Arcane: I have Plasmids F*** YEAAAAAAH!!!

One month.

It had been one whole month since Lukas had pulled the biggest bluff of his goddamn life.

And somehow?

Somehow, it worked.

HELL YEAH!

---

Fontaine Futuristics Was Alive.

No longer just a skeleton of rust and dust—it breathed.

The old, abandoned factory had transformed into something more.

A beacon.

Men, women—even kids scurried around, putting things together, learning, building.

The first batch of wireless telegraphs was almost ready.

And Lukas?

Lukas was thriving.

---

Ekko had taken to the work naturally—his mind never stopped.

Powder was… a force of nature.

She had fully taken charge of teaching the others, pacing back and forth like some tiny, blue-haired general.

Anytime those two had time to spare, they were here.

And the kids?

The ones who had helped him clean the place up?

They wanted to stay.

They wanted to work.

---FLASHBACK---

Lukas sat in his office, staring blankly at the ceiling.

"...Does this make me a villain?"

Ekko, flipping through blueprints, without even looking up—

"Well… technically, we're all kids here."

Lukas: "...Damn."

Ekko: "And you're paying them, and this is the undercity, so it's fine."

Lukas: "Exactly! See? Not villainous!"

Ekko: "Mm-hmm."

---END OF FLASHBACK---

Lukas wasn't just hiring kids.

He had people now.

Real workers.

People from the Lanes, the gutters—people who had nothing.

And now?

Now, they had something.

Lukas made sure they had food, that they had shelter.

And best of all?

He had Moneeeeey.

---FLASHBACK---

Renni's office.

Lukas kicked the door open, a huge dead guy, levitating behind him.

he looked he had been hit by Lightning.

And shot.

And recently on fire.

Renni, looking up from her desk—mildly irritated.

Lukas threw the corpse at her feet.

"Renni, the fuck is this?"

Renni stared at the body.

Then at Lukas.

Then back at the body.

Cold sweat dripping down her forehead.

"I have never seen this man in my entire life."

Lukas deadpanned.

"Okayyy... i'm killing your kid now, byeee—"

Renni, suddenly looking very concerned.

"WAIT, I WILL GIVE YOU MORE MONEY!"

---END OF FLASHBACK---

Lukas exhaled, shaking his head.

"Good times."

---

Lukas wiped his hands on a rag, rolling his shoulders.

Things were moving.

Fast.

Fontaine Futuristics was no longer just an idea.

It was real.

Alive.

And thriving.

He looked around the factory floor.

Ekko was in his usual spot—sitting cross-legged on a pile of scrap, goggles pulled over his eyes as he tinkered with something.

Powder was pacing, barking out instructions to one of the workers—a tired-looking teenager who desperately tried to keep up with her.

"No, no, no— like this! If you mess up this part, the whole thing explodes!"

The kid froze.

"...Explodes?"

Powder blinked.

Then smiled.

"Probably!"

Lukas sighed.

"Powder, I would like for my employees to have at least some sense of safety."

Powder rolled her eyes.

"Fine. It'll only probably set the place on fire. Happy?"

Lukas pinched the bridge of his nose.

Ekko chuckled.

Speaking of Ekko…

The kid had something on his mind.

Lukas knew that look.

It was the 'I'm about to drop some genius shit on you' look.

And sure enough—

"Lukas," Ekko said, pushing his goggles up. "I got an idea."

Lukas, sipping from his metal mug, eyed him.

"You always do."

Ekko exhaled.

"No, listen—what if, instead of just clicking messages, we could actually send our voices? Like those phone thingys Topside."

Lukas choked on his drink.

His brain blue-screened.

What. The. FUCK.

Ekko was already ahead of him.

He started rambling—talking about that if there were things like sound waves, modulation thingys

And Lukas?

Lukas was losing his goddamn mind.

Holy shit.

Ekko was already imagining radio.

Lukas.exe has stopped working.

Lukas just stared.

"This—"

He pointed at Ekko.

Then at the floor.

Then at the sky.

Then back at Ekko.

"You—"

He ran a hand down his face.

Ekko grinned.

Lukas groaned.

"I swear to God, I'm gonna get left behind at my own company."

Powder, walking by, not even looking up—

"Sounds like skill issue, Mr. Nudes."

Lukas: "WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY TO ME—"

Everything Was Good.

For the first time in forever, things actually felt right.

The factory was running.

The telegraphs were almost done.

Ekko was already thinking beyond them.

Powder was smiling again.

Lukas felt something close to peace.

And then—

The next morning came.

And something changed.

No time for peace here huh?

---

Lukas arrived early to open the factory.

The sun was barely up.

The air was crisp.

Powder and Ekko would be helping Benzo and Vander today.

Lukas had plans.

Blueprints to go over.

Machines to test.

And most importantly—

Child workers to exploit— (Wait, no, I mean… workers to fairly compensate.)

But as he approached the entrance—

He stopped.

Because there was someone waiting.

Standing alone.

Tall.

Poised.

Dark vest.

Red shirt.

Sharp posture.

Face hidden by the shadows of the early morning.

Lukas frowned.

Something about the way the man stood—

Too still.

Too calm.

His hands curled slightly.

I know that suit.

The figure noticed him.

Stepped forward.

Lukas's breath hitched.

The sharp, calculating eye.

The controlled, measured movements.

Fuck.

It's Him.

---

The figure studied him.

Then, finally—

He smiled.

Small. Cold.

"Mr. Fontaine."

Lukas's jaw tensed.

His mind raced.

Why?

Why was he here?

What did he want?

How much did he know?

Lukas inhaled.

Exhaled.

His expression stayed calm.

Light. Controlled.

"Well, well."

"If it isn't Zaun's Teen Revolutionary."

The man's eyes gleamed.

Sharp. Dangerous.

And then, with quiet certainty—

"We should talk."