𝐄𝐤𝐤𝐨 | 𝐃𝕚𝕣𝕥𝕪 𝐋𝕚𝕥𝕥𝕝𝕖 𝐀𝕟𝕚𝕞𝕒𝕝𝕤

4. Suspicions

The streets were busy.
Kids darting between shadows, merchants peddling knockoff tech, and chem-addled drifters muttering to themselves.

I was leaning against a rusted railing overlooking of the lower walkways, spinning a coin between my fingers to pass the time.
Sevika was holed up in a meeting with one of Silco's chem-barons, hashing out the terms of some deal I wasn't important enough to sit in on.
Not that I cared. Business talk wasn't my thing.

A faint scuffle caught my ear, pulling my gaze to the street below. At first, it looked like just another commotion— someone getting too rough during a trade or settling a score.
But then I spotted them: two Enforcers in crisp uniforms, moving too deliberately for it to be a random patrol.
They weren't trying to blend in, but they weren't flaunting their presence either.
Their eyes darted to every alley and doorway, hands near their weapons.
They had to be looking for something— or someone.

I straightened, pocketing the coin as my curiosity flared.
The Lanes weren't exactly a stranger to Enforcer visits, but this felt different. Those Pilties didn't come down here unless they had to, and when they did, they weren't usually this subtle.
I kept my distance, slipping into the shadows as they advanced further down the walkway.
One of them gestured towards a narrowed side street, and the other nodded, stepping into position like they were setting up an ambush.
My stomach tightened, but I couldn't look away.

Maybe it was boredom. Maybe it was instinct. Either way, I decided to follow them.
I slipped away from the place where Sevika was, keeping my steps light and silent.
They weaved through the back alleys behind Silco's Shimmer factory, glancing over their shoulders every few moments.
They didn't move with that usual stiff authority of Piltover's law keepers; it was deliberate, secretive. Something fishy.

I kept away enough to stay unnoticed, my pulse quickening when I saw them stop right behind the factory's storage wing. One of them crouched down, pulling something from his bag— the blinking red light had me panic.
Explosives.

I inhaled sharply. My hand instinctively went to the dagger at my hip. Silco's orders echoed in my mind: protect the shipment at all costs.
They weren't getting away with this. If I failed once, because of the Firelights, I wouldn't lose again to damned Enforcers.
My grip tightened on the hilt as I took a step closer, ready to strike.

Then a hand clamped over my mouth, yanking me backwards into the shadows. I thrashed, reaching for my dagger, but a strong arm pinned mine to my side.
Whoever had me was silent, the grip on me unyielding as I struggled. My muffled grunts of protest were met with a quiet, firm voice close to my ear.
"Shh, calm down. I'm not going to hurt you."

His voice was calm, low. But I wasn't about to trust it. I slammed my elbow into his stomach. He grunted in pain, his grip loosening for a split second. I broke free and tried to bolt.
Barely making two steps, his hand caught my arm and harshly pulled me back, knocking me off balance.
In that short time in which I was processing what the hell was going on, I got dragged further away from where the Enforcers first were.
The guy was wrestling me, obviously because I was resisting but despite my efforts, he pinned me down with an ease that was infuriating.
One hand pressed over my mouth again, silencing me.
"Would you stop?" His voice hissed, almost exasperated now.
"You'll blow our cover."

I froze. My heart hammered in my chest as looking up I recognised that owl mask, its dark eyes staring down at me.
It was him.
Again.
The Firelight that I'd so gratefully get rid of, myself.
It was awfully unnerving how this was the second time he had me pinned to the ground like I was some common idiot.
His hand stayed firmly over my mouth as I stopped struggling. Slowly, he tilted his head, studying me, his tone lowering to something almost amused.
"Relax, Shark," he murmured. "I'm not the one you need to worry about."

