Scrapyard Angels Act 1 Chapter 27
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Recovery wasn’t as easy as Singed said it would be. I was in a great deal of pain most of the time which compounded the difficulty of adjusting to my new balance as well as getting used to my senses. However, as difficult as it was, I had Vi and Jinx supporting me every step of the way.
“Ok, just one last test! Once you finish this, I heard Singed’s going to allow you back home.” Vi encouraged me as I held on the wall for support.
“The faster you learn how to walk again, the faster we can strap something on your new arm and legs!” Shouted Jinx making me chuckle. Looking down, I clenched the fingers of my replacement hand.
My right arm and right legs were gone and in place of them were simple powered prostheses. They weren’t the best in the market but they were not the worst either. They were as bog standard as you can get which made them heavy and clunky. The weight was throwing me off but it was still better than not being able to stand and write at all.
Right ahead was one of the many halls of Singed’s building. The man’s laboratory was a large complex right at the heart of Zaun. He had a lot of space for someone whose allegiance is only to himself. With great effort, I powered onward. I let go of the wall as I walked forward. Step after step, I kept going until I finally reached the end of the hall. There, I was greeted by a great big hug by both Vi and Jinx.
“I’m so proud of you right now, Ark.” Vi whispered as a warm smile stretched across her face. All that effort was worth it just to see her smile.
“It took you quite a while, huh?” Jinx asked as she and Vi pulled back from our group hug. I gently stroked her hair with my prosthetic hands. Having no tactile feedback made it difficult to do things but I made due.
“Yeah. It’s not like it’s a race. I’d rather walk slowly and stay upright rather than fall flat on my face.” I replied.
“Think you can walk to Singed’s office with us?” Vi asked with a teasing grin to which I replied with a gentle punch on the shoulder.
“Ow, now look who’s the violent one!” Vi said in mock pain as she held onto her shoulder.
“And here I thought I was the comedian.” I replied as I leaned close and gave her a chaste kiss on the lips. Jinx gagged at the sight as she faked barfing.
“Ewww! Why do you guys keep kissing?” She asked.
“You’ll understand when you’re older…” I stopped for a bit, thinking about it before adding a quick request. “Just make sure you tell us who you'll give your first kiss to, right Vi?”.
“Yeah, we’ll make sure to give them a piece of our mind.” Vi chuckled darkly as she cracked her knuckles while I grinned back. Oh we’ll give them a piece of our mind alright.
“One, ewww. Two, boys are icky.” Jinx answered back before blowing a raspberry at us.
“You never know~ Who knows? Maybe you’ll find someone in the future.” I teased back.
Jinx rolled her eyes at that before she reached out and wrapped her hand around our shoulders. "Why would I look for a boyfriend when I have you two! We'll be forever together ok?".
"Awwww, come here you!" Vi puckered her lips as she threatened to kiss Jinx on the cheeks. Our little sister cried in surprise as she tried to lean away only for her other cheek to meet my lips. She froze allowing Vi to plant a kiss on her cheeks as well.
We laughed as Jinx groaned out before pulling away from our hold and stomped away fuming. She was so cute with how red she was. She was too precious at times and that just makes me want to hug her and hold her. She deserves to be the happiest girl in Zaun.
We joked a bit more before heading for Singed's lab. Even if I'm getting used to walking with my new leg, I still need to use a cane to walk around. I'll get rid of it eventually, but for now I was stuck with it.
I knocked on the door to his office and he called out to us. "Come in".
All three of us filtered in, making great care not to make too much noise as the inventor worked on something, before closing the door behind us. His lab wasn't what I expected. I thought there would be more cages and maybe some human experimentation but it was just a normal chemistry lab filled with mundane beakers and flasks. The only thing that stood out were containers and instruments used for Chems.
"Ahhh, Ark and family. I was expecting you three today. It has been a week hasn't it?" He asked as he set down the instrument he was using and turned his attention towards us. There in front of him was a bowl of soup next to a beaker full of powder.
"It has. Getting used to my new limbs can be challenging but I'm getting better with them." I replied. I didn’t have to deal with the healing process too much thanks to healing potions. The wounds were easy to deal with but the pain wasn’t something you could potion away unless you want to get addicted to painkillers.
