Hello again! I experiment a lot on Hordes, and I am currently trying to make the ultimate Blackguard, and no one help me on this. My dream is to create a spellcaster that is very, very hard to kill. My cleric can kill wizards really easy (dinged 24!), thanks to her Greater Dispell… I think that's what it is called… and if that doesn't work, then out goes my Magic circle against Evil, and out comes my Balor smiles evilly. So, yes, I have a wizard/pale master too, but… well… things aren't going well. I know spellcasters are supposed to be weaker than the combat classes, but still, it would help if you had a tanking spellcaster, able to get right in the middle and use Firestorm and the like. So, here is the next part of my fic! ENJOY!

Jachal stood at the entrance to the Neverwinter Woods, unsure of how to explore it. The woods were large, and Jachal had no idea what kinds of monsters were lurking in there. He took a deep breath, and stepped into the darkness. His mind flashed back to the scene at the bar. "Evil lurks in there…" Tomia had said. But exactly what KIND of evil, he didn't know. After walking for about an hour, something in a tree caught his eye, but when he turned to look, all was still. Then he noticed the base of the tree. The rare herbs that he needed were growing there. What luck, he though to himself. As he approached the tree, another shadow caught his left eye. Again he turned, but nothing was there. Must be all the trees, he thought. He stooped over the plant, and as he was reaching out for the leaves, five giant roots came up from the ground, two wrapping his arms, two his legs, and the other encircled his waist, pinning him to the tree. Jachal struggled against the plant, but to no avail. As soon as he found out there was no way to remove himself from his bonds, he gave up. Minutes turned into hours as Jachal hung there, until a quite familiar shadow caught his eye once more. He looked above him, and down came Tomia, hanging upside down in front of his face. "I warned you about the woods, but it seems that even a good paladin cannot seem to listen to a wise woman's words." Tomia said.

"Release me at once, foul druid!" Jachal shouted. Tomia only slightly smiled in response. "And WHY should I release you? You were about to kill an almost-extinct plant." Jachal's anger began to rise. "I NEED those leaves! A priest is sick, and I have been chosen to retrieve the medicine for him!"

Tomia then dropped down from the tree, landing on her feet in front of Jachal. "Is that all you need? The leaves from a plant that can, as they say, cure any disease what-so-ever? Truth be told, it only makes it dormant. For later, the disease will again rise up to torment its victim, until the host dies and the disease moves on to claim another. This plant is almost extinct now, because of what the alchemists have figured out, which is what I just told you. It would be better to end the priest's life now, rather than later. Plus, it would be extremely costly to make so many vials of the 'miracle medicine' to keep one going for the rest of his or her life." Tomia pointed out. Jachal was stunned. "So… what you are saying is… they sent me out here for nothing, aware of the dangers I would face…"

"And hoping that you would never return, yes." Tomia finished. Jachal's face was in pure shock. He had always been rejected wherever he went, due to the fact that he had demonic blood in his family. But this was almost too much. Here he was, being cared for, fed, and all he ever gets in return for their kindness was a hope that he would get himself killed, looking for a faulty plant that could not cure any disease, as he so thought. Jachal hung his head in shame, fighting back the tears. Suddenly the roots imprisoning him released their hold, and he fell to the ground. Jachal soon got a hold of himself and brought himself to his feet. No one will ever take me in now, he thought to himself. Tomia sensed his plight, and put a kind hand on his shoulder. "Jachal… I can sense the demonic blood in you veins… to tell you the truth, I share a similar curse…" Tomia told Jachal in an effort to comfort him. Jachal slapped away Tomia's hand, and she jerked back in surprise. "YOU think you know how what it's like? To be rejected wherever you go, just because your great-great grandfather was a demon? Pah! You know nothing!"