I groaned in response, a frown on my face as I furrowed my brows at the sight of him.
I wasn't happy, and I knew he acknowledged that. His hand eased away from my mouth, finally allowing me to speak.
Glaring at him, I fought the urge to speak the first angry words that came to mind.
"Really?" I said, voice dropping with hatred.
"You're still playing dress-up and sneaking around like a second-rate hero? Don't you have better places to be?"
He didn't reply immediately, instead glancing toward the alley where those two Pilties were setting up their bomb.
Seriously, what is wrong with people and all these explosions?

The Firelight's response was calm but clipped when he finally spoke.
"If I weren't here, you'd be walking into a death trap. Those Enforcers aren't just planting explosives to send a message. They're here to level the place, with your people still inside."
I stiffened, the stabbing retort dying in my throat.
Instead, I settled on scowling.
"How noble of you. Should I thank you for saving me from a problem I was about to handle myself?"
"You don't handle problems," he said, a chuckle threading his words. "You cause them."

I shoved against his chest, forcing him back enough to give me room to sit up.
"And who sent you to save the day this time? One of your flying little friends, or are you just out here to make a name for yourself in Piltover?"
That stopped him. His white mask tilted slightly, the faintest trace of a smirk audible in his reply.
"They don't need to know how I'm keeping their toys in check."
"You mean my boss's factory. Silco, only."
I shot back. "Not theirs."
"Not today," he bit back, his tone clear but not truly unkind.

"The council wants this place gone. Ambessa Medarda must have given the idea herself. And trust me, they won't lose sleep over the bodies they leave behind."
My nails dig into my palms as I thought of all the younger ones in there, whole families making a leaving with the money they got from it.
I clenched my teeth.
"And you're just going to swoop in and stop it? What's the plan? You and your little flies buzz around and save the day while I watch from the sidelines?"
He shook his head, leaning back on his heels but still pretty much blocking my path.
"This is bigger than you, Shark. The Firelights have it handled. You need to back off."
I crossed my arms.

"No."

"No?"

"I said no. I've got something to prove. You think I'm letting you get me in trouble with Silco again? I messed up last time because of you and your set of little pests on hoverboards."
He let out a quiet laugh, the sound muffled behind his mask.
"Messed up? I seem to recall stopping you and your gang of rats from selling Shimmer in the upper city. But sure, keep telling yourself it was my fault."

I bristled.
"It was your fault. And this time, I'm not letting you— or anyone else— get in my way."
I got back up, he followed.
He then seemed to consider my words, his head tilted a little as though he was in deep thought.
I thought he might argue, but instead, he let out a resigned sigh and then walked right past me.
"What the-" I was taken aback.
"Where are you going? What are you doing?"

Still calling to him, he wouldn't say anything, nor stop. So I scoffed, and then turned back to the armed freaks that were trying to bomb my boss' factory.
I was about to pounce on the enforcers, making somewhat of an entrance— or so I thought I would— when that damned Firelight stopped me, locking my arm behind my back.
"You're going to ruin everything," he muttered, as though I was a child interfering with his carefully laid plans.
"Let go of me!" I growled, trying to shove him away, but for some reason it seemed like I wasn't strong enough.
Something unusual.

"Not happening," he added.
Before I could wriggle free, he took this length of rope from his belt.
"Where did you even get that from?"
He didn't answer me, trying to tie my hands back.
"You wouldn't dare-"

He would.

My wrists were bound and secured to the foot of a big dumpster. I twisted against the coarse rope, but it was tied tightly, biting into my skin with every movement.
"Untie me right now, or I swear I'll-"
"You're too stubborn to stay out of the way, so I'll handle this myself," he didn't even look back.
What he told me was curt, as if that ended the discussion.

I pulled hard at the rope, my fury boiling over.
He was already sprinting out of the alleyway, leaving me behind and taking matters into his own hands.
For a moment I wondered where his flying friends were, and why he was alone, but I got busy forcing my wrists free of the rope.
My teeth gritting as the fibres bit deeper into my skin.
"You'll regret this, I swear." I whispered to myself.