The Good Life: Victory Lap (ch. 135) (Patreon)

“That was dull,” Sukuna rendered his verdict, lounging on some rubble. “These mages were of slight interest, but not much more than that.” 

“I told you not to get your hopes up,” I chided, making Sukuna narrow his eyes ever so slightly. “As far as they were concerned, this was a sideshow. The main attraction is just starting.” 

“I won't hold my breath,” Sukuna said with a scoff. “I'll take Ionia. There might be something there worth my attention.” Probably. I had done my due diligence about Ionia, and it sounded like Noxus’ Vietnam. Only the trees weren't just speaking Ionian; they also stabbed you in the kidney when you weren't looking. 

There were bits and pieces that snagged my attention. The ninja wizard clans. The fantasy creatures. It was a place where magic thrived in a way that it just didn't in Piltover. Or what was left of it. 

Taylor kept her word, of course. Already, the same species of insects that were rebuilding her domain were consuming the rubble and rebuilding Piltover anew. Zaun, of course, was getting its own facelift with both the Cloud we unleashed upon Noxus and the Gray that kept it at bay cleaned up in short order. People were naturally wary of the giant insects, but restoring their homes had netted my Heartless persona a great deal of goodwill. 

There was an air of celebration that came with Swain's hasty withdrawal. He left with barely a third of his army, which was honestly more than I thought he would. People celebrated in the streets, not quite understanding that they were just under my boot instead of Noxus’. That might change eventually, but for now, they rejoiced. 

They saw their city being rebuilt and held out hope that everything could soon go back to normal. It wouldn't, of course. I had presented a path to Caitlyn that I knew Cinder would naturally nudge her down far more effectively than I could hope to. To Caitlyn's credit, she was slipping down that slope far easier than I thought she would. 

My synth was party to her plans to militarize Piltover. She wanted weapons and armor and technology that would allow Piltover to expand in the name of self-defense. It almost made me regret calling off the marriage. Underneath that prim and proper nice girl beat the heart of a real authoritarian dictator. She just needed the chance to let it shine. All the better, she was genuinely convinced that it was all for the greater good. That she had a choice between evils, and she’d kept picking the lesser one. 

It was deliciously entertaining. If only Sukuna could appreciate subtler cruelties. 

“Suppose Kaido will help Ambessa with Noxus,” I remarked, coming to a stop at the edge of the ruined building and glancing up at the drunk as shit dragon terrorizing the border. Inadvertently paving the way for Ambessa, provided that she didn't get hit by a little friendly fire. 

Given how things ended between Ambessa and Caitlyn, and Piltover as a whole, Ambessa chose to leave the city behind. The former camp of the invading army was occupied with her clan forces along with any Noxian soldier that was willing to join the obvious winning side. She’d managed to scrape together around twelve thousand Noxian soldiers. A pretty decent army, but not one big enough to conquer the whole of an empire. 

Which was why she was being supported by an additional ten thousand super mutants and five thousand mech infantry. Taylor had really hit her stride in Fallout and El Dorado. In Fallout, men becoming super mutants was rapidly becoming a viable means to survive the wasteland. And in El Dorado, rebellious men were turned into super mutants, so we had a surplus to fuel rapid expansion.The resources being harvested in Fallout also gave Taylor all that she needed for the mass production of things like advanced components, computers, and so on. 

“That girl really is something else,” I mused, turning my gaze to the sea. As part of her plans to invade overseas, both in her own world and in Nora's, Taylor had developed water-based insects. In appearance and in function, they were pretty similar to mirelurks, just with a few variants. Some vomited acid, others had mantis blades or mantis shrimp claws. A few were designed to transport troops and insects, giving them the appearance of serpentine whales. 

Ionia wasn't in for a good time; that was for sure.

“She's not bad,” Sukuna admitted, and that was as close to a compliment I've heard from him. “Not entirely useless, unlike most of your deadweight.” 

