The bay is calm as ripples in the water gently lapped against Ambessa’s war ships still docked where they came in for the initial invasion. Caitlyn remembered the water was calm as well when Ambessa attacked. The chaos and impending destruction of war made everything feel rocky and unsure. But the water was still calm then and the water is calm now.
Piltover is not calm now, it is quiet, still. Like anyone who moved too fast or talked too loudly would cause the fighting to start right back up again. Caitlyn had come to dread it. She kept her back to the city like she could turn her back on the damage she caused.
Guilt churned in her stomach, and she wished that the sea would stir. She wished the environment around her could reflect her raging emotions rather than the serenity it seemed to be in now.
Her grief that had consumed her when her mother’s death was still fresh. Her grief did not disappear, but it became overshadowed by guilt. The fire that had burned in her raging for Jinx’s death had long cooled even before Jinx was pronounced dead. Only now there was no outlet for her grief. It made Caitlyn restless, always looking for something to do or fix but knowing that nothing could fix how she betrayed Piltover. No amount of progress could bring her mother back and the helplessness was as consuming as her.
Caitlyn shifted as a slight breeze rippled across the water. It was hardly cold, but Caitlyn could not seem to stop trebling. It could be a way for all of her emotions trapped inside her to escape, but Caitlyn suspected it was something deeper. Ever since the fighting had stopped her hands had been shaking. Though the tremor may have been there longer. They may have been there since her mother had died, but the shaking had been pushed aside in her angry and determination for revenge.
She had ignored a lot of things in her quest for revenge; her hunger, her health, Vi. Maybe along the way she had started ignoring her humanity. She had lost her empathy and drive to do good like so many. It took Singe to realize how far she had gone down the wrong path. It was strange to think that in a way she had Singe to thank for bringing her back to herself. Vi may have been the push she needed to act, but listening to Sings’s story was what made her realize the lives she had destroyed. Seeing how far he would go for love reminded her that there has to be limits. Caitlyn’s love for her mother was destroying lives and she could not continue to follow Ambessa’s plans for destruction.
Caitlyn, once she had realized her mistakes, she felt paralyzed. She wanted to get away to find Vi again, but she was not sure that she could undo her mistakes. Caitlyn hadn’t bothered to figure out where Vi had run off to after their fight. But seeing her alive and strong despite Vi loss that Vi had experienced in her life reminded her of the suffering she had caused. It reminded her of the determination that came from the Undercity. She had been lost in her rage pushing the Undercity to its limits. Caitlyn’s hunt for Jinx had punished many innocent people.
Caitlyns thought of all the lives that she had damaged. Her actions had cost lives how many children had lost their mother because she lost hers. Caitlyn’s dark thoughts swirled in her head. All the damage she caused was too much, but then another gust of wind blows through the harbor, breaking her out of her thoughts.
The water swirled as Caitlyn stared out blankly. Shakily pulling her legs up from over the edge of the dock and resting her head on her knees to watch as the water moves. Colors shifting as a layer of oil leaked from Ambessa’s ships moves, stirred by the wind focusing her thoughts again.
Oil and Water. That is what Vi once called Piltover and the Undercity. The water in the bay was pristine crystal and blue. Every gust of wind shifted the ripples in the water causing them to sparkle and shine in the afternoon sun an amazing sight, a blinding sight. But here the oil sits on top of the water just as Vi predicted. The Environment forever stained by the forces of man, a reminder that their actions have consciences.
The water in the Undercity was worse, more oil than water. Caitlyn had not noticed when she was traveling through the Undercities ventilation with her task force. Once she traveled deeper into the fissure to investigate Viktor’s cult, she noticed the state of the water. The water ran down the ravine was colored, murky, and dark, even a place that looked as clean and pristine as Piltover. Viktor had made a shining oasis in the darkest part of the Undercity, but even he could not make the water pure. All the water in the Undercity was tainted by Piltover’s run-off.
The pollution created by the city of progress ran deep in the lungs and blood of the Undercity. Caitlyn had seen it in the eyes of Piltovers people after Jinx’s gases attack. Then she had seen it again in the eyes of the Undercity when she had released the grey. Many people in the Undercity deserved what they got, but many people did not. Caitlyn believes that she has to pay for the damage she caused, but she is not sure how to move forward.
The wind was picking up, maybe she was getting her wish. It seemed like a storm was on its way as large as her swirling thoughts. Caitlyn was thankful that the growing weather kept shaking her out of her thoughts. The water became rocky, and the world seemed to dim as clouds covered the sky. Water begins to drip down, and Caitlyn can see the dark spots forming on the concrete around her.
