EVENT #10: AFFLICTION - IC POST

[abraxasmods]

Event #10 - Affliction

go to the OOC event info & plotting post

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With tensions heavy across Abraxas and all the destruction that's happened, it's no surprise that the dark shadows which sweep over the land go unnoticed...at first.

Winds initially stir in Solvunn, where the influence of the Old Gods remains the strongest. Slowly each Herald infects Thorne and the Free Cities, as well. The Summoned are the first to feel its effects and are the most heavily impacted.

Though no one will realize it until well afterwards, Nocwich remains unaffected. After all, the Summoned don't reside there.

NOTE: This event will deal with themes of death (people and animal) and horror imagery.

Emergence

It begins sometime in mid-October, around the 18th. Not everyone will experience it at the same time. You might even believe you're spared until days afterwards when you're visited by an unusually vivid dream.

The dream starts the same for everyone: you are going somewhere, anywhere, walking to your bedroom or enjoying a stroll on the beach. You might be driving down a familiar neighborhood. Wherever you're headed, you eventually come upon a stone tablet engraved with your Arcana. Laid on the tablet are three objects:

◎ A dead moth trapped inside a wilted rose, symbolizing Koth of Festering Lands
◎ A teacup inside which sits a single nightshade berry, symbolizing Adlewyrd of Poisoned Tongues
◎ An ornate cracked hand mirror that contains no reflection, symbolizing Sannleikr of Many Faces

Make a choice. Something inside your soul will be drawn towards one of the objects. Maybe you spend hours in the dream deliberating, but sooner or later, you'll pick one of the items up. The moment you do, the other objects vanish and the chosen Herald appears before you. Where one might expect a god to seek subservience, the strange figure instead extends a friendly hand towards you - as though it's greeting you as an equal.

Whispered around you, you hear its name. Then it fades and with it the dream. You awaken.

Affliction

You go about your day as usual. That's when you realize something isn't right. Creatures and people around you behave strangely. You begin to sense that you are the cause.

Depending on your chosen Herald, you'll experience at least one of its afflictions. The effects might start small, then grow. They might rush you all at once. You can't shake what haunts you, though you can try. Spells, potions, and willpower can help keep the afflictions at bay but you won't ever be completely free.

As the afflictions seep into your mind, you start to find shadows of it following you: a dead moth here, a nightshade bloom there, a cracked mirror elsewhere. You may even wonder if it's following you in the first place. What if instead, you are the one leaving these signs behind?

Corruption

The first time you inflict your ability on someone else, you don't mean to. It might be a stranger, some unsuspecting soul, or it might be another Summoned. Regardless, the afflictions that ail you seem to spread through you into another. Someone falls down as if in the throes of an invisible death or secrets spill. You brush by someone and they're suddenly upset and confused.

The more this happens, intentionally or not, the better you feel. You may grow full of life and energy, gain a renewed strength of heart, or radiate a charm that turns heads and garners compliments. The afflictions haunting you could even start to fade or completely vanish. And if you use your newfound power deliberately? You'll feel better even faster for longer. Of course, these boons are temporary, lasting at most an hour or so. When the feeling wanes, you might miss having it.

You are not possessed. You can't control this power that spreads through you, but how you respond or behave is up to you. You could be attracted to the allure of power, enjoy the boons you are granted, or realize you can gain relief from your afflictions if you choose a victim. Not everyone will fall headfirst into the pull. Some are not easily swayed by power, some struggle to overcome their dark impulses, and others would rather endure their suffering than inflict it on someone else. But others still might succumb to temptation and turn on those around them with purpose: once, twice, multiple times. The choice you make is yours alone.

Blight

With the call of the Herald at your fingertips, the world around you twists. No one knows whether this stems from you and your newly imbued afflictions, or if the Heralds are exerting power on their own. It's for sure easier to think of what occurs as the influence of something monstrous beyond your control. No matter the cause, the earth is changed all the same.