I was no longer toppling over or accidentally breaking things with my grip. My limbs were a marvel of engineering. Cheap and relatively affordable. It was no automail but it was close. Powered by small tanks of chems, my arm was just as good as my old one if you ignored how bad my fine control was or how I could no longer feel with my right hand.
I had to learn to do stuff with my left hand but I almost had a month to do stuff and a half month in Singed’s Lab was making me antsy. I missed the world outside and I missed Whump and Mr Floofington.
"Now, I expect you to come back here every month so we can continue monitoring your health. The long term effects of your accident are still unknown after all. Also, take these every day.” Singed said as he stood up and pulled out a small bottle of pills.
“Aren’t you going back to Noxus by the end of this month?” I asked. I seemed to have been mistaken about the Ionian war. It wasn’t about to happen but it already is in full swing, I just hadn’t noticed it. The recent uptick in the economy was more of a result of the war ramping up. While the Noxian War Machine is powerful, one could say it’s industrial heart just can’t quite keep up which made it necessary to buy from Zaun.
“I was until my attention was needed elsewhere. While the deal with Noxus was lucrative, things here can be just as lucrative.” He replied as he gestured at the steaming bowl of soup to which I nodded.
“On the matter of your medication.They’re used to deal with the pain but don’t take too much at one time. They can be quite potent.” He warned me. I wasn’t one to go against a doctor's order as I nodded.
“While I would say that you’re ready to take the exam, you can rest for several days before going back to the Vereza’s. It could take years before you get used to your new limbs so do be careful.” He said before waving us off. “Miss Vi, do keep him out of trouble.”
With that, I was discharged without much fanfare. I was given my wings or what was left of them, a twisted piece of scrap metal. I needed to make a new set of wings. My old clothes didn’t fare any better, but thankfully I was given some spares. A bit baggy but I could grow into them, or so I hoped. I was starting to have my doubts when Jinx started getting taller than I was.
I missed a lot of things in my time in the hospital. While Vi and Jinx watched over me, one of them still needed to go back to our little hole in the ground to make sure no one was going to steal our stuff which we had yet to move to our new home.
Speaking of home, I still need to get back to work so I could get the keys as well as tell them when I’m ready to do the exams. I was sorely tempted to get to work and take the exam as soon as possible just so we can have a better place to call home.
There was also the topic of Jinx’s birthday, which is getting quite close already. We had barely a week to prepare for it and it was hard to keep it a surprise for her but we managed to discuss things when she was asleep.
“Let’s go back home” I said with a certain fondness to it. Even if it was almost a literal hole in the ground, it was still home after all.
“Race you there!” Jinx whooped as she ran off on her own leaving Vi and I gaping in her wake.
“Jinx! Come back here!” Vi shouted, almost ready to run after her only to stop and sighed, exasperated at our sister's almost boundless energy. Shaking her head, she walked with me as we tried to catch up to her.
“Eh, let her have her fun. Plus, we could talk about her birthday.” I said to which Vi nodded in agreement.
“Actually yeah. What do you have planned? Our budget’s kinda strained right now, though we do have some extra silver cogs to spend because we no longer need to make a deposit on our planned apartment.” I was out of work while I recovered and Vi had yet to find a new job. We still had the gold from my allowance however, but even then; that was getting strained. I needed to get back to work as soon as possible.
“Thinking of buying her a small cake. Nothing special really. Just something sweet for her to nibble on.” I replied. I already had something in mind. I just needed to fix my wings to get there. Either that or I’d need to walk all the way there and I didn’t fancy my chances of outrunning overly vigilant enforcers. It’s goddamn profiling, that’s what they do.
Before Vi could reply, Jinx came running back at us. “Come on you two! I swear Mr Floofington and Whump really miss us. Cindy’s house is nice and all but those two need action. They need adventure!”. The smile on her face was as radiant as the sun and those big doe eyes of hers just captured how fragile innocence was.
“Well, you heard the girl.” I then said as I looked at Vi. Vi snorted in amusement as she lifted me off my feet, sweeping me away like the princess in a story. Now it was now my turn to turn red as Vi carried me off.
