That was a very... casual way to begin what should have been an extremely serious situation. The King displayed no concern or nervousness and simply observed Daegal while leading the proceedings.
“I feel as though the choices presented to me are rather simple here,” Reynard began. “Kill it; or spare it. The details can be worked out after this decision is made; but which should it be, I wonder?”
Opinionated voices rose to the question, all from the well-dressed nobility that was in attendance. They talked amongst themselves, they talked to the king, all trying to sway the decisions of their fellows and betters. It was the rare few that remained quiet, taking a page from their king’s playbook as they observed and considered. Eventually the king raised a hand, drawing the attention of the squabbling nobles and silencing the room again.
“I hear this creature is capable of speech. Well, care to speak for yourself?” The question was obviously pointed at Daegal, and the room’s attention seemed even more focused upon him now. It felt like Daegal had stones in his throat, choking him. He did his best to steel his resolve as he attempted to speak.
“I-” his voice cracked, prompting him to clear his throat and try again. “I c-came here hoping t-to find peace.”
“Peace, hmm?” Reynard rubbed his chin as he scrutinized Daegal and his words. Before Reynard could say anything else, another voice filled the room.
“I would not fall to the deception of this unholy creature, my liege.” An older man, bald and wearing dark red velvet robes that looked both heavy and warm stepped up. He was flanked by two others who were wearing darker brown robes that looked humbler. They were all carrying objects of concern that identified them, namely, those wooden crosses and roseries. These were priests like Father Conrad, and the one wearing the thick robes was likely the bishop, if Daegal was reading things right. He had been warned about them, and here they were. One problem out of many was that he didn’t know what they were capable of, or planning to do with him.
“Bishop Arthur, how kind of you to voice your opinion unprompted,” Reynard said with a tinge of what Daegal thought was annoyance. “Still, unholy creature you say? Please enlighten me as to why you would make such a claim.”
“Surely you jest, your majesty. It is plain as day that the influences of hell reside within that creature. What else could explain such a ghastly and terrifying visage.”
“And yet, here it stands, throwing itself before us and asking for peace. Not exactly the image of devils that are told to children to scare them into behaving. What’s more, I hear of others who would call it savior, even friend. Perhaps it's time we heard their opinion of this being before us? Send them in.”
The command was met with one soldier disappearing out of the door that Daegal entered from, and about a minute later, returned with Fiora and Emil. Relief flooded through Daegal as he saw them, and they were directed to stand to his side. Fiora gave Daegal a quick smile, which is all she could do before they were addressed.
“Now, please explain your relationship with this creature as well as your opinion of it,” Reynard commanded of them.
Both Emil and Fiora bowed their heads to their king, but Emil was first to speak.
“My king, we humbly come before you to plead leniency for this being known as Daegal. I have only known him for a handful of months, but he was introduced to me when he showed up to save my village from a raid by a group of slavers. I would have died that day if it wasn’t for him. While I readily admit that I was terrified of him at first, the following months where he lived among us had shown him to be logical, cooperative, considerate, and a good friend to my daughter.”
“He lived in your village?” That seemed to interest Reynard.
Emil nodded. “Indeed, your majesty. He was even able to be a productive member of the village as he hunted and brought back a lot of meat. I must say, it was quite nice not having to worry about our food stores during the winter.”
The king nodded his head slightly as he considered the first testimony for a moment before turning his attention onto Fiora.
“And you, girl, are this Daegal’s friend?”
“Y-Yes, my king. I have known Daegal for a few months more than my father and the rest of our village. When I first met him, he was not interested in interacting with humans in any way. He wanted to be alone, but that was because he was scared. Daegal endured loneliness for a decade because he was scared of humans and what they might do. To him, we were the monsters.”
“This is ridiculous!” Bishop Arthur shouted out with insult. “You would have us sit here and believe that this devil, strong enough to kill a man with hardly any effort, is afraid of us? This girl has obviously been corrupted beyond salvation. It would be a mercy to purify her, perhaps then her soul might be saved enough to reach heaven.”
Emil stepped in front of Fiora defensively, eyeing the bishop warily as his body tensed in preparation to protect his daughter if need be. Daegal was of a similar mind, but before either of them could think about acting in defense of Fiora further, Reynard spoke up again.
“You are making a lot of accusations and promises, Bishop, yet I haven’t seen much evidence to prove your claims. Do you have some way to definitively prove that this creature is, beyond a shadow of a doubt, a demon?”
The bishop turned his nose up as he looked at Daegal. “All of demon kind will falter before the will of God. I will perform rites over this creature and reveal its true nature before sending it back to the hells... If you will allow me to, your majesty.” It almost felt like an afterthought that he needed Reynard’s permission to do such a thing.
