AFTER THE EARTHQUAKE, things went downhill pretty rapidly.

The next day, Patty came downstairs and announced that she was still going to Angel Falls after Edwinn. We tried to put her off the idea – the earthquake had triggered a landslide which had blocked off the only pass – but she wouldn't be deterred.

"I have to go," she'd said. "This place has no hope without Edwinn. Even just the few days it takes for them to clear the landslide could be too long. I'll go through the Hexagon."

"Are you mad?" I asked, horrified. I'd been to the Hexagon, once. There was a good reason why no one used it anymore – it was full of monsters and practically falling down on its own. The earthquake probably would have made things even worse. "Not even soldiers go through there, and they're armed and trained. The monsters'll tear you to pieces!"

Patty shrugged. "I'll be fine," she said confidently, but her eyes flickered. "Don't worry about me, honey. Just try to do your best in the shows."

But those weren't going so great, either. We'd announced that there would be three shows at the Quester's Rest, starring Cristine and me. Loads of Stornway's people had seen us perform our first couple days in the city, and they'd seemed to like us, but I supposed the earthquake had taken the edge off everyone's enthusiasm. Plus, there were other things to worry about.

The nearby monster population was increasing. It wasn't like they'd been uncommon before the quake, but afterwards they were everywhere. Only the city was really protected, thanks to the walls and Cygnus. I saw him several times over the next few days, usually outside the city fighting off she-slimes and winksters. I didn't talk to him, though. There was no point in irritating the guy who was helping to keep the city safe.

The biggest problem, though, wasn't the lack of business or the monster threat. The day after the earthquake, a few hours after Patty had left, a knight dressed all in black armour had come into town and gone up to the castle. Half the city had heard the confrontation once King Schott had got irritated. He was not a quiet man.

The knight, from what I'd heard, had demanded that King Schott "release" his daughter, Princess Simona, to him as his bride. Though the king's soldiers had driven the knight out of the city, it had cost them major injuries, and the knight hadn't stayed out. By the end of the week, he'd been back twice, demanding the same thing. King Schott had put a notice on the town board, asking for help in defeating the knight, who called himself the Wight Knight. But no one had volunteered. The Wight Knight was really strong – everyone was too scared to fight him.

I could fight, and I liked to think I was good at it, but Cristine had put her foot down when I'd suggested offering our services in fighting the Wight Knight. She wasn't afraid of a fight, but "it's just too dangerous. There are only two of us. What chance would we have against him?"

Cristine and I stayed in town a lot longer than we'd intended to, waiting for Patty to return. A week passed, and then eight days, and she still wasn't back. We were all getting worried. I'd gone out of the city several times to fight just to blow off some frustration.

Around noon on the ninth day, I was wandering around the city, fiddling with my whip, which I kept coiled up around my wrist when I wasn't using it. I was restless. We couldn't really perform anywhere – Cristine and I had stayed too long for anyone to care about the novelty of the acts. I'd just come in from a bout of fighting, so I couldn't go out and do that. And Cristine and I were basically broke, so even if I had wanted to go shopping, I couldn't have. I kind of wanted to go to the church, but the choir was rehearsing. No one was supposed to go in there then. So I wandered through the streets, bored and restless.

As I headed down the main street, back towards the inn, I noticed a barefoot boy in plain clothes standing by the stairs, looking down towards the inn. I kept going towards him. Then, as I got closer, I heard someone speaking.

"But I trust my instincts…and you should too! I know you've got what it takes, Erinn. Seriously, just quit worrying!"

I knew I did. That was Patty's voice!

A quieter voice spoke next. "If you say so…"

I hurried towards the inn, passing the boy and arriving at the stairs just in time for Patty to fling the door open and call, "Hey, guys! I'm back! And I've brought a big, shiny ray of hope with me!"

She led the small violet-haired girl with her – Erinn, no doubt – inside, and I followed. From the top of the stairs, I heard someone speak, but I didn't pay it any mind.

Patty led Erinn to the middle of the room and introduced her to the others, who were sitting at the tables. The introduction was followed by utter silence.

Finally, Ginny said, "Honestly, Patty! What were you thinking!?"

