To Tinker With a Mechanized Man

The banging was loud enough to echo through the laboratory, alerting Viktor to the arrival of a visitor at the front of the facility. He was sitting in the office in the back, carefully drawing up blueprints for something that appeared to be a fully mechanized version of the Headsman's Pride, when the sound reached him. Sighing exasperatedly, as it had been the third attempt to design an iteration of Urgot that would be more suitably cast for battle, he gave up and made his way from the office to the front entrance. The large shutter had been closed tightly, to ward off any unwanted guests, but it clearly had not warned away whoever this was.

It took only pulling one half of it a foot or so to discover who it had been, only to find the towering purple Zaunite known as the Madman of Zaun outside ready for....whatever it was he intended. Oh, right. They were meant to see through an operation today, the Herald recalled, and without hesitation pushed the shutters apart so they rapidly slid aside to allow the abnormal mass of Dr. Mundo to move through. Though Viktor did not speak, initially, he turned and began to head into his laboratory and hadn't gotten a few feet before addressing his guest. "Doctor, if you would close the doors behind you it would be appreciated."

The stoic Machine Herald made his way to a an area that he had prepared long ago for.....his own procedures, a simple steel table that was bolted to the ground. A steel rod arched around above it, a simple plastic veil hung from it which could loop around. There was enough space to fit even the large figure of Dr. Mundo, as he'd immediately notice. It was a makeshift surgery station at best, a spare workbench for crafting at worst. But for Viktor, who had lost everything long ago and driven himself to seek a higher state of being, it was sufficient. For a time.

But now the time had come to hasten his Glorious Evolution, and though his augmentations were already quite extensive, it wasn't enough. He needed to embrace technology fully, completely, and without even a shred of doubt. His mind was ready. His mind was pining for the sweet release from his flesh that he so thoroughly longed for. To surpass his weakness, cast away his flesh, and adopt his supreme stance as the one and only Machine Herald of Zaun, the one who would usher Valoran into an era of techmaturgical superiority and hextech dominance.

As he neared the operating table, his steps slowed even more than before until he came to a complete stop. He then turned around to face the doctor as his arms rose to begin shedding his wardrobe. He said nothing as he first pulled the seemingly armored cape, the top of which wrapped loosely around the base of his shoulders, over his head and tossed it to another workbench nearby. He quickly stripped himself of the heavy pauldron that was strapped at an odd angle to his torso, which accompanied by a rather eery thrashing from his autonomous arm - it acted as though it were about to be abandoned and seemed as though it didn't want to be separated from its creator. However, it had to be done, for Viktor to take the necessary steps to becoming who he truly wanted to be. He made quick work of the armor covering his chest, which was revealed to actually be attached to the tails that hung around his legs as a single piece of equipment; he removed the entire ensemble by pulling it apart from the center, causing it to split around his torso.

His entire abdomen was revealed with this action, showing off the work he'd already done to himself. Multiple hectically placed patches of metal had been grafted about his chest and abdominal regions, making it look like a crudely patched up teddy bear except with metal and flesh. Where his arms, which were completely artificial and responsive to his mental commands, connected to his torso the flesh was shown to be discolored and even discharging the slightest amount of puss. There were bases from which the arms extended, but the flesh that was carelessly sewn to them were not at all pleasant to the eye - grotesque and tainted, as if infected. How the man continued to function with such a degree of corruption to his tissues was beyond normal human comprehension, though Dr. Mundo would no doubt be intrigued by the fact that Viktor's work hadn't caused him to die as of yet. A commendable thing in itself, by Zaunite standards.

Viktor also tossed this armor aside, though in a different area than his cape. He wouldn't need it ever again after today, he assumed, so he didn't care what happened to it. He made no move to remove anything else, though he was still wearing some light armor around his legs, under which some sort of trousers could be barely seen. The mechanically augmented Zaunite looked intently at his larger counterpart, his mask still presiding over his face as he didn't seem to show any intent to remove it. "Very well, doctor. Any questions you have, feel free to ask them. You have now seen more than even my own followers, though it hardly will matter after today will it?" The Herald's voice was calm, collected, resigned even. It was steady and devoid of any inflection that might otherwise be attributed to worry, doubt, or even fear.

{{ Just so you know, I've been waiting a LONG time to finally describe what remains of Viktor's flesh underneath his armor and clothing. }}