Back to the Flaeren Dominion, back to the Windlord. Normally Omilaena hated retracing her steps like this, but she had to admit that the situation had changed. Her own power had exploded and she had Kai with her, both of which could be good bargaining tools. She'd left the demons behind to handle themselves, except for Troulon, who intended to take part in negotiations for unclear reasons - she decided to trust him on that.
They didn't arrive at the same plaza, instead moving much deeper into the Flaeren Dominion. This plaza sat atop a hill amid a forest of dead trees... or at least that was her first impression. They were leafless and dark, yet none of the trees showed any signs of decay, and the forest seemed to be thriving, creating a sea of waving spines around them.
No matter, there was no time for sight-seeing: the Windlord didn't make them wait this time.
When the Windlord arrived they were already using a speed phase, and this time Omilaena was more prepared. She saw that Kai adapted like it was second-nature, tracking the Windlord as they shifted to examine them. The way he did it so confidently was pretty hot, actually.
"Years ago, when I was fighting Matiavel..." The Windlord hovered in front of Kai, their nearly hidden eyes piercing. "You saw me across a battlefield."
"Thank you for not killing me then," Kai said amiably.
"I almost wish I had. The two of you have unreal..." The Windlord shook their head and drew back from their party, taking a cross-legged position in midair. "Irrelevant now. Unlike the invaders, you at least have a history of dealing fairly with us. We're open to treating with you. But now you demand the fruit of the Glorious Tree, and that is a bridge too far."
"What does it matter?" Omilaena asked. "You don't have anyone who can survive eating the fruit, can you?"
"No, but so far when you have been allowed near Insanities, the situation has worsened."
Ouch. As much as Omilaena wanted to make a joke about that, a high stakes negotiation didn't seem like the time. She had to admit, with the Colossus creating a trail of destruction across Rosemount, she didn't have the strongest position to bargain.
"Let us resolve the problem for good," Kai urged. "If the fruit lets us take care of the Colossus and the invaders, you'll have paid your debt and everyone will be grateful to you for restoring Rosemount."
"Presuming that you win." The Windlord folded their arms and shifted lower, almost a ball of robes floating in midair. "I admit your power is unprecedented, but so are the invaders, and there are a great many of them. There are some who think we should simply submit, or offer them the fruit to buy ourselves freedom. I see no guarantee that the fruit will be enough for you to win."
"Maybe not, but it definitely won't be enough to buy you anything. Have you seen how Jonijix behaves? He'll throw aside any alliance you make as soon as he sees something he wants - the fruit might even draw his attention to you."
Even though Omilaena understood what Kai was trying to do, she thought that was the wrong approach. The Windlord was ultimately a great power, desperately holding on to control and trying to eliminate rivals. They were likely all too willing to play their odds that Jonijix would attack the Elven Expanse first and potentially destroy it as a real political force in the future.
Reckless as it seemed, she understood the logic. The Windlord likely judged that their power was close to the invaders, so might be in favor of opponents fighting and wiping one another out. It was possible that the Flaeren Dominion thought it could endure until the anomalies passed and then expand over the ashes of Rosemount.
"Not all Insanities are the same." Troulon spoke up quietly, but drew the Windlord's attention. "The invaders have brute force and nothing else. The ultimate proof is the Royal Crest."
"Oh?" The Windlord's head rose slightly.
"While in Traeton, they attempted to take the Crest for themselves, but none of them were able to move it. They pretended otherwise and killed some who saw, but you cannot question that Traeton is still alight and they have stolen everything they can. The invaders only pretend to be transcendent. They are not equal to Insanities such as the Royal Crest, or the Colossus... or the Glorious Tree."
"If you give them a fruit," Omilaena butted in, "there's a good chance that one of them might die and they'd take it out on the Flaeren Dominion. This could happen even if you don't give one, if they come this way. So you're taking a risk either way, but we're offering you a controlled risk."
