"'Darren Peters, archaeology professor at Alders University,'" Professor read aloud. "'Eddie's father.'"

Emmy raised her eyebrows, looking at Luke. "Who's Eddie?"

"Eddie's a friend of mine," he replied solemnly. "He's been living with the Whites since his dad went missing three weeks ago. His mum left when he was little, so he really had nowhere to go. Owen and him are good friends, so they took him in."

"I see," Layton said quietly, his expression unreadable.

"Luke," Emmy asked, a look of sympathy on her face, "do you think he'd be ready to talk about the incident? We wouldn't want to rub salt in a wound, if you know what I mean."

He thought for a while, and then answered, "He is taking it rather hard-his dad and him are very close-but... I think he'd be alright." He bit his lip as he finished, hoping he hadn't made a mistake.

"Okay," she nodded. "Would it be worth it? I mean, if he's just a kid..."

"Oh," Luke responded without hesitation, "you don't have to worry about that. He's very smart. If there are any clues, we'll get them from him."

"Well, then," Professor concluded, "it seems we have no choice but to speak with him."

After a quick cup of tea, they headed for the Whites' house, Luke leading them dutifully. Although he hoped he was doing the right thing, he was still unsure as to how his friend would react. He didn't have long to wonder, however, for he soon found themselves at the Whites' doorstep.

Their home was near the edge of the town, its back opening up into the woods beyond, its front facing out towards the center of town. It was a calm, grey-blue color, with a brown roof and square windows, a long, raised porch extending from the dark, wooden door. From the outside, one couldn't quite tell if it were large or small, a significant portion of the front exterior being occupied by the garage, but, all-in-all, it was a nice house, hidden away by the beginnings of the forest. The front yard was surrounded by trees, and consisted mainly of dirt, with the occasional bush popping out of the soil.

Flora couldn't exactly decide if she were admiring it or not as she walked slowly behind the others, looking over the scene. It was very different from any place she'd ever seen in London, but that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. In the end, she decided to decide later.

Luke knocked twice on the door, then stepped back to wait for an answer. Gradually, the sound of voices came, then the clatter of footsteps on the floor, quickly approaching the doorway. The door opened, revealing a young, blonde girl, about eight years old, with bright eyes and a curious expression. She wore a faded, green shirt, white shorts, and a green cap, as well as an uncanny similarity Lilly. Upon seeing Luke, she smiled and waved.

"Hi, Estelle," he waved back. "Is Owen home?"

"Yeah," she nodded, then opened the door wider for them to enter. They did so, and found themselves tripping over a mess of shoes, coats, and a random assortment of other items. "Follow me," the girl stated, then trotted away into the house, Luke following behind her. With a few unsure looks between them, the other three joined the procession.

To their surprise, the rest of the house was fairly well-kept, excepting a few dishes and scraps of paper here and there. After passing a few closed doors, presumably bedrooms, it opened up into an open space. On the left, there was a grey, stone fireplace, the mantle covered in various shells and pebbles, and a sitting room, plush, brown couches circled around its edges, a coffee table in its center. To the right, there was a dining table with matching chairs around it, and a kitchen further on, a beige-covered counter separating it from the dining room. The floor was covered in a tan carpet, and the walls were painted completely white. Behind the table was a sliding glass door, opening up to a wooden balcony, surrounded by towering pines and oaks.

On one of the sofas lay another girl, this one tall and lanky, who, like the other girl, bore obvious similarities to both Lilly and Owen. Professor guessed she was about ten or eleven. Her feet dangled over the edge, and her hands were busy with something small and green, which apparently wanted to escape.

The younger girl looked from side to side, and then back at the group. "Um," she chuckled, "I think he's in his room."

"Okay," Luke replied. "Erm, could you go get him?"

"Sure," she said quickly, then ran off into the hallway.

Scratching the back of his head, Luke looked up at Professor. "Owen and Eddie share a room," he explained. "We might want to talk to Owen before we ask Eddie anything, so I figured we should talk out here."

Professor nodded, understanding. They could hear the muffled voices from Owen's room, going back and forth between his and his sister's, and then the squeaking of the door, after which came two pairs of footsteps in the hallway.

Owen walked calmly into the room. Judging by his face as he saw the group before him, he had expected only Luke, but quickly shook off any remnant of surprise. "Hey," he greeted casually. "You guys still investigating?"

"Yeah," Luke smiled. "Are you on break?"

"Yeah," Owen replied, laughing a little at the question. "Lilly's over there right now. It's pretty slow."

Luke breathed in and out before asking, "Is Eddie here?"

Owen's expression was confused as she said simply, "Yeah. Why?" As soon as he had asked, he knew the answer. "Oh... You need to ask him about... his dad?"

Nodding, Luke bit his lip nervously. "I know it might be hard for him, but I think he can help us a lot," he told his friend. "Do you think it would be okay?"

Clearly worried, Owen turned from Luke, meeting Professor's gaze, then Emmy's, studying each of them concernedly. He cast a glance at Flora, then looked back to Luke. "Yeah," he concluded. "Yeah, I think it would be okay, as long as you think you can help. I mean... I think you can."

"Thank you," Professor said politely, putting his hand to the brim of his hat.

