose up as if summoned. “I suppose we're breaking up guarding them in shifts, then?” To that, Robin offered a smile, and this time I let the yawn escape me. “Alright. I'll hit the hay. Though, I'm not sure if I even need to sleep with this body.” 

“You do need rest,” Robin insisted, waving me off and I headed upstairs to the bedroom. I Shambled out of my clothing, leaving the fake bandages and cast on before I climbed into bed. 

My head hit the pillow and I closed my eyes. I was tired, but that tiredness didn't extend to the need of sleep. I was just mentally spent -- so much had happened and my thinking power was used up until I had a refresher. So, I just rested my eyes and tried to think about nothing for a few hours. 

That wasn't so easy when about two hours of trying and failing to fall asleep, I felt someone enter my Room from above. They landed on the roof, before scaling down the side of the building and expertly picking the lock to the window. Near soundlessly, the window opened and the intruder slipped through it, ghosting over the floorboards to stand near the edge of my bed. 

Even without my Room telling me who it was, it would have been impossible for me to not recognize the chaotic raging storm of emotions inside of her. 

Jinx stood at the edge of my bed, drinking me in, and filled with relief that I wasn't dead. I suppose she heard that I had been missing and injured. 

Wordlessly, I lifted up the blank it with an arm, and her breathing hitched just a little bit. But, after only a second of thought, she crawled underneath the cover and pressed her face to my chest. 

“I'm glad you're not dead,” Jinx whispered to me as I calmed the storm inside of her, pushing down the negative emotions while lifting up the positive ones. 

“Me too,” I agreed, wrapping an arm around her as she cuddled into me, seeking comfort. 

It was all one step at a time… but I got a feeling that from this point onward… the ball was rolling downhill and it was only going to pick up speed.