“Be nice, or I'll tell Kaido,” I teased, laughing as I dodged out of the way of a Cleave that would have taken my head off. Kaido and Sukuna were a lot alike, so it was only natural that they would buttheads to establish the pecking order. It wasn't really a shock to learn that Sukuna had lost that fight. Though he hadn't lost as badly as I’d expected. 

Mahoraga was a real beast. In the end, Sukuna fell before he did. 

“You're so damn annoying,” Sukuna tsked. “And too damn pleased with yourself.” 

“How can I not be?” I asked, grinning away as I watched the preparations to bring a world to heel unfold all around me. Ambessa was gearing up to chase Swain down. Taylor was getting ready to invade Ionia and Bilgewater. Caitlyn, in the name of self-defense, would conquer the southern continent starting with Ixtal. All using a mix-match of technology, abilities, and people pulled from the corners of my empire. “This is the dry run, you know? The prototype for all that comes next.” 

A smile consumed my face, “Bringing worlds in with a soft touch can be fun, but now? Now I feel like playing the part of a conqueror.” We would arrive with armies that numbered in the hundreds of thousands, then millions, then tens of millions. The momentum that I had spent years building up had finally taken a life of its own. 

Runeterra would fall. Might not be so simple and clean as it seemed at the moment though. This world had some bite in it, I felt, but that's what I liked about it. This was the time to stress test. To experiment. To fuck around and find out. 

“We're so close. So damn close, Sukuna. Just a little more, and we'll hit the point of no return. Just world after world after world falling like dominos,” I said with obvious cheer. I could see it now. A vast network connected by Dias, further connected by teleportation arrays or Hexgates or whatever else we happened to find in the vast multiverse. 

What I really couldn’t wait for was us finding a sci-fi universe. One with spaceships. As things were, my empire was limited to the planets we started on in each universe, but with spaceships? That was an entirely new frontier to explore. 

We would spread like locusts not just across the multiverse, but within each universe. All the better, I already knew that Fallout had aliens. That was a whole new vector of entertainment just tantalizingly out of reach. 

I could feel it. We were on the cusp of setting something truly terrible in motion. 

“So we are,” Sukuna could admit that much. “Can't imagine that conquering this world will take a year.” We still had sevenish months until our supposed reunion with Asami in Final Fantasy. Theoretically, at least. I found it difficult to believe that she hadn't left someone or something to keep an eye on me, but the jig was really going to be up when we reconnected in Midgar. 

“Wouldn’t be so sure of that. This world has a few surprises left in it,” I replied, earning a grunt from Sukuna. Mordy was stirring in the afterlife, according to Jenova. I hadn’t been able to find much about the man. So little that he was either ancient beyond recordkeeping, or someone had gone to great lengths to erase his existence. I supposed that didn't matter much, as he was looking to raise a little hell since he couldn't invade the Lifestream. 

This world had secrets. Legends of power. Gods that walked Runeterra. Demons and angels and everything in between. In some ways, it felt like we’d landed in the most mundane part of the world. 

“A year, then,” Sukuna decided. “If this world fails to entertain, then there is always the Culling Game,” he mused. Probably looking forward to his showdown with himself. Or the piece of him that dwelled within his nephew. “That should be interesting, at least.” 

It would be. For all the reasons he suspected and a few more to boot. Asami had jumped ten years into the future of that world, and from what I saw of Maki and Nobara's memories? 

There were few ways to plan an ambush better than knowing where your enemy would be long in advance. 

Midgar would be our reunion, but the Culling Games? That would be where Asami revealed why I let her go after her failed assassination. 

Of course, some weren't willing to wait. I glanced over to a section of the city that was depopulated but under construction, just in time to see a building collapse in on itself. A hum escaped me, and with a wave over my shoulder, I said goodbye to Sukuna before teleporting over to the destruction. The source of it was revealed when the dust vanished amid a shockwave from Rumi and Yoruichi clashing in the ruins. 

There was a savage smile on Rumi's face even as Yoruichi stopped a kick cold with her shin. Yoruichi matched her smile with an amused little grin, her golden eyes flickering in my direction. 