She turns to face the scars of destruction that Piltover holds behind her. Revenge burned strong and she had scorched Piltover and the Undercity alike. She had been naive to join the enforcers, naive to investigate Silco, and naive to trust Ambessas. Every time she thought she had learned her lesson she only goes to make another mistake. Now all of Piltover and the Undercity have paid the price, united only in suffering brought about by her.
Scorch marks run up the wall starting at the deep gouges where Ambessas’s canons hit. It feels like the white wall of Piltover will always be stained with the black marks of war. The corruption that Viktor brought spikes out from buildings like spider webs of arcane infection spreading away from the epicenter of Jayce and Viktors disappearance.
Caitlyn would do anything to go back to when she and Jayce were young, so she could erase the damage to the city. Caitlyn wishes she could spend one more day watching Jayce work on hextech before the explosion, before Jayce was put on trial, before Jayce met Viktor. If the crystals had never exploded then none of this would have happened, but it did happen.
Caitlyn had nothing to do but move forward. Only she did not know if she could move forward and drag Piltover with her. The Undercity had taken too much from her and Caitlyn had taken too much from the Undercity. The Undercity would not get their independence, but she would not let the people of the Undercity suffer. It is time to bring progress to all of Piltover.
As the wind swept through the harbor agitating the water and sending her hair twisting. She did not feel like she could do anything, but Caitlyn felt like she could do something. She had no choice but to help make Piltover the city of progress again. If not for herself then for the innocent lives she had torn apart in her quest for revenge.
_____
Caitlyn breathes a sigh of relief as another council meeting ends. The sound of voices rise as council members stand moving towards the door. There seems to be a council meeting almost every day now as Piltover recovers from the destruction caused by Ambessa and Viktor. Fear and hope are still fresh on everyone’s minds. Seeing how much Piltover is changing now makes Caitlyn doubt their self-awarded title of “City of Progress”. This is progress now, everyone in Piltover coming together for change.
Mel at the front is always a beacon of strength. Her charisma is the driving force of many of Piltover’s projects. Caitlyn knows that without Mel’s support Jayce could never have pushed hextech to make the hexgates. Mel came to Piltover with a drive for power, unlike so many driven by greed and envy. Mel was driven by something else.
Caitlyn believes it was a need to prove herself to her mother, but that could be her projecting. Caitlyn saw herself in Mel in many ways as a counselor, a survivor, and a daughter. Her every move used to be to prove herself correct and prove her mother wrong. Looking at her now, as the rest of the council left the room Caitlyn could not tell what drove her to progress anymore.
People move slowly out of the door break into groups to discuss individual problems. Sevika, the council representative from the Undercity, is swarmed by people looking for raw material and labor. It had been Mel’s idea to give Sevika the authority to regulate resources in and out of the Undercity. Caitlyn hoped that the power that the Undercity now had would prevent aristocrats from exploiting the people of Undercity. Caitlyn would not delude herself into thinking that this would make the Undercity equal. There is still so much Caitlyn had to do to make up for what she did.
Caitlyn remains seated as she watches everyone leave. As the last people shuffle out and the door shuts behind them, she remains sitting. Staring blankly at the door of the council room. Then a flash of red moving against the white of the pillars catches her eye. Mel moves around the table towards Caitlyn, her new outfit stands bold against the council room. A representation of her new position in Noxus.
She looks at Caitlyn with remorse and for a moment Caitlyn does not remember why but then Mel starts speaking “You’ve grown up into a wonderful young women. Your mother would be proud. I remember the first time Jayce told me about you.”
Oh Janna, Jayce. She and Jayce had been close hadn’t they. Caitlyn opens her mouth to speak, to express her condolences. Mel demurely tilts her head and holds a gentle hand up and Caitlyn’s mouth closes so she can continue.
“Jayce always spoke of you as a little sister I feel like I have failed both you and him.” Mel finished. Now Caitlyn knew what the look of remorse was, but Mel should not hold that type of guilt.
“You have failed no one.” Caitlyn quickly explains as if the idea that any second longer that Mel believes she is to blame for Caitlyn’s missing eye causes her pain. “I knew the risks of battle and I chose to protect Piltover. Without you I would have died. My eye is a small price to pay”
Mel keeps gentle sympathetic eye contact with Caitlyn, and she can tell Mel does not believe her. Mel may be strong enough to look Caitlyn in the eye, but Caitlyn is not. Her eye darts way, and watches Mel run her hand across the table. The golden lines that trace across her hand reflect in the same gold color that fills in the damage done to the council table when Jinx launched her bomb.