Omens

The omens arrive shortly after the initial Summoned receive their dreams, but they don't come to every faction at once. SOLVUNN is first, being home to the Old Gods' shrines, before THORNE and the FREE CITIES follow only days afterwards. Depending on where you are, the omens will affect things a bit differently.

Solvunn

In Solvunn, the ground stirs. A desiccated hand breaks through the grass, a cloven hoof. Human or animal, they crawl forth, animated against their will. Some might attack, but most do not. At the same time, crops around the settlements begin to fail. Some chickens lay rotten eggs while cows produce spoiled milk. Any livestock that perishes overnight will surface in the mornings with empty eye sockets - pecked out by crows or gnawed on by rats. From a distance, the ocean can be seen bubbling as leviathans beneath thrash.

Worth noting is that many of the dead are concentrated around the shrines, especially the ones deep in the woods. They're too decayed to recognize, and some might not even move from the site, as though they are waiting for the earth to take them again...or as though they once chose to give up their life at this very spot.

Summoned can assist by helping to cast spells or place warding charms around shrines, farms, and gardens to protect crops and livestock. As a commune, the Solvunnites will share their resources as much as possible and would appreciate those who might lend a hand bringing supplies, herbs, and offerings to neighbors who are lacking. The Summoned can also brew a common herbal remedy to aid any animals who have fallen ill or to help purify the well water.

Free Cities

In Libertas, the dead buried under the rubble dig themselves out. More crawl forth from graves in Cadens' cemeteries. Beasts and bandits slain in the desert wilds rise, hungry or searching for the ones who killed them. At the same time, dead fish wash up onto the shores of Aquila while birds fall dead from their perch, dropping like flies from an unknown illness. Vultures and other scavengers begin to prey upon the eyes of the dead, leaving behind hollowed-out corpses.

Worth noting is that in the Badlands, a few very old and skeletal corpses rise with a metal plate or two screwed onto their bones, which are also oddly elongated. Only one or two make their way near the city. The army is quick to dispose of them before many can notice. They will not disclose any information about this and will claim these are just monsters like anything else.

Summoned can assist by going on patrol with the soldiers to put down any risen dead. Merchant caravans are also hiring escorts for their journeys. Additionally, they can help look through any received supplies and packages to make sure the food isn't rotting or worse, use a special dissolving compound to purify the waters, and donate staple food items to refugees and the less fortunate who can't afford the rising prices.

Thorne

In Thorne, the dead emerge only from the outskirts of the castle city. Thanks to information from one of their Summoned and their recent monitoring of the Singularity, Thorne was able to act swiftly and was able to ward any royal or otherwise significant burial sites. Graves and tombs of less importance, though, will not be protected in the same way. There are fewer encounters with eyeless corpses, though some animals might appear outside the castle in such a state. Normally extravagant dishes from the Castle's kitchens use simpler ingredients as they struggle to ration their food stores.

Worth noting is that a few unexpected corpses make their way up from deep under the castle in places beyond the dungeons. These are twisted and mangled, missing limbs, heads, fingers. The castle guards are quick to dispose of them before they get too far into the rest of the castle, but one or two may be spotted.

Summoned can assist by contributing to the wards around Castle Thorne and the city, using spells to put down the dead without mangling the corpse, and taking inventory of food stores. Further, in Nott the situation is more dire for anyone who is traveling there to continue assisting with repairs following the attack. Nott will welcome help with any problems caused by the omens. It'll be clear the kingdom has neglected the city somewhat. Thorne will claim the Castle takes priority, of course, due to King and Queen residing there along with the entire royal court.

Apprehensions

Across the factions, locals are beginning to catch on that something isn't right with you, the Summoned. No one will say it outright, but there's an air of caution and wariness around you where you go. Merchants might be quick to hand you your wares so you'll leave or locals give you a bit of space when they walk by. Chatty innkeepers are more reluctant to hold lengthy conversations.