“Come on Vi, I could walk you know...” I said as I tried to convince her to put me down.
“Well you did say you want to get there faster, right?” Vi replied, making me cover my face out of embarrassment. People were already staring. I wouldn’t be able to live this down would I?
“Enough flirting, more running!” Jinx shouted as she led the way.
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Getting back home was always a welcome feeling. The familiar scent and the sight of the worn out second hand furniture made me feel safe. As we settled down, I held onto our animal companions and showered them with kisses.
"I'm never going to leave you two ever again." I whispered as I held onto the two. They might struggle and gasp in my hold, but I'm sure they're just breathless about getting to see us again.
I eventually let them go as we looked around so we could start packing up. While we still didn’t have the apartment yet, it wasn't bad to prepare for the eventual move. We were just doing this to burn off the excess excitement after all.
We got to work pretty soon and we started packing up. Sifting through the junk we had brought me down memory lane. It had been a wild few months. In the past 6 months, we went from total strangers sharing the same hole for shelter to loving family. We packed things in neat little piles in the boxes which used to be my makeshift furniture. The scraps we gathered to make my primitive device. The actual furniture we bought, small used chairs we'd eventually carry to our new home. I even pulled out the small box that we found the namestone in.
There was still a being inside here and I wasn't sure what I could do. I didn't exactly know where this one came from but I knew they came from Shurima. Maybe I'll go there one day to return them? That was still a far off prospect however as I still didn't have any income that was big enough to allow me to make such a trip.
My attention was soon caught as Vi raised her voice "Jinx, where did you get this?".
There in Vi's hand was a familiar weapon that I wouldn't simply forget. It was that same hand held gatling gun which Jinx used when she came to my rescue.
"You kept that thing?" I asked, surprise tinting my voice. I knew she liked guns but I didn't know she'd drag that thing through several kilometers of tunnels.
"Yeah! I named her Pow Pow! Well, I'm still kinda unsure about the name. I thought of naming her Galadriel but she lacks the grace for it. Maybe Princess Pow?" Jinx grabbed the gun and held it close to her like it was a prized possession. Well, it was that far off considering how expensive they were in the market. It no longer had the same Copper color it once had and was now painted purple. It was still far too big and unmodified for that particular version but it was slowly turning that way.
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"I wasn't lying when I told you guys I made this bad girl! She was mounted in this beautifully carved carriage but she wasn't being used so I took her away!" She babbled on before she set it down. It, or rather she I suppose, was an impressive piece of Chemtech Machinery. A tri-barreled gatling gun sporting a chemtech battery to power the rotary engine. She currently lacked bullets... right?
Vi and I stared at the gun for a while before Vi spoke up "I… you know what, I'm kinda proud you took this gun back home. Good job I guess?”.
There were almost no rules in Zaun after all. Owning a gun was almost as universal as owning a sword or a knife. Jinx had just decided that a simple pistol wouldn’t be good enough so she took the biggest baddest gun she could get. Considering how crazy our little family is, Pow Pow isn’t exactly that unusual. I do love my family.
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Getting back to work was an experience all on its own. It was almost a return to normality of sorts. There were new faces as well old familiar faces who greeted me when I came back. It felt good being able to work again even if I was slightly handicaped.
Meeting the boss was a bit nerve wracking but after all that had happened, it seemed almost kinda funny how I felt quite afraid of meeting Carmen Vereza again. As the Vereza matriarch promised, I was given the keys to my new apartment along with an unexpected surprise.
“Here’s the key to your apartment and here’s a week’s wage.” I stared numbly at the small sack pressed into my hand. I could feel the coins inside.
“But I missed work…?” I replied but held my tongue at the last second. I regret saying those words now that my boss turned her attention towards me once again. Sick leaves weren’t a thing in Zaun. You work, you get paid. You get sick, too bad.
“I’ll be honest Mr. Ark, it’s not something I usually do but it’s been a tough month without you in the Tropical Garden. Just think of it as a bonus for coming back.” She replied, making me snort in amusement. The high humidity and heat did deter a lot of the garden hands even before the recent events.
“I could only imagine ma’am” She rolled her eyes at my response.
