To avoid Tristram completely they had to take an alternate route through the marshy land of the Shadow Woods. Talina almost felt at home in these woods, if it wasn't for the giant spiders and demons and skeletons on every corner.

"I've cast Inner Sight so we can see them," Talina said as she readied her spear and shield. "You can't see around the next corner in these woods, that's how I like it."

"Like it?" Geldar said incredulously, slapping at a bug that had crawled onto his face. "I don't like it at all. For the same reasons you like it."

"It's like the forests on Philios," Talina replied. "It's how we learned to focus on the inner life forces in every being."

"Life forces?" Geldar asked with a start. "So you can read mine, for example?"

"Yes," Talina said without hesitation. "It tells me you're troubled and there's more in what you know than you think."

"Thanks," Geldar said sarcastically.

"Pleasure," returned Talina with a smile.

The next day that had to cross the wild Sauna River in the dead of night, it was in full flood and rain was pouring down relentlessly. Geldar covered his horse's face with his soaking wet cloak, wondering what the purpose of such a garment was if it didn't keep out the rain.

He was on the other side when he noticed Talina was having trouble. She had not taken the liberty of covering her horse's face and the animal crossed the water with some hesitation. When they hit a rock, both of them went down and began to be dragged by the fast moving current. Or would have, if Geldar hadn't been there with such a quickness that startled Talina.

With a hand of light, he comforted the animal and helped Talina bring him to the riverbank. There were several moments when she was staring at him while he busied himself removing his wet cloak and wringing out the water. A few moments passed and she still didn't say anything.
"What?" he stared at her blankly, but she smiled and shaking her head she turned away.

"Nothing," she said.

Geldar watched her with a sly grin for a few moments before leading off his horse, waiting until she had caught up with him before continuing down the road.

They made it clear of the forest at the beginning of the second day and the township of Haldane was behind them on the third. But as they walked across the knee-high grass in the plains in an attempt to avoid the loop that the road followed that Geldar stopped, something was very wrong.

"What is it?" Talina asked, by this time she had known him well enough not to underestimate his presentments.

"Can't you sense it?" Geldar asked, looking at her carefully. "You said you could feel life forces."

"I can't feel anything...just a moment," Talina's eyes went far away as she focused on within. "Yes, there is something." She looked around some more. "Yes, there are brigands approaching, first I've seen for a while."

Geldar shielded his eyes with his hand and gazed the where Talina indicated while getting his sword ready. Talina already had a javelin ready to make the necessary negotiations. Then something else caught his eye and he looked again.

"They're not brigands!" Geldar said suddenly. "They're rogues!"

"There's too many of them to be rogues!" Talina countered.

"I have a very bad feeling about this," Geldar said nervously.

"We'll have to go around them," Talina said quickly reining her horse in. "Through those woods we can cut them off."

"Not unless they cut us off from the other side..." he then caught Talina's eye and said nothing else.

There wasn't much time to react, before either of they could speak several arrows flew from the gathered group. Dodging a few, Geldar managed to catch one in his shield.

"It looks like rogues," he said taking the arrow out. "But I don't like these cuts on the side. I don't know what it is."

There wasn't time for an answer; they were upon them with speed Geldar thought was almost maniac or demonic. Hewing right and left he tried to clear a pass through them, Talina was close behind him, having thrown several javelins already.

"Get ahead!" She called. "We can't possibly get them in these numbers! I need to get a clear shot."

Geldar only nodded and revived his thorns aura, through this he was able to concentrate on one thing, getting past the rogues. Nothing about this made sense; they were usually friendly if suspicious. Could this be the work of the cloaked stranger?

In an instant Kathos was killed from under him and Geldar was forced to fight on foot. Concentrating he was able to zealously kill several in a matter of second, then he heard Talina yell as she impaled four rogues with one javelin, a few seconds later she was beside him.

"Get up behind me," she said breathlessly.

Looking behind him, Geldar paid Kathos a final farewell. Though he missed his faithful company it seemed sort of fitting that he died this way.

Though there was the extra weight, they soon lost what remained of them. Talina steered her horse in no apparent direction other than east. She appeared to be as confused as she was.

"I don't understand," Geldar said. "But there is one thing; this is the work of a great evil."

"A Prime Evil?" Talina asked.

"Could be," Geldar replied. "It could be a lesser evil just as likely. Those are tortured souls, you saw from the spirits that left their bodies. I don't like this at all."

"Where there's one, there's another," Talina said and Geldar agreed.

