Irredeemable

Queen

The walk back to the stag station took longer than expected. Having cuffed or tied hands didn't help any, making trips a major hazard. Their trek drew many eyes from the dense crowd of bugs that populated every street. Whispers and Murmuring were never far behind, just within earshot. On one occasion, a bug tried to attack them, although he was quickly taken down by guards and escorted away.

Finally, they arrived at the stag station. After loading both prisoners, the commander, and as many troops as the poor stag could hold, they were off. Surprisingly, he didn't seem weighed down at all while running. The mighty gallop of the stag remained constant throughout their trip. It was quiet throughout the journey, save for the commander shortly before they reached their destination.

"Consider this your lucky day. Under normal circumstances, the pair of you would immediately be sent to one of our prisons, for assaulting several of my units. However, you are requested elsewhere, at least temporarily."

As they exited the tunnel, the white palace came into view. It was a sight Gravel had hoped never to see again. They knew why they were here. All they could do, was attempt to have the kingsoul destroyed by the royal guard. The guards escorted the pair of prisoners into the palace. Standing at the end of the entry hall, in front of Hallownest's throne, was Hornet.

"Commander Vunnia, I see your checkpoint worked. Well do-"

"Eh, less the check worked, more a sloppy escape." Vayne interrupted.

"Vayne! Do you have no respect? No honor?!" Vunnia scolded.

"I could ask the same of you!" Vayne retorted. "But since you 'asked first' I have more honor than you could ever hope to have! I have more than you could ever imagine!"

Hornet paused for a moment, before speaking again. "No matter what the specifics are, the checkpoint served its purpose. Vunnia, leave us. Please, take this one with you." She said, pointing to Vayne. "Await my call for you to return."

"Understood."

The dutiful commander escorted Vayne further into the palace, where a muffled shouting match could still quietly be heard. For the first time since they had met Vayne, Gravel was once again, truly alone.

Hornet turned to face the vessel. They had provided quite the headache over the past couple of weeks. However, she had to take care of issues in order of priority. She removed their restraints. She sighed. "Gravel, are you ok?"

Gravel was confused by this question, but eventually decided that nodding couldn't hurt. Not wanting to have to mime anything else to communicate, Gravel made a gesture with their hands like writing.

This surprised Hornet, who had until now believed the vessel illiterate. "You know how to write, vessel?"

Gravel nodded again, causing Hornet to reveal an old notepad. It was bent, singed on one corner, and even had a few pages missing. On its surface was what appeared to be the desperate writings of a vessel pleading for their life. Hornet started when she realized what she had revealed. "My apologies, this is the wrong notepad." She replaced it and produced a brand new version instead.

Gravel quickly scribbled their thoughts down, knowing this may be the last chance they ever got. Satisfied with their work, they handed the notepad to Hornet. It was simple, but it should work, nonetheless. "Know fate. Accepted. Last requests. Free Vayne, Destroy charm."

Reading this, Hornet was confused. Naturally, there was no one better to clarify than the vessel in front of her. "Gravel, what do you believe your fate to be?"

Unsure why she was asking, they wrote a single word to answer. "Cage." "Order of King." They elaborated.

"You truly believe that the cage I found you in will be your fate? No, more than that. You even believe you deserve it. By Wyrm, my father did quite a number on you."