Erinn curled in on herself a little, looking uncomfortable. Ginny didn't take that as a hint to stop.

"This slip of a girl's going to run the inn, is she? We're on the brink of closing as it is. Are you trying to finish us off?"

Erinn looked about ready to cry. Patty stepped in. "Jeez, Ginny, calm down, will ya?" she asked impatiently. "D'you think I'd pick just any young thing off the street to run this place? Erinn here has innkeeping in her blood. She'll have us back on track before you can say 'welcome'!"

Ginny raised her eyebrows. "Didn't you say the same kind of thing about me when you brought me here?" she asked. "And didn't you say you were going off to find 'the one guy who can save this place for certain'? No offence, but I'm not too convinced this is the 'guy' you were talking about." She folded her arms and looked away. Catching my eye, she rolled hers. I shook my head a little. Maybe Erinn didn't seem like she would be much help, but there was no need for Ginny to be so rude about it.

"Please, just give me a chance!" Erinn exclaimed suddenly, much louder than I would have given her credit for. "You won't find anyone who'll try harder than me. And I learnt all there is to know about innkeeping from my father!"

Ginny rolled her eyes again and turned back. As she did, I realized that the boy from outside had come in and was watching the scene from underneath his head of bushy, sort-of spiky silver hair.

"So your father was an innkeeper too, was he?" Ginny was asking. "And I suppose you're here to make your daddy proud, hm? Well, that's very admirable, but running an inn isn't just as easy as just turning up and promising to try hard, you know. And you can talk all you like about how much your father taught you, but we don't even know who your father was."

Patty looked at Erinn, smiling in a way that I knew meant she had something up her sleeve. "There it is!" she exclaimed. "The challenge we've been waiting for! Now's the time to show her, honey!"

Erinn blinked at her in surprise. "Um…" she said, "show what?" Then her face lit up. "Oh! You mean this?"

She reached into the heavy-looking bag by her side at and pulled out a golden trophy. I looked at it, trying to read the inscription on the base. By the time I'd managed to make out the words Inncredible Inntertainer, Ginny had stammered, "W-wait! That trophy…it's…!"

Patty had her hands on her hips and a triumphant smile on her face. "It sure is!" she said. "The Inny for Inncredible Inntertainment, awarded by none other than our very own King Schott! Well? Now tell me you doubt how good he was! And Erinn here shares the same Inncredible blood! Not bad, huh?"

An Inny!

None had been awarded in years, but as someone who travelled a lot and stayed in loads of inns, I knew about them. Every four years, the Innys were hosted as a contest to see what was the best inn in all of Schott's realm and tributaries. No one had won in years, though. Maybe Erinn wasn't this Edwinn guy who Patty had been talking about before she'd left, but if she was his daughter, then there was a good chance that Patty had found the one person who could save the Quester's Rest.

Ginny, Ralph, and Daniel were honest-to-goodness bowing down in front of Erinn. I had to stifle the urge to laugh. The boy by the door had raised his eyebrows in a doubtful and slightly incredulous look.

"Um, it's okay, really," Erinn said, blushing. "There's no need to bow or scrape or anything."

She looked around, clearly searching for a way out, and then spotted the boy. He was turning away like he was about to leave.

"Oh, Erik!" she exclaimed, sounding pleased. "You came and visited just like you said you would! And so soon!"

The boy – Erik – paused, and then turned back and nodded once. "I thought it would be nice to look in and see how you were getting along," he said. "I am pleased to see that you seem to have a job already."

Erinn smiled. "Thanks, she said. "I'm afraid we've only just arrived ourselves, though. We're not ready to take any guests yet."

"Well, that makes me feel loved," Cristine said, smiling. "It's nice to meet you, Erinn. I'm Cristine. Over there, the antisocial girl with the spiky blue hair – that's Tammy. We're minstrels, and we've been trying to help out around here the past week or so."

I smiled and nodded to Erinn. She smiled back. I decided I liked her. She seemed really nice.

We were all quiet for a moment. Then finally, Patty turned to Erik. "So, you're travelling all on your lonesome, huh, Erik?"

He hesitated for half a second, and then nodded.

