A/N: A quick thank you to evereyone who is reading, and especially to those reviewing. I think I've replied to each review that has been left, and I will keep doing so! I'm moving into almost unchartered territory though; I don't use either Valygar or Mazzy all that often, so please excuse any obvious deviations from their character and let me know about them so I can fix them up. Not every NPC will be encountered in this tale, for those of you who have wondered -- generally it'll only be the ones I think they're most likely to stumble across, and to try and keep it an enjoyable read, I'll be trying to stick to the characters I know and love, so that when I write about them I can have a bit of confidence I'm doing it alright :D

But again - thanks for reading, and if you haven't said hi yet, don't be shy :) I'm not bothered about the amount of reviews I have, so feel free to pm, but I am curious as to who's reading :)

General disclaimer: I own nothing, even Maiyn generally decides her own path.

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Following the Trail

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The Headquarters of the Order towered above Coran's group as they stood in its shade. The elf was hesitating at the entrance, unsure if he should proceed in straight in, or whether he should allow Ajantis a few days to conclude his business. They'd encountered the same stablehand as before, who had remembered their visit, and was happy to inform them that the paladin had returned not long before. Coran expressed his misgivings about disturbing him so soon, but the boy assured him that he would be finished his reporting by now, and he'd be happy to see them; they could just proceed into the main hall from the front entrance.

Eventually Nalia pulled Coran's arm, and all but dragged him into the building. She smiled shyly as they stood in the foyer, and nudged him towards the smaller door. Coran proceeded through cautiously; he didn't dislike knights as such, but the overwhelming presence of so many righteous figures did nothing to make him feel comfortable. He'd only managed to take a few steps inside when a large man in extremely shiny armour strode up to him, a friendly smile on his face.

"Greetings," he said warmly. "I, Sir Ryan Trawl, welcome you to the Order of the Most Radiant Heart!"

"My thanks," replied Coran slowly. "I am, er..."

"We are seeking an audience with one of your paladins, Sir Ryan," said Nalia, the human taking a surprisingly firm command of the situation.

"Of course," nodded Sir Ryan. "If you tell me whom you seek, I shall be more than happy to send a message to fetch them for you."

"It is Sir Ajantis," said Coran quietly as the stares of the group fixed on him. Sir Ryan merely beamed happily.

"Ah, you are the fellow he travelled south with, after his visit to Baldur's Gate?" enquired the man. Coran nodded. "I shall let him know you are here -- if you wish to wait for him, there is a small room just over there." Sir Ryan pointed to a wooden door just to their right. "I will see he meets you within."

Coran offered his thanks, and gratefully made his way to the chamber. It contained enough chairs to seat the party, and a small table held a receptacle filled with grapes and nuts. Valygar helped himself to a few pieces of the fruit, and settled himself down easily; Aerie and Nalia sat at either side of him, declining his offering of the bowl politely. Coran paced around nervously for several minutes, causing the women to frown at him disapprovingly.

Soon enough, the door swung open, and Ajantis strode in holding a bundle of papers. He grasped Coran's hand firmly as he greeted the elf warmly then turned to Coran's companions, and the elf introduced them one by one; Valygar nodded amiably, Aerie smiled widely and Nalia bobbed her head respectfully. Ajantis took a seat, and Coran sat across from him, his face betraying his restiveness.

"Firstly, I must apologise," began Ajantis sincerely, "for being absent for so long."

"Not at all," replied Coran. "You are man of duty, and the duty can call at any time."

Ajantis smiled. "Indeed, that is true. However, although I have only had a small amount of time to devote to your task, I have attempted to find out what I can." The paladin's voice became quite serious, and his gaze fell to the papers he carried. "I have some rather embarrassing news to share with you, though I am hoping that the mention of it at least will provide a degree of comfort."

Coran's eyebrow rose quite visibly, and he cocked his head slightly. "Please, do tell."

"Well," said Ajantis, pausing a moment as he arranged his thoughts. "I would like to first tell you about my most recent mission, if you would permit me?"

Coran sighed inwardly, but nodded. It was perhaps some custom he wasn't familiar with, but he didn't want to offend Ajantis when he had proven to be a decent man, and true to his word. How long could his tale take, anyway?