“Well, that certainly seems like a very efficient and definitive way of proving your claim. Very well, perform your rites, and we shall see the true nature of Daegal here.”
Daegal felt his heart start beating faster in his chest and was worried that it was loud enough for others to hear. He had no idea what they were about to do, and the bishop spoke to his two followers, telling them to fetch his tools. They brought out a bag, and several different objects were removed from it, included crosses, a book, and a vial of some kind of liquid.
All three priests then took up position around Daegal, surrounding him as they held up their crosses in a warding manner. The crosses did annoy him, like usual, but then the bishop held up a book and started talking.
“In the name of the father, the son, and the holy spirit, we call upon all that is holy to revoke this demon. We cast you out foul creature! Return to the pits of hell from whence you came!”
The man spoke with conviction and in an animated style, and Daegal braced for something to happen. After a moment of silence, he was still there, and he didn’t feel much different than he had but a few seconds ago. There was a strange feeling he couldn’t quite place, though. It was as if someone was looking at him, though the weight of this stare far outclassed any that these nobles and soldiers could place upon him. It inspired a primal kind of fear inside him, the closest comparison that he could make would have been facing a bear when he was young and small.
Bishop Arthur saw that his initial attempt to banish Daegal did not work, so he proceeded to the next. Placing the cross aside, Arthur opened the book and took the vial in hand. He started reading, but he spoke in a language that Daegal could not understand. A few moments later, the bishop flicked his wrist out and splashed water onto him. Daegal flinched from the suddenness of the action.
He sniffed nervously at the liquid to ensure that it was water, and to his senses it appeared as such. However, the water did make him feel paradoxically dirty instead of clean, a feeling that increased as he was splashed again. Nothing about this situation made sense as so many bizarre feelings took hold, yet he remained where he was, unmoved in any physical sense, which seemed to greatly frustrate the bishop.
The man kept at it for another few minutes, reading from his book in languages he did and did not know while occasionally splashing more water around. This strange ritual was starting to feel a little pointless, and apparently Reynard thought that as well.
“I’ve seen enough, Arthur,” Reynard said with a casual wave of his hand.
“But Sire, I-”
“You’ve had your chance to prove your claims, but it seems that this creature, whatever it is, does not meet your prerequisites for being labeled a demon. Step aside, bishop, these proceeding will continue from here.”
The bishop locked his jaw, but he did eventually cease his activities and return to his former position. As soon as the bishop stopped his rites, the feeling of being watched faded slowly but surely. Daegal felt relieved that it was gone, but that didn’t mean that his troubles were over.
“So, we’ve learned a bit more about Daegal here,” Reynard began. “However, I feel as though we have only heard biased opinions thus far. Perhaps it would be best to have a more unaffiliated party give their opinion.” He turned to look at one man in particular. “Captain Leoric, you have traveled with this being for a week; please step forward and share your thoughts of it.”
The captain did as commanded, stepping out of the lineup of soldiers and into the center of the room. With a quick bow of his head, he started his recounting of the last week.
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“My lord, I have indeed traveled with Daegal for the last week, and in that time, I have seen part of what the lady Fiora and Sir Emil have claimed about him. He was completely cooperative during the trip, did not cause any problems, and when we were waylaid by a group of highwaymen, he came to our rescue while obeying my request to spare the leader.”
“You were attacked on the road?”
“Yes my lord.”
“Did Daegal kill them all?”
“No, only a few. The rest ran off into the night.”
“So, he’s not bloodthirsty at least.” He turned toward Daegal next. “You have taken human life, and while in that instance such an action was justified, I must ask, have you killed before that moment?”
Daegal considered for a moment whether he should withhold that information. While he could say that he was somewhat proud of saving Fiora from the raiders, the time before that, so long ago, that was painful to think back on. He looked at the king, whose eyes scrutinized him, probing him for answers. Daegal had a feeling that this man would be able to tell that if he was lying or not. Swallowing the painful and nervous lump in his throat, he told the truth.
“Once w-when I rescued Fiora f-from the raiders, and another time, long before that...” He trailed off, something that Reynard noticed.
“Were those from long before innocent?” Reynard questioned sharply.
That sparked a reaction in Daegal as he looked at the king straight on. “No, they were not innocent.” He spoke firmly, and with an undertone of venom in his voice that surprised everyone, even Fiora who looked at him out of the corner of her eye with concern.
Reynard leaned forward in his seat slightly. “Oh? And what did they do to warrant an execution exactly?”
