Disclaimer; Ok, if you think I own Baldur's Gate then you have serious problems. If I owned it, do you think I'd be writing stories about it? I would be in Hawaii, watching sharks eat some poor surfer. Thanks for the reviews, I wuv them! Imoen has a very tiny part in this chapter; most of her story is focused on Gorion in Beregost. She'll have more later on, but right now I've got a slight writer's block concerning her. Anywho...bye.

They're a Little Different...

My shadow's the only one that walk's beside me

My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating

Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me

'Til then I walk alone

Karl-7, Sarevok-9, Bree-6, Imoen-6

"Absolutely not!" Gorion practically shouted at the sorcerer.

"But-"

"No."

"And why not?! Are you afraid I'd hurt him? Because-"

"No."

"Hear me out at lea-"

"No."

Damien paused in his pleas, narrowing his eyes at Gorion. "He's dangerous, Gorion. An examination-"

The older wizard cut him off. "Would be treating him like an animal. He's a human-"

"Bhaalspawn. A dangerous-"

"He's 7 years old, hardly a danger to anyone. And drop the facade of caring for my wellbeing, Damien."

"I merely want to-"

"Treat an innocent boy like some freak and-"

"Stop interrupting me! I swear I won't hurt him! A few days in my care and..." the younger, red-haired sorcerer trailed off as Gorion's eyes narrowed into tiny slits, the menacing look accentuated by his sharp nose and stern expression.

"You're perverted definition of care? As in cutting him open, perhaps pitting him in a fight against a dragon to see who wins? How about spending a few hours inside his head, reading every thought and emotion? Maybe even poking at his soul? No, I think not."

The sorcerer placed a prudent hand near a dagger he kept at his side; Gorion looked like he was about to wreak some serious damage. "I would not hurt him. I have spells, potions, I could completely numb him to everything! He wouldn't feel anything, it would be like he was asleep the whole time. And the possible benefit, Gorion! To understand a Bhaalspawn, to tap the power in his soul-"

Gorion took a step closer, towering over the sorcerer. He looked remarkably like a gathering thunderstorm. "No. You do not want to know what will happen if you say one more word about this. Understood?" Quivering slightly, Damien nodded. "Good. Now, if that is the only reason you wanted me to waste my valuable time in coming to Beregost, I'll be leaving you." without waiting for an answer he turned and left.

Damien clenched his fists, glaring after the older man. "Fine." he whispered darkly. "If you don't want to do it the easy way..." he turned and muttered a spell, summoning his familiar, a small horned imp, to his side.

"Yes, what?" the creature said irritably, looking bored and resigned.

"Twister, I have a job for you-"

The imp rolled its eyes and muttered a curse in the Abyssal tongue. "Well, duh! You always have a job for me. Twister, do this. Twister, do that. Twister, paint my nails. Twister, go kill stuff. Twister, shave my-"

Damien turned bright red, clenched his fists in rage. "Shut up, you insolent cretin! You're lucky I continue to summon you to this plane, instead of banishing you to the Abyss for a hundred years! You should be-"

"A hundred years?! Oh, the horror!" Twister said with mock horror, giving the sorcerer a slightly amused grin. "Y'know, you should really come up with another threat. Something like...'Kill that rabbit or I'll force-feed you onions.' That's what my old master used to say, y'know. Nice man, it's a shame he got sucked into Baator..."

Damien just stared at the ever-mocking imp, entertaining beautiful fantasies where Twister was slowly ripped to shred by a manticore. "Yes. Whatever. Shut up, just shut up. I need you to do something..."

Gorion entered his room at the inn and pulled out a quill, a bottle of ink, and a scroll of parchment. He sat at a desk, pursing his lips at the paper and thinking of Damien. After several minutes he raised his quill and began to write...

Khalid and Jaheira,

I trust you remember my previous letter informing you of my new ward. Damien, Red Wizard of Thay, has also learned of him. I am not sure how he came by this information, but he is now a serious threat. To take violent action against him could provoke the wrath of the Red Wizards, hardly something I am interested in. Damien's 'research' and experiments may be inhuman, but the information he can get from a subject is valuable to the Red Wizards, and so he is important to them.

