Fate's Journey

is the fifth episode of the first season of The Legend of Vox Machina. Vox Machina journeys to Whitestone to confront the Briarwoods and help Percy reclaim his family home. As they travel, Scanlan studies Delilah Briarwood's mysterious spell book to uncover clues. But the team's first road trip is interrupted when the Briarwoods send horrific monsters to retrieve their missing book.

Plot summary
Vax, Vex, and a squirrel run through the streets of Emon, hiding from the guards, and break into Gilmore's Glorious Goods in order to get supplies. After they enter, the squirrel is revealed to be a wildshaped Keyleth, but before they can begin shopping Gilmore magically traps them all as his arcane alarms go off. They explain their situation, and assure him they will pay. Vex finds a number of arrows, Vax finds a stake, and Keyleth becomes entangled in a finger trap, which Gilmore tells her how to disarm and Vax helps her with. Gilmore also offers the group holy water in order to fight vampires.

They meet up with the rest of Vox Machina, who, excluding Pike, are in a stolen horse cart driven by Percy. Vex sits up by Percy as lookout and teases him about his bitchface as Scanlan and Keyleth attempt to decipher Delilah Briarwood's book. Together, they determine she is planning something to do with a ziggurat. Vax notices Grog sitting at the back of the cart, upset that Pike has stayed behind, and offers him some comfort.

As they continue on towards Whitestone, the forest becomes darker and stranger, and eventually Vex notices some strange creatures tracking the cart and tells Percy to stop. They look like wolves, and at first Keyleth tries to communicate them, but they reveal strange, multi-jawed mouths and long tongues. One of them steals Scanlan, and the book he is holding, and runs off. Vox Machina give chase. Keyleth uses magical vines to provide bridges over the deep chasms within the forest, Percy drives, and the rest all fight the creatures that Delilah had sent after them. The creatures go off the edge of a cliff. Vex shoots an arrow with a rope attached for Scanlan to grab onto shortly before everyone has to bail from the cart, which also goes over the cliff. The rope comes back empty, but Scanlan reveals that he has rescued himself with Scanlan's Hand. However, the supplies they had purchased from Gilmore's are lost, as is the book, which the front half of one of the creatures Vox Machina had thought they had slain carries back to Whitestone.

In Whitestone, the creature returns to Delilah as she and Sylas discuss residuum refining and setup for the ritual with Byron Anders and Kerrion Stonefell. A few villagers, including a small child, are brought into the castle as "dinner guests", and Delilah tells the child that they are there for something very special.

Back in the forest, Vox Machina set up camp. Scanlan reads a scroll he had taken from Brimscythe's lair and gains the ability to change shape into different forms, to Grog's great amusement, and Keyleth and Vax talk together. Vex looks at them suspiciously.

Pike travels to a temple of the Everlight and tells the cleric that since she was attacked, she has felt cut off from the Everlight's power and fears that she is cursed. The cleric warmly invites her in.

Vox Machina tell each other stories of previous kills, with Vax starting with his tale of defeating a rakshasa and the rest going around. When it comes to Percy's turn, he merely speaks of the Briarwoods, leading Grog to comment that he's being a buzzkill. Vex pulls Vax aside as everyone gets ready for bed, and warns him against Keyleth. Vax responds that simply because they've been betrayed before doesn't mean they can't trust anyone. The party then goes to bed, although Percy stays up, spinning the barrels of The List on which the names can be clearly seen.

As they start up again in the morning, Percy describes how Whitestone once appeared, telling Vox Machina that the Sun Tree was believed to have been planted by The Dawnfather himself. This description that is quickly shown to be no longer true once the party arrives in a run-down town with terrified villagers. Percy tells Vox Machina that they need to find Keeper Yennen, if she's alive, as she'll know what to do. They begin walking through the streets, hiding from the guards and stone giants, but Percy suddenly freezes as he notices the Sun Tree strung with corpses. They all see seven villagers, including the ones who had been brought as the Briarwoods' "dinner guests", dressed to look like the members of Vox Machina. Keyleth, horrified, remarks, "It's us."

Cast
End credits list main cast, then guest cast in alphabetical order.

Vox Machina

 * Keyleth
 * Percival de Rolo
 * Scanlan Shorthalt
 * Grog Strongjaw
 * Pike Trickfoot
 * Trinket
 * Vax'ildan
 * Vex'ahlia

Returning

 * Delilah Briarwood
 * Sylas Briarwood
 * Gilmore

New

 * Stonefell
 * Professor Anders
 * Duke Vedmire

Mentioned

 * The Everlight

Trivia

 * Sam Riegel's daughter Kestrel Riegel appears in this episode as the little girl.
 * This episode adapts "The Sun Tree", "Whispers" and "Stoke of Flames"