Dinner was served at promptly six bells and Selice and I were seated with Arinelle, as fellow ambassadors of the Fae, and at the same table as the King, Queen, and Duke. Set before us was the most lavish meal that I had ever set eyes upon, but my stomach was too tied up in knots to truly enjoy what I was eating. For one thing, people were staring unabashedly at me and Selice, and my sharp ears were able to pick up the whispered conversations of those at the tables closest to us as they discussed our scandalous state of dress.

My ‘twin’ and I were the talk of the dinner party and, while the men tried to cover their lust at seeing such scantily clad Faeries, the women did not even attempt to conceal their disdain and, in some cases, their jealousy. Some of the women even glared openly, when they thought that neither we nor the royals were looking. Under other circumstances, I might have found this as amusing as Selice would, but the presence of a nearby Demon had us both agitated and trying not to show it as we endeavored to casually eat and converse.

Selice’s magic sense was not as sharp as mine and Arinelle’s, but the Demon was close enough while we were eating that even she could feel the sickening presence emanating from it. The problem was that whoever the Demon was inhabiting had arrived among several groups that had arrived moments before dinner was served. That, and all the people around us now, was making it difficult to pinpoint the Demon’s location, other than a general direction.

I was tempted to just tell Selice to forget about the money and find a quiet place to shift into an owl so she could let the others know what was going on. I had a bad feeling that the Demon was up to no good. It was not like that would be surprising for one of its kind. Its presence had Arinelle on edge as well, and I hoped that she had placed a summoning enchantment on whatever weapon she was working on for situations like this.

As much as I would prefer Selice somewhere safe and gathering reinforcements in case this situation escalated, I quickly decided against that course of action for two reasons. The first was that I was relatively sure that the best way for us to pinpoint the Demon’s identity would be while mingling with the guests, and the more of us here that could sense the Demon’s foul magic, the easier that task would be. The second reason was that I might just need her here.

We knew the Demon was here, but he also knew that there were Faeries here. How could be not with me and Selice being the main topic of conversation? That meant that he would likely try to avoid us since our sense of magic was generally very acute. Pinpointing his identity while mingling would be difficult if that was the case, and I was certain it would be.

Demons might not be able to sense us as we could them, hence why the one after Sharai had used mundane tracking methods, but they could seem to sense active magic use if they were close enough. That meant that if either Arinelle or I tried to approach while disguised with a glamour, it would do little good. However, Arinelle mentioned upon first seeing Selice as my ‘twin’ that there was no magical aura when Changelings used shapeshifting to change forms, or at least once they were in that new form. If the three of us could not flush out the Demon while mingling, we might have to do it the hard way.

As we ate, and I attempted to look like I was enjoying the meal and none the wiser to the demonic presence casting a shadow over the party, I considered the situation and what to do about the Demon. Why was it here? Did it have something to do with the King? Were they hoping to bring him under their sway, or was this perhaps an assassination attempt? It would be an opportune time with no guards currently accompanying the royals.

Unfortunately, I could not confront it directly until it exposed itself, for fear of causing a political incident that could damage the good reputation that the Fae enjoyed here in the Kingdom of Kalidar. Still, it was difficult to not just get up and attempt to challenge it more directly. No, we needed to play this cautiously and intelligently if we did not wish this situation to turn against us, and I knew it.

All through dinner I could see Arinelle giving the royal pair across the table meaningful looks. I did not doubt that she had quietly told them of the Demon’s presence before we were seated because both the King and Queen’s smiles as they conversed about matters at Court seemed a little forced. Duke Sal-Grethan, on the other hand, seemed oblivious to the tension of his tablemates as the conversation went on.

Upon the heels of the final course of the meal, I played a set of a dozen songs on the harp for Selice to dance to as we entertained the guests. Most of the songs I played were known well enough, though I did play a few Fae songs that I had learned from the people of Thaeria village. I played the latter to sell our identity as Fae ambassadors, and because the guests would likely have never heard their kind before.