Much of the time, it may not be conscious. The natives might simply sense something off that instinctually makes them want to put some distance between them and you. The only exception? If you've chosen Sannleikr of Many Faces, you'll continue to exude your charm towards people you encounter. At least for as long as you continue to inflict that ability you've been gifted.

Displacement

Everyone responds differently while in the Horizon. You might exert better willpower over your afflictions or you might feel its effects more strongly. It all depends on the individual and their mindset. Regardless, the Heralds are only one part of the equation. There's a much bigger disturbance going on.

It could happen as soon as you enter or it might be as you're stepping over the threshold into another's domain. Whatever the case, you are suddenly not where you're supposed to be. Instead, you're in one of two places depending: transported into a domain you never meant to go into or in a foreign setting altogether.

Visitation

Whether you're the one transported or someone teleports unexpectedly into your space, the Horizon becomes unpredictable for the next little while. Rooms normally locked to strangers, areas you yourself may not even realize exists - you and your fellow Summoned continue to pop in and out despite your intentions.

The effect isn't painful, just disorienting, like missing a step you didn't see or stumbling through a door into a too-bright room. The person whose domain you've inadvertently visited might sense an unwanted presence, whether they're inside the Horizon or not, or they may be completely oblivious. This will depend on the strength of their connection to the Singularity and the Horizon.

Not to worry. You won't be trapped or anything in these cases...unless the domain you land in happens to seal from the inside. You might stumble on secrets you weren't meant to find, though, locked away in someone else's mind.

Ensnared

The less fortunate will be pulled into a space that they've never encountered before. The bizarreness of it resembles the glitchy visions that flashed through a few months ago, but rather than an image flickering by, you are now inside the space itself.

Trapped between minutes to hours, you can't use the Horizon's creation magic as normal. Attempts will falter or go sideways: trying to fly out might cause you to tumble, tools and objects are broken or not quite right, wounds don't vanish or heal completely, etc. More significantly, you can't seem to send or receive messages through your connection. Anything that manages to come through will be garbled and distorted. It's as though the place you are in is just out of the reach of your control.

Luckily, you may not be alone. Someone else may have gotten lost alongside you. They might already be there when you stumble through or they might arrive after you do. They might even fade out sooner than you, unintentionally leaving you behind.

Eventually, you'll be released back into the Horizon proper, spat out in a random place in the Horizon. While you're stuck, though, you can try to survive, explore, sit and wait it out, or make friends with your fellow trapped partner. Each area has its challenges and quirks that you'll need to deal with.

Scenes to Explore

JUSTICE ◎
FULL IMAGE

High in the clouds, these snowy peaks are as cold as they look. Giant marble hands reach out, though their sheer scale means you might not recognize them as hands from up close. You can scale the mountain, but if you try to go down, the hands will flip the mountain, which sends you tumbling to the top again.

It's up to you whether you can be injured when you fall. Maybe the snow will feel like marshmallows, or you'll break a bone on the jagged rocks. No two experiences are the same. If you have a partner, they could end up faring better than you despite being in the same place.

Conjure some warm clothes or a log cabin even if you wish - they might not manifest perfectly, but it'll be better than nothing. At least the view's fairly nice...while the sun is up. A blizzard will come through by nightfall. With it arrives a strange hovering light that entices you or your friend to follow it into the frozen darkness. What draws you out depends on you. It could be a familiar voice, an image, or a simple compulsion. If you're lucky, the person with you is unaffected and can try to stop you. Or maybe you're the one desperately chasing after the other person?

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THE CHARIOT ◎
FULL IMAGE

From a distance, it's hard to tell if they're shipping containers or houses stacked atop each other. A gooey mess covers the ground below. Oddly, the smell isn't as unpleasant as the goo looks. It smells like bubblegum or cotton candy, artificial and sweet. When you first fall in, you might land inside one of the homes, on top of the stacked structure, or the ground. You can try to reach anyone else who's there with you, but be careful: the ooze is spreading. Climb if you must or move from room to room. If you don't keep moving, you risk getting sucked into its sticky mass.