Daegal realized he made a mistake. Anger from that night broke through, and now the king had taken interest, forcing him to relive it again. He did his best to calm down, despite the turmoil inside him.
“They... they burned down the village, k-killing almost everyone.”
“Hmm, so, if that is true, then the reason can be justified, but that changes the question to why? Why did you care enough about the fate of this village to personally kill those responsible?” Daegal clammed up, all four eyes refusing to make contact, leading Reynard to reach his own conclusion. “You cared for someone in that village, didn’t you?”
Daegal glanced at the king and saw a different look on the man’s face. It was a softer expression, something that was approaching understanding. Someone, however, wasn’t feeling the same way.
“Your majesty, please, this is ridiculous!” the bishop spoke up again. “You cannot simply believe this creature without evidence. Who’s to say this thing didn’t do all of that themselves! Wherever this thing goes, death seems to follow it, and I find the notion that it can care for anything other than itself to be laughable.”
“I do care!” Daegal spoke up. If there was one thing he would defend, it was his desire to protect those he cared about, and having this man, who didn’t know a damn thing about him, say he didn’t care about Adelaide or Fiora, made him angry.
“You will say whatever you think will save your festering hide! You are unnatural! You do not belong in this world!”
That one cut deep as it was a feeling he had struggled with for a long time. It did not stop Daegal from sneering at the bishop, and it only made the temperature of the conversation heat up even more. Eventually a weary sigh from Reynard cut through the tension.
“Well bishop, once more you raise your accusations unprompted. Will this be your final accusation, or do you have a list that I should be made aware of?” The tone of his voice hinted at him being quite tired of this constant interruption.
Arthur tore his gaze aware from Daegal as he dipped his head toward Reynard. “I apologize, your majesty, but it needed to be said. This thing can’t be trusted with anything it says. It could do untold damage to our kingdom if it is allowed to walk free.”
Reynard rubbed his head with exasperation. “To confirm, you think that it is incapable of caring for human life, so you would label it a danger to us all?”
“Yes, my lord.”
“A difficult thing to prove, lest you have some means of divining another’s thoughts.”
Reynard’s gaze wandered around the room, falling upon all those who had assembled before him. He closed his eyes for a moment before letting out a sigh. When he opened them again, his gaze was steely, and he snapped his fingers before giving a command.
“Seize the girl.”
The order was so abrupt that none of those who stood accused could process it before the guards moved to grab Fiora. Daegal was the first to snap to attention as a handful of individuals moved from the sidelines to take hold of Fiora. He lunged into action, reaching Fiora first as he grabbed her and pulled her close with a feral snarl at those who sought to take her.
“Stay away! Get back!” he growled out at them all as he pulled Fiora away from them.
His actions prompted more of the guards to take up arms, lowering spears and brandishing them as they quickly surrounded their position. Daegal’s eyes darted around as he tried to keep track of all the potential attackers, head twitching left and right. He could not attack in one direction without risking exposing Fiora to aggression from the other, especially while being bound as he was. Eventually he pushed Fiora to the ground while he spread out his limbs as far as he could to cover more of her. He couldn’t attack, but he could defend her with his body. His scales could stop the attacks for a while if they tried to use force, which might give him time to work how they could escape.
Emil was doing his best to plead with the king on his hands and knees, begging Reynard to stop this and spare his daughter whatever fate he planned for her. Reynard watched with an impassive expression as the scene played out before him, and his interest was particularly focused on Daegal who was lashing his tail in a whip like manner. It was a part of his body that they did not think to restrain, and he was now using it to keep the soldiers at bay as he growled and bared his teeth at any who tried to get close. Fiora was panicked and unable to do much as she was trapped beneath Daegal and trying to figure out how it came to this.
This continued for a few moments as the tense standoff between the two sides persisted. Eventually the tension was cut when Reynard spoke up once more.
“You defend the girl even now; why? I wanted her, not you. Defending her right now is only making the situation worse for you, especially if you end up injuring one of my soldiers. You do understand I have thousands of men under my command, yes? If I gave the order, I doubt even a being as strong as you would survive the full might I could unleash upon you.”
Daegal had not thought about that, but frankly, he did not care. He did not shy away from the king this time, and he stared up at the man from his prone position with defiance and a warning glare.
“She’s my friend, and I promised I would keep her safe from anyone, even you, if I must.”
It felt like everyone in the room stopped breathing, waiting to see what would happen now that the gauntlet was thrown. Silence reigned for several seconds, and then, Reynard smirked. With a wave of his hand, he gave more orders.
