𝐀𝐜𝐭 𝐎𝐧𝐞 -- 𝐒𝐞𝐱 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐆𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐭
𝟎𝟎3: Time will tell
    (𝘼𝙧𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙚, 01x08 - 02x01)

EKKO liked to tell himself that the past didn't own him. That he wasn't shackled to the weight of memories or old wounds. He told himself his face was aimed at the future, his feet set in the present, but when he looked in the mirror, his back was always turned to the past.

He wasn't stuck, not really. He just couldn't walk away from it. He knew that when it became clear, when he had Jinx beneath him, trembling, her life literally in his hands, and still, he couldn't finish it. He couldn't kill her.

Because to him, that wasn't Jinx. That was Powder. Powder, with her wide eyes, her innocent smile, the girl who used to drag him into trouble. Powder, the girl he tried so hard to forget but couldn't, no matter how much he told himself she was gone. He could push the narrative, could drown out the whispers in his mind, telling him she had died in that factory, but the truth was, Powder was still alive in the way he saw her. Alive in his thoughts. In his guilt.

And in the moment when he looked at Jinx, when the girl writhed under his hands, all he saw was Powder.

It didn't matter what the world told him. What anyone told him. To Ekko, Powder was always just a step behind, always lingering in the shadows, refusing to let him forget her.

She was still very much alive. To him, anyways.

But where did holding onto the past get him? Lying in the back of an alleyway that's where. He clutched his side, gasping for breath desperately like he had been these past few hours.

A small, animal-like figure, cloaked in what appeared to be a mix of mismatched fabrics, passed Ekko, lifting his hoverboard effortlessly. "Oh, ingenious. Though these blades seem improperly pitched."

Most people thought that. Ekko raised an eyebrow, muttering, "You're wrong." He gestured toward the board. "It's designed for the fissures." He coughed. "The air is denser."

The figure paused, glancing at him curiously. "Oh."

"Are you all right, lad?" the figure asked, moving closer.

"I'm fine, I just sprained my ankle." Ekko shifted his weight, testing the injured leg. As the figure came into full view, a realization struck him. "Are you Councilor Heimerdinger?"

"It's... just Heimerdinger now," the figure replied, his voice tinged with something like regret.

"What are you doing on this side of the river?" Ekko asked, still surprised.

Heimerdinger's expression grew sorrowful. "I wanted to offer my assistance to the citizens of the Undercity, but, it seems I'm unwelcome."

Ekko let out a small chuckle.

"What is it?" the former councilor asked, sensing something in Ekko's tone.

"We're having the exact same day," Ekko said with a grin.

Heimerdinger hummed thoughtfully before looking at Ekko's sprained ankle. "That looks like more than a sprain. You need medical attention."

Ekko shook his head. "I have to get home. It isn't safe for me here."

Heimerdinger eyed the hoverboard in Ekko's hands, his face scrunching in mild exasperation. "I don't know how I'm going to get down there with my leg busted and well... you're holding my ride."

"Do you truly think all the members of topside are bad?" Moon had asked him one evening as they sat on a rooftop overlooking the city, the glow of Piltover's lights a faraway shimmer beneath them. Her eyes, steady and contemplative, drifted across the horizon as if searching for something beyond what was visible.

Ekko frowned, shifting uncomfortably. "I don't know. I mean, I've seen enough to know they don't care about us." He waved his hand dismissively. "They look down on us, use us for their experiments, and throw us away when we're done."

Moon tilted her head, her brow furrowing in thought. "That's true," she said softly, "but it's not everyone. Most of them are born into it, Ekko. Born into their position, just like we were born here. They don't choose it any more than we did."

Ekko was about to respond, but she held up a hand, stopping him. She continued, her voice even and quiet, "Zaun has its dark sides, too. You can't deny that. We have our monsters here. Our criminals. But those parts of us are the ones people focus on, just like how the rich and the powerful in Piltover get swept up in their own ideals. And let's not forget—there are innocent people in Piltover. You can't paint them all with the same brush."

"But it's different," Ekko protested, his voice sharp, tinged with bitterness. "The people up there, they don't even know what it's like down here. They don't even see us, let alone care."

Moon's eyes softened, though there was a subtle strength in her gaze, a quiet understanding. "True, but... do you think that makes them the enemy?" she asked, her words measured, almost too wise for her years. "It's easier to blame the people on top. But it's the system that's broken, not just the people in it. And no matter how much we hate them, we can't ignore the fact that they're just as trapped as we are. Just in a different way."