Each block of a home is different. Some are furnished, whereas others are empty or filled with strange knickknacks. Some might even have subconscious creations spawned by you. Keep ahead of the gloopy substance, and you'll be fine, probably. Or you can try to fight it back or block its path by sealing yourself in a room or otherwise, which can slow it down significantly. Mostly, you'll have to hope you fade out before the pink mass completely consumes the landscape.

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THE WORLD ◎
FULL IMAGE

The hazy neon glow obscures a nothingness that seems to extend forever. In the middle of the wet ground are several stacked television sets with wires plugged into nothing. Inexplicably, there's also a cat. At first, it appears perfectly normal, but keen observers will notice that its behavior is on a loop where it will walk a certain path, pause at specific intervals to lick its paws, and meow at set points. It does not acknowledge any of its intruders. You can break its loop by picking it up, at which point it'll go limp as a ragdoll. As soon as you set it down, it'll resume its actions as before.

While you can see the same images as someone else on the screens, it's also possible you'll each see something different despite being in the room together. What you see is up to you. It could be an old fuzzy movie, home videos of your childhood, trivia questions you have to answer correctly, or even a memory or vision you wouldn't want to share. Words or faces taunting you could appear between staticky flickers, or maybe your very thoughts are projected onto the screens for anyone with you to read.

Break the televisions if you want, but given a few short minutes, they'll reform between one blink and the next. Looks like you'll have to keep watching until you're released.

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THE FOOL ◎
FULL IMAGE

Sprawling and massive, you're unlikely to recognize at first that you're trapped in a labyrinth. Stone walls rise around you, and your surroundings are pitchblack. Manifest a torch or a flashlight if you can, though these will be prone to going out at inopportune times. Escaping over the walls will only send you into another section in the maze.

As you navigate the twisting corridors, you'll encounter any variety of trials and troubles: gaps in the ground, spiked traps, haunting whispers, monsters, decaying corpses. Some of these might've formed from your mind, others might've spawned from anyone else who's trapped with you.

If you aren't alone, do your best to locate your fellow Summoned. Voices do carry and echo over the walls, and there could be landmarks that help you find each other. Finding the exit, however, is another matter. Walk and climb all you want. A way out is impossible until the Horizon chooses to set you free.

Players can pick any scenario that interests them from the four choices above. Unlike the visions from before, characters can accidentally be trapped in as many of the scenes as you want, as many times as you want. Another option is that they can stay trapped in only one scene while a variety of characters fade in and out to join them, or some combination of the two. Choose what works best for your plans.

Each scene will once again carry an associated Arcana etched somewhere inside it, which can change from person to person or instance to instance. It might be on a wall, a table, or on the ground. Characters with a stronger connection to the Horizon are likely to be trapped for longer but the extent of this is your choice and it won't ever exceed a few hours. It's also your choice whether the afflictions continue to haunt them or not. If you want characters to deal with both problems while stuck together, you're welcome to!

Generally speaking, there are no restrictions other than that they won't be able to communicate with anyone outside the area, they can't escape it until the Horizon chooses to release them, and their creation magic will go wrong just enough that it'll make things tricky.

Comments

[hextechhead]

He knows that the longer they are apart the harder this will be. He knows that the path to Viktor was over the wall, the three directions open to him not there, so he needs to think it through. Jayce lifts his hand higher with the light spell to look all along the edges of the walls and see if anything shows handholds. When he spots something that looks reasonable, he climbs up. It isn't easy but he is strong and quick and strategic.

"V, I'm coming!"

Viktor might hear him in the correct direction he is, but still not in sightline. Yet. Jayce is now on the top of the wall and he waits and watches. Hoping that he'll remember to do the spell. The sporadic attempts may not be that helpful, but all it takes is one. He sees the very quick spark from the darkness ahead of him and runs all along the top of the wall, following as best as he can. He does have to swing and jump up and over a sudden break that he couldn't see until he was on it, but he manages to land hard only a few feet away from Viktor. It probably felt like he appeared out of no where, considering the path there.

