Standing in the Throne room, Uriel was pacing as he glares down at Vox Machina. "You've ruined our banquet, assaulted political allies, and risked the security of the realm. Those them in irons!" he shouts.
The party just gasp as Uriel was unhinged with his rage, the guards then began to push at them, following their orders, but Grog just growls at them, daring them as Jason did the same, holding Kyria closer to him. "Touch her and I'll rip your damn arms off!" he shouts.
The party began to argue with him, a Percy just looks away, scrunching his face, keeping his mouth shut. "Sovereign, it's been a very long evening," Allura tells Uriel, turning his attention to her. "I will see that they are properly punished," she assures him.
He just glares at her for a moment then turns away, "See that you do." he said with a sigh and walks off. "Allura, something is wrong with Uriel. He's under the Briarwoods' influence, I can feel it." vex tries to reason with her.
Allura just glares at her, "That is a considerable accusation. Do you have proof?" he questions her. Vex just looks away, "No. but I can get it. I just need time and access to..." Vex tries again.
"Emon owes you a debt, but that does not mean you are above the law. Though perhaps Uriel is being too brash," she mutters the last bit to herself.
"Until this is resolved, you are hereby confined to your keep under house arrest," she orders them, and the party broke out in an argument. "How can you arrest a house?" Grog asks her, a little confused.
Jason said nothing as he kept looking down at the passed-out witch in his arms, who looked a little pale, Pike turns to Grog for a moment, patting his leg, "Okay." she tells him and turns back. "Thank you, Lady Allura," she said with a bow.
"I'll convene a formal inquiry at once. Your fate will be determined once we hear the Briarwoods' side of the story." Allura tells them.
Jason grimes with anger and looks away, "If they'll even speak to us anymore." she mutters and walks off, "Fucking dog." Jason mutters under his breath.
~8~8~8~
Vox Machina stood in the keep, Trinket growls as he was being tied to the tree, and guards posted everywhere as their weapons were confiscated.
"Get your filthy hands off my instrument!" Scanlan calls out, jumping for it but it was kept out of reach. "The more you resist, the longer this will take." Captain Jarrett Howarth said as he looks down at the gnome.
Jason didn't even resist as they took his mace and shield, he just held Kyria by her shoulder, keeping her from falling as she was still out of it, but looked better from the journey back.
"Come on, man. It's not a weapon! I just want to serenade the group!" Scanlan argues with him as the two half-elves just watched from the side. "Then you're doing us a favor," Vax calls out with a smirk.
Jarrett just looks at them, "You're belongings will be returned if you are exonerated. All points of egress to this compound are being surveilled. If you attempt to escape you will be executed." Jarrett warns them.
Jason scoffs as he looks away, "Figures." he mutters, "Are you fucking joking?" Vax questions as he pushes himself off the wall. "I do not joke. I advise that you sit tight and wait for the sovereign's inquiry." Jarrett informs them and walks towards the door with the guards. "Don't you mean the Briarwoods' inquiry?" Kyria calls out.
Jarett stops as the others looked over, seeing Kyria's eyes open as she uses Jason to stand, "Uriel is charmed, thanks to the fucking Briarwoods. He'll do whatever they ask of him, even make guards such as yourself expendable." she snaps.
Jarett just turns and glares at her, "What did you just say?" he questions, holding her side, Kyria pulls herself off Jason, steps forward, and stood on her own.
"You have ears or have you miraculously gone deaf?" she questions. He marches back to her, "I advise you to watch what you say about the sovereign." he warns her.
Keyleth looks between them with worry, "Gods, you're even blind too. Sylas is a fucking Vampire and Delilah is a goddamn necromancer." she snaps at him.
"They only came to that stupid Banquet to put Uriel under their control, didn't you find it a little strange that after no response from Whitestone, they just happen to show up?" she questions him.
Jarrett just grips her by the shirt and glares down at her, "Do not push me." he warns, and she just glares back. "And I suggest you do not push me," she growls, gripping his hand in hers. Jason walks up and grips her shoulder. "That's enough, Kyria. They won't listen," he tells her.
She took one last glare then let Jarrett's wrist go. He did the same, shoving her back into Jason's arms. "Sit tight and wait for the Sovereign's inquiry," he tells them again and turns away. "And what, we're just supposed to sit here?" Grog snaps.
Jarrett stands at the door with his guards. "You have the run of your keep. I'm sure you will find something to entertain yourselves." with that he closes the doors shut, trapping Vox Machina inside.