"That sure is risky, honey," Patty said. "Why don't you hang around here for a while till the inn's open? Come by later and I bet I'll be able to hook you up with some great guys who could help you out, okay?"

"Er, certainly," Erik replied. "I suppose I will see you rather soon, then."

He nodded to Erinn and Patty and then left.

I headed over to join the others in the middle of the inn. Erinn stuck out a hand, and we shook. "Good to meet you," I said. "Patty talked a lot about your father before she took off."

Erinn smiled. "Nice to meet you too," she replied. "But as for my father… I didn't even know about any of this stuff till Erik brought Patty to Angel Falls. I just hope I'll be able to live up to his memory."

Oh, I thought. That's why Patty brought Erinn back instead of Edwinn.

Cristine looked at Erinn sympathetically. "Don't worry," she said. "I'm sure you'll do great."

"But only if the two of you let us get down to business," Patty said. "Erinn, you guys get to work, okay? I need to talk to Tammy and Cristine for a second."

"Sure," Erinn said. She looked at the others. "Um, I guess the first thing to do would be to take a look at the bedrooms…"

She and the others set to work as Patty led us outside. We paused beside the well, and Patty turned to look at us.

"Look," she said quietly. "I know y'all travel around a lot. You heard me talking to Erik earlier. He's going to be travelling for a little while, and even though he seems like a pretty independent guy to me, it's dangerous to be out alone now, with all these monsters around. Would you think about maybe helping him out? I know a couple other people who I can talk to, but I thought I'd ask you two first."

"Um…" I said, looking at Cristine. She bit her lip.

"I don't know," she said quietly. "I mean, it's not like we'll be doing much different than what we already do. We'll just be with a couple more people than usual. Maybe we can help this Erik guy out a little bit."

I shrugged. "Maybe." There was something strange about Erik, maybe just part of my imagination, but it didn't seem like it. Something about the way the air looked behind him and above him; maybe just my imagination, maybe just something weird in the air, but I didn't think so. He was different. Maybe important.

Then I nodded. "Yeah. If it's okay with you, Cristine. I think it's a good idea."

Cristine smiled. "All right," she said. "I agree with that." She looked at Patty. "We'll do it."

Patty beamed. "Excellent!" she said. "Come back in about a half an hour. If you see Erik before then, pass on the message, all right? Thanks, you two!"

She hurried back into the inn. Cristine and I looked at each other.

"Why do I have the feeling we're suddenly in way over our heads?" she asked, smiling wryly.

"We're always in over our heads," I said, shrugging. "At least we might make ourselves useful while we do it this time." I smiled. "We'll find out soon enough, I guess. Come on," I said then. "Let's find something to do till opening time."

Half an hour later, the Quester's Rest was miraculously up and running. Erinn stood behind the counter. She waved at Cristine and me when we entered. Patty was behind the counter, too, but when we walked in she hurried out towards us.

"Hey!" she said. "Come on. Erik's not here yet, but I want to introduce you to the other guy who's accepted my little proposition."

She led us into the little dining room off the common room. A tallish boy with blue eyes and straight brown hair was waiting there. He had an iron rosary around his wrist and a plain oak staff in his right hand.

"Hi, Patty," he said when he saw us.

"Hey, Nick," she replied. "They guy's still not here yet, but I want to introduce you to the other two who'll be travelling with you. This is Tammy –" I nodded – "and this is Cristine." Cristine smiled and gave him a little wave. "Girls, this is Nick. He's a priest."

"Not technically," Nick said. "Not yet, anyhow. I haven't been ordained." He was definitely a Stornway native. The lilt in his voice was unmistakeable. "It's nice to meet you, Tammy, and you too, Cristine."

Before we could answer, the bell above the inn door rang, and Patty went to the door to the common room. "Ooh, there he is," she said. "Come on, you three. Let's get you all introduced."

She led the way out. Erik had sat down at one of the tables. He glanced our way when Patty called his name, and stood up.

"All right," Patty said when we reached him. "As promised, some help! This is Nick, a priest, and Tammy and Cristine. They're both minstrels."

Erik nodded, looking each of us up and down silently. Then he said, "Thank you, Patty. I appreciate the assistance."