It hurts and his eyes hurt from trying to see better in the dark, but it doesn't matter, because he's found Viktor. Jayce kneels next to him and cups his face, anxious since he seems ... exhausted? As usual he is a ray of warmth even in here.

"I'm here. I found you. How long have you been here?"

[techmaturgy]

He waits, largely oblivious to the efforts Jayce is making until a sudden noise directly next to him alerts Viktor to another presence. For a moment, he startles in the darkness, unsure of just what, exactly, has made its way here, but a familiar voice and the warm body up against him is indication enough.

"You found me."

Of course he did. Viktor is certain of one thing, even in here--Jayce will stop at nothing to keep the two of them together, and this is apparently no exception. Despite everything, he manages a small smile, though closer inspection of the situation will reveal this may not be as straightforward as it seems, now that they're reunited. Dark tendrils, almost like tree roots, seem to have sprung up from the ground and coiled around him, creeping up his legs and waist with clear intent to continue.

If he notices this, he doesn't address it.

"I sat down to rest and lost track of time." It can't have been that long, but given the disorienting nature of the maze, Viktor has mostly stopped worrying about it. "Sorry. I'm tired."

[hextechhead]

Jayce is confused at how Viktor is listlessly sitting there, he can tell there's no injury. Their moods since this all began have been complicated although he hasn't kept sustained anger with him. It's harder than usual to shake his bad feelings away, but he's an expert at it.

"We need to try to get out of here, or at least find a better place to stop." Preferably one with light and an easier viewpoint in case of threats. Jayce can hear things rustle around them, there's the sound of movement but not anywhere close, not yet. He is not one to sit still and let things happen, not now.

He sparks a light in his hand again and then can see the dark coils on Viktor's body. Jayce panics at the mere sight of them, as he does most threats to his lover, and rips them off him. Although it doesn't seem to stop from them coming back. It's this place, it's because they're stuck.

"Viktor, come on. You have to get up. We have to move." Jayce puts Viktor's hand on his shoulder so he can use it to stand easier, something they regularly do.

[techmaturgy]

Viktor seems a little surprised when Jayce tries to rip the tendrils away and does it easily, but of course they continue inching upward with little interruption. His eyes flick down to them as they snake back around his waist, but he doesn't seem to be alarmed, not in the way Jayce is.

"It's okay," he says, but instead of leaning into the hand on his shoulder in preparation to stand, he rests his palm against Jayce's cheek. Viktor knows he can't tell Jayce to go on without him, because he'll refuse. It leaves them at something of an impasse, but sooner or later the choice will be made for them, either way. "You can't protect me from everything."

Not the least of which is his current desire to simply let this happen. He's been fighting for so long, and they've bought him time, yes, but only with stop-gap methods that wear off. The rest of his work, a more permanent solution, stymied by bureaucracy, the same as it was back home. Why even make an effort to leave the Horizon? He only wishes Jayce would save himself, and the frustration makes its way onto his face.

"I'm usually much better at changing things, in here." Changing himself. "I don't know why it's not working."

[hextechhead]

Jayce can tell that Viktor is not in a helpful state of mind, he seems listless, which is concerning but also a little frustrating. At another point, he would have been careful not to do anything to harm Viktor's pride, but he is not in a situation where he cares much about that. Just like when they were stuck in the nightmare before, there are more important times when carrying him around has to be accepted. Or running out of danger, like then.

"Don't argue with me," he warns before he pulls those stupid tendrils off and then sweeps Viktor right off his feet. Maybe if he gets annoyed he'll actually do something about it. Jayce gathers him into his large arms and carries him bridal style away. Not that he knows where they should actually go or what to do next, but he's not going to sit there. He's not going to let either of them waste away. They've been avoiding touching lately but he doesn't seem to trigger a vision this time, at least.