Ekko leaned back, staring out at the darkened skyline, his chest heavy with the weight of her words. He wanted to argue, to disagree, but somehow, her perspective unraveled his defenses, leaving him with only the harsh truth of her calm reasoning.

"I don't know," Ekko muttered, almost to himself. "Maybe you're right. I just can't forget what they've done to us."

Moon's voice softened, a quiet smile on her lips. "It's okay. Neither can I. But, Ekko, the world's a lot more complicated than we want it to be. And sometimes, just sometimes, we need to let people be more than what we've made them out to be."

There was a long silence between them, one filled with the hum of the city far below and the rustle of the wind through the streets. Ekko felt a stir inside, an uncomfortable mix of hope and resignation. Maybe she was right. Maybe not everything was as black and white as he'd always thought. But the truth was—he wasn't sure he could let go of the anger, not yet.

Moon turned her gaze back to the horizon, her fingers lightly brushing the canvas she was painting on, as though lost in thought. "You know," she said after a moment, breaking the stillness, "the world doesn't have to be perfect to be worth fighting for."

Ekko glanced at her, the softness of her words settling deep within him. "I don't know if I can change it," he admitted.

She looked at him then, her smile small but genuine. "We don't need to change the world, Ekko. We just need to make it better than it was yesterday."

Heimerdinger gasped in awe as he entered Ekko's paradise, the world of Lunaris—a stark contrast to the harsh environment of the Undercity. "Astonishing," the professor murmured, his eyes wide with wonder. "You say all this came about in your own brief lifespan? How were you able to accomplish so much so quickly?"

Ekko's lips quirked into a smirk. "You'd be surprised what you can pull off when your life depends on it."

A yelp of pain escaped Ekko as Scar popped his bone back into place, the sharp snap echoing through the air. The discomfort was brief, but intense.

Heimerdinger raised an eyebrow. "Uh, why this form? Surely there are more efficient and safer methods of transportation."

Before Ekko could respond, Scar hit his staff against the ground with a resounding thud. "Firelights!" he called, and the surrounding Firelights howled in unison, their voices reverberating with an energy that vibrated through the floor.

Ekko nodded, watching as the Firelights moved with an organized grace. "It's not enough to give the people what they need to survive," he said, his tone firm. "You need to give them what they need to live."

Heimerdinger stood silently for a moment, taking in the vibrant life Ekko had created in the heart of the Undercity, and for the first time, he understood the true depth of the young leader's vision.

LUNARIS had grown. Unfortunately for Ekko, not in physical form but in population. The Firelights were bringing back refugees day after day. It was beautiful to watch it all happen, but the underlying issue of capacity remained apparent.

"There's so many of them," Ekko commented, watching a new cluster arrive. "It's all the fighting. We're gonna have capacity issues soon."

Scar leaned against the wall, his eyes narrowing. "Then there's the security risk."

Ekko scoffed, shaking his head. "We're not turning people away."

Scar nodded gravely. "All these years, we finally get rid of Silco, just so a new one can take his place."

Ekko's gaze drifted toward Heimerdinger, now a resident of Lunaris, who was entertaining the new children with his bubble machine. A brief smile flickered across Ekko's face before it faded, the weight of responsibility returning.

Ekko looked up as a leaf fell from Lunaris, its green body stained with tinges of a purple substance. He huffed, a mix of frustration and determination in his chest. There was still work to be done.

Heimerdinger carefully examined the leaf handed to him, his brow furrowed with concern. "Oh, this is quite troubling."

Ekko continued pacing around Heimerdinger's residence, his voice tinged with frustration. "That tree means so much. It's our food. Fresh air. We built our whole identity around it..."

"Man, every time it seems like we might catch a break—" Ekko began, but Heimerdinger cut him off with a reassuring tone.

"Ah, now, it's not lost yet, lad. If there is a means of preservation, by golly, we'll find it."

Ekko stopped in his tracks, the weight of the moment sinking in. "I have seen something of this nature before." Heimerdinger recalled.

LOVE SPEAKS!

I thought this book would be too short for filler but here it is I guess. Bear with me guys he has like less than an hour of screen time throughout the whole series.

Fun fact: If Moon was never sold she would have worked for Silco only through running The Last Drop. Not because she wants to but because she felt she needed to hold onto it and keep her promise to Vander