Marvel: Playing Iron Man, Falling In and Out of Love with Jinx

"Let us all give a round of applause to Mr. Duke for that phenomenal demonstration!"

Heimerdinger stood from his seat, clapping with admiration. The audience followed, rising to their feet to shower the young genius with thunderous applause.

"And now, let us welcome our next participants, Jayce Talis and his partner, Viktor. A passionate and inventive pair of young minds."

Heimerdinger glanced down at the file in his hands, worry lingering in his eyes. Was introducing magic into Piltover truly the right path?

No one knew better than him the dangers of misusing arcane power.

Jayce was already wheeling his device onto the stage. Meanwhile, Viktor, leaning heavily on his cane, stood still, lost in thought. Having tasted the power of the exoskeleton, returning to his fragile, imperfect body left him with a deep sense of loss and dissonance.

Wearing the exoskeleton, he had felt invincible, as if he could conquer the broken version of himself. But now, back in this frail frame with the cane in his hand, the contrast struck hard.

His eyes drifted to Duke in the audience, a glimmer of envy and longing in them. Duke had pushed pure mechanical technology to its limits, his brilliance was unprecedented, unmatched.

But what about me? Viktor thought.

It was he who had once inspired Jayce to create Hextech. Yet now, that creation remained just a concept, a fragile prototype requiring years of refinement.

He would have to continue the grueling work of experimentation with this broken body.

"If only we could truly integrate technology with the human form… would I finally be free from this defective shell?"

A heretical thought emerged in Viktor's mind, one that even he found shocking. There had been cybernetic implants before, yes, but always as prosthetics, tools to assist the disabled, not replace humanity.

What would happen if man and machine were fused as one?

Curiosity began to overtake his frustration and fear. If his theory worked, what would the result be?

"Viktor… Viktor… Viktor!"

Jayce's voice snapped him out of his thoughts. He turned, meeting his partner's concerned gaze.

"Are you alright? You seem distracted."

"I'm fine, Jayce. Just… after experiencing Duke's exoskeleton, some new ideas came to mind."

"Save them for later, partner. I'll help you explore them. But right now, we need to prove our research, to prove the future of Hextech!"

"…Got it, Jayce."

Viktor moved beside the cart while Jayce cleared his throat. The spotlight illuminated him, casting his tall, handsome figure in an almost heroic glow.

"Good evening, everyone. I'm Jayce Talis. I'm sure many of you recognize me, after all, most of you saw me in the Council chambers."

A self-deprecating joke that won the crowd's favor instantly. Jayce continued, voice firm:

"I'm someone who made mistakes… mistakes that almost led to disaster."

"But I once said that my research was on the verge of a breakthrough."

"And now, I can finally say this with pride, "

"Piltover is standing at the dawn of a new era!"

With a dramatic flourish, he yanked the cloth off the cart, revealing the glowing rune base beneath.

"This is Hextech, a fusion of science and magic. With it, we can control arcane power through technology. We can make the unknowable… usable."

"This is the fruit of our research!"

"Today, you will all witness the beginning of a new chapter in Piltover's history!"

The lights shifted, focusing on the rune base and Viktor. With a bashful smile, Viktor opened a velvet-lined box, revealing a luminous blue gem, the Hex Crystal.

The moment the crystal was exposed, it trembled faintly. Blue arcs of light flickered across its surface.

Camille's expression shifted slightly. The moment she saw the Hex Crystal, the primal crystal embedded in her chest began to resonate, an uncharacteristic unrest stirring within.

In the audience, Duke smacked his lips in distaste. That sour feeling was creeping into his mouth again. He had a handful of these things in his inventory, seven or eight at least, and their magical aura made him nauseous even when inert.

Now, even before activation, the crystal was affecting him.

Such was the awkward reality of awakening arcane affinity, magical stimuli triggered uncomfortable reactions.

"We discovered that the energy within the Hex Crystal can be channeled through specific runic arrays, allowing us to control it."

Viktor lifted the gem and fitted it into the rune base, which resembled a birdcage. The core held the gem, surrounded by iron plates etched with runes.

Click!

As the crystal locked into place, a blinding flash erupted.

Jayce and Viktor exchanged confused looks. They hadn't expected that.