"It's because the Singularity is fucking things up again." Jayce's anger flares to life and he's furious at this unexplained magical thing that decides to do this every once and awhile to them. They didn't ask to be here or to do any of this. Normally he's glad, for Viktor to stay alive and for magic, but right then he's not grateful for just about anything. "Who knows where we even are, it's probably still the Horizon, a fantasy of some kind."

Jayce picks a direction and walks them that way.

[techmaturgy]

Despite the fact that this outcome is entirely predictable, Viktor is still jostled and still yelps in outrage when Jayce snakes his arms under him and fairly effortlessly lifts him off the ground. In an ordinary circumstance, he might be able to put a stop to this before it happens, but in his listless state, by the time he realizes what's going on, he's already picked up and being carried away.

It doesn't mean he dislikes it any less, and he's quick to make that known.

"Jayce--!" Neither of them know where to go. Who's to say this isn't just going to make it worse? "Jayce, stop."

[hextechhead]

He rolls his eyes. "You were lying there and starting to grow vines, V, what was I supposed to do? We may already be running out of time." Jayce's protest known, he does however immediately stop when Viktor says stop. He will always listen even when it may be stupid, and he sets him back carefully on his feet.

It does free up his hands to do two spells though, one to put fire in his hand again for their own light, and he does the illumination spell, sending it in both directions from where they're standing. All it tells them though is that there are long stretches, but there does seem to be a wall or a turn in the path to the right.

There's no threat currently, so there's that. Just a lot of darkness and emptiness with no exit. "Okay, you pick."

[techmaturgy]

"Nothing. You don't have to do anything. I'm tired."

Of course, such a suggestion is ridiculous. Viktor is vaguely aware of this, but not enough to will himself to stop.

To his credit, he doesn't physically resist being carried, bruising as it is to his pride. It’s possible he doesn’t have it in him to fight back beyond making his displeasure known verbally, though even that’s enough for Jayce to release him, setting him down gently. Viktor leans heavily against him, practically willing himself to put one foot in front of the other. How is he supposed to choose, when each direction seems equally as dark as the other?

“They both look the same to me,” he says, feeling more like dead weight than anything else. “If this is the work of the Singularity, I’m not sure there’s anything we can do. You can sit down with me.”

And wait, for whatever it is that's going to happen.

[hextechhead]

"If you're tired you should let me carry you. My strength has to be good for something."

If he can't protect Viktor, if he can't save him, what is any of it worth? Jayce keeps an arm around him, holding him close to his side so he can lean on him without any trouble. He feels that anger rise up in him, anger at this situation, and the Horizon putting them here, the Singularity. It's frustrating to have so little control. There are many things Jayce prefers about this world, but this is not one of them.

"Sit and what, watch as you apparently get covered in vines and lay down and give up?" Jayce turns toward him and still holds him close. "I'm not letting anything happen to you!"

He releases Viktor and takes a step away, probably doing the last thing Viktor actually wants to see, but he is getting riled up at the idea of giving up. If they are still in the Horizon, which means he can make things happen if he wants to. Out of no where the hammer of contention appears as if summoned directly to him, giving him no need for a fire spell when it glows with Hextech power.

"We're getting out of here," he says, and his eyes seem to flicker blue.

[techmaturgy]

Viktor doesn't want to be carried--Viktor wants Jayce to stay here with him, because he made a promise. If he can't do this, when they're ostensibly not in any real danger (well, he can't be sure of that, but his apathy makes him largely unconcerned, at the moment), how can Viktor trust him to fulfill his most important request, if the time comes?

"You don't understand. I don't want to--to fight anymore."

But, again, if Jayce wants to physically overpower him, there's not much he can do about it--even less when he materializes the hammer. This close, he wants to marvel at the intricate construction of it, but all it does is rekindle the well of anger in the pit of his stomach.

"What are you going to do with that?"

[hextechhead]

That sort of attitude only gets Jayce to panic more. He's the one who lived through Viktor making him promise to destroy the Hexcore, through Viktor giving up on any kind of cure, and the certainty he was going to lose him. No hope. He has been frantically grasping to any hope he can now. He refuses to acknowledge it now.