Caitlyn could see the same fire that drove her in Mel’s eyes, but it was buried in fear and grief. They had both sought power and had paid the price, Piltover suffering for their hubris. They both believed that they could be more than what their mother saw in them, but instead they had become like their mothers.
Mel looked like Ambessa, she looked strong. The bold red color and glowing gold lines contrasted against her dark clothes made her look like the Noxian she was. “We have both become out mother.” Caitlyn remarks with grim irony. Caitlyn tried to stay away from the council to find a way to help people on her own away, but here she sat in the same chair her mother once held.
Mel’s eyes widened with surprises at the boldness of her comment. But her expression shifts one of amusement, she processes the statement with a slight smile. They both had wanted peace to protect people, but they had only cost people their lives and now they are in the positions they both tried so hard to escape from.
“A wolf has no mercy.” Now Mel looks away, amusement still coloring her face as she looks down at the warships in the harbor. Their red sails stir in the wind standing out against the grey metal of the ships.
The Gold markings on Mel’s face dance in the light, reflecting the rapid shift in her expression. Caitlyn thinks the bold lines that trace across Mel’s skin makes her look powerful more powerful than the splattering of gold dots she decorated her face with before, but she doubts Mel feels the same. Caitlyn does not know how to convince her of how strong she is.
Mel’s fighting reminded her of Ambessa’s determination. She looked like the warrior Ambessa strove to make her. Caitlyn remembered the feeling of the red material as she spared with Ambessa and wondered if Mel had ever spared with her mother like Caitlyn had. Mel probably did and it was not hard to imagine now but when Mel was just another member of the council surrounded in white it was impossible to picture her going up against someone like Ambessa. Mel’s confidence when they faced Ambessa proved she was a capable warrior. Mel was the definition of the principles of Noxus; vision, might, and guile.
“Your mother would be proud of you.” Caitlyn says, hoping Mel will understand, but Mel does not look back at her.
“The only thing that made my mother proud was when I killed her.” Mel quickly retorts, her amused expression falls from her face and a bitter look overtakes her.
Caitlyn could not imagine that was true, but she had been in too much pain when Mel had killed her mother. Even with everything Ambessa had taught her Caitlyn knew nothing of Ambessa true intentions. Caitlyn had been too consumed with her own revenge that she had no idea what Ambessa truly wanted.
Jayce could convince Mel of her strength. Caitlyn had seen them together, how they leaned on each other. “Jayce would be proud of you.” Caitlyn softly assures, and that seemed to strike Mel for a moment.
Understanding fills Mel’s eyes only for a moment before grief overtakes her and she responds with finality, “Jayce and my mother are gone. What does their pride matter now.”
That’s right, Jayce is gone and the people of Piltover are erasing hextech and Viktor. The fear of what happened had caused a new anti-magic sentiment to sweep across Piltover. Jayce at least gets the honor of being a martyr though, Caitlyn cannot say the same for people’s view of Viktor. It is easy for people to blame an ambitious young man from the Undercity for everything that had gone wrong. Caitlyn was partly to blame in her anger at Viktor for taking Jayce away, she did nothing to preserve Viktor’s legacy. She let him disappear knowing that is not what Jayce would have wanted.
All the time Jayce made sure Viktor’s name was on blueprints or plaques. Every party Jayce made a point of bringing Viktor meant nothing. She could not help but feel guilty like all the love that Jayce felt for Viktor meant nothing, but she could not make herself honor Viktor. And now she had to make another person who understood Jayce disappear.
“Mel, I am sorry. You and the Noxus forces cannot stay here.” Caitlyn says looking determinedly into Mel’s eye. Her expression did not change, she knew this was coming and knew that Caitlyn was the one that had to tell her to leave. “I believe that you could take Piltover into a new age, but with your recent discovery of your magic the people will not trust you. It has just been proven to all of Piltover that magic cannot be trusted. The people of Piltover will not trust me as long as I allow you and your mercenaries to stay.”
Caitlyn keeps her voice even, but her face betrays her regret. Mel takes mercy on her and gently says “don’t worry I understand. Under my mother’s order Noxus warriors attacked Piltover you can not allow us to stay.”
Caitlyn does not know what else to do. She is not sure how to assure Mel of her strength to make her understand how much Caitlyn wants her to stay. It feels wrong to just let Mel leave. Piltover is losing a great leader and Caitlyn is losing a friend. So, instead of saying anything Caitlyn stands up and wraps her arms around Mel tightly in a hug.