As I played, I kept my eyes on the crowds, hoping to pick out the Demon amongst them. I had no such luck and, from the look on Arinelle’s face as I finished my set, neither had she. She must have had similar concerns as to the reason for the Demon’s presence as I did because she had not left the side of the royal pair as I was playing. They were still making conversation with the host of the party when Selice and I took a break to mingle amongst the guests and took Arinelle aside for a quick word.

We were well hidden behind a large bush, trimmed into the shape of a rampant griffon, though Arinelle kept in a position where she could keep an eye on the royal couple and the host of the party. I did not even get to ask before the Fae ambassador said flatly, “It’s avoiding us. It has been staying well away from the stage in the center of the garden and whenever I move closer with Their Majesties, it moves away.”

“I was afraid of this happening,” I said with a sigh before turning to my duplicate. “Selice, it looks like it is time for plan B. Do not worry, Arinelle, we shall find it.”

“Aye,” Selice agreed, “I’ll be off then.” Then she headed off to carry out the plan that I had whispered to her while we were getting set up on stage following dinner.

Once she was far enough away, I summoned Neva’kul to me, and Sharai was instantly alert in my mind. -Demon!- she hissed angrily. She could sense it as well as I could, as soon as the unsheathed blade appeared in my hand.

“Yes, but there are too many people for us to root it out. Selice is going to try and discover its identity. Once she has, we can deal with it,” I told the spirit of my sword to soothe her fury. Then, I quickly focused my magic through the glyph on the blade that represented Sharai’s gift, only pausing to gather more mana once a pair of illusions, identical to me and wearing the same revealing clothing, appeared and I sent them both in opposite directions around the perimeter of the garden’s inner courtyard.

With my task done, I silently apologized to Sharai as I carefully hid Neva’kul within the carefully trimmed foliage of the large bush for the moment. Then, a moment later, I stepped out from behind the bush with the Fae ambassador to approach the King, his wife, and his brother. Vergun Sal-Kalidar followed our approach and gave a convincing smile as he said, “Lady Kaelyn? It is impossible to tell you and your sister apart without an instrument in your hands. And where has your lovely twin gone?”

I gave a low bow in reply before answering, “Indeed, Your Majesty. Selice is over there, mingling with the other guests.” Then I pointed toward one of the illusions of myself who was slowly maneuvering among the crowds, easily spotted due to all the bare skin. “Arinelle was just telling me that she, you, and your lovely wife wished to have a private word with me.

“Yes, you are truly a wonderful musician, and I was hoping to employ your services for a gala at the palace this summer. I was hoping that we could discuss terms and go over the details,” the King offered as an excuse for our private talk about the Demon threat.

The duke’s frown was brief, so brief that I almost missed it, before he interjected. “I will leave you to it then, Vergun. I really should go and mingle with my other guests. I would not wish for them to feel that I’m ignoring them.”

With that, the King’s brother left us and, once he was gone, Arinelle touched a crystal pendant that she was wearing and whispered a few words, causing my magic sense to quickly light up as a spell ensconced the four of us remaining, hiding us from the perception of the other guests. That was a useful spell, I would have to see if I could learn something like that when I got beyond the very basics of spell-singing.

As quickly as I could, and with as much detail as I could recall, I then told the royals and my fellow Faerie everything that I had learned so far about the Demons, their relationship to the Church of One, and their influence over the King of Evalis. They did not interrupt as I told them of my encounters with Demons and the members of their church, how I fought them, and everything else that I could think of that might convince them of the threat the world now faced. My suspicion that Arinelle had already told the royal pair of the Demon at the party proved true, and she bluntly told them that she thought their lives might be in danger. That was when I sensed the Demon coming our way.

Once Selice had slipped away from her faux twin, she immediately began searching for a volunteer to help her carry out Kaelyn’s plan. She caught sight of a serving girl, carrying around a tray of expensive-looking silver wine goblets for guests to partake of; all of them now seemingly empty as the petite, dark-haired girl made her way toward the large house across the gardens, presumably to have the goblets replaced with filled ones so those she carried could be cleaned. She did not envy the amount of walking the poor girl must be doing tonight, moving back and forth along a cobblestone path that ran between the house and gardens.

