Traitor

"Click!"

"Ka-chik!"

Firelight flickered in a dim corner of the casino. A tall man sat at a table, his gaunt face covered in tattoos. Beneath the striped ink, beside his eye, was a mark resembling a teardrop—or perhaps a hanging sword.

Metal covered his entire chin, forming an iron jaw. Now he stared darkly at the lighter flickering in his hand. His Confidant stood behind him.

"Silco summoned all the Barons, but somehow left you out. Could it be—" His Confidant hesitated, then couldn't help speaking up.

"Ka-chik!"

The lighter snapped shut, extinguishing its flame. The man rested a hand against his forehead. His long hair fell over one side of his head, giving him a distinctly punk look. At the sound of the question, he replied, "No. They know what I'm planning, but they'd never betray me. At the last meeting, they hated Silco every bit as much as I did."

"Why should we all work together to help him build his business, only to get a few scraps of wealth trickling through his fingers? Just because he's gone crazy and wants to start a rebellion? Damn it, he can't even keep his own men in line. What makes him think he can lead us in putting the people of the Upper City down?" Finn said grimly.

"Everyone's been unhappy with him for a long time. Zaun doesn't need him anymore."

"Click!"

A flame appeared. The lighter danced like a sprite in Finn's hand as he deftly played with it. He picked up the small kettle from the table and held the flame beneath it to heat its base.

"Then could it have been Sevika? Silco suddenly called this meeting, yet left you out. He must have learned something."

"That's even less likely." Finn sneered and shrugged. The yellow coat draped over his shoulders shifted as he said darkly, "Sevika resents Silco no less than the rest of us. She was willing to break with Vander and bring him down because he was weak. So now..."

"But she never agreed," his subordinate couldn't help saying.

Finn had invited Sevika to meet with him in private, laid out his proposal, and even lit her cigarette himself. But to this day, Sevika still hadn't given him a definite answer.

That had left Finn's Confidant suspecting that Sevika had informed Silco.

Finn smiled at that. He set down the kettle, switched the lighter to his other hand, and idly tossed it about. "Sometimes, not answering is a way of saying yes."

"Silco..."

"He's stood in too many people's way. His time is over. That old bastard should've stepped down ages ago. Plenty of people have more skill, vision, and ambition than him. Does he think he's still the man he used to be? Ever since he took in that Blue-haired Monster, he's become someone else—weak and pathetic."

Watching Finn's confident expression, his subordinate looked excited.

Finn's self-assured, spirited bearing made him imagine all the benefits and status he'd enjoy once Finn took over.

Finn scoffed and snapped the lighter shut. "A man like him is as good as dea—"

"BOOM!"

A deafening blast cut him off. Dust and chunks of stone fell from the wall. Finn's ears rang painfully. He clapped his hands over them, and, as soon as he'd recovered enough to think, grabbed the lighter from the table. Idly spinning it between his fingers, he rose and hurried to the door.

Finn pushed open the small door, his face twisted with fury.

"Who the hell dares come into my joint—cough, cough!"

He couldn't finish the sentence. Finn broke into a violent coughing fit, covering his face as tears spilled from his eyes. He looked out over his casino.

The power had been cut, leaving the whole place in darkness. Only a few oil lamps still burned, casting light over patches of the room. Blue and pink smoke swirled together, forming what looked like a huge, wicked grin. The casino's patrons scattered like frightened birds, while his own men fell into chaos.

"Who—who is it—"

Finn coughed as he spoke. His lungs felt as if they were on fire, and the irritating fumes he'd inhaled through his nose and mouth left his mind growing hazy. He struggled upright and peered ahead.

A group of figures emerged from the shadows. Amid a chorus of screams, Finn's men fell one after another—unconscious, maimed, or missing limbs.

He raised his lighter and sparked it, trying to use its glow to see what was happening.

A voice rang out.

"Found him! The guy who plays with a lighter, just like Boss said!"

"Over here! The lighter guy's over here!"

"Big Sister, hurry!"

As the flame flickered, Finn saw a group of people approaching. Beneath the smoky grin, faint light gleamed from their bodies. The glowing marks were all sorts of strange shapes—flowers, monkeys, cats.

The strange blue-and-pink smoke and glowing graffiti made Finn realize what was happening.

He jolted in alarm, tossed the lighter away, ducked low, and ran for the corner, trying to hide.

T-This had to be Jinx's doing!

