Neverwinter Nights, Casavir, et. al. belong to Obsidian/Bioware and Co. I'm just borrowing them to play with for a while.

AN: This begins at Old Owl Well but references the beginning of the tale enough to get you situated if you are not familiar with the game. No Casavir this chapter (sorry, I had to do groundwork somewhere), but we will meet him next chapter, promise! The romance will take a while to develop per canon, but I think it needs to be that way. By the time our heroes get together, we will know them, care about them, and believe they really could fall in love.

Raewyn had found her paladin in a dusty canyon in the distant hills far above Neverwinter. These hills were not her own, and it was difficult to see how her mission here would help her save her home. Nevertheless, the vagaries of her journey had led her into the service of Neverwinter's City Watch, and it was in that service she had been sent here, to the Old Owl Well. She knew little of the area, but her Captain, Brelaina had told her that the the well was a vital source of water for the entire region, and the local orcs and the human villages had struggled for control of it for years. Now Neverwinter had chosen to claim it, sending its finest warriors, the Graycloaks to wrest it from orcish hands once and for all. In the middle of the clash of Graycloaks and orcs stood the people who made their lives here. And of course, Reawyn's own quarry: the hapless emissary from Waterdeep, whose unfortunate choice of travel routes had led to his disappearance.

It was the recovery of the missing emissary that was Raewyn's mission here at the Well. She and her companions, Khelgar, a dwarf of the Ironfist clan, Neeshka, a good-natured tiefling despite her history of theft and mischief, and Elanee, an elven druidess from the Mere which surrounded Raewyn's former home had recently been joined by a diminutive bard who called himself Grobnar Gnomehands. Raewyn was not entirely convinced of his skill, but he'd helped them in a tussle with a pack of dire wolves the day they'd met, so she was prepared to give him a chance. In any case, given what little she'd heard of the orcish incusions into Old Owl Well, she would take any help she could get.

They arrived in the camp the Graycloaks had established around the Well, and were directed to the leader, Callum, one of the Neverwinter Nine, Lord Nasher's personal cadre of knights. After a brief introduction, Callum informed Raewyn that he had no word from the emissary, but was awaiting news from the scout he had sent to locate the missing diplomat. He welcomed them to the camp while they awaited news. They didn't sit idle long, however, for the orcs had rallied another attack, and Raewyn and her companions found themselves fighting side by side with Callum and his men to turn the attack.

"Thanks for your help." Callum looked at her with new respect once the threat had been repelled. "If we had more like you, we'd have a much easier time holding this well."

The scout returned as the last of the fallen orcs were dragged away. The young man quickly reported what he'd seen, and Raewyn and her companions at last got the information they needed to locate the emissary.

"I found no sign of the emissary, Sir, but I did find evidence that a party of travelers were ambushed by orcs, not far from Yaisog's lair."

"Thank you. See my sergeant about getting something to eat. She'll assign you a tent as well." Callum turned to Raewyn again. "It's likely that was your emissary. Sounds like you've got a new assignment. Your job is to escort him to safety; if he's in trouble, you've got to help him. I'd start looking at Yaisog Bonegnasher's lair, northeast of here."

Her longest companion Khelgar, showed surprise at this. "Bonegnashers? They're still around? They're hard to kill."

Callum nodded. "His tribe isn't the biggest, but he's older and more cunning than most. At the least, he may have an idea who attacked the emissary's guards."

"Who is the strongest? Would it be better to start there?" Raewyn asked.

"The Eyegouger tribe is the strongest, led by Logram. He keeps the other tribes in line, including the Bonegnashers. He's the one leading the attacks here. All the orcs around the Well fall under his banner. If we could get lucky and put an arrow through his skull...the orcs would turn on each other in a heartbeat. And give us enough time to strengthen our position here."

"So where can we find Logram?"

The dwarven captain chuckled. "Trust me, if I knew where Logram could be found, I'd hit him myself. Killing him would be the break we've been looking for. For right now, though, focus on Yaisog, see what you can do to find the emissary."

"OK. Anything else I should know before I head out?"

Callum thought for a minute before answering. "Yaisog is old enough to know when to try something other than fighting. Corner him, and you might be able to get him to talk."

Beside Raewyn, Khlegar huffed sourly. "I'd sooner put an axe in an orc, but he's right, the Bonegnashers, as cowardly and weak as they are, have been known to make deals."

"We'll do our best, then."

"Be careful out there. We've held off the orc attacks so far, but they have shown no signs of giving up. I just wish I could make contact with whoever it is that's been distracting the orcs."

Raewyn was surprised. "Someone else is attacking the orcs?"