I will stay with Karl and watch him as best I can, but I am also concerned about a Bhaalspawn girl here in Beregost. I seriously doubt two Bhaalspawn would be allowed at Candlekeep, so I can do little to protect her. I'd like to call in a few favors, then; Jaheira, please inform Galvary of Damien and ask him to have someone keep an eye on the sorcerer.

Also, I would be grateful if you two could come to Beregost to check on the Bhaalspawn girl. She is called Imoen and lives at the Beregost inn. I doubt she is in danger, since Damien did not seem to know of her, but I don't want to take any chances. One more request, my friends; Karl is showing some aptitude for druidic magic and abilities. Jaheira, I would be eternally grateful if you could perhaps teach him a thing or two.

Gorion

He had just signed his name when a mad shriek sounded from downstairs. He frowned and went down, expecting to see a bloody fight. He was relieved and amused to see, not a fight, but a giggling Bhaalspawn girl running naked and happy around the inn. Her mother was chasing Imoen, pleading for her to stop.

Gorion smiled slightly as he watched the child vexing her flustered mother, the spectacle being observed by an entire inn full of laughing men and women. Imoen seemed pleased by her audience, and she showed it by climbing onto the bar and giving a joyful bow. Gorion laughed out loud as she straightened and raised both arms above her head and yelled, "Tada!" in a loud voice.

The inn burst into laughter and applause, and Gerta just slapped her hand against her head. Imoen jumped off the table and dodged the hands of several serving girls. The child giggled and continued her escape, leading her pursuers in circles. For a six-year-old, she was incredibly quick. At last she ran into Gorion and was knocked to the floor. She looked up at him and gave an adorable smile, then raised her arms and yelled, "Tada!" again.

Gerta finally scooped the naked girl up and hurried her out of the room. As Gorion watched them go he frowned; if Damien learned of this child's existence, there could be serious trouble.

Reiltar smiled at the messenger, causing the poor man to pale. Sarevok, watching from several feet away, felt a sting of pity for him; he had only seen Reiltar smile twice, and both times there had been bloodshed.

"I thought my directions were clear...?" the Iron Throne's leader's voice was cold, angry. The messenger was sweating, looking around at the numerous guards with a pleading expression.

"I...y-yes, they were. B-but the...the thing is-"

"And I believe you failed to follow my directions, correct?" Reiltar's smile widened, showing two rows of milky teeth that almost appeared pointed.

"I...I..." the quivering man's word's ended in a bloody gurgle as Reiltar's scimitar entered his stomach. The still-smiling man drew the blade out, then sliced in again at the messenger's leg.

Sarevok's eyes were glued to the scene as the gasping man stumbled backwards, clutching at his wounds. Reiltar followed right behind, cutting into the other man's leg. He went down heavily, his legs collapsing under him. Reiltar stood over him, still smiling.

"Try and follow my directions. It's less painful." he explained casually, right before his scimitar entered the man's gaping mouth and curved up, into his brain.

Sarevok paled at the sight, though he had seen and felt Reiltar's punishments several times. The man was merciless, and he seemed to almost enjoy the pain he caused.

He sheathed his bloody blade and kicked at the corpse. "Clean this mess up." he commanded a nearby guard, who was staring at the gore expressionlessly. He turned back to Sarevok, looking as though nothing unordinary had happened. "Why are you still here, fool? Go to the training room, now."

The young Bhaalspawn looked respectfully at the ground, understanding the price of looking Reiltar in the eye. "Yes, sir." he muttered darkly, heading for the training room. As he went he entertained a brief fantasy involving Reiltar and his sword.

When he reached the room he found a tall boy waiting for him, already wearing the padded armor and holding a padded sword. Sarevok grabbed his training gear and prepared, then stepped onto the mat and scowled at his opponent.

As their supervisor gave the order to begin, the other boy lunged at the Bhaalspawn. Sarevok prepared to counter the clever move, but he suddenly found himself staring at the boy's bloody body, laying at a twisted angle on the mat.

He straightened and stared at the sight, lowering his sword, and took a hesitant step forward. The boy's glazed eyes stared at him, the grinning face covered in gore.

Sarevok opened his mouth to speak, but he was interrupted by a crushing blow to the stomach. He sucked in air and doubled over, the bloody corpse suddenly replaced by his victorious, and very alive, opponent.