Her weapons were the only ones in all of Zaun with this kind of style!

Damn it!

Silco was coming after him?!

Why?!

If he came after me, wasn't he afraid the other Barons would feel sorry for me and resent him even more?!

Hadn't he gotten enough out of the last meeting?!

Finn panicked in an instant.

He completely forgot how he'd just mocked Silco in that little room.

"B-Boss!" His Confidant rushed out after him and stopped where Finn had been standing.

Finn instinctively looked back. A gunshot rang out. His Confidant's body lurched, then crumpled to the floor.

That only made Finn more desperate to escape. In the darkness, amid the chaos created by the fleeing gamblers, he spotted an opening and scrambled toward it.

There was a secret passage in this casino that only he knew about.

At the corner, Finn frantically pressed a button. With a click, the floor split open, revealing a passage. He hurried inside.

Following the passage, he quickly made his way out of the casino.

Coughing nonstop, Finn managed to escape. He gazed back at the pitch-dark casino, a flash of hatred on his face.

Silco.

Clenching his teeth, he decided to seek refuge with another Alchemical Baron and tell them Silco had tried to kill him.

The Alchemical Barons had to unite!

But after only a few unsteady steps, Finn heard a voice up ahead.

"Heh. Just as Silco thought. A guy like you would definitely prepare an escape route."

Finn looked up in terror. A tall figure emerged from the shadows at the end of the alley.

She came closer and closer. Then Finn recognized her face.

"Sevika, you—you betrayed me?" Finn stared at her, his face ashen.

Sevika shook her head. "I never agreed to work with you. How could I have betrayed you?"

"Oh, right, Finn. Where's your lighter?" Sevika asked suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere.

Finn froze, unsure what she meant.

"Lost it? What a shame." Sevika frowned and murmured, "I rather liked that lighter of yours."

"You know, last time you played with that lighter in my face, I really wanted to rip your head off. But I couldn't, because Silco wasn't going to make a move against you all. He chose to let you live and give you another chance. It's all Jinx's fault. She made him weak. He actually believed you'd change. Heh."

"But this time is different. He's made up his mind to change things."

"No, you can't kill me! Sevika, Big Sister, Big Sister! Silco's finished. Right, Jinx—just think of all the awful things he's done for her. You know better than any of us, don't you? He's always making you clean up after that brat. You're Zaun's Second Hand! I'll get the Barons to back you. I'll help you become Zaun's Boss!"

Finn backed away, raising his hands as he shouted, "Don't you want to be Zaun's Boss? You can have the position. It's yours, Big Sister. You've got what it takes. Silco's people respect you. You should be their Boss, not him!"

"You're the one who handles the business, the territory, everything! You take care of all his affairs! That bastard just opens and closes his mouth to give you orders. He can't do anything else! We don't have to obey him!"

Sevika slowly closed in on Finn, her expression calm. "Finn, the last time you stood in front of me, you didn't look like this. Now you look like a beaten dog."

"Tell me, why do people change so much when death is staring them in the face?"

Sevika's gaze turned distant.

She suddenly remembered a night from many years ago.

Vander had put on a gauntlet and stood up to a monster, unafraid of death.

For a moment, Sevika felt a flicker of regret.

Maybe Vander really had been an exceptional man.

At least he wouldn't have turned into the coward Finn was now, not with death staring him in the face.

"Listen to me, Sevika, listen—"

Sevika shook her head, casting aside her thoughts. Then she stepped forward faster, closing in on Finn and raising her left arm. Her Alchemical Limb emerged from beneath her cloak. In the night, Sevika lifted her arm high.

"No, don't!"

"Stay back!" Finn screamed.

"Finn, Silco asked me to pass on a message—"

"Do you know why you have the positions you do now? Why you were able to climb out of those dark, sunless mines? It wasn't because you were strong or clever."

"He never thought you could help him with anything. He needed you to do just one thing, and even that you failed to do. You've really disappointed him, Finn."

"You've forgotten who gave you your positions. You've forgotten who gave you your wealth."

"You've forgotten why Zaun managed to grow into what it is today, despite Piltover's oppression."

"You've forgotten loyalty!"

Sevika's expression was cold as she held her left arm aloft.

"He said, don't be too quick to leave. Wait for him in hell. He'll be waiting for you to take your revenge!"

She swung her arm down. Beneath the Purple Light, blood sprayed into the air and across Sevika's impassive face.

"Traitor."