Scrapyard Angels Act 1 Chapter 5

Gardening is relaxing despite all the work you need to put into taking care of the plants. The scent of flowers filling my lungs was a rare and exquisite treat thanks to the industry of Zaun. You know things are bad when you have people buying the right to have a breather in a room filled with fresh air.

The humidity didn't bother me as much as the other kids while I tend to this part of the Cultivair. The Rainforest section of it as it was called with plants all the way from the jungles of Ixtal which was located in the eastern part of the continent of Shurima. The heat and a humidity was almost too much for most people to bear except for me and Tom

"So, you got anything to do tonight, Ark?" He asked as he hosed me down. The heat was oppressive and we had to constantly stay hydrated or hosed down but I think being here was worth it. It was peaceful and quiet except for Tom

"You know I have a part time job in the nearby school right?"

"I can wait"

"And I have sisters to take care of back at home"

"O-oh yeah…" He replied as he aimed the hose back at the plants

I had the distinct feeling that he was probably flirting at me at times but to busy at times and I just don't give a fuck. Still, it was annoying because I like girls a lot and I often get the attention of boys. The partial reflection on the clear glass pane reminded me of why.

Bright blue eyes with a mane of blonde hair that grow past shoulder length and a face devoid of the sharp angles of masculinity. Despite puberty hitting hard down below, I wasn't growing in height. I remained small, a pipsqueak of a boy who could be described as a handsome girl or maybe a pretty boy. I remained slender and lean with only the callus of hard work in the palm of my hand and the scars across my body serving as a break from the softness. Maybe cutting my hair could make me less girly but I loved my hair.

While we continued working, we soon heard the faint conversation of two adults coming closer.

"Act busy!" Tom hissed out as he whistled while watering the plants. I on the other hand just continued pulling at the weeds littering the garden.

"My experiment was ruined. Just when I was on the cusp of achieving greatness, my subject escaped!" Shouted the newcomer as he walked along with who may probably be the most important person in the Cultivair, its owner Madam Corazon Verasa. She was the aunt of my current employer.

"Yes yes, we've all heard you Singed. Just let it go Singed. Why do you insist on bringing it up all the time when all it ever did was waste your time?" Asked the small wiry woman who metaphorically owned

all the workers collective asses

"Maybe you're right, Corazon. I'd like to thank you again for this Corazon, getting these rare plants in Noxus would have been prohibitively expensive."

"You know you don't have to thank me for that. Besides, you're practically family. If not for you, one of my Nephews would succumbed to the Grey Pox"

I couldn't help but glance at their general direction, partly out of awe that the Mad Chemist and the boss of my boss was here and out of fear that I might fuck up infront of them. I shouldn't have done so as the deceptively young looking woman noticed my glance. If not for her stark white hair, I would have thought she was younger. As our eyes meet, I knew I was done for.

"You! Come here" commander the woman as she crossed her arms. Tom tried to come to my defense as he perked up and walked towards the chembaron but she was quick to clarify

"Not you! The blonde one! Yes you. Now hurry along now. I don't have all day" There was nothing else I could do but obey as I walked towards her

"Y-yes madam?" I was surprised I managed to keep the trembling of my voice to a minimum

"Are you the one my niece calls Ark?" She asked as her judging eyes scanned me from head to toe. I felt naked under her gaze, like it was an open book for her to judge and discer. Her oppressive stare was all to intense and made me look the other way

"I've heard great things about you from my niece. She said you were the smart one from the new batch of workers. Had to throw the last one out when they tried to collect some of my flowers" I didn't know if she meant it metaphorically or literally but at this point, I was too afraid to ask her

"Now be a dear and help Doctor Singed over here gather some plants . Don't be stingy about the flowers and plants he'll collect even if my niece told you otherwise"

"Yes ma'am!" I feared for my life and my job so I had to be at my very best "Come this way please"

"I'll leave you in the care of Ark over here. It's been quite sometime since I last saw my niece so let this old woman have her time with her favorite little buttercup"

"You're far too modest with yourself, Corazon. Why If you weren't married, I'd court you here and now" Two old people flirting. Cute but slightly horrifying considering who these two are

"Oh you charming rogue" Finally she left leaving me with one less thing to worry about.

I lead the way deeper inside the Rainforest. Compared to a real forest, it was far too quiet. There was no sound aside from the sound of the artificial stream running across the center of the enclosure as well as the sound of footsteps on the gravel path.

