Undertow | Ekko x Reader

49

And then—a second set of hands grab you. Stronger this time, firm and unyielding as they wrench you around.

Your breath catches. Your mind stutters.

Vi.

The sight of her—worn, hardened, with streaks of black cutting through her familiar pink hair—knocks the breath from your lungs. Behind her stands an exasperated Jinx, shifting restlessly, and Isha, her brows knitted in confusion.

Your gaze flickers back to Vi. You take in the dark circles under her eyes, the tension coiled in her shoulders. She looks like shit.

And maybe it's the emotion still running rampant inside you, or maybe it's just sheer instinct at this point, but your lips move before your mind catches up.

"Well, looks like you finally found your sister," you bite out, voice laced with venom.

Vi scoffs, stepping in closer until there's barely any space left between the two of you.

"Yeah," she shoots back, unimpressed. "And then we found you trying to kill the only person who can help our dad."

Your anger flares white-hot at that.

"Oh, yeah? Well, he might be the only person who knows what happened to Ekko!"

The words come out sharper than you intend, cutting through the air like a blade. You see something flicker across Vi's face, but you don't stop. You can't stop.

Then, something ugly settles in your gut, something bitter—and before you can stop yourself, you let it slip.

"Oh wait," you sneer, feigning realization, "I forgot—you wouldn't care, would you?
You're a traitor, after all."

Vi's expression darkens, her jaw tightening as her fists clench at her sides.

And then—her hand drops, and she points to your left arm.

The breath in your lungs stills.

"Yeah?" she snaps, eyes burning. "Well, I'm not the one with it branded into me, am I?"

Your stomach plummets.

For a moment, all you can do is stare. You had forgotten—the fabric that had once hidden it had long since deteriorated, ripped away in that damn jail cell. Rationally, you knew it didn't change anything. But emotionally?

That mark was the last piece of Ekko you had left.

A lump rises in your throat, but you force it down, shoving it back with everything else, burying it beneath the sheer cold that settles over you.

Your expression hardens.

"Yeah," you say, voice eerily steady, "I may be a traitor." Your lips curl into something sharp, something dangerous. "But at least I did it for Zaun."

Vi flinches. Just barely.

"You turned against your own people. You went from oppressed to oppressor. So don't you dare—don't you fucking dare—try to stand there and act like you have the moral high ground."

The tension between you is suffocating, thick enough to drown in. Vi's mouth opens, sharp words ready on her tongue—

And then Jinx wedges herself between you both. She plants her hands against both your shoulders, pushing you back, frustration written all over her face.

"Okay! Can we not go at each other's throats for one damn minute and do what we actually came here to do? Help Vander?"

Her words slam into you like a slap to the face.

You scoff, jerking back from her touch. Help Vander? Right. Because that's all anyone cared about, wasn't it?

Not you.
It's not what you've been trying to do this entire time.

Your heart feels like it's being crushed in a vice, but you force the feeling away, swallowing it down like bitter poison.

"Fine," you mutter, spinning on your heel. You reach for Alyssandra's hand, gripping it tightly before pulling her forward. "We're leaving."

You don't wait for a response. You walk, letting each step feel like a knife cutting you free, shaking with exhaustion, but still fueled by one thing: Ekko.

Because Ekko isn't dead.

And you will find him.

You're nearly ten feet away when—

"Wait!"

Jinx.

You clench your jaw, exhaling sharply before slowly turning back to face her, arms crossing over your chest.

Her expression isn't her usual chaotic amusement or barely-contained glee. It's something more subdued. Calculated.

"I know you want to find Ekko," she starts. "I get it. But look—this guy?" She gestures vaguely toward the Herald. "I don't think he's lying. And I definitely know when someone's bullshitting me."

You open your mouth, ready to argue, but she keeps going.

"So..." she rocks back on her heels, tilting her head. "How about this? You stay here with me for a day or two while he helps Vander, and then—" her grin sharpens just a little— "I'll help you look."

The offer hangs in the air.

It's bait, and you know it.

You should just leave. Keep walking. Ignore her and go.

But your body betrays you.

Your mind turns over the options. The reality. The fact that no matter how much you want to tear through Zaun on your own, it's too big. Too many places to look, too many dead ends, too many nights spent chasing ghosts that led to nothing.

Jinx, for all her unpredictability, knows this city inside and out. If anyone could help you find something no one else could, it's her.

You exhale slowly, the weight of everything pressing heavy against your ribs.

Finally, you meet her gaze and give a single nod.

"Fine," you say.

But deep down, you know—

This isn't over.