[Maikadilwen]

"Mae govannen! My name is Melost. Are you of Isildur's army? Have you seen Arthain?"

'Arthain'...There it was again. Who was this man and even more important, where was he?
Vlad ran a searching eye over their surroundings but he didn't seen anything or anyone. No one was there, that was for sure. He might have lost one eye but the remaining one had never failed him yet.
Having watched the entire scene with Fidrohir in silence, he now went to him and without a word or the slightest warning, he back-handed the man.
The force of it combined with his own surprise, caused the tall man to stumble backwards and as he accidentally stepped on a large stone, he lost his foothold and fell to the ground, cursing and swearing loudly at the one-eyed man who stood towering over him.

"I told you to let him rest, Fidrohir!"

Vlad's voice was calm but those who knew him could sense the restrained anger.
Slowly he turned back toward Melost, watching him, measuring him.
So he was a soldier, but why would an Elf ask about Isildur's army?

"We are no part of any army, nor do we care for any who are."

His voice was cold and his face revealed no emotions but inside him a battle was raging.
Why had he refrained to kill this stranger? The others were questioning his decision and he knew it might very well have been the wrong one to make.
And yet this Elf seemed to be non-threatening. He had sheathed his knife without even having been asked to do so and something told Vlad that he might even be someone who could be trusted.
If only Vlad had ever been able to trust anyone, that is. Perhaps he was the leader of this group of people, but he didn't trust a single one of them, not even Jaheira although she provided some comfort.

"We have seen no army or troops of any kind nearby and yet you appear to be a soldier although you carry only a knife and an empty scabbard. How did you get here, where is your company and how many men are in it?"

If Melost was a scout sent to spy on them, he had certainly failed his mission but Vlad wished to take no chances. They all had a price on their heads and it wouldn't be the first time someone would try to claim it.
Melost's eyes suddenly flared as they focused on something behind Vlad and he turned, only to see that Jaheira had stepped a little closer.
He knew she hadn't seen the Elf before so it couldn't be some quarrel from the past but Melost seemed to be angry with her for some reason.
He turned back toward the Elf, his eye narrowed and his jaw clenched.

"But first you tell me why you tried to attack Jaheira!"

[ July 24, 2003: Message edited by: Maikadilwen ]