"I speak for the trees," the man replied. He wasn't dressed in the leathers and pelts that most Cedrians wore on their day to day activities. Instead, he was clad in what almost looked like a suit of wooden armor. It fit his form perfectly, and he couldn't see any links in the armor, which defied what little he knew of how plate was worn. What's more, he couldn't see much of his skin, but his face was covered in tattoos. He was too far away to read them all, and indeed some of them he couldn't even recognize, but on his forehead, the tattoos of identity read 'Spirit', 'Forest', and 'Speaker'.
"You can't be," the boy drew in a sharp gasp, almost too scared to breathe. "The Whispers of the Forest," he murmured. "The founder of Cedria. Lord Archon Cedrine!" As he spoke that last honorific he dropped to his knees, bowing as low as he physically could.
"Your respect is falsely won, young Tender." The man smiled, a warm, gentle sign of respect. "Bow not to a man that has not earned your love."
"But you're the King of the Forest! The Walker of Two Paths!" Tasuneke stood tentatively, trying to muster the courage to stop trembling before the man. "You created the Xal Deer Sea during the Archon War! I dare not offend a god such as you."