He reaches over to cup Viktor's cheek and kisses him firmly, before pulling away to look into his eyes.

"Then I'll fight for you."

If Viktor wants to lie down and die, it's not going to happen. Jayce will carry him out of here if he has to. He knows the hammer is a source of tension between them but he needs it.

"Getting us out of here!"

He answers and steps away so Viktor is safely behind him. Jayce swings with all of his might and the hammer glows that brilliant Hextech blue so when it slams into the labyrinth wall next to them, the stone it is made of shatters instantly and creates a large hole so they don't have to keep going blindly down paths.

Usually, he is too guilty about everything the hammer represents to use it, especially anywhere near Viktor, but he is not in a state of mind that gives a shit currently. He swings the hammer into its cannon form and simply blows a hole through an entire string of walls to the side, the blue energy zipping through and through and through, causing all of the caverns to glow with it.

"Let's go, we can do this."

[techmaturgy]

Once again, Viktor isn't given any room to argue. He's usually good at taking the hammer in stride, but the light and the noise and the sudden use of it as a canon takes him by surprise, and he finds himself cowering and covering his ears as Jayce uses it to literally blast holes in the wall. Viktor doubts this is going to be the solution--he gets the sense that they won't be free of this until the Singularity decides it for them, but he knows that Jayce desperately wants to be useful.

If this is how he does that, well. Viktor can't exactly stop him.

He can't quite bring himself to move forward, either, and seeing the hammer's wake of destruction nearly freezes him to the spot. Viktor seems, for once, genuinely frightened.

"Jayce, I can't--"

[hextechhead]

Jayce meanwhile is caught up in the power of the hammer like before and it feels good to have it in his hands, to feel the physical force breaking through barriers. If he could smash everything in his way he would, and this isn't a new problem of his, that surge of feeling needing to be handled. Jayce would have never considered himself an angry person before, but he was also fairly ignorant too. The realities of their world and the damage he'd done intentionally or unintentionally woke that injustice and frustration in him.

He feels like he has a hand in what they're doing, in how he can save Viktor. Nothing can stop him now. There is a surge of arrogance and he fully intends on sweeping Viktor up and just slamming their way out of the situation.

Until he looks over at Viktor and sees something he's never witnessed. Fear. And not just fear in general, but fear because of Jayce. The confidence seeps away from him and he pales, dropping the hammer (but not disappearing it) immediately.

"No, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have. I'm so sorry." He knows that Viktor is sensitive to destruction and they are in such a messed up situation. Jayce tentatively reaches out to touch Viktor's elbow.

[techmaturgy]

Viktor has to wait for Jayce to come down from the high of wanton destruction. It’s different than the dream in the Shimmer plant—there, they’d both been confused and terrified. Here, that much is true, but Jayce has the power to do something about it, and has taken it at first opportunity. The ease with which he blasts holes in the walls with his hammer is distressing, and even when he lets the weapon fall uselessly to his side is not enough to put Viktor at ease.

He shakes his head, but otherwise doesn't shy away from Viktor's touch. Despite the fact that he hates to see this--hates to see Jayce relish the violence and power inherent in such a weapon, they need to move before the walls close back in on them.

"Let's just go. I want to leave."

And can wrap here.

[hextechhead]

The walls are still down for now, blue Hextech energy shining in the air around them, and Jayce nods. He leaves the hammer where it is although they both know now that he can call it to him at any point, for better or for worse. At least Viktor doesn't pull away from him, that would be devastating. He shakes his head, trying to clear it from the cobwebs of rage, and takes Viktor's hand.

"Let's go. We'll find our way out if we stick together."

He kisses the back of Viktor's hand and then walks them past the demolished stone toward the distance. Luckily for them, it isn't that much longer before whatever caught them up in its darkness lets them go. The hammer stays until Jayce is released and then returns to secretly exist in the forge, whether he knows it is there or not.