The Hexcore dropped onto a large, metallic chainlink before Viktor. Arcane runes glowed faintly, etched into his skin beneath the straps of a large metal chassis bound to his chest. Its design echoed the Hexcore itself- ornate yet functional. Carved into a hollowed semicircle at the heart of the device, Jayce twisted the movable rings inside, carefully lining them up.
"Did you really have to carve it into your body?" Jayce asked, still uneasy with the whole process.
Orion slept in the back of the lab, slouched in a chair, exhaustion having overtaken him after the earlier exertion of magic. A common sight, lately, recovery came slower each time.
'I didn't think he'd go this far,' Orion had thought when he woke briefly to the bloodied lines down Viktor's chest only to realize they weren't wounds, but five distinct runes carefully carved into his flesh. A living conduit.
"Better question, why?" Orion now asked, still half-groggy. "I thought you were only going to create a device."
"You're not wrong. We did," Viktor replied with a light smirk.
"But Viktor here thought it'd be better to turn himself into the device," Jayce sighed, weary. "Instead of one small inch-wide pipe collecting runoff, we've got multiple channels feeding into one massive pipe."
"More magical energy," Viktor chimed cheerfully, "to purify the Void and align the Hexcore to our purpose!"
Glancing at Powder, Orion caught the amused raise of her brow and the unmistakable I-told-you-so look. Yet there was curiosity there too- her eyes drinking in every movement, learning with silent fascination.
"Don't act like you weren't asking a million questions," Jayce added, catching her look. "You were just as bad as Viktor once he started rambling."
"She has a brilliant mind," Viktor agreed warmly. "It's a shame it never saw the Academy. I believe she would've accomplished great things."
"Hehe," Powder grinned, swinging her feet from the bench with pride. "I know, I know- I'm the best."
"So what do you plan to do with all this?" Orion asked.
"What we talked about," Viktor answered. "These runes will collect ambient faith and channel it into the Hexcore, cleansing it of Void influence."
"After that," Jayce continued, twisting another rune while checking a diagram in his notes, "we can use Janna's interventions to keep our Hextech stable. These cores- each one- could be attuned to her. A network."
"Each one?" Orion echoed, frowning slightly.
"Yes. We don't intend to stop with just one," Jayce confirmed.
Orion sighed. "You might be taking her protection a little too much for granted."
"Perhaps," Viktor admitted. "But if our goals are truly aligned to safeguard Piltover and Zaun, to improve lives, and make the Arcane usable without corruption…"
"That's not… well," Orion trailed off. "It's better than nothing."
'And if it works,' he thought, glancing at the glowing core, 'it's one step closer to being cleansed myself.'
"You're not satisfied?" Viktor asked, tilting his head as the final ring clicked into place. The device pulsed, and Viktor's body jerked slightly- just enough for a spark of concern to flicker across Jayce's face.
"I'm satisfied," Orion said. "But how are you going to explain this to anyone? The moment you walk outside..."
"They won't arrest us immediately," Jayce interjected. "It'll take time before anyone understands what's happening."
"In that time," Viktor added, "we put on a display so extravagant that no one can doubt Janna still watches over the city."
"This is where you come in," Jayce said, his tone brightening with excitement.
"Wind. Or better yet-"
"Janna," Orion finished.
---------------
The trio moved through the upper streets of Piltover, cloaked beneath the golden hour haze of dawn. Citizens bustled around them- workers heading to work, vendors opening stalls, council aides rushing messages on foot. No one noticed at first.
Then the breeze began to shift.
It started small. Curtains rippling in buildings that had no open windows, hats flying from heads despite no apparent gust. A gentle swirl of leaves spiraled upward from the cracks in the cobblestone, dancing along the edges of Orion's boots as he walked.
Powder clung to his side, watching him with a mixture of excitement and pride. "They're staring," she whispered, nodding subtly toward a group of people whispering on a café terrace.
"They'll do more than that soon," Viktor murmured, his metal-clad chest softly pulsing in rhythm with the runes embedded in his skin. Each step he took left faint blue footprints that quickly vanished.
Jayce, walking on the opposite side, kept his eyes on the horizon. "We're nearing the Piltover bridge. If you're going to do it… now's the time."
Orion exhaled.
He raised a hand. No amulet. No incantation. Just a slow turn of his wrist.
And the wind listened.
Dust from the street began to rise and steam vents hissed. Loose fabric flapped wildly as a hush fell upon the crowd nearby. A child tugged at her mother's hand and pointed skyward.
Orion swept his arm to the side. Wind followed like a whip-crack. Clean, sharp, and strangely musical. A man's fancy top hat spun into the air before gently returning to his head, perfectly placed. Gasps followed.
"W-what is that?" someone asked aloud.
"Magic," another murmured, breathless.
No Enforcers moved.
Not yet.
As they descended the tiered streets, closer to the boundary between Piltover and Zaun, the wind took on voice. It sang softly at first. A whistling hum through the alleyways that grew louder with each step.
A small storm cloud spiraled into existence overhead, contained and elegant, as if tethered to Orion as he moved.
From the shadows of an awning, a Zaunite girl with soot-covered cheeks stared upward, her eyes widening as the clouds turned blue and gold. She tugged on her brother's coat.
"Is it Progress Day again?" she asked.
And then, the air stilled.
No birds. No footsteps. The onlookers held their breath in anticipation.
Then came the wind again but different. Deeper. Older. A gust that felt alive. It didn't sweep the street but caressed it. Hair lifted. Coats fluttered upward. The scent of ozone and spring petals filled the air despite there being none in sight.
Powder blinked up.
"Orion," she whispered. "It's her."
From the eye of the floating storm, light twisted downward like a slow waterfall with drafts of wind. A silhouette emerged, floating inches above the cobblestone.
Janna.
No crown or staff. Only wind and light made her silhouette. Her hair billowed in unseen currents, and her blue eyes glowed with intensity. Her presence silenced everything.
No one bowed. They froze.
Orion's knees trembled briefly. Not from fear, but from something deeper. Recognition? Reverence. Her celestial aura caused the Void inside him to tremble and shake, trying to burrow itself deeper inside him to hide away.
Viktor, wide-eyed, scanned his chest chassis. The runes shone brilliantly, now channeling more energy than he'd anticipated. Jayce steadied him with a hand.
Powder's mouth was slightly agape. "She's beautiful."
Janna floated forward, and with a gentle exhale, the wind burst outward in a wave of pure clarity. The smog retreated. The grime on the windows washed away in an invisible tide. The chasm between Piltover and Zaun was, for just a moment, bridged in silence and clean air.
Those watching… believed.