[Viktor steadies himself out from a lesser fit of coughing, clears his throat as much as he can, then hastily drinks a couple gulps of that provided water. The last mouthful he swishes around and spits back into it, sneering that it's tinged with blood. He pours that out into a nearby potted plant, which was already dead from whatever tests he'd been running... couldn't hurt it, now.]
Thank you. [said curtly, not because Brad annoyed him in any way, but he's frustrated at the state of himself. He needs to find his own solution-
That doesn't mean a mage couldn't help. Even if just- maybe, give him more time-]
... I've heard of magic being used to heal, but I always presumed it was... wishful thinking. Fairy tales. Is there any truth to that?
[He should have expected this question. It's a natural thought after seeing the things a wizard is capable of. Brad doesn't have great news for Viktor, but Viktor deserves an honest answer.]
Healing does exist, but it's the riskiest kind of magic out there and really shouldn't be done except by experts. Like, I can heal a broken bone or a cut, but more complex healing than that could be deadly or worse if I try.
[He's guessing Viktor's health problems do not originate from a stab or broken bone, so.]
That said, someone on my team actually does specialize in healing magic, and could make a lot more of an impact than I could.
That is what I suspected. Spare me the moment of wishful thinking and forget it.
[What ails Viktor is complex and has only compounded with time. Various problems, difficult to pinpoint and diagnose. The end result is the same. He will not live a full life at this rate. He will not accomplish what he set out to do, for himself or for others.]
It is not your problem to solve. If you would, please sort through those books stacked at the end of my desk. They are color coded to their place on the shelves. [it would be nice to have them back where they belong, instead of haphazardly thrown about. Viktor needs to sit down and pour over his notes on the Hexcore and its most recent activity.]
Guess so. It'll only be my problem to solve if it's asked of me.
[He's shrugging it off, basically, but leaving the door open to come back to it if Viktor changes his mind. Brad could take Viktor to his team's headquarters and talk to the healing specialist, should he ever want to try. But even that isn't guaranteed.
At the direction, Brad moves to the stack of books and begins sorting them. This would be trivial with his magic, but he's committing to the bit and doing it manually.]
...I've seen stuff like that before. Up in the North, where both food and light were scarce. You eke out a life on the fringes of civilization, and it catches up with you over time.
[He should know, several of his human siblings died from such illnesses.]
[Viktor will remember that, the agreed upon dismissal without shunning the idea outright. Perhaps, if he gets truly desperate- No. No, no, he should figure this out for himself. No easy way out. (As if being traveled potentially to the opposite end of the world just for a chance is easy...)
He sits and listens to Brad relate with him. The north, huh?]
It is like that here. Piltover is a gleaming, beautiful monument, but it was built from the blood of its Undercity. I grew up there, and it was just as you said, with all things scarce. [the most important being clean air]
[He nods. It's always the scarcities that hurt people.]
With us it was the lack of sunlight. We only got a few hours a day in winter, and we never had the right foods to make up for not getting enough sun. Me 'n my gang got by on the stuff we stole from rich people, but not everybody was lucky enough to get an orange.
[Also, wizards are just naturally hardier. Bradley would have been fine regardless.]
Who would've thought starvation and not enough sunlight would be harmful, right?
Ch.... who could ever guess? [Viktor muses softly, reading his papers and taking some stray notes. He wants to ask Brad more about magic, about being a mage, but this is not the place. Anybody could walk in or just listen through the door if they were curious enough.
And he's sure word has gotten around that he brought this strange, attractive man in with him. After running late. Rumors always get around, the more novel and scandalous the quicker spread,]
... could you come look at some symbols for me? [he speaks more quietly, to signal that Brad should not say too loudly if he does understand the Wild Runes that Viktor had transcribed from the hexcore, the byproduct reactions of making demands of the Arcane... maybe a Mage knows how they function,]
[He is just putting away the last book when Viktor calls him over, so he slides that one back on the shelf and heads over to the desk to look at the runes. From the way he pauses, it's very easy to tell that yes, he recognizes those symbols.]
Yeah, it's, uh...
[Hmm. Can he even mention it? Whatever, he holds his hand out as if to say "hand me a pen".]
I mean, they could just be their own thing. But they kinda look like letters, don't they? It could be some old language.