Omilaena went silent, watching the Windlord consider this. She had an even more aggressive tactic in hand: she could threaten to lead the invaders directly east into the Flaeren Dominion, if it came to that. Fortunately, after several seconds the Windlord sighed and shifted to standing position again.
"Very well. You cannot blame us if you, as well, are not equal to the fruit of the Glorious Tree. I tell you now, contradictory to the propaganda of all our lords, no one has tasted it and survived."
"Thank you," Kai said with a smile. "You won't regret trusting us."
As they spoke, Omilaena glanced over her shoulder at Troulon, favoring him with a smile. He gave a thin smile back, but kept his distance from the rest of the negotiation. A little further back, Ceryyn beamed at her and made encouraging gestures.
When they took the next step, they didn't use the elves, instead letting the Windlord teleport them deeper into the Flaeren Dominion. Omilaena wasn't sure if that was supposed to keep the location of the Glorious Tree a secret, because it seemed useless: the valley where they arrived was utterly choking with the razor sharp trees.
"It is said that, generations ago, one of our ancestors planted an extraordinary seed." The Windlord gestured across the valley. "It produced the fruit of deadly power, yes, but it also dropped seeds of its own. None of them were equal to the original tree, but they were still dangerous. At first they were allowed to grow, since some of their divine fruit could be survived... and the forest continued to expand."
"You mean it's not actually under control?" Kai asked.
"That's correct. On some fronts we can halt its spread, but in others it is all out war. A past Flamelord attempted to burn down entire swaths of the forest and ultimately failed. So the Glorious Tree is our legacy, but it is also a threat that chokes out all else."
Fascinating. Omilaena kept her mouth shut, but it was surreal to realize that the "Glorious Tree" was basically a weed. Most likely a plant that came from the outside world that was capable of surviving here, easily out-competing everything local. Most other nations were dealing with an Insanity that was drying up, but the Flaeren Dominion was struggling to keep theirs under control.
"Where is the actual tree?" Kai asked. "I would have expected to see it."
"You might expect the Glorious Tree to be larger than all others, but it's actually smaller. This is the original valley, where the Tree was first planted, and few dare to venture now. Unlike my predecessors, I have not tampered with this power, only sought to control the outer forests, so we will need to speak to the caretakers."
It was hard to see where such caretakers might be, given how the scraggly trees strangled everything. Now that she was looking for them, Omilaena spotted several rectangular lumps that were probably all that remained of buildings, and a tower that was standing only because of the branches that had torn through it from all sides.
Before they could set off to find the caretakers or the tree itself, they were interrupted by one of the Windlord's aides arriving. The two spoke in indecipherable whispers, then the Windlord turned back to face them with a grim expression.
"It seems that our problems have separated," the Windlord said. "The Slumbering Colossus continues to crawl south, currently perhaps a week from Traeton. But the greater problem is that Jonijix and his men suddenly turned east, getting distance from the Colossus."
Omilaena exchanged a glance with Kai and they both acknowledged the likely reason: the invaders were subconsciously pushed to pursue Kai, so when he had moved east, they had followed. That alone didn't need to be a problem, but the Windlord looked more grim than the news alone required.
"Jonijix has taken over a city and changed tactics," the Windlord continued. "Now he is demanding that others bring him elves, or he will begin killing citizens. He's in the Commonwealth, and not our concern, but... I thought you would want to know."
Of course that cut right to Kai's heart, and he instinctively began looking west, so Omilaena moved to cut him off. "This is something that only you can do," she told him. "Go, take care of the Glorious Tree. I'll find some way to distract Jonijix."
"Alright." Kai squared his shoulders and she could practically see the thoughts falling into place as he prepared himself to set off the cascade of requirements they needed to save Rosemount. "I'll leave the rest to you."
Such a shame to be so close to another Insanity and turn back, but they were running out of time. Omilaena joined the others with confidence as they returned west, but the truth was that she still didn't have a plan.