~8~8~8~
Everyone was gathered in the common room, all just doing their own thing. Pike sat off to the side, looking down at her broken Everlight amulet, Grog doing lifts, Scanlan trying to translate the book Vax stole from the Briairwoods, and Vex just sitting, with her arms crossed.
Persketching of the keep, Vax just leaning against a chair, lost in her thoughts, Jason looking down at his Everlight circlet, shooting glances over at Pike as Kyria sat next to Keyleth.
Lost in her thoughts as her finger glazes over her cracked crystal, the worry clear in her eyes.
Grog spoke loudly with reach pull up. Vex kept flicking her eyes between Percy and Kyria but then notices Keyleth growing a flower from the dirt in her hand. Vax notices as well and he watches as she plucks the flower from her hand and places it on her antlers.
Vax looks away and rubs the back of his neck, trying to keep his red cheeks from showing. "Grog!" Percy snaps, looking at the goliath. "What?" he asks, stopping in his lift-ups. "I know we have a lot to talk about, but I'm not turning into a vampire, am I?" Vax asks, looking at his sister and pointing to his neck.
She said nothing and looks out the window, he looks as well as if his reflection was still there. Frowning to himself, he just looks away. "I withdraw the question," he mutters.
Jason sighs and places his circlet back on his forehead. "This night has been eventful and we've had plenty of those," he mutters, leaning against his hand. "So what are we waiting for? Let's fuck up these guards and bust out of here." Grog said as he places the makeshift weight down.
Vax just frowns at him "Oh? So you'd like to be fugitives of the crown, wanted in every corner of Tal'Dorei?" he questions crossing his arms, Jason would usually add in a smart remark, but he stayed quiet and looks over at Kyria, who as frowning to herself.
"If Uriel is under a charm, maybe Pike has a spell that can cure him," Keyleth suggests as she looks back, but Pike was even in the conversation right now. "Um, Pike? Where'd you go?" she calls to her again, Pike blinks and looks back at them, "Huh? Oh, um, I-I don't know. W-What she said." she answers and turns away.
Keyleth just frowns, "Best not to bring Pike into this, Keyleth." Jason said, making her look back at him, "She's... not okay." he answers, rubbing his hands together.
"Screw all that." Scanlan calls out, making them look at him, "We should focus on this book. I mean look at this, dead bodies, wolves. It's some kind of fucked-up evil diary." Scanlan said as he looks down at the book.
"Ooh, maybe it has evidence that can clear our names." he suggests, Vax just walks up, takes the book from him, and sat down, "Oh, really? You think you can actually read this thing?" Vax questions him.
Scanlan just blinks for a moment. "Well, yeah, I mean, I-I only just started translating it. And my co-translator is out of commission at the moment." he points out, the others just looked at Kyria as if she still was in her thoughts.
"And Delilah's handwriting is, like, the worst but..." he went on, and Vax just frowns at him. "Uh-huh. So what does it say?" Vax questions, tossing the book back to him. "Oh. Uh, it says Pyramid, spirits of the dead, and right here in tiny little letters, it says, Uh, fuck you, Vax." Scanlan answers, flipping him the bird.
"Oh, lovely. Care to translate this?" Vax said giving him the double bird. Then they started to act like children, giving each other the double bird, Kyria blinks as she looks between them, and Jason just rolls his eyes, rubbing his hand over his face. "Can you two stop?" Pike finally spoke up.
They just looked at her for a moment, then Vex stood up, and walks over to Kyria, "Come with me." she tells her, grabbing her by her arm and pulling her out of her seat, placing her in Vex's then she steps to Percy and pulls the map out from under him. "I was using that," he tells her.
But she just frowns at him, "We need to talk. All of us." she said, looking between Percy and Kyria. The witch frowns, looking away as she rubs her arm, then she steps closer to the former prince, "Percival? Kyria?" she questions.
Percy mirrors her glare, "Certainly. What would you like to discuss, Vex'ahlia?" he questions, taking a seat. She scoffs at him, "For a start, what the hell happened back there?" she glances between them.
"You never thought to mention that the Briarwoods killed your family? Or you Kyria, with this whole new deadly look that you seem to have kept hidden all this time?" she questions.
Kyria said nothing, as she just frowns. Grog lost his grip and fell, crashing to the ground, the three just looked at him, "My bad." he calls out then Vex looks back at the two.