"Anytime, honey," she said, and smiled. "Good luck on your travels!" Then she left, returning to her place behind the counter. Erinn moved over to talk to her. Erik turned on his heel and, without a word to any of us, headed out of the inn.

We hurried to keep up with him. Now, from behind, I tried to look more closely and see what the something was that I thought I'd seen behind and above him. It was very faint, a shimmer kind of like a heat haze. But I couldn't make out anything more than that. It was weird.

"Oi, Erik," Nick said, catching up and touching him on the arm. "You got a date? Or d'you reckon we could slow down half a kilo per hour?" Somehow, it didn't come out sounding rude. I admired him for that.

Erik slowed and looked at Nick. "Very well," he said. "I suppose speed is not a priority at this time."

"Want to tell us what's going on?" I asked. "I think we'd all appreciate it if you'd divulge the knowledge."

"The signpost in the middle of town," Erik said shortly. "Perhaps you have read the notice about this knight in black armour?"

"More than that," Cristine replied. "He's been causing a lot of trouble lately." She stopped short. "You're not thinking of fighting him, are you?"

Erik nodded once. "More than thinking of it," he replied. "I would appreciate it if the three of you would find some way to assist me in doing so. At this time, I wish to speak with King Schott about the duty."

Something about the way he'd said the second sentence, like we couldn't do anything more than help in some small, insignificant way, irritated me.

Clearly, he decided he'd told us enough, and started walking again. Cristine, Nick, and I exchanged doubtful looks and followed him. It looked like we were going to be in for an interesting time.

"State your business, wanderers."

The guards at the castle gate barred our way with their spears. One nodded to Nick like they knew each other.

"We are here about the sign asking for assistance in ridding the city of the black knight," Erik said. "If you do not mind."

I knew that was probably intended to be polite, but it sounded incredibly condescending to me.

Apparently, the guards felt the same way, because they surveyed him for a moment before one said, "In that case, you'd better go inside the castle and find out more about it." They raised their spears and stepped apart to let us through. Erik strode past without a word. The rest of us followed, throwing apologetic looks to the guards. Then I glared at the shimmering air behind Erik's back the whole way to the castle throne room.

We could hear what was going on before we got there. "Och, Simona!" King Schott was saying. "How many more times do I have to tell you? You're not to go and see him!"

As we got up to the top of the stairs and the throne room came into view, I could see the scene inside. King Schott was sitting on his throne, arguing with a pretty girl with light brown hair: his daughter, Princess Simona.

"And how many times do I have to tell you, Father?" she asked, her hands clasped in front of her. "The Wight Knight keeps coming to town because he's looking for me! Don't you see? If I go to him, then everyone in Stornway can go about their lives in peace again." She had a determined edge to her voice, even though it was somewhat quiet.

But her father seemed to be even more stubborn. "You're being ridiculous, lassie!" he exclaimed. "Do I look like the kind of man who'd sacrifice his daughter to that nefarious knight?"

"But, Father!"

That was when King Schott spotted the four of us standing in the doorway. "Wheesht!" he said. "We have a visitor. No more of your blethering! You there, approach the throne!"

We did. Nick, Cristine, and I bowed, and I shoved Erik lightly on the back to make sure he did the same. My hand went between what I realised were two patches of shimmering air, not just one. What in the world is that…?

"I am King Schott, master of this castle, and monarch of Stornway," King Schott said. "Did you come here because of the sign down in the town there?"

"Indeed," Erik said.

"Sir," I hissed. He turned his head to give me a chilly glare. I set my jaw and glared right back. I didn't know who he thought he was, but Schott was a king. He could be condescending towards the rest of us and get away with it – in theory, at least – but not to King Schott.

"Sir," Erik finished tightly.

King Schott didn't seem too offended – most likely he hadn't noticed at all. "You did?" he asked. "So you're going to help us defeat that no-good Wight Knight character?"

"Yes, sir."

"Crivvens!" Schott exclaimed. "You want to take up the challenge to defeat the Wight Knight? Tell me your names!"

"I am Erik," Erik said, "and these are Nick, Cristine, and Tammy." I clenched my teeth together. He managed to make it sound like the rest of us were just one thing, and an unimportant one at that. How can someone be so formal and yet so bloody rude!?