The supervisor looked slightly confused, but he ordered them to resume their starting positions. The other boy sneered at Sarevok. "Pathetic." he said snidely, giving the Bhaalspawn a cocky grin.

Sarevok resumed his position, looking hesitantly at the mat for some trace of blood. There was none. He frowned at his opponent; it must have been some clever...trick. The boy had tried to distract him with an illusion. That was all. That had to be all.

There are four main elements; fire, water, earth, and electricity. These are the base powers a druid can use, although there are other elements; air, ice, space, time, light, darkness, sunlight, and moonlight. The main elements can be used separately or together. Using two opposite elements at the same time, such as fire and water or light and darkness, can create an even stronger spell, though it is much more difficult.

Spells involving the elements can be used any time, but the most powerful spells must be connected to an already existing element. For example, a wall of moonlight can be created any time, day or night, but a more powerful, longer lasting wall of moonlight must be created at night when the moon is visible.

Karl read through the last few paragraphs, trying to understand what it was saying. So... he bit his lip and concentrated. The elements can be used more than one at a time, but using opposites together is more powerful.

He blinked in surprise, then smiled slowly; he had understood! This made more sense than the wizard magic Gorion used. He eagerly turned to the next page, hungry for information, when a girlish giggle sounded from behind.

He turned and looked at a girl slightly shorter than him; she had sunny hair that reached nearly to her toes; her eyes were huge and blue, sparkling happily.

"Hi. Are you Karl?" she asked in a sweet voice, smiling brightly.

"Um...yeah."

She giggled again. "I'm Twister." she leaned in close, as if telling a secret. "I think you're really cute, Karl." he turned bright red and stared at her with wide eyes, not knowing whether he should smile or run for his life. "Do you wanna play something?"

He nodded eagerly, the book forgotten. "S-sure." he cleared his throat, trying to sound more manly. "What would you like to play, Twister?"

She shrugged and smiled at him. "Whatever you want, Karl." she giggled again. "You have such a cute name."

He felt his cheeks burning. "Thanks. I like you're name, Twister."

She smiled and bit one cute, pink lip. "Do you think I'm cute, Karl?"

He gaped, mouth moving up and down in an effort to talk. "Y-yeah, I think you're really cute."

She grinned and took his hand, pulling him towards the door. "C'mon! Let's go play outside. It's a beautiful day." Karl nodded dumbly and allowed her to drag him along, suddenly wondering if he was dreaming.

They went outside and were instantly greeted by Gorion, who was just arriving home. He raised one brow at the couple, then just walked past them, shaking his head and muttering about 'the foolishness of youth'.

Karl watched him go, then turned to follow. "Um...can we play later, Twister? I want to see Gorion."

Twister nodded and waved goodbye as he left. When he was out of sight she ran behind a nearby tree and murmured a spell. No one noticed the cloud of smoke that suddenly erupted, and no one noticed the blinding white light of a teleportation spell.

Gorion immediately went upstairs and headed for the other wizard's quarters. Reaching a plain wooden door he knocked and called out, "Kiera? It's Gorion."

The door opened, revealing a short woman with blonde hair that fell nearly to the floor. "Hey, glad to see you're back." she said with a grin, closing the door behind him. "How was Beregost?"

Gorion stared at her grimly. "Not good. You know of Damien, the Red Wizard?"

"Nope, never heard of him. And nice of you to say how happy you are to see me, by the way."

"...It's very nice to see you, Kiera." he said dutifully, slightly amused at the woman's carefree attitude.

"Nice to see you too, old man." Kiera grinned and sat in a chair, her expression suddenly becoming more serious. "So...who's this Damien guy?"

"He's a...I'm not sure what to call him. He's a sorcerer, a very powerful sorcerer. He enjoys...testing strange creatures."

"'Strange', eh? Define that."

"Anything out of the ordinary. Half-dragons, creatures exposed to the Underdark's radiation, mutated creatures...god spawns."

Kiera frowned. "What kind of experiments, exactly?"

Gorion narrowed his eyes. "Anything you can imagine. I learned of what he did to the child of a dragon and a Deep Gnome."