"I think you know we were sent to investigate the deaths of some knights? It happened a quite far from here, a place called Windspear Hills. It's remote there, but some of our Order were investigating a claim of unnatural beasts in the area. They fell foul to an adventuring group, but the group pleaded innocent to the charge of murder, insisting they had been tricked into fighting our men. Naturally, we wanted to find out if this was the truth, so I was despatched with four men to uncover what really happened. We arrived at the home of the former landowner, a Garren Windspear. He was the one who witnessed the attack, but the people charged with the crime were no longer present in his company."

"They'd fled justice?" asked Nalia, caught up in the story.

"Well, we initially suspected it was so, until Garren explained," continued Ajantis. "His son had been kidnapped, allegedly by the new landowner. There was a history of a feud between the two gentlemen, and his child was taken while he was absent; on his way back from reporting to the Order the fate of our knights, no less. The leader of the adventurers expressed deep sympathy for what had occurred, having been left at his home in his absence to protect his child. She led her band off to find the son. We had not been there long when they returned, with the boy safe from harm."

"'She'?" asked Coran quickly.

Ajantis nodded, and a slight smile quirked at the corners of his mouth. "She introduced herself as a woman named Verya, and we caught the names of those she travelled with, but I must accept that I paid little attention. Names have never been my strong point; though I do try to remember them, I often find myself drawn away by other details! Regardless, they gave us the same story as Garren had; the creatures had the form of orcs and hobgoblins, and it was only when all knights lay dead that their true identity was exposed. I could not believe both would lie to me -- especially not when these travellers had a squire of the Order amongst their ranks -- a man named Anomen Delryn, who is known to me and an honest man."

"What was it that managed to fool them?" asked Aerie incredulously.

"It was not only they who were fooled," noted Ajantis seriously. "Garren remarked that both groups appeared as beasts, so our fallen knights would also have suspected the adventurers of being what they sought to bring down. It was unsurprising that it ended as it did; however I was amazed that they had successfully fended off the knights, and survived the attack with minimal injuries.

"The nature of the deception became clear; it was a dragon, a foul wyrm, who had abducted Garren's son, and they had killed the mage who had been left to guard him, planning to return to eliminate the dragon's presence when they had ensured the boy's safety. No doubt, the feud between the dragon and Garren was at the root of it all, and the both groups were helpless pawns caught up in a game not of their making."

"That's terrible!" exclaimed Aerie with horror.

Ajantis nodded solemnly. "My fellow knights and I agreed to travel with the group to face the creature, and we left the next day. They were an... interesting group. I have mentioned that one of our own squires served in their ranks; alongside him was a Kara-Tuan, a thief unless I am mistaken. He was quiet and well-mannered, named..." Ajantis rummaged through the papers he was carrying. "Ah yes, his name was Yoshimo."

Coran nodded politely. The name wasn't familiar, and he was growing restless with the tale -- although the thought of battling dragons would normally have caught his full attention, he was now feeling that it was just delaying the news he sought.

"There were another five in the group," mused Ajantis casually as he studied his notes. "All, bar one, was of elven descent, either in full, or partly. One was trained in magical arts, and the leader and a male companion seemed to be rangers of some sort; the leader also wore a holy symbol I am unfamiliar with, but I took as being one of the elven pantheon."

Coran's mouth went dry. But it can't be... he has said her name already.

"They were all quite quiet," remarked Ajantis conversationally. "The wizard was quite depressed, not really the adventuring sort I wouldn't think. There was also a druid, the only other female in the group. She seemed a skilled fighter from the smaller skirmishes we had, but in the battle with the dragon she was mainly confined to distributing her healing powers. Their final companion was a very tall human man, well built, a mighty warrior, as he himself would say, I believe. There was the oddest thing about him..."

Coran cleared his throat; he had to ask, he had to get the hope away from him that was slowly growing in his being, despite the fact that their leader should be unknown to him. "Did he have... a hamster?"

Ajantis nodded with a smile. "Yes. Yes, he did. You know its name?"

"Boo." Coran's voice was but a whisper, and he leaned back in his chair.

"So. It is them." Ajantis looked thoughtful. "When I issued my report upon my return, my superiors asked very carefully if I was sure of their leader's name. Sir Lucas was as certain as I."