Owen smiled briefly. "Just let me go ask him first." He walked quietly away, disappearing into his room.

As he left, Emmy looked back at Flora, who was all but hiding behind the others. Her cheeks burned a fierce rose. Emmy grinned, then looked away, leaving the girl confused.

Owen reappeared in a minute. "He says it'd be okay," he informed them. He then led them down the hallway, to the right, and into his bedroom-a small, blue room with a bathroom, a desk, a bookshelf, and two beds. On one of the beds sat a boy, a bit younger than Owen, with pale-blonde hair and deep, blue eyes, which were fixed on the pages of a large book. As the group entered, he looked up at them, cowering shyly.

"Eddie," Owen said, a coaxing tone in his soft voice, "you know Luke, and these are his friends, Professor, Flora, and... Erm..."

"Oh," Emmy piped up, "I'm Emmy-Emmy Altava."

"And Emmy," the boy finished.

Eddie tipped his head cordially, then was silent. Filling the awkward gap, Owen gestured for them to have a seat on the bed across from Eddie, then sat next to his friend.

Clearing his throat, Professor began, purposefully gentling his voice, as he often did with Flora. "Eddie, I know this is difficult for you, but we'd just like to ask you a few questions. You could prove to be of great help in our investigation."

As he finished, the boy remained silent, but raised his eyebrows, looking at Owen. Layton detected something of annoyance in his face, like the look his students gave when he asked an obvious question. He decided to be a bit more... direct.

"I understand your father, Darren Peters, went missing several weeks ago," he continued, speaking as if to an adult. "Could you tell us what you remember of the incident?"

Eddie sat up straight, rolling back his shoulders, closed the book, and set it at his side. "Yes, sir," he replied. His voice was very high-pitched and young, but he did a remarkable job of sounding mature just the same. "It was three weeks ago, I believe. My father is an archaeology professor. Before the summer began, a student asked him about the Golden Warrior, which, as you probably know, is a somewhat important to the people of Skyborough. My father simply told him that not much was known, because the Golden Warrior's Cave had never been explored. The student asked why, so my father explained the superstitions surrounding the cave. Naturally, the student wanted to know why such superstitions were enough to keep a great archaeological discovery at bay.

"This sparked my father's interest, and he began to research. Even after the summer break had begun, he committed himself to his studies, reading every article he could find on the subject. They were very few and uninformative, so he began his own investigation. He inspected the cave from the outside at first, trying to discover its mysteries. Although he is not a superstitious man, he acknowledged that all such things have some root, and that there may be a potential danger within the cave.

"As he studied the outside, he happened across The Shadow. He followed it until it vanished suddenly. He searched desperately for something-anything that could give him any clues about the Golden Warrior. He looked for hours, but didn't find anything. He thought perhaps there was nothing to find. Just then, the breeze shifted some hanging vines against the cave wall, and he caught a glimpse of something written on the stone. Drawing back the vines, he found a strange message."

With all eyes on him, he reached for a book on the nightstand, flipped through the pages carefully, and produced a scrap of paper. "He wrote the message down," he explained, "so I could help him decipher it." He lifted the page to his eyes, and read, "'The shadows fade, the armies quake, destruction falls within his wake, the Bronze Stallion strides all things to take, he will the stronger soldier make.'"

The words hung in the air, leaving the room in a mysterious hush, balanced only by the wind moving through the trees outside the window. In a way, the rhyme seemed magical, almost enchanted, as if their recitation held some secret power. It sealed shut the lips of all in the room.

With a serious tone, Professor broke the silence. "What do you know of this 'Bronze Stallion?'"

Eddie shook his head. "My father couldn't figure it out. There were no articles, no books, nothing. No one knew anything about it-or him. He knew it must be some great archaeological find that he would have to discover. He was..." The boy's look grew distant, his eyes growing misty as he spoke. "He was... so excited. He had made a discovery-something that no one had ever heard of before. He... He thought that maybe the Bronze stallion had some sort of power or something. At least, he thought it was part of the Golden Warrior's legend. He... He wanted to look into it more... So, he went into the cave. I... I wanted to go, but he said... he said, 'Once I know it's safe, you can come. Right now... I can't be sure. One day, I will take you with me. We will discover the secrets of the Golden Warrior... and the Bronze Stallion... together.'"

He could no longer control himself. All composure lost, the tears streamed down his face, his small body shaking with silent sobs, his lips pressed together as he suppressed them. In seconds, Owen had his arms around him, letting his friend cry on his shoulder, whispering gently to him, "It's okay," repeating it over and over again, his own cheeks wet as he comforted the younger boy. The scene brought tears to the eyes of the two girls, and stirred every heart.

At last, Eddie had calmed down, regaining himself. Wiping his face with his sleeve, he turned back to the others. "Th-that's all I know," he stammered. "I've tried to find out more, but... Please, if you can help... I..."

Professor nodded, standing. He extended his hand to the boy, offering a kind smile. "Thank you, Eddie."

Eddie smiled back, shaking the man's hand. "Thank you."


Daaang, that was long. Sorry about that. I just had a lot to get in there, I guess. I hope you liked it!

God bless!

-LittleBrotherSocket