"I wasn't aware that you were owed information about my past." Percy snaps at her, and she pulls back, crossing her arms. "When your past comes to kill us, I'd say we deserve a heads-up." she informs him, shooting a glare at Kyria, "Even you." she snaps.
Kyria glares at her, "And how exactly was I to know the Briarwoods would be attending?" Percy questions her. "Killing a big ass dragon would cause everyone in the realm to attend." Kyria points out.
"She may be on my shit list right now. But is making a point." Vex agrees with her, "I want to know about the smoke!" Keyleth calls out, standing to her feet. Everyone stops and just looks at her, sudden embarrassment just fills her as everyone's eyes were on her.
"Sorry. I am... d-d... Loud. Sorry." she mutters, pulling her chair back and sitting down. Jason flicks his eyes to Kyria, seeing her rub her arm, biting her lip at the mention of the smoke. "Smoke? My weapon burns black powder. Perhaps that's what you saw." Percy states.
Keyleth flicks her eyes to Kyria, who was mirroring the same worry, Vex walks around to his other side. "What we saw was you shooting an innocent kid," Vex informs him as she stood next to her brother.
"No one in the employ of the Briarwoods is innocent." Percy growls, and Kyria shot a glare at him, "So, everyone in Whitestone is guilty under their rule?" she questions.
Percy just blinks, "That's not what I'm saying." he states, "Then what, Percival? Cause from what we saw was you, standing over a terrified young man, who was begging you not to hurt him. Terrified out of his mind, and along the line, I believe your exact words were, Your soul is forfeit." she reminds him.
He just says nothing, "Don't use an excuse to justify your actions." she tells him. He flicks his glare right back at her. "When why not ask you? What happened to you back there?" he questions her.
Everyone turns their attention back to her, and she stiffens "You weren't even yourself anymore. Claws and fangs and all." he tells her.
Keyleth looks between them, worried. "You moved like a monster, inhuman at best," he tells her, she tightened and her grips tremble as her glare hardens. "What, the cat finally caught your tough, or are you better than the Briarwoods?" he questions.
That caused a snap, Keyleth covers her mouth "Whoa, Percival!" Jason shouts, "Not coot, Percy!" Scanlan said as well. "I'm just saying--" Percy starts. "SHUT UP!!" Kyria shouts, shooting to her feet as she slams her hands on the table.
Startling everyone. "You don't know the first thing about me! What I've been through, what I've suffered. How long I've kept this secret? You have no idea the constant state of fear I am in because of it." she snaps at him.
Her hands scorch the table. But her glare was right at him, "And you have no right to judge me, given how far you will go just to kill the Briarwoods, but at least know in my... whatever state, I can tell the difference between an innocent and the culprit!" she shouts. Panting heavily.
Percy just looks at her in shock, then Jason stood up and walks over to her, "Okay. Let's move you away now." he mutters, pulling her away.
He moves her back to her original seat and sat her down, Keyleth scoots closer, taking her shaking hands in hers.
Then he moves back and sat next to Percival, his glare meets Percy's, who stiffens for a moment and looks away, "Back to the topic at hand, what the hell, Percy? We get that you have a score to settle, but still, what you did was downright... not human." Jason informs him.
Vax nods at him, "Slightly more so after you exploded his hand." he agrees with him, and Percy just sighs as he looks away, "Maybe I got carried away." he admits.
Keyleth pets the side of Kyria's head. Who was shaking with rage, then shifts into a small flying squirrel in her hand, "But you don't know the Briarwoods? What they did to my family." Percy argues with them.
Keyleth turns to him, holding the small squirrel in her hands, "Then why don't you tell us?" she asks, all eyes on him. Percy flicks his eyes down to the squirrel in her hands, seeing it curl into itself then sighs.
"When they arrived in Whitestone, the Briarwoods came as allies. But they brought dark ambitions."
"And allowed no one to stand in their way. Not even children."
"They slaughtered us in cold blood... seizing my ancestral home."
"Even our tutor, the man my parents entrusted with our safekeeping, betrayed us."
"After enduring weeks of torture, my sister Cassandra and I tied to escape together. But..."
His fist tightens, then he looks at them, "The Briarwoods know I'm alive now, and they are not in the habit of leaving loose ends." he tells them.
Vex places the map on the table. "So what's your plan?" she asks, he just looks at them as if they were ready to help, making him smile.