Chapter 38: ChemMouth

///Night///

Returning after several hours, Orion opened the door to find that both Vander and Benzo had left.

He had walked out to the main road to cool off, checking local wanted boards and posters before returning.

Locking the door, he lay down on the couch with a heavy sigh, exhaustion catching up to him.

Orion rubbed the bridge of his nose, pondering if any of them got away or saw him shoot C. Silco was likely in a state of rage after his visit to Vander. Catching wind of C's betrayal after his visit too? He shivered unconsciously at the thought of being near him now.

'Her thugs knew where I lived.' Orion mused, flicking a cup on the table as his thoughts spiraled. 'I doubt any of them saw me shoot C, and if Silco gets his hands on any survivors, I'll be forced to leave here- or sleep with one eye open.'

Groaning, he sat up, checking his two remaining bullets and last Chemflash. StillWater Hold- where most political prisoners or rebels were sent- was on the east side of Piltover, or in other words on the Undercity side. 

'Typical Piltover mentality,' Orion thought bitterly. Keep the filth on one side of the river. For lesser offenders- usually topsiders- the jails westside were luxurious in comparison, often reserved for traders or wealthy individuals.

He doubted the surviving thugs would remain topside longer than necessary. It would keep them out of Silco's reach, but also out of Orion's too.

Prisoner transports were forced to take the main road straight from Progress Bridge, using private iron shutes guarded by Enforcers to descend each level of the Seams.

The transports themselves don't use Hextech since it hasn't been invented yet. They still relied on horse-drawn iron-caged carriages. 

"Damn it," Orion muttered, running a hand through his hair. 'I'll have no way of knowing other than by keeping my ears open for a trial. Even then, Enforcers could transport them day or night. Delay transportation for days or weeks to avoid an ambush too, especially considering what they were attempting.'

He clenched his jaw. 'I don't even know where the Kirammans stand on me. No wanted posters have gone out, only ones to report anyone complicit in this incident with a hefty reward.'

Orion's thoughts drifted back to Vander as he slouched forward, a grim expression settling on his face.

'Vander has connections to Greyson...but she wouldn't reveal sensitive information to him or me- and definitely won't let me speak to Caitlyn alone, not after what just happened, and my absence...'

'Silco... Damn it!' Orion cursed internally again, unable to draw any new connections outside of the future scientist and few thugs- until after the topside heist. 

Lost in thought deep into the night, he didn't even remember falling asleep until shattered rays of light struck his eyes, waking him up with a groan.

'Ah, fuck' he muttered, shielding his eyes.

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Orion's gaze wandered across the Last Drop's sign, his hands stuffed in his jacket, idly playing with a single silver coin. He had plenty saved up, but the problem he once solved had resurfaced.

'I need to find a new source of income again...' Orion sighed internally before letting go of the coin and pushing open the door into the Last Drop.

"Night light!" Powder cheered, darting out from the gang performing their usual cleanup chores.

A deep chuckle resounded from the background, drawing Orion's attention. Vander nodded in acknowledgement at him and a warm smile as he looked up from wiping down the bar.

'Rare that he's here for this, but makes sense given what happened,' Orion mused, nodding back.

"Woah, did you get caught up in the trouble yesterday?" Claggor asked, his eyes studying Orion's weary appearance.

Mylo grinned, leaning on a nearby table. "No way. Probably just stayed up late being a retard."

"Kinda, nothing serious," Orion admitted with a soft chuckle, catching Powder in a tight hug as she ran at him. Powder peeked up at him expectantly, and his eyes twinkled in response.

"Had to be a night light again." Orion added, winking at her.

Mylo scowled, crossing his arms. "What's with that whole night light thing anyway? OW!" 

Vi passed by and smacked him lightly on the back of the head, "Read the room," she scolded, shaking her head.

"What do you mean, 'read the room,' you red ape..." Mylo's comeback and Vi's sharp reply faded into the background, with Claggor laughing as the amused audience. Meanwhile, Orion walked with Powder up to the counter.

"Good to see you made it," Vander greeted cheerfully. "Feeling better?"

Sitting down on a stool, with Powder perched on another and fiddling with her rag as she listened, Orion nodded. "Yeah...Took a while to get my head straight. Hate to jump right into it, but have you heard anything about the incident yesterday?"

Vander paused briefly, glancing back at Orion before resuming his wipe-down of the bar.

"Nope," Vander said, shaking his head, "Just that the ones behind it are now six feet under."

"All of them?" Orion asked cautiously.

"Aye." Vander nodded, his gaze slowly shifting back to Orion as if weighing him.

Vander glanced past him toward the gang still in their argument, then at Powder, whose head tilted with curiosity at their conversation, before shrugging. "No loose ends left to cause more trouble."

"So what happened?" Powder chimed in, folding and unfolding her rag as she listened curiously.

"Well," Vander faintly smiled, leaning forward against the counter and earning her full attention as she perked up with excitement. "Some bozos caused a ruckus topside- a kidnapping. Locked down half of Piltover."

Powder leaned on the counter to meet his gaze with wide, innocent eyes. "Did you deal with it?"

"Of course I did," Vander smiled warmly, gently placing a hand on her head.

"Is that why you're roughed up," Vi appeared suddenly next to Orion, making him jump. "Ah- fuck, Vi!" he cursed instinctively, sharply exhaling.

"ChemMouth!" Powder pointed at him with an angry glare and Vander chimed in with a firm, albeit tinged with amusement as he tried not to chuckle, tone. "No cursing, Orion!"

Orion's mouth hung open in disbelief, his gaze darting between the two of them before glaring back at Vi. She smirked, nudging him playfully with her shoulder. "Well? Spill the beans already!"

Holding her stare with an irritated expression, Orion answered while trying to make it sound casual. "I wasn't a part of it. Just got too close- caught up in the chaos."

Vi tucked her chin in, leaning closer with a skeptical look. "Uh-huh. Because you definitely look don't look better when we spar, right?" 

Deciding to be childish in return, Orion stuck his tongue out at her with a short, "Yep."

Powder giggled as Vi frowned, her lips curling with upset. "Why not just tell me? Aren't we close?"

"We are," Orion nodded and with a reassuring smile, "You're just overthinking it." His expression hardened and his tone became more resolute as he added, "I did not participate in the kidnapping, Vi. Do you really think I'd ever do something like that?"

Vi hesitated, her gaze shifting down for a moment as she muttered, "No..." 

"Exactly," Orion said, shaking his head with a sigh, "I was just stuck in the shitty crossfire between them."

"CHEMMOUTH!" Powder yelled, dramatically pointing at him again.