“I assume that you can do your exam within this week?” She asked to which I nodded. She then addde “Do know that this is your second and last shot so do not fuck this up. Are we clear?”.
“Yes ma’am.” I replied, leaving any humor out of my answer. I could only imagine what they had to do to get me rescheduled. I didn’t want to disappoint.
With that, she waved me off but before I got out of her office, she called for me. “By the way Mr Ark, it’s good to have you back” She said with a soft smile on her face. I returned a smile of my own as I left her office. It was good to be back.
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The exams were a short and brutal affair. The College of Techmaturgy clearly expected excellence in their students, as I could see some topics one could expect from college education to filter in. It might also be this way to remove any applicant’s who couldn’t afford to get a good education but that might just be over-thinking on my part.
There were dozens of applicants with me when I took the exam. There in a large lecture hall, we were made to sit and answer the exam while under the gaze of an ever vigilant proctor. I felt like there would have been more students here taking the exams but circumstances might have pushed our group into taking the exams later.
It might have been my nerves but I almost felt like I was being watched from every direction. It was either that or there were magical shenanigans involved. Still, I didn’t let that affect me as I answered away.
There were no multiple choice answers, there were just questions and alot of essays involved. Everything felt like it was made to make examinee’s choke under the pressure. The silent scribbling of quill filled the room while a loud mechanical clock ticked in the background.
I grumbled silently as I was forced to write with my left hand. Ball point pens should be easy to make, right?
It might have just been the longest six hours of my life before the exam finally finished. I left the room without the burden of worrying about any more future exams and knowing that I was already halfway to fulfilling my end of the bargain with the Vereza’s. I just needed to wait till the result of the exams was mailed to our address.
With that little out of the way, there was one last thing to do in my agenda today. Two actually but that would be for much later.
“Freedom!” Jinx cried out as we walked through the busy Entresol crowd. The city of glass and steel never truly sleeps making almost every single waking hour a busy one.
“Why does it sound like you’re the one that took my exam?” I asked, half amused at how happy she looked.
“I might as well have with how long we waited!” She fired back.
“It wasn’t that bad” Vi then said.
“It was six hours long. For a girl like me, it might as well have been forever! We just sat there along with the parents and guardians.”
“Didn’t you make friends with one of the kids?” Vi asked and this got me all curious.
“Oh?” I asked, genuine interest in my voice.
“They were nice until they asked where I was born. Stupid bitch got all snobby at me.” Jinx said, pouting and clearly upset from the encounter. It was annoying but it was a common thing among the richer people of Zaun.
“Well, scratch that then. They don’t know what they were missing when they said no to my cute little sister.” Vi said as she pulled her into a tight hug.
“It’s alright Jinx. I’m sure she didn’t know better.” I added before giving her a much deserved head pat. She needs cheering up and it just so happened today was her birthday as well.
“Well, it’s getting late so let’s go home. I think there’s still some biscuits from yesterday in the pantry.” I said as I glanced over to Vi conspiratorially. She smiled back and nodded. Jinx was oblivious to our silent exchange as she picked up her pace.
We headed for the Rising Howl to get back home. The massive elevator was a sight to behold. Paying for the fee, we slipped in without any problem. There in the middle of the crowd, a thought then hit me.
“Hey Vi, did you ever take that crazy rite of passage stuff the other kids kept talking about?” I asked her as we felt the mechanical contraption come to life.
“You mean the challenge to become one of the big kids? Yeah, what about it?” Vi replied easily as the elevator started moving up.
“Does riding inside the Rising Howl count?”
“Wait, you haven’t done any of it? Seriously?”
“What? I kinda feel they’re stupid. Who wants to risk a limb just for a dare?”
“Of all the people, really?”
“Wait, Ark hasn't done any of the challenges yet?” Jinx suddenly piped up making me turn towards her in disbelief.
“Am I the only one that hasn’t done those challenges?” I asked incredulously.
“Umm duh?” Jinx looked at me like I was the crazy one
“You know what, I say this counts. If it doesn’t I just fly up to the top of old Hungry.”
“But that’s cheating!” Shouted Vi as she laughed at the thought. Old Hungry was the hardest challenge to deal with. After all, how’d you climb atop a giant mechanical clock tower if you don’t have access to the service hatch? It seems that it didn’t account for any of the kids that could fly.