“Don't worry. We won't tear the place up too much,” Yoruichi said, vanishing with a burst of speed before delivering a roundhouse that sent Rumi through piles of rubble. “She wanted a rematch. Wouldn't take no for an answer. Really has too much energy for her own good.” 

Rumi was already bouncing back, shooting at Yoruichi like a bullet. A kick screamed through the air, followed by a sonic boom when it struck the ground like a bomb as Yoruichi deftly dodged it. Her blood red eyes flickered to me, and I saw her consider attacking. Not because she wanted to kill me, but for the pure love of the game. The serum Asami gave her amped up everything. Rumi had already been aggressive by nature, but it was amped up to twelve now.

“Wait your turn!” She snapped at me, flying at Yoruichi with vicious intent. 

“You gotta find a better use for all that energy, Rumi!” Yoruichi laughed as they clashed again. “Might be a bit faster and stronger now, but you're still a few centuries away from being able to take me on!” 

Rumi howled, but I genuinely couldn't tell if it was one of fury or pure elation. 

“Sometimes, my own brilliance scares me,” I mused, watching Rumi attack Yoruichi with reckless abandon. No restraint or reservation. There was no lamenting or angst over the lives lost during the war, or those that lost theirs at her hands. The moment one fight ended, she was looking for the next. “But…”

I teleported Rumi towards me. Her eyes widened for a split second but once her surprise passed, she made no effort to abandon the attack that aimed to take my head off with a kick. Stepping to the side, I avoided it before jabbing two fingers into her abdomen. “Syringe,” I uttered, grabbing hold of the imperfect serum bonded to every cell in her body before pushing them out. 

As with Yamato, about two liters of the serum emerged from her body, collected in a thin film that I caught after leaning out of the way of her following spinning axe kick in an attempt to hit me while flying by. Rumi flipped in the air, landing in a three-point stance while her momentum had her carving a long trench on the already broken road. Her eyes narrowed into slits, razor-focused on the serum in my hand. 

“Feel a bit more like yourself again?” I asked her, tossing it up and catching it. I imagine it had to be pretty jarring to go from a twelve on the aggression scale to a much more natural six. 

Rumi stood up, looking down at herself and clutching her hands a few times. “You aren’t the type to do favors, so what's the deal?” 

“There isn't one,” I replied. It was even true. Sort of. “Just can't have you making a mess of the place while we're rebuilding.” As I spoke, I strode towards her with a casual swagger I could see set her teeth on edge. Her eyes, however, were affixed to the serum in my hands. The were a few possible reasons why. 

There were few excuses quite like mind-altering substances. ‘It wasn't me, it was the booze!’ Was extensively used throughout my childhood. While I wouldn't go as far as to call Rumi an addict, violence was her nature. I was just hoping to broaden how she channeled that nature. 

So, I tossed the serum back towards her, and she caught it with a split second of hesitation. “That's yours to do what you want with.” 

“Why?” Rumi stressed, visibly tempted to just throw it back at me. “What's your game, Law?” 

“Don't have one,” I lied before laughing at her blunt disbelief. “We had fun together, Rumi. You as much as me. Not going to ask you about lines in the sand or picking sides. Just to think on your options now that you have a clear head.”

Rumi spat on the ground, “Clear head? How could anyone have a clear head when you keep fuckin’ with them?” She asked sharply, her lips pulling back into a snarl. Her gaze only wavered when Yoruichi revealed herself, draping herself over my shoulders in her cat form. “I’m not going to join your merry band of fuck ups and psychopaths.”

She would. Eventually. She didn’t realize it yet, but she was already walking a path that led her right towards me. It would just take a few revelations… I was certain that by the time the Culling Game came? She would be on my side of the line. 

“Like I said, not asking you to pick sides.” Yet. “Want a trip through the Dias? Let me know. Wanna kick your feet up? Say the word. Or you want to take part in the war? There's a dotted line you can sign. Just give it a think. You have time, after all,” I said, tossing her a wink she visibly didn’t know what to do with. 