“Stand down everyone.” The guards looked unsure, but they did back up, assuming their positions once more. Daegal did not stand up just yet as he nervously eyed the room as he continued to defend Fiora. Reynard turned to Arthur next, and the look on his face was like he was the one that scored a victory.
“Willing to face an entire kingdom to protect a single girl, even knowing it would likely lead to his death. That certainly seems like someone who can care about another. I feel we can confidently say that Daegal here is not an inherently evil being.”
Arthur started floundering. “B-But my lord, it-”
“I have humored your complaints more than enough!” Reynard interrupted, voice rising in aggravation. “At this point you would have to pick apart his individual actions for their moral worth, and I have neither the time, nor the patience, to sit through such tedium. Thank you, Bishop Arthur, but your services are no longer required at this junction. You are dismissed.”
Arthur looked somewhere between shocked and furious. However, he knew he could not question the king at this time, so biting his tongue, he bowed his head and stormed out of the room. The air felt lighter after he was gone, but it wasn’t over yet.
Reynard gestured toward Daegal. “Rise, please. It is rather awkward speaking to you like that.” He waited for Daegal to slowly rise to his feet again, helping Fiora up and making sure she wasn’t hurt in any way. Once they were sorted, Reynard continued.
“So, we’ve established you are not a demon, and you are not an active threat. There is no reason to push for an execution against you.” Daegal felt his hopes start to rise. “However, now the question is: why should I permit your presence in my kingdom when it causes such discord. What do you have to offer?” And just like that they had sunk again.
His mind raced as he tried to think of what he could do that this man, this king, would find valuable. The short answer was not very much. His skills were limited, narrow, and hardly extravagant in any way. Daegal swallowed nervously as he did his best to sell his skills.
“I-I’m a very good hunter.”
“I have hundreds of hunters in my kingdom.”
“Not l-like me. I usually catch my target, and I hear t-that's not normal for human hunters. I can track an animal f-for miles by scent alone, even if the only hint is a drop of b-blood.”
“So, you’re a dog and a hunter all in one package, aye?” Daegal did not know how to feel about that comparison, especially since it did not seem to move the king’s opinion all that much. Reynard rubbed his chin in thought for a minute, and every second of silence after that was torturous for the trio who awaited their fate. Eventually Reynard lowered his hand onto the arm of his seat as he came to a decision.
“Have you ever hunted humans before?”
Daegal panicked. “I do n-not eat human! I’ve never o-once even thought about-”
He was interrupted when Reynard raised his hand. “You misunderstand. I am not asking you to hunt to eat, I am asking you if you can find humans easily enough.”
Daegal was relieved that was the case. “Y-Yes. You’re not exactly, uhm... subtle.”
Reynard laughed in a manner quite unbefitting of royalty, but he simply could not help it. “I can certainly see what you mean. At times I can’t help but think that some people fail to understand the definition of silence. You’ve made a fair point, and I can think of one way to put your skills to use; a test, of a sort.”
Reynard leaned back in his seat, a more troubled look on his face. “There has a been a growing problem in my city as of late. People disappearing into the night with ever increasing frequency. My soldiers cannot seem to find where they have gone, and no culprit has risen to claim responsibility or even a ransom. I cannot sit idle as fear grows amongst the populace. So, if you agree to lend your skills, and succeed in finding those who have gone missing, I will personally guarantee you a safe place in my kingdom. Are you agreeable to those terms?”
Daegal was stunned by the offer. In the brief moment he devoted to thinking about it, he could find no reason to deny this deal.
“I-I will do my best to find them. It would b-be better if I had a hint, something with a scent, maybe?”
“We can work out all the details later. For now, I think we could all use a short break. I certainly need a drink after this. You’re all dismissed, though make sure our guests receive a room, one they can fit in, preferably.”
With that, Reynard stood from his seat and exited the room via the same door he entered from. The rest of nobility that had been in attendance slowly shuffled out as well. The room was slowly emptied save for the trio and all the guards who were watching them. It took them all a minute to process everything, but eventually they came to realize that their gambit might just pay off.
Fiora turned to look up at Daegal, her breath still slightly elevated. Slowly, a small grin spread across her face. That unspoken feeling was contagious, and Daegal slowly mimicked her expression, breaking out into a long snouted grin of his own. Emil, though, was not feeling the same way as he slowly bent in half, face pale and hands on his knees as he started to groan like he had an upset stomach.
“You two are going to be the death of me,” he wheezed out.
Fiora let out a wispy chuckle. Everyone was feeling drained after that, and the promise of a room was sounding very alluring. With slow, weary steps, the three of them turned toward the exit and looked for someone to lead them where they could rest.
