The Blades and The Gauntlets [Vi x fem!oc]

Chapter [REDACTED]: If you found us...

Ekko's eyes snapped open, the world around him coming into focus in fragmented bursts of color, light and patterns. His heartbeat thudded in his ears like a distant drum, coming closer with each beat. For a moment, he couldn't recall where he was. The air smelled vaguely of old parchment and dust, mixed with the crisp note of fresh ink. He blinked, fighting the dull throb in his forehead.

Then he realized he was gripping a thin pencil in his right hand. The sharpened tip hovered mere inches above a half-open notebook on a wooden desk. Pale sunlight slipped through a window placed crookedly on the door, illuminating swirling specks of dust. Something about the geometry of the room felt off, the ceiling was too tall, or maybe the walls were too narrow. He could see little charms hanging from above, red in color, but the pigment was too vibrant, like it was screaming back at him that something wasn't quite right.

A blink of memory teased him: an explosion, a shimmer of neon lights, a vortex of swirling time. He remembered a half-formed idea that had seemed so urgent... but it slipped away, leaving only a faint sense of displacement.

The old desk groaned as he straightened up, pushing back the chair as he really took in what the writing in the book was. A faded blueprint of some mechanical contraption - maybe one of Heimerdinger's old sketches or something reminiscent of Jayce's early designs. It looked like he was in a workshop - or perhaps a laboratory? - vaguely similar to what he recalled as Benzo's shop.

A soft click coming from the wall clock behind him filled the room and he turned around. In the dusty glass he could see himself - nothing like he remembered. Was this all a bad dream? He looked at the side of his ear, noticing a golden earring reflecting back the faintest glow of the light. His face was clear - no trace of the white that painted it before, no trace of whatever had brought him here.

A door opened, then closed, and before he could react, a pale face was standing across his, a small smile tugging at her lips.

"You are beyond help," she chuckled lowly, her hands hanging low to support a brown box. Startled and ready to engage, he jumped back, but she didn't seem fazed by his reaction. "Wow, relax, jumpy."

But this was not the Jinx he remembered - dangerous, impulsive, with long blue braided hair and a bundle of bombs. Instead, this one was relaxed, short-haired with a red tie holding back her hair. She looked... happy. Her big eyes and the faint freckles dusting her cheeks gave her an undeniable familiarity.

"I've got a new idea..." he heard, but his mind didn't register the rest of the sentence. His eyes widened, looking back in horror as the room seemed to shift. Before he could second-doubt himself, his hand found a little metal-supported glass vial and he threw it at the girl across from him.

She ducked just in time and the object hit the clock behind her. It didn't seem like she was too surprised at his reaction, but she looked back at him in confusion. "Umm, did you just throw that?"

Ekko had managed to find a letter opener quickly, retreating towards the door. "Stay... Stay back!" His voice cracked slightly, but his free hand was already reaching for the door knob.

Before he could pull it, however, it opened on its own and a familiar deep voice greeted him. The boy looked back just in time to catch Benzo smiling at him.

"Oi!" He exclaimed, also carrying boxes in his hands. "What in the seven sumps is all this racket?"

Ekko gasped softly, the makeshift-weapon in his hands dropping to the ground. He couldn't believe the sight before him - Benzo, alive and well, albeit aged and with a beard coloring the sides of his face.

"Oi, one of those days, huh?" He laughed and the younger man heard Powder put her box down, then advance behind him. He wanted to turn around, pick up the weapon and jump back in fear, but his legs were glued to the floor like they were made of stone.