Tomia was taken aback at first, but then she returned to normal (whatever normal is for her). Jachal looked up, tears welling in his eyes, and saw nothing. He got up quickly and looked around, surprised at Tomia's sudden disappearance. He then noticed the note on the ground. Picking it up, he read," All's fair in love and war, tiefling. Come if you must, for evil shall never triumph against a half-deva!" Suddenly Jachal's blood began to boil and rage filled his eyes. All this time she was a half-deva in disguise! How DARE she conceal herself from one of demonic blood! (Note to readers: Jachal can transform into a demonic-like being, complete with wings and claws and the like, and Tomia can turn deva-like, with angelic wings and such.) Then Jachal began to turn rather… demonic, despite the fact he was a paladin. Now sporting wings, claws, and horns, he took to the skies in search of the prey his kind feasted upon. Soon he saw her: angelic wings glittering in the sunlight, long white hair flowing behind her, but she was quite different from a full-blooded deva, being of deva and elven lineage. Sensing his approach, Tomia whirled around and fired a Flame Lash at him. Jachal dodged it, but not before he ran smack dab into the side of a cliff. He revived his momentum on a sudden updraft and soared back into action, only to find out his prey had disappeared. Landing on top of the cliff, he gazed around, fully alert, but somehow never noticed the figure lurking behind him. Suddenly a sickle caught him upside the head, sending him spiraling back down the cliff face again. Grabbing onto a ledge to save himself, he drew his own greatsword, now strong enough to wield it with one arm. Using the sword as kind of a grappling device, he slowly pulled himself back up the face of the cliff, only to be face-to-face with a ferocious-looking dire wolf. Beyond the wolf, however, stood the figure of Tomia, looking away from Jachal. Suddenly Tomia spoke, her voice ringing with slight disturbance. "I offer people help and they attack me. It was only a matter of time before you found out I was half-deva." Tomia said. Jachal's rage still had the better of him, and as he vaulted up the face of the cliff, swatting aside Tomia's animal companion in the process, Tomia turned around, casting an Entangle spell on the ground in front of her. Jachal had nowhere to go, he was stuck until the spell wore off. Then Tomia gazed into Jachal's eyes with pity. Her eyes still shown a brilliant blue, only they were full of life. Tomia suddenly smiled as Jachal fought with his demonic side. Finally Jachal's rage had worn off, as his paladin side returned, unwilling to kill a creature of beauty and good (unfortunately, once Tomia and Jachal transform into their half-counterparts, it takes them a good while to transform back). Jachal let out a sigh of relief, and then collapsed to the ground from loss of blood, due to the lovely wound the sickle gave him in the side of his head. Tomia and Jachal both transformed back at that moment, their energy both drained from the battle. Tomia rummaged around in her pack for bandages, as Jachal's vision went dark…

It was morning again when Jachal woke up. He found himself up in a tree, cradled between a few large branches. He started to rise, but the pain from his head kept him down. Growling in frustration, he rose up slowly this time. After he got his bearings, he looked around for Tomia. Again, he found another note. This time it read:

Gone to Port Llast for food. Be back soon.

-Tomia

Why was Tomia suddenly being so nice to me, even when I am a tiefling? Jachal wondered. Then his slow brain finally kicked in: she was half-deva, meaning she was of a Good alignment. Sighing in frustration at his lack of intelligence, he began to work his way down the tree. Then another thought hit him as he shimmied down: why were her eyes blue instead of the usual green? Was it a genetic defect, or something more? Suddenly Jachal lost his grip and tumbled down the tree. What he didn't know was that Tomia was climbing UP the tree at that same moment. The two collided and tumbled down to the ground, Tomia landing face-down on the ground and Jachal landing on her back. "Heheh, um… sorry about that, Tomia. I lost my grip." Jachal explained as Tomia slowly pushed herself up from the ground. "Some elf you are…" she grumbled.

"Hey, at least I apologized!" Jachal shot back.

"Yeah, you also nearly broke my back, too. If I wasn't wearing this half-plate armor I picked up in town, you would be dead by now at the hands of nature."

Jachal smiled uneasily. If she's of the good alignment, then how come she acts more like a Neutral person? Jachal wondered. Of course, he didn't know the answer to that question, but he was sure he would find out someday.

WOOT! Ch. 2 iz done! Wow… seems all my chapters are short…oh well. Can someone help me with the final Guardian of the Path? My clerical lady (27) cant seem to hit him enough, though his spell resistance often kills my tactics…maybe I should consider learning Greater Dispell… again. Sorry, im more offensive than defensive, so yeah… another chappie is coming soon! STAY TUNED!