"Well then, you four," King Schott said, "you'd better listen to what I have to say. Obviously I have a good reason to ask a few passers-through to defeat this no-good knight." He glanced at Simona, thick blonde brows drawing together in something between anger and concern. "You see, that paddock only came and infiltrated my castle to try and snatch away my daughter!"

Simona met Nick's eyes wryly, and then glanced down at the floor. She sighed quietly.

"He's had the nerve to demand that she be delivered to him at Loch Storn by a certain time," Schott continued. "I'm convinced it's some kind of fiendish trap. I reckon he's trying to weaken my castle's defences by having me send my solders to the loch with her. Then he'll attack! That's why I want to employ a likely group of fighters such as your good selves instead."

"Och, Father!" Simona said, looking up sharply. "You can't possibly ask a few kids their age to do such a thing!"

"Thanks," I muttered, too quietly for either of the royals to hear. Cristine heard, though, and smiled. Erik seemed more miffed by the comment than any of the rest of us.

"Wheesht!" Schott said. I decided that that must have been his favourite exclamation. "I will not let that ruffian get the better of me!"

Simona regarded him for a moment. Then, softly, she said, "It's very sad, Father…very sad that you won't even slightly consider my feelings on this." And then she turned and walked off, her head held high and her shoulders back. I couldn't help admiring her poise.

Schott cleared his throat. "…Ahem. Sorry about that," he said. We turned back to look at him. "My lass likes to do the right thing, and she seems to think the right thing is to go up there and meet him. Anyway, I'd be much obliged if you could away to Loch Storn and make sure he's not up to any trickery. If you cross the bridge north of town…well, you know the way, don't you, Nick?"

Nick nodded. "Yes, sir," he said. "And Mum asked me to thank you for letting Dad and the other injured guards heal in the castle. She says she knows they'll be well cared for."

"Glad to set a few minds at ease," Schott said. "Now, be sure to give that knight a good thrashing if you find him, won't you? Just pummel the fiend into the ground! Naturally, there'll be a braw reward waiting for you when you get back. I'm putting all my hopes on you!"

"We will not disappoint," Erik said. He bowed – a little, at least – and then turned and left. The rest of us bowed hurriedly and all but ran out after him. Idiot! I thought. Is it so hard to wait five seconds? We're here to help, you know!

As we caught up to him outside the castle, I heard a loud popping sound and something flickered into being next to him. It started out as a small pink light, and then grew into a small blonde girl with tan skin and pink wings. My eyes went wide. A faerie!

"This Wight Knight character's causing everyone a bit of grief, isn't he?" she asked. She had a really quick voice. "Could be our chance to get in a bit of good-deeding!"

I had been shocked to see the faerie girl, and it didn't help any when Erik looked at her. He could see her, too?

"The Almighty will be chuffed to pieces if we manage to make this lot thankful and get ourselves plenty of benevolessence," the faerie continued. "Everything's starting to fall into its place! Let's go and put that Wight Knight in his!"

She grinned and shrunk back down into the pink light. There was another pop, and she vanished entirely.

Erik looked back around and saw me staring at him. He raised a silver eyebrow. "May I ask why you are staring at me?"

"I'm not," I replied out of instinct. "Now are we going to the loch or not?"

He regarded me coolly for a moment. Then he said, "Of course we are."

He strode down the road towards the town gate, and Nick, Cristine and I followed. I was trailing at the back of the group.

This was going to be a long, weird companionship, I decided. And I'm not sure I'll be able to keep from killing him long enough to find out exactly what's going on.


Hey again!

This week was interesting...I wrote this chapter during our hours of free time at my youth group retreat. We weren't supposed to bring electronics. I wasn't the only one who disobeyed that rule! I would have gone crazy - no writing, no music in the gym? Augh! And apparently I made somebody almost cry during our talent night. I think I'm proud of that - I sang "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again" from Phantom of the Opera, so I guess if somebody wanted to cry it was a good think. ...I hope.

Anyway!

...I don't know where I was going with that...

Well, til next time, I guess!

May all the bodies of the heavens watch over you!