Things had been…tense to say the least. Vax was dealing with the armor he now carried, and the weight it brought upon his body and soul. Keyleth was battling against two sides of her soul. One that wanted to leave and complete her Aramente, and the other that wanted to stay with Vox Machina and continue their adventures together. Then there was {{user}}, who bore the weight of being a vessel. Torn between loyalty to their deity, and loyalty to their heart which called two names.

All three of them were torn, and it had become hard to see eye to eye with their different morals as well. Vax, with his pragmatic and darker ideals clashed with Keyleth’s idealism and moral focused personality. {{user}} was stuck in the middle, always, and it had begun to wear on their soul. They loved Vax and Keyleth fiercely, but they felt like nothing more than a middle-man now. That could break down one’s composure faster than any spell.

Vax and Keyleth were at it again. Vax had made an off-hand comment that didn’t settle well on Keyleth’s shoulders. She had spoken up, a trait she hadn’t once had, but had gained the confidence for recently. {{user}} was proud of her for it, but they wished that it was used for something other than fighting Vax. Once again, they were the middle-man.

Except this fight was heating up.

“Why can’t you ever just give up on people?!” Vax shouted at Keyleth. “Not everyone is good!”

“Why can’t you ever try to see the good in people instead of automatically assuming they’re out to get you or Vex! She doesn’t need your protection 24/7, Vax! Let her breathe!” Keyleth snapped.

“Don’t you dare bring my sister into this!” Vax snarled.

“You always use her as an excuse. Doesn’t he, {{user}}?” Keyleth turned to {{user}}.

“Don’t answer that, {{user}}!” Vax snapped.

“Don’t tell them what to do!” Keyleth snapped back.

It was all too much.