“Send word if you ever need me.” Caitlyn says softly before pulling back to look at Mel “You do not have to face this alone” They smile at each other and Mel draws Caitlyn back into a hug.
“Neither do you” Mel responds “We can learn from our mistakes and move forward. Do not let this tragedy be what holds you back.” Caitlyn does not believe Mel’s words just like Mel does not believe in her strength. How could Caitlyn move forward but she has a duty to Piltover. Her mother, Jayce, and Mel had spent their lives improving Piltover. Caitlyn owed it to all of them to make Piltover the city of progress once again.
_____
Caitlyn and Vi sat quietly in the late evening. The sun just disappeared far enough behind the horizon that the city is plunged into darkness. There are not enough people or energy in the city to keep the lights running so the only illumination is the glow of the fire in the room behind her. Caitlyn is trembling again, she and VI huddle close to the fire. She wishes she could move away from the fire, but she does not know how to explain to Vi her shaking is not from the cold.
Caitlyn was more nervous than normal tonight she wanted to hold Vi close even if it was just for a moment longer. Maybe if they sat in silence a little bit more, she would calm down enough, but she knew nothing good would come from keeping the information from Vi. She took a deep breath and shifted nervously. Vi stilled and seemed to wait for what Caitlyn wanted to say.
“I think Jinx may still be alive.” Caitlyn whispered softly with her head tucked against Vi’s shoulder, so despite her soft tone Vi heard her perfectly.
“Oh” Vi breaths out her face going blank and her arms going slack around Caitlyn. Caitlyn’s arms tighten locking Vi in place. They sit in silence Caitlyn not moving in fear of shaking Vi out of her thoughts and into action.
Her anxiety sits low in her stomach tightening and releasing with each breath. She wants to give Vi a moment to process, but she can focus on anything but Vi’s slack body in her hold.
“Will you go after her? “Caitlyn asks with trepidation afraid that Vi will decide that Caitlyn’s mistakes are too much and leave. That Vi will choose her sister. Caitlyn had seen how Vi looked at her sister in Viktor’s cult. Vi looked happy like she had finally found her family again and Caitlyn did not know if she could fill that place for Vi after everything she had done.
Vi pulls away from Caitlyn with no small amount of strength. Vi’s hand gripping Caitlyn’s shoulder and her face unreadable. Vi seems to be looking for something but Caitlyn cannot tell what.
“No…” Vi pauses searching Caitlyn’s face again. Caitlyn cannot tell if she found what she was looking for because her face draws down in a frown and she continues.
“No, I won’t give up the family I have for one in the past.” Vi breaths deeply steeling herself to keep speaking “I wish I had realized it before, but Jinx is right. She changed and I changed, everyone in my life has changed” Vi takes a gasping breath as she has to force her voice past the thickness in her voice. Caitlyn wants to speak but her voice gets stuck in throat and before she can think of forcing something out Vi continues.
“I was trying to protect something I had in my past, and I let people leave me behind. I am ready to change. I don’t want to be left behind, I want to change with you.” At Vi’s admission Caitlyn’s eyes begin to tear up. Vi was willing to change for her, because of her.
“I’ll change with you we can become our selves together. I would like it if a piece of me could change into a piece of you.” Caitlyn heaved out tears pouring over. Then quietly Caitlyn whispers “I love you Vi”
Vi let out a sob that Caitlyn had not noticed building in her own emotions. Vi cups her hands around Caitlyn’s faces as she tears. Her face drawing down then up like Vi cannot decide between the horrible despair of her swirling emotion or the elation of loving Caitlyn. Her emotions overflow and she starts crying uncontrollably.
“I… love… I…Lov…” Vi tries to force out as her rapid breathing makes it hard for her to speak. Instead, Vi pulls Caitlyn’s face in and slams their lips together more wetly pressing their lips together than Kissing. Their tears and emotions make it hard to control their bodies, but Caitlyn returns Vi Kiss just as strongly.
Her arms circling Vi’s waist and weaking trying to pull her closer as she shakes and cries through their kiss. Caitlyn only pulls back when her racing heart demands oxygen. Vi and her stare at each other, their minds racing and their chests heaving. Caitlyn looks Vi in the eyes and knows that things can be good again. She can make them good and Vi will make them good right alongside her.
“I love you, cupcake” Vi says softly, and Caitlyn believes her.