Still, for the sake of their research, the demonstration had to go on.

Jayce flipped the activation switch. The crystal's energy surged through two conduits running beneath the base. Threads of lightning crackled across the structure, and the base unfolded like a blooming flower.

The Hex Crystal levitated.

Arcane energy swept across the entire theater like a tidal wave.

"Urgh, !"

Duke clutched his mouth, forcing down the sourness. His awakened affinity was becoming more reactive, any exposure to magic hit like a hammer.

"Now… witness the miracle!"

Jayce's eyes gleamed as he increased the energy output. The inner runes began to rotate, filling with magical energy and glowing with intensity.

Whrrrrrrr...

The base spun at high speed, radiating an immense magical force. The audience stared in stunned silence. Compared to Duke's refined clockwork exoskeleton, Hextech's raw magic was thrilling in its own right.

Behind them, Camille's chest pulsed, the primal Hex Crystal embedded within her reacting violently. Blue veins lit up around her eyes. Her pupils turned an eerie shade of blue.

"Something's wrong…"

Duke's eyes snapped open. He grabbed Orianna and hurled her backward.

The moment his instincts screamed danger, he acted, like sharing a room with a lion ready to pounce.

Orianna was caught midair by a pair of gentle arms. Looking up, she saw Duke already charging toward the stage.

"Duke?!"

"Stop the experiment! The arcane flow is destabilizing, if you keep going, it'll explode!"

Duke's affinity made him hyper-sensitive to magical fluctuations. Others in the room were slower to catch on. Even Heimerdinger frowned, feeling a trace of dread. As a yordle, he too was attuned to magic.

The Hex Crystal's flow… was turning erratic.

"Stop the experiment?"

Jayce hesitated. He didn't listen, he instinctively turned the energy dial higher.

"Don't worry! This is just part of the reaction, soon you'll see that Hextech, "

BAM!

Before he could finish, Duke decked him with a punch and flung Viktor off the stage toward the audience.

He yanked a bluebird talisman from his neck and growled, "Janna, I need your help!"

The charm trembled, sending his call through the wind.

Far away, Janna, who had been clearing the mists, paused, looking toward Blue Rose Manor.

"That's Ferros territory… What trouble has Duke gotten himself into now?"

A whirlwind swept her away toward the manor.

"Why did you interfere with my experiment?!" Jayce shouted from the floor.

"Shut up, you fool!" Duke roared. "Can't you feel it? There's a strong magic source nearby, it's throwing your Hex Crystal out of balance!"

At that moment, the rune base pulsed violently. Camille narrowed her eyes. The primal crystal in her chest emitted a hum. Blue light spread beneath her skin. Her pupils glowed.

"Is it because of me?"

Touching her chest, she stood up and turned to leave. She shouldn't have been here. She had only come out of curiosity, curiosity about Duke.

But she didn't expect her primal Hex Crystal to resonate with the Hex Crystal onstage, triggering magical feedback.

In the original timeline, Jayce's experiment succeeded. But Camille wasn't present at the time, Silco had just taken control of Zaun's undercity, and she had gone there to evaluate the threat to the Ferros family's dominance.

That was her mission: to ensure House Ferros remained Piltover's ruling family.

But now, everything had changed. Vi and Jinx never split. Silco fled to Noxus. Vander still ruled the undercity. Camille hadn't left Blue Rose Manor, she was here.

One ripple after another, this was the butterfly effect in motion.

"You're right, Duke," Heimerdinger finally shouted, fear overwhelming his hesitation. "Everyone, evacuate the theater! The Hex Crystal is going out of control!"

"Professor, please, give me one more chance!" Jayce pleaded.

BOOM!

A ring of condensed blue energy burst outward. Both Duke and Jayce were thrown like rag dolls.

Duke's mouth filled with bile. Jayce stared upward, confused. Why had the experiment gone wrong when it worked before?

What changed?

And how did Duke know it was going to fail?

Duke twisted midair and landed on his feet. Since inheriting Gun Kata, he had trained every day. His physical control had improved immensely.

Jayce, however, was no longer his concern. Duke turned to the council.

"Everyone, evacuate! NOW!"

"Otherwise…"

A pillar of light erupted from the rune base, piercing the theater dome.