I was hiking through the forested mountain range that's past the outskirts of the town I was currently living. I try to live in towns near forests because when I hike, I feel like I'm back home.

I was moving almost silently (elves are excellent in woodcraft. We move almost as silently as kender do in any forest.). That's how I came upon them by surprise. Neither of them heard me.

When I saw this half-human, half-eagle thing I nearly fainted, but knights from either order, Solomnic or New Age, are big on courage, and used to the sight of supernatural things. I just wasn't expecting them on this world.

Finally they noticed me. The monster thing gave an inhuman shriek of surprise, as did the hawk perched in a tree nearby. The hawk's wasn't as bad as the half-human thing growing at my feet's was. (But who am I to make being half-human sound bad?) Then I heard something really amazing.

Woah, lady! You gave us a fright! Oops. This seemed to come from the hawk in the tree. And that wasn't the only odd thing. I heard this in my head! The monster thing was now seemingly fully formed as a pretty (for a human) girl.

My almond shaped eyes narrowed. "I thought I knew of all the people from my world that were here. Who are you?"

The girl looked at me suspiciously. "What do you mean, 'from your world'? Are you from a different planet?"

I looked closely at the girls eyes. Hers were not like mine. No, she belonged here. She was not from Krynn.

I grinned rather sheepishly. "Uh...Slip of the tongue. Anyway, you haven't answered my question. Who are you?"

"I'm Rachel. I bet it was a slip of the tongue. Now, what. Are. You?"

"Hah. You think I'll tell you what I am if I haven't a clue as to what you are?" The girl was looking at me oddly, straight at my eyes. I guess I was getting a little mad and she noticed the fires burning in my eyes. I can't quite quench it when I most need to. Now, the humans who were with me seem to have an easy time at it. Not me.

"'When I haven't a clue as to what you are?'" she mimicked. "Who talks like that?"

I was getting pretty ticked when suddenly she got this look in her eyes (Which I've found I can notice easily now, but before, when I first got to this world, I wouldn't have been able to notice it if my entire existence depended on it), like she was looking straight past me and listening to something I couldn't hear. She nodded slightly, and the hawk flew off.

"If you think your going to get me off track you can forget it. I saw you as a half-bird thing right at my feet! And do not try and tell me it was a dream, okay? I have never dreamt of a monster sitting practically on my foot and birds that talk, and I never will!"

"Monster?! Who do you think you are, calling me a monster? I'm no monster!" This girl had one hell of a temper, even for a human. She looked about ready to pounce me with her bare hands. I fingered the hilt of the dagger I always carry nervously. I really didn't want to use it -especially since it was poison-coated- but if she made me, I'd kill her.

We just eyed each other angrily for a few minutes. I got tired of it and soon I just started to walk around looking for tinder and firewood for it was getting dark.

After I'd gathered enough I started a fair-sized blaze. I had decided I'd camp here tonight and keep an eye on this thing of a non-magical world with magical capabilities.

Soon after I'd gotten the fire started I saw a handful of large birds silhouetted against the full moon. At first I didn't think much of it, but then I noticed the girl staring intently upon them.

"Friends of yours?" I asked, breaking the silence of at least a half hour.

"Yeah." And that was it.

All the birds but one, and by the light of the fire I noticed it as the same hawk that talked earlier, lighted on the ground. I finally realized that they were owls, and beautiful ones at that, with small tufts of feathers growing from the sides of their heads.

They all started to grow and change, and as they did so I couldn't suppress a shudder of disgust. I could hear the sloshing and gurgling of guts churning and reforming, and the scrape of bone against bone as they reshaped along with the rest of the bodies. Sometimes I just have to curse my superior elven hearing and sight.

It took but a few moments, and suddenly a group of children stood in front of me. One was a responsible looking youth with dark brown eyes. Another was a short, African-American girl with this open and thoughtful face. Another was an olive-skinned boy with grim, determined, and humorous expression on his face.

The last was the strangest. He looked like a mad wizard, who's favorite color was greenish-blue and who didn't like mouths, had gotten it into his head to create a mix between a giant scorpion, a centaur, and a beholder. This thing had the main body of a centaur, except with cloven hooves, a scorpion-like tail, and four eyes. Two large ones that looked like mine but they were green, where eyes should be, but with two on swiveling stalks on top of its head. It had no mouth, an ugly nose mainly consisting of three vertical slits in the middle of its face, and it was covered in bluish- green fur.

I was standing there, gaping at them for a few moments. Especially the odd centaur-creature. They all looked surprised, it seems, when I didn't run screaming.

When I got over the initial shock of seeing something I hadn't seen in a decade or more, I had a few questions to ask.

"All right. Wow. Okay...What in all the gods' holy names are you guys? How do you do that shape-shifting thing? And why doesn't he change, too?" I waved my hand at the hawk.

The olive-skinned boy smirked. The centaur thing looked at me in what seemed to be a curious manner, the responsible-looking youth looked gravely at the pretty girl with the hot temper, while she, in turn, was looking gravely at my garb (I was wearing worn, dirty hiking gear and suspenders, so I couldn't really blame her!).

