Vox Machina Book 3: Heroes Become Legend

Chapter 3: Thy Crime Not Mine

I could fest so easily. His soul is ripe for the taking.

The dark demonic voice whispered.

A voice he could never forget, stirring awake, Percy groans, fluttering his eyes open, finding himself cuffed in chains and seated.

He raises his head, and his vision blurs for a moment before he looks at the looming shadow demon that hovers over Ripley who was hard at work.

"Or we use him to give you thousands more to feed on. I have the vestiges. We're nearly there," she assures the demon above her. Percy's vision clears up as whatever Ripley is working on is covered in a sheet, but the flying sparks illuminate the shape of the construction.

The shadow demon changes spots but remains hovering, eagerly awaiting completion.

Very well.

He agrees Percy takes a moment, trying to stand, and grunts and groans as he tugs at his chains. The sounds drew Ripley's attention as she looked over her shoulder and smirked to herself.

"Awake at last," she spoke turning to himself, the demon appears next to her and lunged right for Percy. Snapping his jaw at the young prince.

Who reeled back to avoid getting eaten, the demon just snarls at Percy before he pulls back and vanishes into Ripley. "My sincerest apologies, Percival. I'm sure you remember how eager Orthax can be," she informs walking up in front of Percival.

"Orthax? It has a name?" Percy questions as he never knew the name of the demon that inhabited Percy's body.

She bents in front of him, "You never bothered to ask." he informs before she snaps her jaw at him with a playful lunge before she pulls away.

"We destroyed it." he reminds her as the pepperbox Percy originally created was incinerated by the acid pool. Ripley just turns away as she frowns at herself.

"You left it a whisper. But that whisper found me, bearing gifts," she informs as she turns back and aims her pepperbox right at his forehead, the trigger cocked.

But Percy remained unfazed as the weapon was pointed right at him, but his eyes were locked right on the pepperbox in her hand. "Beautiful, isn't it? Without your design, we never would have been able to upgrade it," she informs, pulling her pepperbox back with a twirl and holstering her weapon.

"Don't you dare pin your lunacy on me." he snarls, but Ripley just smirks as she turns away, "Come now, Percy. Take the compliment," she spoke as she was back to her contraption.

"And what exactly do you plan on doing with it? And me?" he questions, keeping his eyes locked on Ripley's retreating form. She just looks over her shoulder.

"What you should have done long ago. Share your gifts with the wide, wide, world," she answers turning back and leans against the table as Orthax appears right above her.

~8~8~8~

The streets of Ank'Harel were swarming with guards search of the party that were found at the scene of the crime.

Who were currently hiding in an alley as guards were passing by. "This whole trip is a disaster. I knew we shouldn't have listen to Raishan." Keyleth retorts as she crosses her arms.

Jason frowns as he look away from Kyria that was squating down and hunched into herself, gripping the sides of her head as her Cambion form look to be going into a frenzy.

"All right, all right. You were right. What do you want, a fucking reward?" he shot at her with a frown, patting at Kyria's back as he soothes her flaring temper.