"So, is there any flower you're looking for, Doctor?" I asked as I looked back at the Mad Chemist. The controlled way he walks and the unblinking stare that greeted me made my heart skip a beat in fear. It was like staring at a wild animal who was barely held in place by the air of civility and intelligence that hang around him

"Mmm, I would like you to harvest these specific flowers" He replied as he listed a series of flowers that became more exotic and toxic. Datura and Castor Beans, to name a few of the mundane ones and that wasn't counting the magical plants that he required. "Also, Vanilla if you don't mind"

"We don't have any pods left" I was a bit perplexed at that little request. The owner of the Cultivair didn't let us in when they were attempting to pollinate the plants. Looks like they did the bee method as the flowers remained intact

"Drat. Oh well, we can't have everything"

Harvesting these plants was nerve wracking especially under the gaze of the esteemed chemist. I had to wear protective gloves and my respirator just to be sure I wouldn't inhale any poisonous fumes or pollen. With a basket in my hands, I went to work

It was a small mercy that the Doctor didn't want any small talk but it was unnerving feeling his gaze behind the back of my head. His dilated eyes observing me as I worked. Soon the basket filled up until the very last plant.

It was nicknamed the Darkins Cigar for its reddish purple flower shaped into a narrow cigar like shape. It wasn't something you wanted to stumble upon especially when it was already ripe else it will puff out a cloud of noxious gas that will kill you and make your body serve as the nursery for its seed, hence the name Darkin Cigar

As I reached out for the flower with scissors in hand, Singed reached out to stop me. His grip was unbelievably strong with the shakes one would find among the elderly. His hands were cold and almost devoid of warmth like the man himself.

"Let me handle this" I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding as he plucked the scissors from my hand and proceeded to harvest the plant himself. He cut it below the base of the flower at just the right spot so as to not have the sticky latex within the stem squirt out before quickly placing them in specially made vials filled with an oily liquid. His deft hand was a sight to behold especially with how quickly he moved.

"You have steady hands, a rarity among the citizens of Zaun." He then said as he pocketed the vial in his belt. "A steady hand and the spark of intelligence in your eyes, A rarity indeed."

"You were smart enough to fear me, knowledgeable enough to know who I am but also the plants you take care of, and obedient enough to override the fear you felt for me" I stood there frozen in fear, too afraid to reply

"I can see it in your eyes boy, don't deny it. You should be afraid. You're still ruled by your instincts but I have use for you. You see, I'll be moving to another city. A far less prosperous city but ken with more patrons to choose from and I find myself lacking assistants. There's only so many people worth taking in that could have the potential to be a competent chemist and I see that in you" His long gnarled finger jabbed into my chest as he loomed over me despite his hunched posture. His eyes lit with an intense fire that threatened to overwhelm me

"So what do you say. Will you like to be an assistant?" This offer, this offer was as insane as the man before me. It was mad, utter lunacy yet it was a way out, an easy way out of this hell hole. I could get out, I can live! Yet for all the opportunity this could afford me, my mind drifts somewhere else and to someplace closer to heart

"But what off my sisters? They're the only people I have" I asked with barely a whisper as my mind awhirl from the opportunity at hand

"What of them? Let me tell you something. Your relatives will only drag you down. Will you risk this opportunity just for them?"

Will I? For a second I doubted but I made up my mind. I hardened my heart and gazed up at the monster before

"No"

"No?"

"I made a promise to my family and I'll be a liar if I don't fulfill that promise"

There was a silence between us until he laughed. He laughed a deep belly laugh that was filled with amusement and joy. He laughed so hard that tears dripped down his eyes.

Wiping away at the tears, he "Then your a bigger fool than I thought"

"I know"

"And that's why you'll make it far in this world" I was confused

"You have the conviction that few people have. If you have accepted my offer, I would have chalked you as nothing more than a follower, a disposable patsy but you have some backbone in you

I still think your reason is foolish but I respect it."

Turning back, he walked leaving me bewildered by the turn of events. "Take heart young man and good luck"

I stood there watching his silhouette fade into the underbrush of the Rainforest. For a moment, I wondered why I felt so happy being praised by the madman but then I remembered he called me a boy. I knew the man committed a lot of atrocities but… he was ok if barely