You ask us what and not who we are. Do you have experience with episodes such as these? I think this came from the blue-furred centaur, but I couldn't be sure since I heard it in my head.

"Lets just say I've seen many...odd sights in my long, long lifetime," I said, still half-expecting any one of them to jump me and silence me forever. I got the feeling that theirs was a secret organization.

"We're humans. What else would we be?" the olive-skinned youth asked.

"Oh, I don't know. One of these in disguise; odd, mutated birds; anything!" I waved my hand at the centaur.

Hey, I take offense at being called a 'mutated' bird, thank you. the hawk said.

The old-looking young man grinned a little. "Huddle!" he called in a somewhat joking manner.

The odd group moved off a little and I easily heard them conversing a whispers. I figured that even if they were talking about me, they obviously didn't want me hearing it, so I didn't listen. My father always said I knew exactly what any living thing wanted at any time.

Since they had obviously shown me one of their secrets, I decided to show them one of mine. I noticed that the alien-looking thing kept one of his eyes set on me, so I stepped over to my pack, dug through it, and came up holding my brush. I pulled my hair back from over my ears and started brushing it back in to a pony-tail.

I did notice the quick, meaning-to-look-nonchalant glances they cast my way, but they didn't seem to want me to. I also noticed the quick double- check looks they gave me. I couldn't help but smile.

See, no one but the few other Knights of a New Age know who and what I am. I've never been married, I've never even had the urge to let someone else know. I like keeping secrets.

They finally broke up their little meeting. They all looked rather puzzled, like they couldn't decide on something.

The responsible youth sighed and looked closely at me. Especially my ears and my eyes. He sighed again and seemed to make a decision.

"All right. We'll tell you our story if you tell us yours. If you don't, I'll have Ax here chop your head off with his tail."

He proceeded to tell me everything you probably already know about them, from the crash of Elfangor's ship to their present situation: me. He also did introductions.

"I'm sure you don't believe me, right?" Jake asked.

I smiled. "Oh, I believe you. It's my story you won't believe."

I told them everything. When I became a Knight of a New Age, I was trained in the art of storytelling, so I could infiltrate anywhere. I had them practically spellbound (not the sort of thing you expect to hear from someone who abhors magic, eh?) when I told them of how I and a few of my fellows destroyed a red dragon; how I, practically single-handedly, killed a raiding party of centaurs. I told them of an ambush of goblins I alone survived. I told them of my last adventure on my world, when I and a few of my fellows were battling a powerful wizard. He had cast a spell and we were suddenly in a very different place. That was how I came here. I also told them my age, which was well over a hundred.

They looked like they thought I was nuts. I guess I was a little crazy, seeing how I had been through a few very rough spots. These kids talked like they had seen awful horrors, and they had. But they've never, ever, ever actually had a whole party of very close friends wiped out, had they? Oh, sure, Ax's brother had been killed, but my whole family had died a horrible death by plague. His brother had died almost painlessly compared to the months of agony my mother went through before she died.

"Hah! I told you wouldn't believe me! And I do believe it's time for you children," I just had to snicker slightly, "to get home. It's getting late, and I would like to set up camp."

"What time is it, by the way?" Cassie asked.

"Almost ten thirty," I told her. That got a few exclamations and curses of surprise. They were all probably late for dinner or something.

They all "morphed" birds again, as they called it, and flew off. All except the talking hawk and the centaur-thing. I guess they stayed to keep an eye on me to make sure I didn't try to leave, or to make sure I wasn't a "Yeerk".

I've never really been good at not talking to people, so I tried making conversation.

"So...What's your favorite food?" I know, stupid. But I don't know how to really spark up a conversation with kids, okay?

Mice, Tobias said.

Cinnamon buns, the alien replied.

"Cool. Mine's always been jerky, but the additives your people put them ruin them."

You really think so? I always thought they were rather good, the boy in a bird's body said.

"If you think they're good, you should try the stuff the Plainsmen make. Oh, it's spectacular," I replied.

And so we talked about food for a while. The Andalite asked several questions about some foods, and add things in about others. Boy, did that guy like food.

Soon we got into talking about wars and military. There was this one question that had been bothering me about Ax, so I just had to ask it.

"So, Ax, how strong is that tail blade of yours? Do you think it could hold up against a direct hit from a steel sword?"

I am certain it could, he replied.

"And how fast are your reflexes?"

Quite.

I grinned. What I had in mind was probably rather dangerous, but so what?

"I just had a great idea. It'll help with the monotony of life," I said mischievously. They were both looking worriedly at my eyes, again. I guess they had those same old fires blazing in them.

What? they asked in unison.

"Well, let's have a duel, Ax. Obviously not to the death, but to see who's the better...fighter, I guess. Me with my sword or you with your tail. I won't where armor, and you won't use morphs. How's about it?" I couldn't help but to have a quiver of anticipation in my voice. This would be fun!

He agreed, and we set the time for the morrow at about noon in this little clearing. I explained that I didn't need to be back in town for a few weeks, so I'll just make double-time the day after the duel.

And so the date was set.