The truth of it was, Rumi was isolated. I had combed through her memories, and if Asami had a means of contacting her, then Rumi didn’t know about it. Quite the opposite, really. Asami had a lot of secrets that she kept from others in the name of ‘informational security.’ Rightly so, but it only added to the sense of abandonment. 

Rumi had been too hopped up on angry juice to feel it before. She would, though, and soon. In the quiet moments, when she only had herself for company, she would ruminate on the fact that she was alone. Left behind in the wake of a failed assassination. And that, more than anything else, would see her flip. 

“But, speaking of fucking with heads, there is another that needs my attention,” I said, lingering just long enough to see Rumi’s expression before I vanished. 

The ruins of Piltover vanished, replaced by a run down looking basement in the depths of Zaun. It looked like it was a cross between a store room and a bedroom, complete with bunk beds.

Vi was laid out on a bed, curled up in the fetal position and gazing forward with a vacant stare. Not quite catatonic, but she had retreated into herself. Jinx was behind her, running a comb through her hair with a smile that grew when she saw my arrival. “Law! You're here! Oh, you shouldn't be. She's not quite ready.” 

Jinx was all smiles, but something was cracked behind her eyes. She was already batshit insane after our long stay in Final Fantasy, but now… Now I realized she had been in a cocoon of sorts. She had achieved her final form. Become a woman who would trick her sister into killing their adopted father, just so she would shatter to pieces in a way that I would find amusing. 

It was monstrous. 

It was evil. 

What I did to Jinx might genuinely be the most monstrous thing I had ever done. 

I didn't regret a damn thing as I pulled up a chair, taking a seat next to the pair, and cupped Jinx's cheek. “You are something else, Jinx,” I told her. Her eyes glowed with emotion, full of love and vulnerability. “Really. I'm so proud of you.” 

Of course, I didn't let the words reach Vi's ears. Couldn't risk sabotaging Jinx's masterpiece with some, ‘I heard everything despite being in a coma’ type shenanigans.

Jinx leaned into my touch, “Really?” She muttered, sounding so hopeful. “I messed up a little along the way. Shoulda teased out the reveal… dropped a few hints…” she muttered, continuing to brush Vi's hair as she spoke. “But I thought a wham bam reveal would have the right amount of feelings beatdown?” 

Then she snorted, “Plus, it's not like he's really dead!” Jinx said with a touch of hysteria, clutching at Vi. “Jenova can pluck ‘em from the Lifestream and we can give him back his old body! New and improved! No more fur or fangs -- he'll be so thankful! I'm just saving it for a reward for Vi once she starts being a good girl.” 

That could explain some of her willingness. I had a similar plan for Homelander on the back burner. Bringing him back would be relatively simple. Jenova could just pluck his soul and stuff it into a synth body. The reason why I hadn't already was for a similar reason as Jinx -- it wasn't the right time. 

There was something holding me back. A reluctance I couldn't quite name. A thought that lingered in the back of my mind. 

I had come such a long way since my first foray as Heartless. Our ending hadn't been ideal, but it was an ending. Would Homelander stand up to how he was in my memories? 

“She isn't the only one who needs a reward,” I told Jinx, brushing a stray lock of hair from her cheek as she cuddled her catatonic sister. “You've outdone yourself, Jinx. I mean it. Even if Vi is a work in progress -- you… you've exceeded every expectation I had for you.” 

Rumi wasn't wrong with her accusation about my habits of fucking with peoples’ heads. If anything, she underestimated how good I was at it because the praise had exactly the reaction I wanted from Jinx. She looked like a dog that had finally caught its tail -- pure satisfaction and triumph, and a joy that was entirely too innocent for how she earned my praise. 

“Can I ask for anything?” She asked, a giggle in the back of her throat. 

“Anything,” I agreed, though it sounded like she had something particular in mind. 

Jinx uttered what she wanted and I could only laugh in response. 

I had really underestimated how crazy this girl was.