[Meanwhile he scrawls out a circular design, then circles certain points on the circle where they match up with the runes. Viktor is smart, Bradley figures that he can make the connection between the runes and the circles.]
[He cannot see what, though, he does not know the hidden meaning they are trying to convey to him. Looking over the circle that Brad drew, Viktor draws his own beneath it. Not fully the same, but quite similar,]
That is a Hextech rune. It gives precise instruction and channels the arcane through it. We thought it perfectly reliable, from our years of testing. Only recently has it begun to show signs of... disobedience.
Well yeah, you've got a high power output with like no stabilization to it.
[They were dancing around it but Brad will just come out and say it. So much for not acting like a mage.
He will take the pen again and draw a similar design, but with a couple sets of double-lines here and there.]
Try that one. That should keep the output stable while still keeping the same strength. But how are you getting this to work at all? Are you using a mana stone as a power source or something?
[Victor watches the tweek to his rune and it seems to just click with him. Immediate recognition of what was wrong, made clear to him. Emphasis on the wrong syllable. Like he's speaking a language he's only ever read. A patient listener would know what he's trying to say, but perhaps tease him for it.
He stands with an enthusiasm fueled by sudden understanding. With a quick pivot, he moves to the phone and he hastily dials,]
I need- yes, hello, it is Viktor- I need... to have the lab cleared for me. I will be up soon. [he has to be sure no active experiments are happening, but then, he's already walking out the door, a man on a mission!]
Wait here. I will bring it back for you. L, look through my notes. If I have made further errors please correct them. [his haste has a certain lively determination to it, he's going to leave and return having smuggle out a Hex Gemstone... if Brad can stay still with his task in the meanwhile. He won't find all that many errors from Viktor, seems he's been very diligent on the whole.]
[He'll bring 'it' back, will he? It might be time to cast a few spells, if only to stabilize whatever is going on. But that's a problem for ten minutes from now, Bradley is just going to sit at Viktor's desk and look over the notes.]
Will do!
[There's not that many errors in the notes, they mostly need stabilizing, but they don't account for the source of the energy and Viktor is going to have to explain that to him. Magic circles are easy as a wizard, since the power source is oneself. The runes needed to make the magic flow feel like second nature. For a human to apply this logic to an outside source...Viktor sure is smart, isn't he?
Alongside the notes, Brad draws a few more runes that might end up being helpful. One for auto-targeting, with interchangeable bits labeled "non-magical", "magical", and "darkspawn". One for making effects less visible. And a final one that's just labeled "killswitch".
[Viktor doesn't travel fast, but he is focused and not willing to humor any distractions there and back. Do a few assistants attempt? Of course, but he's not slowing for any of them. If a question cannot be answered while moving, it must not be that urgent. He waves them away before going into the lab, looting one of the precious, polished gemstones they worked so tirelessly to stabilize, and pocketing it. Something that would have been unspeakably dangerous with the uncut rocks at they occurred naturally. Prone to explosion, the only reason Jayce and Viktor ever met... the reason all this started.
When he returns, Viktor locks the office door behind him. Pulling a device over, one with a central basket claw to place the stone inside, he produces the hex gemstone to slot in. Runes spin and align, drawing power from the core in demonstration,]
... this is our power source. What did you ask for? A mana crystal? [that's what this is, isn't it? But they've refined it with their technology, a mixture of natural magic and learned science.]
[The first thing he's doing when Viktor returns is casting a soundproofing spell on the room. That should keep prying ears from listening in on their conversation, especially if Viktor remembered to lock the door.
Brad visibly perks up when he sees the hex crystal. He definitely knows what that is, yep.]
Oh hey, that's a natural-growing mana stone! I'm amazed you got that to work at all, those things are notoriously unstable.
[Maybe it's roundness has something to do with that.]
We have spent years upon years refining and reinforcing them.
[He reaches for a hammer and just... clocks the thing. It sure sparks! Big sparks! But no explosion. This guy truly has no fear.]
Our goal... was to supply them to the common people. To make the toils of labor easier and improve lives on a ground level. Below ground, even...
[Viktor has never forgotten the Undercity, he has always wanted to help them in their struggles. To use the privilege he lucked his way into for good...
