[Maikadilwen]

The closer they came to the edge of the large forest, the more angry and determined Vlad seemed to be. Cursing under his breath, he swore that he would find Melost and the others, even if it meant he had to chop down the entire forest and for once, both Jaheira and Snyd were quiet. Something about this place told Vlad that he should be careful, that enemies might be lurking in the shadows among the trees, but he strode on, only one thing on his mind. Not until he had killed that Elf and those accursed traitors would he have time to rest and he cared little if the other two were still following him. If not, he would deal with them later.

"Halt! Lay down your weapons and follow peacefully. You are now considered prisoners of Lord Melost!" Vlad froze in mid-stride, not believing his own eye and ears as the three suddenly found themselves surrounded by a group of Elven archers, all pointing their arrows at them and Vlad slowly removed his hand from the sword-hilt he had instinctively reached for. He turned his head to look at Jaheira and Snyd, then nodded to both of them to let go of their weapons. The Elf who appeared to be leading the group, said something to two others and they carefully disarmed the outlaws. Had the situation been different and less serious, Vlad would have laughed aloud at the expression of the Elf who were working hard to disarm Jaheira. It seemed she always had another dagger hidden somewhere. There was just something about that woman...

Vlad cursed loudly as they were forced onwards towards the camp they were soon able to spot ahead and the more he cursed, the more silent Jaheira and Snyd became, both knowing from experience what was likely to happen when he was in such a mood. Suddenly the sound of voices, very familiar voices, reached Vlad's ears and it only made his anger burn brighter. That accursed Elf should consider himself lucky that his friends have taken my sword, or I would run it through him, even if I would die trying! Vlad thought bitterly as they were led out of the woods, into the open space of the encampment. At the sight of Melost, Vlad stopped immediately and spat on the ground before his feet as he looked at him with disgust, barely able to contain his anger anymore. "Lord Melost is it? How long have you planned this? How much did you get for the price on our heads?" Before Melost could answer him, a man drew his sword and came to stand between them, obviously angered by Vlad's words. "You know nothing of what you speak! This is the finest friend a man could have! He has saved my life many times, as I have saved his and I will hear not one word against him!"

Vlad looked at the man, for a moment puzzled but then the truth dawned on him. This man could only be Arthain, the very person Melost had been determined to kill. But why was he still alive? Looking straight at him, Vlad smiled grimly, then spoke calmly. "So you must be Arthain! The same Arthain that you set out to kill, Melost? That you wanted me to help you kill... the man who took your woman, even before your very eyes? Who caused you to run like a mad thing up into the mountain passes to die? That Arthain? He snarled as he spat out his words and all of those who had followed him winced, for they knew him in his darkest moods and they knew what was coming next. Having listened to Khalad's endless talk of honour for too long, he thought that finally the time had come to show the boy the ugly truth about "honour", especially among soldiers.

"Is this want a free man's honour has become? That he can help himself to his best friend's woman without so much as a twinge of conscience? Then spare me your honour! I would rather die in the company of rogues and thieves, than be caught dead in the presence of someone like you!" He turned his back on Arthain, who stood as one smitten by a death-blow. With one speech, Vlad had laid open all his wounds at once. He felt like he was bleeding internally. He looked at Melost, his eyes filled with self-hatred. "It's true...all of it. I should have stopped her, I should have..."

Melost's arms went around him, comforting him, even as Jaheira came to place a comforting hand on Vlad's arm. Roughly he embraced her, needing comfort in that moment. He held her tightly as he fought the turbulent feelings inside him, trying to understand why her presence had suddenly come to mean so much to him and for the first time in the years they had known each other, he felt protective of her, suddenly not wanting anything to ever happen to her. If anyone took her from him, he would kill him on the spot, friend or not. How could Melost stand in this man's presence now, after what had happened? Could friendship truly be that strong? Turning his head, he spoke back over his shoulder, his voice hoarse. "Melost...after what he did...how can you still call this man your friend?"