"But Maiyn..." Coran's words faded. Where is Maiyn? Who is this Verya? Or... could it be...

"Maiyn is a Bhaalspawn, is she not?" asked Ajantis softly. Coran nodded, and his companions seemed to tense. "By Helm! My seniors know of her name. I should have realised who she was, or rather, what she was, when you first mentioned her. But a story such as hers tends to be more the focus of higher-ranking knights."

"The focus?" asked Coran. "Why are they interested in her?"

"Because of what she is," explained Ajantis patiently. "You cannot expect us to ignore the offspring of the God of Murder."

"She is a good and kind person," replied Coran hotly.

Ajantis held up his hand to stop the onslaught before it could begin in earnest. "I am aware of this," he said calmly. "I am unsure why she used a false name, but it may be that she wished to remain as anonymous as possible in this land for as long as she could. Despite that, we are quite certain that 'Verya' is indeed Maiyn." The paladin referred to his notes once more. "Her companions were named as Jaheira, Minsc, Kivan, Xan, Anomen and Yoshimo -- four of whom are known companions of hers."

"What of Khalid?" asked Coran insistently, almost desperately? "And Dynaheir? Were they not present?"

Ajantis shook his head. "They were not there when we encountered the group, although they may have been waiting somewhere else?"

"No," said Coran firmly. "They had... close ties to members in that party. They would have... they must have..."

Ajantis watched the elf sympathetically. "Their fates remain unknown, but I shall carry on with my tale. We did, indeed, face the wrath of the dragon together. We... did not survive without casualties."

Coran paled instantly. "Maiyn..." he said softly.

Ajantis reached out and placed a hand on the elf's shoulder. "She survived -- her injuries were less than many others. Three of my men fell, leaving only Sir Lucas and I to survive. Maiyn's companions showed a great skill and ability, and their wounds were dealt with before they left Garren's home in our company."

"You killed the dragon?" asked Coran in amazement. "She survived? You left together... she is in the city?"

Ajantis chuckled slightly at the eagerness of the elf. "We killed it, yes, and freed a man bound by its torment for many years. I got the killing blow as well -- using the sword, Carsomyr, which Helm allowed me to find in the midst of battle! Your companions insisted we also turn the bulk of the hoard over to Garren, taking as little as possible for themselves. It was at Garren's insistence that they took enough to pay for what they would only describe as a 'passage' to somewhere."

"To find Imoen," mumbled Coran, suddenly realising. Ajantis looked at him curiously, and he explained. "Maiyn's sister, Imoen, was arrested by the Cowled Wizards for being involved in an illegal use of magic."

Ajantis frowned slightly. "She will be hard to recover then; the mages confine any found guilty of spellcasting in their own prison. Few know its exact location, and none are ever truly freed."

"But some do get out?" asked Coran hopefully.

"Of sorts," replied Ajantis awkwardly.

"He means when they die," said Nalia quietly. "There are no sentences for Spellhold, their prison, except for one lasting for life."

Coran sighed. Maiyn no doubt intended to ignore this fact; he would have to find her first.

"Because we were not aware of her true identity when travelling with her, we were unable to let her know of your presence here in Amn," said Ajantis apologetically. "Though it is my fault, for I should have at least recognised her companions names."

"No, it cannot be helped," said Coran sincerely. "I know she is alive, most of her companions are well and travelling with her -- though some absences worry me. Tell me; where did you part company with her? We shall scour that part of the city until we find her."

"Ah," said Ajantis with a sigh. "She did not return to Athkatla."

"She did not?" asked Coran, confused.

Ajantis quickly explained the little boy she'd found, and of her intentions to take him home. "He lived in Umar Hills somewhere; I think he was most likely to be from Imnesvale as we could not have been overly far from the village."

"Imnesvale?" asked Valygar cautiously. "My cabin lies not far from its location."

Slowly Aerie looked at Nalia, and the girls almost spoke in unison; "We passed through it."

Coran suddenly sat bolt upright, and his eyes met the paladin's, glowing with determination. "When did she leave your company?" he asked urgently.

