Chapter 77: Jinx, Ekko, Isha, Silco

"Where do you live?"

Isha, balancing her newly acquired bag of goodies between her arms, made a flurry of hand signs. Orion frowned, not understanding.

She rolled her eyes and shook her head in exaggerated frustration.

"Any family left?"

"Nn." She shook her head again.

'Ah, what to do... Her sticking around me is a problem.'

His thoughts drifted back to all of the explosions surrounding him, Silco's demeanor, and the inevitable conflict in his path.

Isha, from Arcane, well, there wasn't much information about her other than she was a miner- and her death was tragic. And the explosion she died from? He could all too easily picture her beside him when the next disaster struck.

And he wasn't walking a peaceful road.

A small tug on his sleeve broke his trance. Isha held up a skewer of meat.

"Oh, how generous," Orion drawled sarcastically, rolling his eyes but accepting it anyway. "How did you ever afford this?"

"Nn." She smirked, shrugging.

Orion chuckled softly, shaking his head. He could still eat fifty more of these. And he was going to.

'No harm in her tagging along while I raid a few joints.'

Together, they roamed between stalls, tearing through different foods with bottomless pits.

Isha was like a piranha, inhaling everything in sight. Her eyes went huge when she tried hard candy for the first time, giggling when she bit into the softer, marshmallow-like ones.

Then, turning to Orion, she bared her teeth- coated in sticky, bright-red candy- and let out a low, growling snarl like a predator.

"Uh-huh, I'm sure you could challenge Volibear with those teeth- and those looks."

With an impish grin, she did it again- this time toward a passing kid.

The child screamed dramatically, clutching his mother's leg in horror. The woman glared daggers at Orion.

He ignored her completely, chuckling as he tugged Isha back. "Alright, alright, let's get going. I'll help you get back."

He had no interest in listening to Jayce's speech. He already knew what would be said.

"Piltover is a city of progress. We will keep moving forward."

And, of course, Jayce would refrain from revealing his new Hextech inventions- out of respect for Heimerdinger's safety concerns.

'After I take revenge on Greyson, I'll kill Jayce and Viktor and destroy the Hexgates. Then I'm gone.'

--------------

"Alright, get going." Orion said, waving dismissively once they were back in the Undercity.

He felt a little bad, but he'd done more than enough for Isha. They shared a good time, their stomachs were full, and she had new toys- stuffed animals, crayons, paper. She'd be fine.

"Nn..."

Orion glanced back.

Isha stood in the middle of the street, clutching her bag of goodies tightly. Her eyes, big and pitiful, stared up at him like he'd just kicked her.

"Do you want me to feel bad?" Orion asked, brow arched.

She didn't blink.

'Damn. I'm arguing with a mute kid...' Orion groaned internally.

"Look," he said, turning and stepping closer. "I can't bring you where I'm going. You could get hurt."

Isha took a bold step forward, defiant.

Her lip quivered, her eyes shimmering with unspoken protest. And just as Orion sighed, ready to argue further—

She dropped the bag.

Orion barely caught it before she latched onto his leg.

"..."

Orion's gaze hollowed, his hand lowering, about to pull her away, when a voice interrupted.

"You're abandoning the kid?" A sharp voice rang out.

-----------

From an outsider's perspective, it was like watching a tragic drama unfold.

Orion kept walking, leaving behind the kid he had fed and played with all day. The little girl looked like she was about to cry, her grip tightening on the bag of goodies he had given her.

Powder's face twisted in anger.

The breaking point came when Isha suddenly latched onto Orion's leg. His eyes turned hollow, cold, his hand lowering to push her away.

Powder couldn't take it anymore. Despite Ekko trying to pull her back, she stepped forward, her voice sharp with accusation.

"You're abandoning the kid?"

Orion's eyes drifted up slowly, his expression darkening.

"It isn't safe where I'm going."

Powder raised her voice. "And where is that, exactly? I'd sure as hell like to know." She briskly closed the distance between them, her frustration evident in every step. "Especially when your abandoning a kid in front of us to go there!"

Ekko followed, stepping into view. Orion's eyes widened slightly- not in shock, but recognition. He had already spotted them earlier, but now there was no avoiding them.

"You've grown up pretty well, little man."

"Answer her question," Ekko snapped, refusing to be sidetracked.

Isha still clung to his leg, undeterred by his gentle prodding to move. She was taking full advantage of the situation to stop him from abandoning her.

Orion's expression tightened, "Does it matter that much to you?" His voice was measured, guarded. "We haven't seen each other in six years."

Powder's face shifted, a flicker of hurt flashing across her expression at the coldness of his words. She crossed her arms, fingers tapping against her sleeve as if grounding herself.

"It does to me," she said, her voice quieter but firm. "So... let's talk? I know you were upset, but so were we. You didn't have to disappear like that."

Ekko stepped up beside her, arms loosely crossed in a casual stance, but his sharp eyes took in everything. That's when he noticed Orion's eyes.

Purple.

That was never the case before. And down here in the Undercity, there was only one thing he knew of that could change someone's eyes like that.

Orion's gaze lowered slightly. A small glint of hope flickered in his expression, just for a second.

"What…" Orion started slowly, his voice hesitant. "What was the last thing you heard about me?"

Powder scoffed. "Are you trying to be funny?"

Orion shook his head.

She let out a sharp breath, irritation creeping into her voice. "The last thing we heard was you slamming the door before you left us."

Orion visibly deflated. His shoulders slumped, his posture loosening in a way that seemed unnatural for him. Powder and Ekko exchanged a quick glance, suddenly unsure. Even Isha looked up at him, her grip on his leg tightening slightly.

His voice came out hoarse. "Nothing… not a word from Vander?"

Powder blinked, confused. "No…?"

They found his behavior strange, but Orion was both seething and quietly breaking apart inside.

Powder, Vi, the gang- none of them knew anything.

A relief. Yet it made everything worse.

"Did you search for me?" he asked.

"Of course-" Powder started, but something about his tone made her snap. "Why are you asking these weird questions? You're the one who disappeared!"

Silence settled between them as Powder glared, but Ekko remained wary. He had seen people break before—seen the way their minds cracked under pressure. And Orion looked like he was at that point. Powder's persistence wasn't helping.

"Let's take a moment to-"

"You know," Orion cut in, and Ekko tensed at his tone, his gut twisting at the next words. "Silco saved me when I blew up topside trying to save you guys."

"What?" Powder and Ekko blurted in unison, confusion flashing across their faces.

"Yeah," Orion continued with a low, mocking chuckle. "Silco. I don't know if you knew, but he was the one giving me jobs before Vander told me to cut ties with him."

"Yeah, we heard about that," Ekko responded sharply, stepping forward while Powder clutched her arm- a nervous habit she hadn't outgrown.

"That's good, that's good..." Orion nodded, but there was no warmth in his voice. Only disdain. "So when I left after our little fight, I so happened to save the Undercity. Twice. A bunch of explosions, flashy lights-"

"The factory explosion and the beam of light was you?" Ekko interrupted, demanding answers.

Orion's gaze snapped to him, sharp with displeasure. Ekko instinctively stiffened, feeling the dangerous glint behind his eyes.

"Yes," Orion confirmed. "It was on Vander's turf, and since then, I've spent six years rotting in Stillwater Hold."

Powder's expression flickered with shock, her grip tightening on her sleeve. "But you're out now... How?"

A pause.

"Silco."