“They never said you can’t fly to the top of the tower.” I replied with a smug smile on my face. It was then that the Rising Howl finally reached the Promenade Level and we had to get off
The trip to our new home was a relatively quiet affair. There, nestled far away from the hustle and bustle of the busy streets of the Promenade was our quaint little apartment. It was merely a five story building just beneath the very streets of Piltover itself. We could literally climb up to Piltover if we ever wanted to
Climbing up the stairs, I smiled widely as Jinx led the way. Up we went, up the stairs until we reached the third floor. We were nestled between several noisy neighbors from all sides but it was worth the free rent.
Jinx pulled out the key from her pocket and opened the door. There she was greeted by the cheers of both Bob and Cindy with cake in hand.
“Surprise!” We all shouted as banners and streamers decorated the whole room. It was bigger than our old home and barely furnished at this point but it was home as we knew it. A big banner with the words “Happy 12th Nameday Jinx!” painted across the fabric.
She stood there for a second before tears started streaming out of her eyes. We sort of panicked as Vi and I pulled her into a hug. That was when the floodgates opened and she bawled her eyes out.
“What’s wrong? Don’t you like it?” I asked
“Did something get in your eyes?” Vi asked while Cindy walked over to us in concern
Jinx rubbed the corners of her eyes as she replied "N-No, I like it. I-I like it a lot. I-its just that I'm so happy right now."
"Come one Jinx, don't joke like that. You're making me cry as well!" Vi was starting to tear up as well.
We held her all the tighter as I found myself crying as well. We cried in happiness knowing that our lives had changed for the better. We narrowly averted disaster and now here we were inside an apartment in the Promenade celebrating the birthday of one of our own. Things had been a roller coaster and we just let our emotions flow.
Eventually, we managed to pull ourselves from each other and finally got down to celebrating. We ate and made merry for today was a special day. I even sang an ever so familiar song that I never knew I'd get to sing again, getting me all sorts of looks but they were looks of happiness and of amusement. It was safe to say that at that moment, Jinx was the happiest girl in Zaun.
Soon the celebrations died down as Jinx fell asleep. Vi and I said goodbye to Cindy and Bob, and we were left alone in our apartment, cleaning up the mess from the small, yet fun, party.
As Vi was sweeping the floor while I picked up the dishes, I made my move. I needed to tell her the truth, of my origins and what I was. I couldn’t keep things from her knowing how close we'd gotten.
"Vi, I need to tell you something important." I said, calling her attention
She froze up before turning towards me. "Yeah?"
I close my eyes, psyching myself up for my answer. Breathing out, I then said "Vi… I know this might sound crazy but… I'm not an ordinary boy. I remember my last life, I was reincarnated. I’ve been hiding this for a while but now I wanted to tell you about this secret."
Vi blinked as she stared at me while I started to sweat. I didn't know what to tell her even when I knew I had to tell her my secret. Her brows scrunched up in confusion before it turned into irritation as she gave me a punch in the shoulder
I hissed out as gently placed down the dishes before holding my poor aching shoulder.
"Owww." I groaned out
"What the hell was that! I thought you were going to propose to me and you dropped that bomb on me!" She half hissed out as she tried not to shout in fear of waking up Jinx.
"Sorry, well I was going to propose to you but I really felt like I needed to tell you this first!" I apologized. I couldn't forget my promise to her.
I stood there awkwardly as she fumed silently. Rubbing my shoulder, I asked her "So… does this change how you look at me?"
Vi looked at me for a second before asking "Are you still Ark?"
"Well yeah, I'm the same boy you punched in the tunnel" I answered back easily. How could I forget about that moment? Maybe it was love at first punch rather than first sight.
"Then does it matter? Come here you!" Grabbing me by the collar of my shirt, she pulled me in for a kiss once again. All my worries melted away as I kissed back.
This was my life now. You could be my happily ever after but life isn't always like that. There was still the future to look forward to. New challenges to face as well as new hurdles to overcome. As for what happens next? That will be a story for another time. For now though, I'll just enjoy life as it is right now.
End of Act 1