"A dragon and a Deep Gnome?" she chuckled. "Please tell me the dragon had shape shifted or something."

"Perhaps."

"Okay, well...you were saying?"

"Damien enjoys understanding every inch of a strange creature's body, be it a hair or their eye socket. From what I heard, he numbed and stunned the spawn and began to...do things to it." the wizard paled slightly as he imagined the sorcerer bent over some creature's body. "Apparently he...made incisions in nearly every part of the poor subjects body. He cast spells that allowed him to see inside the creature's mind as he performed experiments, spells that prevented the thing from dying while he cut its eyes and examined its organs. There's more, but I'm sure you get the picture."

Kiera shivered. "Creep. Why on earth does he experiment?"

Gorion shrugged, not quite sure. "I don't know for sure. Perhaps he wants to find some harnessable power or something. Who knows? The point is, he wanted me to allow him to study Karl."

The woman frowned, confused. "Karl? Why?"

"I have only told a few people about this, but...Karl is a Bhaalspawn." he waited, half expecting Kiera to show revulsion, fear, perhaps even anger.

Instead she just raised an eyebrow. "Wait...they allowed him here at Candlekeep?"

"Yes-"

"Crap!"

He blinked, confused by her furious expression. "What's wrong?"

She leaned back and sighed. "Well...during the raid on the Bhaalspawn temple Reiltar, the Iron Throne leader, and I ran into a Bhaalspawn kid who'd escaped from the fight. Poor kid was a wreck, said he's lost his little sister. I was gonna bring him here, but...I doubted they would allow him. So..." she rubbed her eyes and sighed. "So...Reiltar took him. Poor kid."

"Reiltar? Why would he want a Bhaalspawn?"

"Who knows? The kid, Sarevok, didn't really seem like anything special. Maybe Reiltar...I really have no idea. But...about Karl..."

"Oh, yes. I'd appreciate it if you could keep an eye on him. I won't be able to watch him all the time, and I don't want Damien getting to him."

Kiera nodded. "Yeah, sure. That creep won't get anywhere near the kid, I can promise you that."

He smiled at her, grateful. "Thank you, Kiera. I appreciate this."

She opened the door and headed downstairs. "You know, you should take a look at the Bhaalspawn proph-mmph!" he clapped a hand over her mouth as Karl appeared from around the corner, clutching the tome Gorion had given him.

The boy stared at them, confused, and Gorion mentally cursed as he searched for something to say. "So...that is how you...keep someone from screaming...when...you don't want to startle them." he said lamely, letting his friend go.

Kiera bit back her laughter and nodded at him solemnly. "Thank you for teaching me. I've always wondered about how to do that." she grinned and walked away, chuckling lightly.

Gorion sighed and turned to Karl. "So...did you take a look at the book?"

The boy nodded eagerly, practically bursting with excitement. "Yes, sir, I did. It talked about all the different elements and the different ways they can be used and the different spells and what they can be used for and ways to make them stronger and the law of the world and..."

Gorion listened to his ward excitedly relay everything he had learned. The wizard was deeply impressed; Karl was only seven, yet he was learning quickly.

Imyrr leaned against the cool bars of his cramped cage, letting the metal sooth his burning head. His shirt was ripped into little more than rags, the ruined clothing and the numerous scars under it the product of Poggol's 'welcome'.

A lion, its golden eyes watching him hungrily from only a few feet away, gave a low growl and bared its milky fangs. He stared at it, mentally daring it to attack. The creature rose and swiped at his cage, roaring hungrily. In answer, Imyrr outlined the cat in purple fairy fire, allowing one lip to twitch as the feline screeched and rolled desperately across the cage floor.

The door suddenly opened, and Poggol, practically dragging Bree, came in. The pair stopped in front Imyrr's cage and Poggol gave him a yellow, toothy grin.

"Tho, you're awake. You're to fight in the ring in ten minuteth, tho I thuggetht you prepare." he turned and left, again dragging Bree out. As Imyrr watched them go he glared at Bree, who turned to give him a smile and a wave. "Good luck, mr. Im-ow!"

Poggol slapped her sharply. "Thilence, thtupid girl! Do you want you're dinner or not?"

She looked at the floor. "Sorry, master."

