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"If only I had a True Sight Ward," Chen muttered, his eyes darting through the swirling toxic haze. Twitch was invisible, and in this game of cat and mouse, the mouse had all the cheats.
But Chen knew how to play dirty too. He stepped toward the throne of rusted gears and rotting upholstery, hefting his lamppost.
"So, you don't understand human language, huh?" Chen asked the empty air. He raised the iron pole high, aiming a shattering blow at the center of the Scrap Throne.
Just as the lamppost began its descent, a shrill, panicked screech erupted from the shadows. Twitch materialized directly behind Chen, his crossbow leveled. "I warn you! Don't smash it! Or I'll shoot you! I'll shoot you right in the soft bits!"
Chen didn't lower the weapon. He looked over his shoulder with a cold sneer. "I thought you didn't speak 'human.' And you've already shot at me, rat. You missed. Now, let's see what's faster—your trigger finger or my gravity."
"Human boy! Shiny-hair!" Twitch's voice was a nervous skitter. "As long as you don't touch my precious throne, everything is negotiable! Everything is tradeable!"
"Is that so?" Chen turned fully to face him.
In that split second, Twitch's instincts took over. He pulled the trigger. A rusted, venom-tipped bolt flew straight for Chen's eyes.
"UNBREAKABLE WILL!"
The rune-shields flared into existence, hardening Chen's skin into a living fortress. The bolt struck his forehead with a dull clink and fell harmlessly into his palm. Chen didn't blink. He lunged forward, the lamppost humming as it cut through the air.
"WAIT! WAIT!" Twitch dropped his crossbow and threw his paws up, his whiskers twitching in terror. "We can talk! Accident! The trigger is twitchy! Like me! I didn't mean it!"
Chen stopped the iron head of the post an inch from the rat's nose. He didn't trust a word, but he had the leverage. "Hands up. All the way."
Twitch obediently reached for the ceiling, his yellow eyes wide. "Big brother, whatever you want! Your little brother will listen! Look, no weapons! Just a poor, defenseless, very smelly rat!"
The Contract of Filth
"I want you to kill someone," Chen said, the lamppost still keeping Twitch pinned to his throne.
"Killing? Oh, I'm an expert at the 'pointy-end-in-the-heart' part!" Twitch squeaked, then frowned. "But why me? You've got a whole army of Fireflies."
"Because you're a ghost, Twitch. And because if you do this, I'll give you every junkyard in Zaun. They'll be your personal kingdoms."
Twitch's eyes practically turned into gold coins. "Endless treasures? All the moldy bread? All the shiny brass?" Then he paused. "Wait... who do you want dead? Not the big crab-man Urgot? No, no, I can't kill him. He's too crunchy."
"Urgot is an ally," Chen clarified. "Your target is a General in Piltover. A man named Jikegar. They're going to war, Twitch. If they win, they'll 'sanitize' the sewers. No more sludge. No more filth. Just... soap and water."
Twitch shrieked in horror. "Soap?! Water?! Arrogant Pilties! I'll take the job. We must teach them a lesson in grime!"
The Pinduoduo Comp
Back at The Last Drop, the Sanctuary was becoming a living encyclopedia of Zaunite legends.
Jinx had already abandoned her "pet" Ziggs to poke at Zac's gelatinous arm. "You really are all slime! Does it bounce? Can I put a bomb inside you?"
"Madam, please..." Zac stammered, his green form rippling in embarrassment.
Ekko stepped in, shielding the blob. "Powder, leave him alone! Zac is a teammate."
Just then, Chen's hoverboard hummed into the clearing. He was carrying a very disgruntled, very smelly Twitch by the scruff of his neck.
"I'm back," Chen announced, dropping the rat. He looked at the gathered heroes—Jinx, Ekko, Zac, Ziggs, and Twitch—and began calculating their combined stats like a seasoned tactician.
"Including Urgot, we've got a terrifying lineup," Chen whispered to himself. "Two Gunslingers (Jinx/Urgot), three Chem-Tech (Urgot/Zac/Twitch), two Assassins (Twitch/Ekko), and three Geeks (Ekko/Jinx/Jayce). It's the ultimate Pinduoduo comp. If we get Singed and Viktor, we hit five Chem-Tech and two Dark Mages."
He turned to Ekko, his expression turning serious. "We still need Singed."
Ekko's face darkened. "Why? We have enough firepower now."
"Because of the time paradox, Ekko," Chen said, resting a hand on his shoulder. "You told me this is the last loop. No more restarts. That means we need an insurance policy. Singed's Alchemical Inferno is a nightmare weapon—it's the 'nuclear option.' I don't want to use it, but we need to have it in our hands so Piltover knows we can."
Ekko stared at the floor for a long time before nodding slowly. "Fine. You go find him. I... I can't look at him yet."
Chen understood. For Ekko, Singed was the shadow behind Vander's death. But for Zaun to live, they had to walk through the shadow.
"Stay here and prep the defenses," Chen said. "I'm going to the deepest lab in the Sump."
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