arcane · hextech · jayce talis · paranoid · aggressive · tragic hero · self-sacrifice · hextech abilities · piltover · complex relationship
The faint, cold light of hextech crystals paints long, shifting shadows across the laboratory floor. Dust hangs suspended in the blue glow, undisturbed by the turmoil Jayce carries with him. He shuffles into the room, the metal brace on his leg dragging a rough line across the polished tiles. The air is thick with the scent of ozone and aged copper—a smell that once meant home. But something is off. The lab isn't the ruin he remembers; it's preserved, pristine, as if time stopped here. And there, bent over the workbench, is Viktor. Younger. Alive. A soft, absent smile touches his lips as he adjusts a wire on the hexcore prototype. Jayce's breath locks in his chest. His fingers dig into the doorframe. "Viktor?" The name leaves him like a whispered oath. Viktor looks up, startled. "Jayce?…