Outside her tent in the encampment, Akara rubbed her forehead and meditated as best as she could. Despite their safety she had to admit this wasn't to compare with the secludedness she had in the monastery. That and... She shook her head; thinking about such things would only make the pain stronger. In time, she knew it would get better, but not now.

Kashya leaned against the caravan making pathetic conversation with Gheed, he was a greedy and tight-fisted type, but he was better company than her conscience. Charsi liked him, but then Charsi could be naïve at times.

"So then I said to him: 'You're going to pay for that aren't you?" Gheed's face was animated as he recounted his exaggerated tale. "He said 'Not now, when I get the money.' So I took one of those spears off the wall, held it towards him and told him: 'Pay or you'll get the wrong end of this.' So he put it down casual-like and went on his way. I get them all the time."

"So you say," Kashya replied, guessing that Gheed wouldn't know which end of a spear to hold, let alone how to use one.

"I get those types all the time," he said, his eyes were half-shut, a sign that Kashya knew as danger. "Lut Gholein, Kingsport. They're all out there, everywhere."

Kashya only half-listened to the conversation, nodding at intervals and mumbling at regular times. He eyes drifted over to the other side of the camp, where Akara paced back and forward out side her tent. I should be with her, she thought, but it's more her pain than mine.

"Commander!" Kashya's head whipped around when she saw Silverdart "There are some people coming towards here from the west."

"Do we want to see them?" Kashya and Silverdart made their way to the central campfire where Warriv was warming himself. "They aren't like those that we had before?"

Silverdart shook her head. "From Xentha's description it looks like an Amazon and a Paladin," she ventured slowly here, unsure if she was right to pass judgement. "She's holding them at the walls; I thought you might want to decide."

"A Paladin did you say?" Kashya asked. "Aren't they of the Church of Light that was corrupted by Mephisto?" She thought for a few moments and then turned back. "Send them on; we don't want that type here."

"But the Amazon-"

"I said send them on!" Kashya snapped, turning away when she felt there were tears welling in here eyes.

"If I may," Warriv came forward, the ever-helpful smile on his face.

"What?" Kashya fumed.

"You may have been misinformed about the Church of Light," Warriv said. "True, it has corrupted, you've seen it yourself. But there are some Paladins who've turned against this, fighting for what is right and just."

"And you say that this may be one of them?" Kashya looked at him carefully.

"I would put my life as well as my faith in a Paladin when I travel with my caravan," Warriv replied. "This may have been just what we've been waiting for."

Kashya considered this for a few seconds before turning back to Silverdart, the poor girl was shifting from foot to foot unsure what to do.

"Let them have passage," Kashya said reluctantly.

Silverdart nodded before carrying out the order.

"So you say all the rogues were corrupted?" Talina asked, she shook her head at the response. "It looks like my quest is longer than I thought."

"You're quest might be clear," Geldar countered. "But I only have a few leads, sightings. I have to find Sinclair."

"There's Silverdart now," Xentha said. "I'm sorry but you must understand why we have to be so cautious, with all do respect."

"We've always been cautious on Philios," Talina replied. "It's not new to me at all."
"The Order welcomes you," Silverdart said coming up with a warm, board smile knowing Kashya would be less than civil. "I'd like to say you're a sight for sore eyes, but we've seen plenty like you since the troubled times."

"Many?" Geldar asked, then he shook his head. "Well its Tristram all over again, word gets around. People are bound to come."

She led them along the winding road towards the river. Talina led her horse behind while Geldar walked beside her. The rogue camp wasn't that far away, uts palisade could be made out without difficulty. And it definitely wasn't sleeping.

"You're an Amazon, aren't you?" Silverdart asked Talina. "I've only heard tales about your kind in the east. It's pleasing to have women fighting; you're the first to face Andariel after Kashya stopped sending us."

"Sorry, did you say Andariel?" Geldar asked before Talina could respond. "She's the one who's taken the Monastery?"

Silverdart nodded, but it was apparent she didn't want to talk about it. The memory was too fresh in her mind just then.

"You haven't, by chance, seen a dark cloaked man on a horse pass through here?" Geldar asked. "He kidnapped my squire about three days ago and from what I fathom, he'd be travelling this way."

"I haven't seen anything," Silverdart said coldly. "But others may have, you'll have to ask Kashya, she commands the rogues in battle and has intelligence in places."

"I have a mandate from my people," Talina said after a pause. "We've seen this plight long before it came to be and we've been ready for it since."

"Wait until we get there," Geldar said quickly. "You can explain yourself then."

Talina bit back the hot words she was about to say and scowled at him instead. She hated to admit it, but he was right.