"Yes," Callum answered gravely. "Someone's out there attacking orc patrols, hitting Logram hard, and it's giving us a chance to build up our defenses."

"So they're on your side, then," she asked him. "Isn't that a good thing?"

Callum looked at her appraisingly before answering. "I've been at this long enough to know that you need to control a battlefield, and this new ally of ours is something I can't control."

"Why can't you make contact with him? Coordinate with him?"

The dwarf commander laughed then. "He's not one for talking. Every time I send someone out to contact him, he and his men move their camp. The orcs have a name for him," he continued, warming to his topic. "Katalmach. They say he attacks without warning, and without regard for his enemy's numbers."

Hearing the name Callum spoke, Khelgar raised an eyebrow, clearly impressed. "That's not a name orcs give lightly, lass. It's a name they give to warriors who lose themselves in battle."

"Lose themselves in battle?" asked Raewyn. "Like a berserker?" She had heard of berserkers, warriors whose battle rage overtook them, making them all but unstoppable on the field, but nearly mindless in their bloodlust. The thought of such a berserker in these hills made her shiver.

"Someone who doesn't play the odds doesn't last too long in my experience" interjected Neeshka. "Well, except for me."

Raewyn laughed at the rogue's comment. Trust Neeshka to find the upside in anything. Beside her, Elanee mused "It is odd that even orc trackers couldn't find him." The druidess paused, considering. "Or that he would risk stirring up so many tribes in this region."

Callum gave a dismissive snort. "Sounds like someone who wants to die, to me. If we weren't here, it'd only be a matter of time before all the tribes in the Well hunted down this... Katalmach... and then his crusade would be over. Well, enough talk about him. I have work to do."

"And we must hurry if we are to find the emissary in time. Thank you Callum, for your help. We will report back when we have found the emissary. He is my first obligation, but if we can find Logram, we will deal with him."

"Very good, Raewyn. Best of luck. And if you run into that madman who's attacking the orcs out there, let him know I'd like to have a little chat with him." With a wave, the dwarf returned to his men, and Raewyn turned her company toward the hills.

As they searched, Raewyn often felt she was being watched. She could not be sure if it was Callum's tales working on her imagination, or if the mysterious fighter was out there, watching them. They saw no one but orcs as the hills changed to mountains, however, and no sign of any suicidal berserker. Later, as they fought through the caves of the Bonegnasher tribe, Raewyn gained a new respect for whomever this lone warrior might be, for the orcs proved challenging opponents. When at last they had found and defeated the orc Chieftain, Yaisog, he was quick to negotiate, as Callum had predicted.

He confirmed that it was Logram who had orchestrated the abduction of the emissary, but the old chief did no know why or where he was being held. Then Raewyn asked him about the renegade warrior. He spoke of the mysterious harrier of the hills in much the same way that Callum had.

"Ah, yes. 'Katalmach,' the orc-slayer who has plagued us for almost a season." He shook his head, and Raewyn could see that even the beaten chief had respect for this Katalmach. "He strikes swiftly, then disappears into the mountains. Many of our warriors have fallen to his sword. It is said no blade can strike him, and he embraces battle like one who wishes to die."

"But who is he?" Raewyn pressed.

"I know not, but if it were not for this Katalmach, the humans never would have been able to take our well. He is a curse upon our tribes." In that moment, the Chief sounded less like an enemy, and more like a tired old man with too much responsibility, and Raewyn chose to let him leave. But she was more curious than ever about who this vigilante might be. Why would a warrior of his obvious skill walk such a self-destructive path?

An answer to that question had to wait a little yet, for Yaigog's lair had one more surprise for them. After the chieftain had left, they encountered a man claiming to be the emissary. Something about him struck her as odd, and Raewyn had her doubts, but she chose to let him go. When Neeshka objected, Raewyn hushed her until the man had left, then explained "I don't think he is the emissary either, but if he is an impostor, interrupting his agenda now may put the real emissary at risk. And I'd prefer to let his plans play out for the present. Hopefully, we can get more information about who is behind this. The orcs may have grabbed the real emissary, but the impostor certainly isn't an orc. That means there's someone else behind all this, and I want to know who."

"Ye're right, lass," mused Khelgar beside her. "Murder and mayhem are the orc way. But kidnapping? No orc would dream up a plot like that. Someone else is manipulating the orcs, and that's not an easy thing to do."

"So if we let the impostor go, he might lead us to whoever IS behind it! You're almost as sneaky as me, boss!" said the tiefling rogue, impressed.

Raewyn answered her with a smile, and they began the trek back to the sunshine.