Imyrr entertained a fantasy where every living thing in the room was slowly devoured by spiders. He sat in thoughtful silence for several minutes, until finally the guards cam to get him.

Poggol dragged Bree into the crowd of onlookers as Vars announced the fighters.

She tugged on his shirt. "Master, I don't want to watch the fight. It's scary."

He shoved her away, raising a dirty bottle of whiskey to his mouth and chugging it. Bree blinked at him, then turned as 'Im' and a huge leopard were brought into the ring. She watched as the two fought, Im dealing the cat several blows and taking a few in return. She gasped as the cat's huge paw swiped across his side, leaving a bloody gash.

She bit her lip and tried to think of that thing...Sarry had once accidentally hit her when they were mock-fighting, and...he had given her...something. She struggled to think of what the pretty blue liquid was called. A...parcel? Portal? No...the leopard suddenly gave a scream, and the word came to her; it was a potion!

She smiled and ran out of the room, heading for the room where the other slaves were kept. She opened the rotting door and peered inside, staring at the numerous people who were just...sitting there.

"Um...hi." she said hesitantly, looking around. "I'm looking for a potion..."

A young woman, a long scar running across her once-beautiful face, glared at the girl. "We have no potions, child. Ask someone else."

Bree stared at the woman, her mouth formed into a little pink circle. "Um..." at that moment she was roughly shoved into the room.

She turned to look at the intruder, and everyone else in the room dropped their gaze respectfully to the floor.

"Frieda, you're next." Vars said harshly, staring at the scarred woman. The woman nodded and bit her lip, keeping her eyes on the floor.

Bree gave a tentative smile and walked to Vars. "Um...master?"

He glared at the girl. "Where's Poggol, brat?"

"H-he's watching the fight. Can...can I have a potion, master?" she twisted her hair around her finger, as she always did when she was nervous.

He narrowed his eyes. "Are you hurt?"

"No, Im is hurt."

"Im? Who's Im?"

"He's my friend. I want to help him."

Vars studied the girl's huge, black eyes with a frown. If Poggol looses her one more time... he sighed. "Yes, but only if you go back to Poggol." he knelt down and took the girl's chin firmly, forcing her to meet his cold eyes. "If I find you away from him one more time, I'm going to kill you. All right?"

She nodded quickly, swallowing. He handed her a small vial and watched her run off down the hall. As she turned a corner, he frowned darkly. "Bhaalspawn...yeah, the Nine Hells she is."

Bree entered the room with the animals, running to Im's cage. She found him sitting hunched over in it, clutching his torn and bloody side. His face was completely emotionless, and he looked at her with unreadable eyes.

She smiled at him and held out the vial. "Im, I got this for you! It will make you feel better..." Bree trailed off as Imyrr gave her a threatening glare, then turned away.

"Leave."

She blinked, not understanding. "But...it will make you feel better...don't you want it?"

"Hn." he refused to look at her, refused to accept the foolish elf's help.

Bree twisted her head to the side, then just set the potion down next to Imyrr's cage. "You can-"

"I do not want your help, fool. Leave, or face my wrath." his eyes were so threatening that she actually paled and shivered.

"I...I'm sorry...I just wanted...to help..." Bree bit her lip and turned away, walking out of the room with her head down and her eyes filling with tears.

Imyrr sneered at the foolish surfacer's back; they thought they could poison him? Numb him with the surface world's wretched concoctions? Fools, he thought, staring at the wall. The Drow are not so easily deceived.

As time went by, however, and as the blood pumped freely from his wounds, Imyrr began to eye the potion with different feelings. Finally, when he could feel his life slipping away, he reluctantly reached for the bottle and downed its contents, expecting some vile poison to wrack his body.

Instead of poison, however, he found a soothing warmth spread over his wounds. Still, though, he tensed; too many times he had felt the warmth of healing, and too many times that healing had been followed by indescribable pain. Several minutes passed, and no pain came. After a while longer, Imyrr relaxed, rubbing his healed side. He leaned back against his cage and stared at the wall, a smiling face framed with silver hair lurking in the back of his thoughts.

Okey-dokey, that's all for now. Rejoice! 'The Prestige' comes out in just a few endless days! Yay! I loved that movie... Anywho, please review...I'll give you a cookie. I promise.