Lightning Rod; ACTIVATE!

If you look closely, there are four of them in a square, and the last one just got deployed.

And guess who's right in the dead center of the killbox?

Well he turned against his sister pretty fast... At least the confusion of a third party should allow Saida and Brand to get through this.

More that he thinks that his sister is actually Suzocon. While missing the perfectly visible, undisguised kitsune right below him.

Baka yerou!

LOOK OUT!!!! STOP THAT Kitsune!!!! gees can no one pay attention to the kitsune who's insane!? XD :) :O

Quetz curse words are lightning related

Thank you. I wasn't catching what 'Arc' was, but now I get it.

Uhhh I don't think he knows he's going to be owned shortly

He's obviously never fought an arcane artificer before. And he's about to learn the hard way WHY they are such bastards to fight.

exactly

Uh oh.

are you the key master

Gozer he ain't.

Rad Zapdos used Thunderbolt!

... it's not very effective.

Dead bro incomming.

As I thought, it's currently unclear if Vetra WANTS Saida back, given how angry Shock Jockey got with her almost as soon as he saw her... This REALLY does not bode well for the main characters....

Prince Baka thinks that his own sister is Suzocon in disguise. And completely misses the actual kitsune right below him.

I don't think he's going after his sister. He's going after what he thinks is Suzocon. He's a blithering idiot and it's about to cost him big time.

Oh this is absolutely rich. Prince Baka not only completely missed the shrine defenses literally going up at point blank range, he misses the undisguised kitsune RIGHT BELOW HIM, and attacks the wrong target. His own damn sister!

And Suzocon-sama is going to inadvertently save Brand's life.

And now I overwhelmingly think he's gonna be in for one nasty surprise when he tries to blast Quetz!Brand. Welcome to the magical land of FAFO, Taran-ouji. Hope you enjoy your (short) stay.

He's wearing sunglasses during a darkening rainstorm. Lotsa cool points for that, but probably can't see much past Brand.

Definitely a penalty to perception there.

While I might buy him missing Suzocon, the blindingly obvious shrine defenses going up all around him are a different story. Like, get out of the killbox before you blast things. And maybe, y'know, confirm that your sister is not your sister BEFORE you try and blast her to ashes?

He's probably aware that a Quetz can survive the blast he's priming, but unaware that so could a kitsune. Plus the fact, he's probably been ordered to fire on sight if he sees Saida.

Missing the defenses is likely more arrogance, he can't picture anything scaring or harming him

I'm thinking he's just about the right size for those giant manacles we saw eariler.

Wouldn't *that* be just the perfect Chekov's Gun. Suggests that Suzocon planned this from the very beginning, or at least prepared for it as an eventuality.

Oh yeah, as is my tradition:

<Joker>And here. We. GO.</Joker>

(ETA: Looks like Vetra-jou figured out her Eyestone was a fake of a fake. Which means it's ON).

Yeah, it's been over a month. I had to assume she figured it out by now.

That would have been a fun surprise to see on-screen, her trying to use her "Eyestone" and it turning into a bottlecap. I'm surprised Brand and Saida didn't hear the screaming Cluster F-Bomb all the way from where they were.

We see his eyes... Oh snap he's about to strike down his own sister?!

And oh no...

He's about to strike down Brand, in the body of his own sister, because he thinks his sister is Suzocon. With the actual Suzocon right below them, clear as day.

Nante bakananda! (What an idiot).

Yep, but still, pretty bad that he’d do this, even if he just suspects it’s a trick

Yeah xDD It seems Suzucon’s plan is going to save him, but I still wonder and worth what’s going to happen next

He might have been ordered to zap her for the treason she pulled wayyyy back wghen. Him thinking she's Suzo is also a BIT more intelligent, than assuming the clearly NOT Saida still IS Saida. He has no way of knowing that it's actually Brand... and he'd DEFINIYTELY fry Brand for all the high treason he's performed in that first story.

I wonder if quetz are reasonably immune to lightning, so if Brand was the real thing an easy way for Taran to find out is to zap her. Course he's probably right in the middle of a trap which is what I'm assuming Suzocon is hoping he'll do but if it's true it's a quick way for Taran to determine who is what.

If he had two brain cells to rub together, sure, he could do that. But, y'know, he critical failed multiple perception checks because his INT is obviously his dump stat. Missing both the kitsune at his six-o'clock AND the ominous looking shrine defenses he's surrounded by is pure baka. You almost think Vetra sent her idiot son into this battle to get rid of him.

Then again, if he had any brains - or tactical acumen - at all, he'd have grabbed "Saida," backed off to a safe range, and started testing those defenses by shelling the living crap out of that shrine. But fortunately for everyone involved, he's dumb as a bag of electric hammers.

I'm not so sure hes dumb, but more not terribly cautious. I get the impression he probably outclasses almost everyone on this world, has for some time, and probably believes he knows most everyone that he can't. So he just blunders into things not having a care.

So that Saida is here is probably attracting more of his attention than anything going on around him.

But rocking that radical look he most certainly has dumped a lot more into his presence/charisma stat than INT for sure.

If I'm right about Lord Suzocon, his mother well remembers him, but he was probably too young - or not hatched yet - to remember him. So he thinks Suzocon-sama is like everybody else. Beneath him. And he's right! Suzocon-sama is right... beneath... him. And he's well within melee range. He's about to get one nasty surprise.

If he is the puppetmaster we are all speculating he is, then she probably does.

Course we don't know how much of that information is spread around, and how much Prince Taran knows about it.

I still think there were a bunch of Quetz guards that were scouring the landscape with an eye for the stone, and maybe Saida too since she's been missing so long, are aware of the general threats and beings around that area like Suzocon or Dayra, the lone survivor reported the encounter to Taran, and now he's here.

The only thing that's making me doubt that he's the puppetmaster is it sounds like he had some kind of agreement with the quetz not to be bothered, which I wouldn't expect the queen to honor if that's who he was. Now that could just all be in his head, but it is a bit of an inconsistency so far that is making me doubt.

More like he was exiled to that island, probably because they couldn't do anything else with him. "Forbidden Island," and all. Assuming my guess is correct and he's the Puppetmancer, they picked the least worst option. Let him play on his own island and stay the hell away otherwise. By taking Vetra's Eyestone - even indirectly - and killing quetz, he broke the rules, and now it's on.

And I could very well be completely wrong. My prediction score isn't exactly Nostradamus level. But I keep doing it. Why? It's fun, and as a writer, I like to see if I can guess where a plot thread is going. The nice thing is, it's just as much fun to be proven wrong as proven right, probably why  Virmir puts up with my sorry ass. I don't expect him to write his story to suit me. I'm just blindfolded on a roller coaster, waiting to see which way it yanks me next. And that's the fun of it for me! Right or wrong, I get a hell of a ride.

And get to gab with folks like you and Kratos-Zangoose. Takes me back to my college days and the bullshit sessions we had about all manner of things.

I doubt he puppetmaster since it revealed he seal away in a tree on a mountain with Saida even knowing about it. I due believe Suzocon is outcast for very good reason and he probably does have some backstory related to puppetmaster. I am more curious how Brand going handle situations and since last lance was just deploy by Suzocon and most likely was one closest to them which probably going be instantly notice if Taran is being more observant than usual.