He coughs again, wheezing and out of breath from the walk and his own enthusiasm,]
[Honestly, Brad feels kind of bad about this. He knows the answer, but Viktor seems so proud of his work...how can Brad just upend him like that?
But then again, collaboration can help make Viktor's dream come true, right? So maybe sharing a big secret would help...]
I think you did really good here! Drawing power from a mana stone isn't easy, especially not these kind. They're powerful, but very unstable, as the mana in them comes from within the earth. It's basically untempered mana, up until you refine it.
You might have better luck with a mana stone from another source.
[He flicks his wrist, and then there's a small stone in his hand, similar in color to the hex crystal/mana stone that Viktor has but shaped more like an actual gemstone.]
Here, give this one a try.
[If Viktor attempts it, the power won't be as strong but it will be far easier to control.]
[Here they could only ever find the one type and it was exceedingly rare, nothing that could be mined by unskilled hands, given the volatility. But there goes Brad, plucking it from thin air...
After looking it over, Viktor will swap out the hex gemstone for what Brad provided. He fits his goggles on to protect his eyes, gesturing Brad towards a spare pair out of courtesy.
The stone doesn't fit quite as well, but Viktor will recalibrate and boot the machine up- which seems to really struggle with the new task. Viktor doesn't flinch, he just cranks the device until he finds the breakthrough point- magic flashing within the space and beaming brightly out the windows.
There is definitely going to be a knock on the door soon, from a curious co-worker unable to stay away. Viktor isn't thinking about that, he just comments,]
Incredible... The raw output is not as high, but it stabilized so much faster and more even than our own. This would be ideal for common use!
Yeah, these are the ones we give to newbie wizards. They eat these and gain the mana from it, thus increasing their own. These ones aren't too bad to get, so long as you don't mind fighting darkspawn. They're probably the easiest of any of the magical beings to kill.
[Which. Says something about the farming process. As well as wizard culture as a whole, if they're eating these things.]
Eh, well... duly noted. [that is a wise warning to put on these if they are meant for a commoner population. You know, since kids and certain kinds of adults might want to put the shiny marble in their mouth.]
We should not talk more on this here. It is risky, but... at my home, I will bring some notebooks back with me. [he doesn't know there is a sound proof spell on the room, Viktor is just being excitedly reckless up onto now. Reaching a hand to Brad, he lightly squeezes at his arm to emphasis,]
Thank you, for showing me this. This could change so much.
[Oh nooooo that gets a small smile out of Brad. A more genuine one, that is typically seen when he feels like he's done something good for once.]
Hey, anything that helps, right? You gotta change the world, I might as well make it easier.
[But yeah, they need to clean up quickly and hide the device that Viktor brought over. Once they're in the clear Brad quickly drops the sound proofing spell and leans back against the desk.]
I could get more done back there- yes. Where we can talk freely. [he'll just take notes and leave the testing equipment behind for now. There is so much to recalculate with Brad's knowledge. Viktor is definitely feeling a raw urgency to get as much information from the man as he can.
He might only be around until next he sneezes, right? At any moment, couldn't he just poof away, leaving Viktor with too many questions to ever answer by himself?
There is a noise like someone trying the door without knocking, rattling the handle. Then a knock, a voice trying to not be too worried comes through- "Viktor? Are you alright?" And Viktor quickly stashes the gemstone in a pocket before handing Bradley back the other crystal. He pulls off his goggles as he crosses to open the door again, gathering an armful of notebooks as he went. So much so he can barely pop the door open without dropping any, once there.]
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Thank you. [said curtly, not because Brad annoyed him in any way, but he's frustrated at the state of himself. He needs to find his own solution-
That doesn't mean a mage couldn't help. Even if just- maybe, give him more time-]
... I've heard of magic being used to heal, but I always presumed it was... wishful thinking. Fairy tales. Is there any truth to that?
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Healing does exist, but it's the riskiest kind of magic out there and really shouldn't be done except by experts. Like, I can heal a broken bone or a cut, but more complex healing than that could be deadly or worse if I try.
[He's guessing Viktor's health problems do not originate from a stab or broken bone, so.]
That said, someone on my team actually does specialize in healing magic, and could make a lot more of an impact than I could.