There was a hedge maze on both sides of the path, separating the gardens from the grand house. “Perfect,” she thought happily as she silently approached the girl from behind. Then, after ensuring there were no eyes upon them, she struck the girl from behind and dragged her unconscious form into the maze. The goblets and tray clattered to the ground, but she didn’t have the time to hide them. Time was short and she needed to hurry.

Physical contact was enough for her to copy the girl’s general appearance, and she quickly stripped the girl of her uniform and put it on over her dancing outfit, leaving her only in her shoes and undergarments. Then, after slipping the owl feather from her braid, she hid it within the uniform, straightened up her appearance as best she could, gathered the tray and goblets to blend in, and returned to the party to search for the Demon. She still had the makeup on that she had applied earlier, but within the fading light of twilight she doubted anyone would notice.

Weaving between the various groups and conversations, it took several minutes before she got close enough to feel the noxious presence of the Demon through her magic sense. Kaelyn’s was far superior in range, but now that she could sense the general direction it was in, she just needed to follow it to the source. That source turned out to be a man in black and wine-colored finery, a man who was now being approached by the man who had hired her and Kaelyn.

She knew who he was now, she could have just left it at that and gone to find Kaelyn and let her know, but the duke’s body language as he approached had her curious. He was still smiling at the guests he passed by, but his movements were tense and stiff, the movements of a man who was upset about something. Her instincts told her to stay and so she casually circled them from a distance while holding up her tray and straining to focus on their conversation.

“What’s keeping you,” the duke hissed angrily, his voice barely audible to her. “My brother and his wife are here with no guards, ripe for the plucking!”

“That Faerie hasn’t let them out of her sight,” the other man retorted testily. “She isn’t the only Faerie here either, you have three of them. Why didn’t you tell me there would be Fae here tonight?!”

“Why should it matter? You said that with your magic, it would be no problem to kill them and get away, and then we both get what we want. I needed those two Faerie girls to get them here. I did my part, now do yours. If we don’t kill him before he passes that ridiculous law next week…”

The Demon interrupted the duke’s rant with a furious response that he barely kept quiet enough for any humans around them to not hear. Even with her current appearance though, Selice’s ears were much more sensitive. “Those Faeries can sense what I am! There are three of them and one of me, and the one who isn’t dressed like a harlot won’t leave your brother’s side now! They’re a danger to me and our plans, and you invited them here, you fool!”

Selice had not trusted the duke since he first approached them, but to think that he was plotting regicide and fratricide was unnerving. “I’m the fool?! My brother and his wife are talking alone with two of those Faeries right now, if your magic is so powerful, just go over there and kill them all at once before they see you coming!” He quietly snapped back at the Demon, eyeing the other people around them.

“You may be right,” the Demon said, though he still glared irately at the duke. “If this body gets damaged, I can find another easily enough. There is nothing to lose, and everything to gain.” Selice’s heart skipped a beat, and terror gripped her chest as the Demon glared at his fellow conspirator a moment longer and then stormed off toward where the duke was pointing. Right where she had left Kaelyn and Arinelle earlier. No! She had to stop him or get to them first to warn them.

She headed for the nearest decorative foliage, casting aside tray and goblets both as she ducked behind and reached for the feather inside of her stolen uniform. Willing the change, her body began to shrink, change shape, and sprout feathers. The shift between forms took barely a moment as she flowed fluidly from one to the other and she quickly struggled out of the clothing that had fallen to the ground around her to take to the air and try to overtake the demon from above.

Kaelyn had told her that Demons could sense magic, but their range probably wasn’t that much better than her own, maybe even less. She could sense the bubble of magic around Kaelyn, the other Faerie, and the King and Queen of Kalidar though, and she suspected that the Demon could as well from how he suddenly changed the path he was taking to head straight toward them. He pushed through the groups of party guests, unconcerned with being subtle now as both of his fists began to erupt with growing balls of nauseating green-black flames.

Screams and shouts of outrage and fear erupted below her as guests began to scatter and flee the area. He was gathering his power for a big attack; she could feel it climbing and could only hope that Kaelyn and Arinelle would as well. Would they be able to react in time to counter it though? She wasn’t going to get to them in time, so Selice did the only thing that she could think of, she banked hard and dove straight at the Demon’s face, her talons extended and questing for blood.