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The elf strode down the walkways of the Temple District with his companions following him quickly. He'd learnt that there was a very real chance that Maiyn was still in the vicinity of Imnesvale, having taken up the task of providing some assistance to the villagers. Valygar had frowned, speaking of disappearances that had been discussed on the rare occasion he'd ventured near to the town, and Ajantis nodded, confirming that Maiyn had spoken of such before she took her leave.

Coran thanked the paladin heartily for the information, gathering what little else he had to share before they departed. The knight promised to keep an eye out when he could, for the Order would be keen to know Maiyn's location and interests in any event, and the elf was appreciative to a degree; the thought of the paladins holding an obvious interest in his former lover was not very comforting, considering her unique heritage.

And so it was decided that they would leave immediately, gathering their horses, and travel once more to Umar Hills, seeking out information on Maiyn's presence. Coran could only hope she was still in the area; finding her there would be much easier than scouring the sprawling mass of Athkatla, but time was short and there was every chance she'd not stayed there long enough to settle -- after all, if she'd received enough reward to be able to fund whatever journey she was planning, the urgency to finalise the plans would likely feature high on her list of priorities, especially if it involved Imoen at all.

But Coran didn't have much choice other than to follow the trail to Imnesvale, and hope for the best.

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"That was the name of one of them," recalled the Minister uncomfortably, remembering the vicious glares Maiyn and Jaheira had graced him with. "They helped us here, killed off a Shade Lord, they called it, up in the temple ruins."

"And are they still here?" asked Coran desperately.

"Oh, no, they left soon after," replied Lloyd. He became remarkably well mannered, despite it being well past nightfall, as soon as Coran mentioned Maiyn's name.

Coran sighed wearily. They'd rode to the village without stopping, and they were all tired from the journey. Aerie was stifling a yawn, Nalia looked as if she would drop asleep at any minute. Only Valygar could carry his fatigue without looking much worse for wear. "Do you have any idea where they were heading?" His voice was pleading, but to his dismay the Minister shook his head.

"They left at about the same time as Mazzy, though," he noted.

"Mazzy?"

"Mazzy Fentan, an adventurer from Trademeet. She was investigating the disappearances we were having before the others came along."

"Has she returned to her town?" inquired Valygar quietly.

"I believe so," nodded the Minister. "Perhaps your friends accompanied her? I am afraid I can not say for sure one way or another."

"Well, thank you for your help anyway," said Coran, wandering back towards their exhausted horses.

"We cannot travel on tonight," noted Valygar. "Our mounts would not make the distance, and we desperately need rest of our own. Let us go to my cabin and rest until the morning. Then we can travel to Trademeet, and continue our search."

Coran nodded despondently, and the group followed Valygar as he led the way to his rural home. He quickly tended a fire once they were inside, and prepared some food from the limited rations they'd brought with them. Before long, Aerie and Nalia had fallen asleep in their seats, and the men gently carried them through to the beds that Valygar had quickly made up fresh. He and Coran were content to use their bedrolls in the living area, and the ranger was asleep himself, soon afterwards, leaving Coran alone to his thoughts until he fell into a restless reverie.

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They heard the sounds of battle before they emerged from the forested path. It was late afternoon, and the sun was fast approaching the horizon; the group had travelled at a steady pace to cover the ground to reach the town as soon as they could, but their mounts were beginning to show signs of strain. Patch had lost his usual skittishness, and instead was wearily trotting along, following Valygar's dappled horse.

Cautiously the ranger led them out to see the Northern Gate of the merchant town. Coran looked on in disbelief as he witnessed the settlement's militia battling a force of wild beasts of various shapes and sizes, ranging from slavering wolves, to giant spindly spiders. He looked quickly to Valygar; the ranger's face was creased in a frown.

"This is unnatural behaviour," he noted, surveying the battlefield. "These creatures are not acting as they should. We must assist the townsfolk." His tone was decisive.

Coran nodded his agreement, and the group rode into the battle, the mages charging through the open gates and into the safety of the town, before dismounting and launching themselves into their spellcasting at the side of the guard mages. Coran and Valygar followed them, also leaving their horses in safety before they drew their weapons and charged fiercely into the battle.