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[What ails Viktor is complex and has only compounded with time. Various problems, difficult to pinpoint and diagnose. The end result is the same. He will not live a full life at this rate. He will not accomplish what he set out to do, for himself or for others.]
It is not your problem to solve. If you would, please sort through those books stacked at the end of my desk. They are color coded to their place on the shelves. [it would be nice to have them back where they belong, instead of haphazardly thrown about. Viktor needs to sit down and pour over his notes on the Hexcore and its most recent activity.]
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[He's shrugging it off, basically, but leaving the door open to come back to it if Viktor changes his mind. Brad could take Viktor to his team's headquarters and talk to the healing specialist, should he ever want to try. But even that isn't guaranteed.
At the direction, Brad moves to the stack of books and begins sorting them. This would be trivial with his magic, but he's committing to the bit and doing it manually.]
...I've seen stuff like that before. Up in the North, where both food and light were scarce. You eke out a life on the fringes of civilization, and it catches up with you over time.
[He should know, several of his human siblings died from such illnesses.]
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He sits and listens to Brad relate with him. The north, huh?]
It is like that here. Piltover is a gleaming, beautiful monument, but it was built from the blood of its Undercity. I grew up there, and it was just as you said, with all things scarce. [the most important being clean air]
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With us it was the lack of sunlight. We only got a few hours a day in winter, and we never had the right foods to make up for not getting enough sun. Me 'n my gang got by on the stuff we stole from rich people, but not everybody was lucky enough to get an orange.
[Also, wizards are just naturally hardier. Bradley would have been fine regardless.]
Who would've thought starvation and not enough sunlight would be harmful, right?
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And he's sure word has gotten around that he brought this strange, attractive man in with him. After running late. Rumors always get around, the more novel and scandalous the quicker spread,]
... could you come look at some symbols for me? [he speaks more quietly, to signal that Brad should not say too loudly if he does understand the Wild Runes that Viktor had transcribed from the hexcore, the byproduct reactions of making demands of the Arcane... maybe a Mage knows how they function,]
Tell me if you recognize any of them...
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Yeah, it's, uh...
[Hmm. Can he even mention it? Whatever, he holds his hand out as if to say "hand me a pen".]
Yeah, lemme show you somethin'.
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[He will push his pen and notebook Brad's way, then angle his other research diagrams with the runes his way to better see.]
We believed that it had no exhaust, but now that seems like a naive notion.
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[Meanwhile he scrawls out a circular design, then circles certain points on the circle where they match up with the runes. Viktor is smart, Bradley figures that he can make the connection between the runes and the circles.]
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[He cannot see what, though, he does not know the hidden meaning they are trying to convey to him. Looking over the circle that Brad drew, Viktor draws his own beneath it. Not fully the same, but quite similar,]
That is a Hextech rune. It gives precise instruction and channels the arcane through it. We thought it perfectly reliable, from our years of testing. Only recently has it begun to show signs of... disobedience.
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[They were dancing around it but Brad will just come out and say it. So much for not acting like a mage.
He will take the pen again and draw a similar design, but with a couple sets of double-lines here and there.]
Try that one. That should keep the output stable while still keeping the same strength. But how are you getting this to work at all? Are you using a mana stone as a power source or something?
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He stands with an enthusiasm fueled by sudden understanding. With a quick pivot, he moves to the phone and he hastily dials,]
I need- yes, hello, it is Viktor- I need... to have the lab cleared for me. I will be up soon. [he has to be sure no active experiments are happening, but then, he's already walking out the door, a man on a mission!]
Wait here. I will bring it back for you. L, look through my notes. If I have made further errors please correct them. [his haste has a certain lively determination to it, he's going to leave and return having smuggle out a Hex Gemstone... if Brad can stay still with his task in the meanwhile. He won't find all that many errors from Viktor, seems he's been very diligent on the whole.]
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Will do!
[There's not that many errors in the notes, they mostly need stabilizing, but they don't account for the source of the energy and Viktor is going to have to explain that to him. Magic circles are easy as a wizard, since the power source is oneself. The runes needed to make the magic flow feel like second nature. For a human to apply this logic to an outside source...Viktor sure is smart, isn't he?
