Shimmer

3.

I heard the swimming murmur of voices as my ringing ears leveled out and the throbbing in my head subsided to a reasonable, dull ache. The dizziness and nausea came quickly behind and I worked to keep my stomach in place. I tried to lift a hand to wipe my brow and found I was lashed in place, the cold bars of the metal chair scraping against my wrists.

In a rapid-fire flash, the events leading up flooded back to me. Silco. My missed shot. Sevika. That damn arm...I tried to scowl and ended up groaning aloud at the pain that exploded in my jaw.

"It would seem our guest has finally decided to join us..." That silken rasp, the arrogance laden in every word. I knew right away it was him. Long, bony fingers lifted my chin, his eyes burning into mine as he leaned close, turning my face this way and that. It was agony on my aching jaw, but I steeled my expression and met his eyes, refusing to let him see my pain. "Tell me, little enforcer, what you thought you were going to accomplish tonight? Did you think I didn't know you were out there?" He released my chin with a disgusted gesture, wiping his hand on his jacket as he paced in front of me.

"I hoped to carry out my mission - To stop you." I replied defiantly, leaning against my bonds to spit the words at him.

He laughed. Laughed! Grabbing a low stool and sliding it over in front of me, he gracefully settled onto it, a decorative cane lay over his legs. "So proper. Such a credit to the enforcers, isn't she Sevika?" A noncommittal grunt came from behind me, accompanied by a wafting cloud of cigar smoke. "But I know what you really are. WHO you really are...Miss Kiramman." A chill ran down my spine. My identity, outside of my Codename, was classified. Another condition from my mother. "In fact, I know all about you...A Council member's daughter, all those petty charges swept under the rug, how your skill with a gun and a pretty penny from your family had the Marshall overlook your fights and tsk, tsk, multiple counts of insubordination. Maybe you're not such a model soldier after all?"

My mind reeled at just how deeply he had his hands in Piltover, to know all he did about me. But then, wasn't this the perfect opportunity to grasp at something that I'd always wanted - True freedom. Back home, all I'd ever have was a gilded cage and a leash to fly on...I wanted to soar. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and stepped out of the shadow of my name. "Maybe I'm not."

For half a second, I saw surprise slither through his gaze. He hadn't expected me to do anything other than surrender. "So then, what are you? If you're not a good soldier, then what use are you to me?" A sinister smirk twisted his lips, "besides a very valuable hostage, that is."

"A good soldier follows orders, sure. A good *fighter* improvises, knows how to think for themselves, and aren't hampered by the sort of red tape the military so often hamstrings itself with." I shrugged as best I could in my bonds. "You're welcome to ransom me back to the council, my mother would likely clean out the treasury to see me back safely. But then they'll just send someone else, and another and another...A lot of people saw that bullet almost split your skull tonight. You can't afford to parley with the Upper City and not look weak."

I watched his expression grow grim and thoughtful as I spoke, the truth of my words sinking in. "So, what do you propose then? I can have Sevika take you out back, put a bullet between your eyes, and dump you on the Bridge at dawn, that would certainly send a message." I could see him baiting me, testing me to see what I would do.

"Sure, you could. You could also take a hot piss in a westward wind, the result's the same. A big waste of effort and you're still covered in your own mess. What you'd do if you were smart was ask - How can I use this weapon that's fallen into my lap? Because that's what I am, Silco. A weapon."

He chuckled, nodding to his lieutenant behind me. I felt the ropes loosen around my wrists as Sevika unceremoniously dumped me out of the chair and onto the floor. Kneeling in front of Silco, he studied me further, coming to a conclusion about me.
"I admire your fiery spirit, my dear, and I cannot deny your strategic reasoning and value to my cause. I expect the sort of arrangement I had with your fellow enforcers would prove unsatisfactory to you, but I'm prepared to make you a far more attractive offer." He paused, extending his hand to me. I placed mine in his and he drew me to my feet, standing with me.

I hesitated, staying silent as he lifted my hand to his lips, brushing a brief society-proper kiss on its back. "Freedom," he whispered, "unfettered, without tether. I wish to see what Piltover's Princess is capable of."

Sneering at the monicker, one I'd gotten in the early days of being an Enforcer- One I hated intensely. I dropped a quick curtsy, in mockery of the opening motions of a formal dance. "Where do I begin?"