Song of Shadow and Light (BxB)

Chapter 33

It took a while, but eventually, the Glenariff kingdom came into view. Sometime during the adventure, Kaelan noticed that Estelar had disappeared once again. He didn't notice the fae's disappearance, except for the soldier whom Estelar was clinging onto. The soldier glanced around and when he saw that Estelar had vanished once again, he gritted his teeth. He wasn't sure why, but this made Kaelan worry about Estelar's safety. It wasn't proven that the fae betrayed them; it only seemed like he did. It was odd no one noticed before that they were being followed. With how quiet it was in the swamp they should have heard if people were behind them. 

They were led past the citizens of the kingdom, who watched as the group was being led to the tree palace. When they saw Faunus with them, plenty of fae had a look of hope in their eyes. But there were many who were fearful as well. Kaelan didn't know if this was fear of Faunus or fear of what would happen to him. He barely knew Faunus, but he seemed like a better person than Merodach. He cared about the citizens and nature of this forest.

The doors of the palace swung open to allow them entrance. The soldiers still surrounded them as they were led inside, but some of them stayed behind to guard the front gates. The ones who remained pushed the group inside. The path was different than the one Kaelan had taken before. They weren't being led to the chapel where he met Merodach, but somewhere else. Their destination became obvious as they were led down a few more halls and then into a large room; the throne room.

Two people waited inside. Merodach stood beside his throne, while someone else sat upon it. Kaelan may not have met the person sitting on the throne, but he knew who this was. He could sense their dark energy. The high earth demon was a young man with dark brown hair and bright green eyes. He was petite and wore a white button-down shirt, black shorts, and black knee-high boots. His horns and tail were decorated with vines and small flowers. When he looked at the men, he perked up and sat forward in his seat. His eyes landed on Kaelan, and a smile formed on his face.

"It's you. I'm so happy to finally get to meet you, Chosen One. My brethren always talk about you, but this is our first meeting ever. I'm Shale, the earth demon you've been looking for. What is your name this time?" The earth demon, Shale, glanced around the rest of the group. He didn't seem interested in Atticus or Faunus, but Thaddeus caught his eye. The demon didn't say anything as he looked the warrior up and down.

Kaelan scrutinized the demon, but he couldn't see the artifact he was looking for. The demon didn't have the relic on him, and Kaelan couldn't feel its presence. Whenever he neared a relic, he could sense it, but not this time. He couldn't sense the demonic realm either. He could when they first arrived in this kingdom, so where could it have gone to? The demon could close the portal as he pleased, but he would have gone with it.

Carefully, the cleric answered. "I'm Kaelan . . . You know why I'm here, so let's get down to business. Your presence in this kingdom is hurting the people of the Glenariff Forest. Your demonic plant life has destroyed parts of a village, and all the wildlife has fled. If it continues to spread, I fear what else it may destroy. You seem willing to listen since you haven't tried to have us killed yet, so is there any way we can compromise?"

If Eirwen was willing to join Kaelan's side, then maybe Shale would be as well. The demon was interested in Kaelan, so it was possible he wasn't as bad as demons seemed to be. Perhaps he didn't mean for his demonic entities to cause so much destruction, like how Eirwen didn't mean to have a snowstorm harm a whole town. Eirwen mentioned that some things were out of her control. It could be the same way with Shale as well.

Shale put a finger to his lips and acted as though he contemplated compromising with Kaelan. With a smirk, he responded. "Sure, I'll withdraw my demons from this mortal realm. I'll even close my portal."