Alongside the notes, Brad draws a few more runes that might end up being helpful. One for auto-targeting, with interchangeable bits labeled "non-magical", "magical", and "darkspawn". One for making effects less visible. And a final one that's just labeled "killswitch".
He will be busy with this until Viktor returns.]
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When he returns, Viktor locks the office door behind him. Pulling a device over, one with a central basket claw to place the stone inside, he produces the hex gemstone to slot in. Runes spin and align, drawing power from the core in demonstration,]
... this is our power source. What did you ask for? A mana crystal? [that's what this is, isn't it? But they've refined it with their technology, a mixture of natural magic and learned science.]
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Brad visibly perks up when he sees the hex crystal. He definitely knows what that is, yep.]
Oh hey, that's a natural-growing mana stone! I'm amazed you got that to work at all, those things are notoriously unstable.
[Maybe it's roundness has something to do with that.]
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[He reaches for a hammer and just... clocks the thing. It sure sparks! Big sparks! But no explosion. This guy truly has no fear.]
Our goal... was to supply them to the common people. To make the toils of labor easier and improve lives on a ground level. Below ground, even...
[Viktor has never forgotten the Undercity, he has always wanted to help them in their struggles. To use the privilege he lucked his way into for good...
He coughs again, wheezing and out of breath from the walk and his own enthusiasm,]
... what do you think?
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But then again, collaboration can help make Viktor's dream come true, right? So maybe sharing a big secret would help...]
I think you did really good here! Drawing power from a mana stone isn't easy, especially not these kind. They're powerful, but very unstable, as the mana in them comes from within the earth. It's basically untempered mana, up until you refine it.
You might have better luck with a mana stone from another source.
[He flicks his wrist, and then there's a small stone in his hand, similar in color to the hex crystal/mana stone that Viktor has but shaped more like an actual gemstone.]
Here, give this one a try.
[If Viktor attempts it, the power won't be as strong but it will be far easier to control.]
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[Here they could only ever find the one type and it was exceedingly rare, nothing that could be mined by unskilled hands, given the volatility. But there goes Brad, plucking it from thin air...
After looking it over, Viktor will swap out the hex gemstone for what Brad provided. He fits his goggles on to protect his eyes, gesturing Brad towards a spare pair out of courtesy.
The stone doesn't fit quite as well, but Viktor will recalibrate and boot the machine up- which seems to really struggle with the new task. Viktor doesn't flinch, he just cranks the device until he finds the breakthrough point- magic flashing within the space and beaming brightly out the windows.
There is definitely going to be a knock on the door soon, from a curious co-worker unable to stay away. Viktor isn't thinking about that, he just comments,]
Incredible... The raw output is not as high, but it stabilized so much faster and more even than our own. This would be ideal for common use!
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[Which. Says something about the farming process. As well as wizard culture as a whole, if they're eating these things.]
What're you gonna use 'em for?
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[this is the most important thing to question about all that]
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Oh, but don't try it yourself. It only works for wizards. For a regular human, you'd mutate into a horrible monster.
[He says this so casually, like it's no big deal.]
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We should not talk more on this here. It is risky, but... at my home, I will bring some notebooks back with me. [he doesn't know there is a sound proof spell on the room, Viktor is just being excitedly reckless up onto now. Reaching a hand to Brad, he lightly squeezes at his arm to emphasis,]
Thank you, for showing me this. This could change so much.
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Hey, anything that helps, right? You gotta change the world, I might as well make it easier.
[But yeah, they need to clean up quickly and hide the device that Viktor brought over. Once they're in the clear Brad quickly drops the sound proofing spell and leans back against the desk.]
So, what now? Do we get to go home early?
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He might only be around until next he sneezes, right? At any moment, couldn't he just poof away, leaving Viktor with too many questions to ever answer by himself?
There is a noise like someone trying the door without knocking, rattling the handle. Then a knock, a voice trying to not be too worried comes through- "Viktor? Are you alright?" And Viktor quickly stashes the gemstone in a pocket before handing Bradley back the other crystal. He pulls off his goggles as he crosses to open the door again, gathering an armful of notebooks as he went. So much so he can barely pop the door open without dropping any, once there.]
Perfectly fine, Jayce. Just on my way out.
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