The ranger noticed one of the townspeople battling an extremely large bear; it towered over the short stature of the guard, causing the fighter to fail to spot the arachnid that was closing in fast. Valygar gripped his spear tightly, and threw it with as much force as he could muster towards the spider, striking it solidly in the torso. It let out a shrieking, chittering noise, and the guard turned to regard it with some surprise, gaining enough time to dodge the attack from its maw, and parry the bear in passing. Valygar made his way over, joining the combat, and assisting to bring down both of the creatures as the other guards and Coran cleared up the last of the animals at the other side of the gate, with the help of Nalia and Aerie's spells.

To Valygar's surprise, the small fighter whipped off her helmet and curtsied gracefully to him despite her plate armour. He could hardly keep the look of surprise from his face; he wasn't the kind who would expect it to be a man in the middle of a fight, but the strength that he'd just witnessed had given him a strong reason to believe that his comrade was of the male persuasion.

"Well met!" said the halfling pleasantly, quickly taking a look around to ensure that her assistance was no longer needed on the battlefield. "I am Mazzy Fentan, local to this town. You are travellers?"

Valygar started at the name, but nodded. "I am Valygar Corthala, in the companionship of Coran Sullussaer and his group."

The halfling nodded and smiled. "Your fighting is admirable, but you do not appear to be a fighting man as such." She was looking at his leather armour with a raised eyebrow, and the ranger shifted uncomfortably.

"I prefer to spend my time protecting the forests," he admitted carefully. "I'm happy enough with the protection I get, and it allows me to remain flexible."

"And stealthy," she smiled. "So, my ranger friend, you came to the assistance of the townspeople against the creatures who have been plaguing us for days -- you must think their behaviour unnatural, to be willing to stand against them so."

"It does not strike me as the normal actions of such animals," admitted Valygar, waving the others over. "This is Coran, our leader. We have travelled here to find you, actually."

Mazzy looked at them curiously. "You are seeking me? May I enquire as to why?"

Coran smiled as charmingly as he could manage while having the ichor of several different beasts splattered across his face and hair. "You are Mazzy? I am delighted to meet your acquaintance! We actually were hoping you would have some information about some former companions of mine... they were led by a girl called Maiyn, and we heard you had recently fought alongside them up in the Umar Hills."

"Yes, I did," nodded Mazzy seriously. "But we parted company when we had finished; they invited me to travel on in their group, and I would normally have accepted. But I had recently lost my own companions to the Shade Lord we brought down together, and I believed I should return home to grieve. It was only when I arrived here and discovered the attacks on my town that I realised I may have made a mistake -- I miss having trusted companions, but I cannot express how relieved I am to be able to help defend my town. Had I followed them back to Athkatla, I may have been unaware of the dangers my family are in."

"They returned to Athkatla?" Coran's face was unmistakably disappointed as the halfling nodded. The elf 's shoulders slumped in defeat. "You would not happen to know what their plans were?" he asked hopefully.

"They spoke little of their plans," replied Mazzy thoughtfully. "They were to rescue someone dear to them -- I think it was a close friend, perhaps, or she might have said it was a sibling. I believe their return to town was to trade in the treasure they'd accumulated in their travels, to raise the fund they needed to journey to their final destination. I know not where that is, however."

Coran nodded, and sighed as several of the town's guardsmen approached. They coughed politely before approaching fully, and introduced themselves quickly to the group, bowing respectfully to Mazzy.

"If you'd be so kind, sir," their leader spoke to Coran, "our High Merchant, Lord Logan Coprith, would request your presence in his office at your earliest convenience. He says that tomorrow would be early enough, if you are willing to stay in the town and listen to the proposal he has to make to you. We... we would appreciate your help, sir, with our problem."

Coran looked at his companions. Valygar was expressionless, but it was obviously his tense stance that he wished to at least hear out the story. Nalia and Aerie wore similar masks of indifference; the avariel was looking around at the town fearfully, while Nalia's eyes were fixed to Coran, filled with worry and pity for his plight.

"If you decide to help the town, I will willingly offer my services to your cause," interjected Mazzy suddenly.

Coran looked to the sky, and silently asked Hanali why he was being tested as such. With another large sigh he nodded to the guard, who smiled with relief. "We will go to see Lord Coprith in the morning; you can assure him of our presence." He turned back to Mazzy and smiled weakly. "We would appreciate your company and assistance in this matter, and we hope we can serve your town well. While we remain here, our abilities are at the disposal of your leader."