I returned to the motel and pulled out my laptop. I’m not into computers. I only started using one when I got this consulting job. But I’m friends with an online chat group called the art lounge. If I didn’t check in every few days, they’d start to worry and would probably send Kat to check on me since they knew we knew each other in real life too. I logged in as WhiteKnight. Whiteknight: Hi all. Striper: Hey knight. Where have you been? Whiteknight: Working late. Princess: You have more crime in that little town. Whiteknight: This time, we’re trying to prevent crime in our town. A private message popped up from Kat. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: What’s going on? Where are you? Whiteknight[»]Froggy: On loan to another town with Roy. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: Doing what? Whiteknight[»]Froggy: You know I can’t tell you. Even if I could, there was no way I’d tell her and risk her showing up to “help” or cause trouble. I switched back to the chat room. Whiteknight: Where’s Morisis tonight? Flower: He had to reboot. He said he’d be coming back in. A private message popped up from Mitch, one of the officers I work with. He’d joined the chat group for some undercover work last summer and decided to stay for fun. Phantom[»]Whiteknight: You’re not home yet, are you? Whiteknight[»]Phantom: Glad to be rid of me? Phantom[»]Whiteknight: No, just wondering how you got done so fast. Whiteknight[»]Phantom: We aren’t. I brought my laptop. Phantom[»]Whiteknight: Any progress? Whiteknight[»]Phantom: Maybe a little. Speedy logged into the main chat room. Speedy: Hi all. Did you miss me? Whiteknight: Hi speedy. Princess: Hey Speedy. Striper: Where have you been? You were gone longer than the knight. Froggy: I bet he was vacationing with Dolly. Whiteknight: Did Dolly get another makeover? Dolly was the star of a comic Speedy wrote. He was quite proud of it and sometimes liked to pretend she was real. Speedy: No. Still using the same figure. But I’ve been working on a new comic. It’s almost done. Dolly goes to Hawaii. Froggy: Did you go to Hawaii for research? Speedy: I wish. Morisis: And I’m back. Hopefully for good this time. Hey, the room’s filling up. Hi WK. hi Speedy. Whiteknight: Hi Mor. Problems? Morisis: Just upgrades. Speedy: Hi Mor. Dolly’s getting a new comic. Morisis: Show us. Speedy: When it’s done. Flower: Speedy said she’s going to Hawaii. Speedy: Yep, she is. Morisis: I look forward to reading it. Speedy: Knight, you’ve been gone. Have you been busy painting? Whiteknight: Not much. A friend is having some problems. I’ve been trying to help her out. Froggy: Anything we can help with? Whiteknight: I don’t think so. What has everyone else been up to? Princess: Flower and I are going on a trip this summer. We’re still planning when and where. Whiteknight: I’d say come here, but there’s not much to do. Flower: And your crime rate is too high. How many murderers did you catch last fall? Froggy: Two. So that means there are two less to worry about. But like Knight says, there’s nothing to do in town. Striper: Probably why people turn to crime - boredom. Whiteknight: Anyone who thinks killing people is a good way to relieve boredom needs serious help. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: Watch it Seelie. Whiteknight[»]Froggy: That goes double for Unseelie ;). Froggy[»]Whiteknight: How’s your friend Lorraine again? Whiteknight[»]Froggy: Leave her alone. She’s the one having problems. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: What’s wrong? Whiteknight[»]Froggy: Her parents want to meet her new boyfriend. Things didn’t go so well when they met me so she’s hesitant. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: You dated Lorraine? Whiteknight[»]Froggy: Only for a day last Thanksgiving. I wanted to be there for her when she went home. Things didn’t go well and we left early. Later, they learned I was an elf. Things went downhill from there. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: Ouch. I’ll leave her alone. How’s Kara? Whiteknight[»]Froggy: If you do anything to her… Froggy[»]Whiteknight: I’ll relive my time in captivity? Whiteknight[»]Froggy: No. You’ll relive my time with the Redcaps. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: Kara’s off limits. I get it. Morisis sent me a private message. Morisis[»]Whiteknight: Are you harassing my girlfriend again? Whiteknight[»]Morisis: No I’m threatening her. I want her to not harass my friends. We just have a rivalry going. It’s nothing to worry about. Morisis[»]Whiteknight: How long have you known her? Whiteknight[»]Morisis: A while. She’s my cousin’s half-sister. We just hadn’t realized who we were on here. Morisis[»]Whiteknight: If this is a family thing, I’m not getting involved. But don’t hurt her. Whiteknight[»]Morisis: Understood. Princess: WK, Are you still there? Whiteknight: I’m here. Sorry. I was talking with the lovebirds. Whiteknight: I mean the other lovebirds. Striper: Flower and Princess aren’t lovebirds. They’re an old married couple. Whiteknight: That doesn’t mean they aren’t still in love. Specter: Hi all. I’m back. Did you miss me? Princess: Specter, welcome back. Flower: Where have you been? We’ve been worried. Specter: The knight didn’t tell you? Froggy: Tell us what? Whiteknight[»]Froggy: Careful he knows. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: I have a knight watching my back. You have an assassin. Whiteknight[»]Froggy: Thanks I think. Princess: Yeah, tell us what? Specter: Knight shot me. I’ve been in the hospital. Whiteknight: I shot you? I don’t even own a gun. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: Careful. Don’t let him goad you. Specter: With a bow and arrow. Whiteknight: A bow and arrow? Lol. “Roy, what happened to Duncan?” Roy looked up from his book. “I don’t know. The last I saw of him they were putting him in a military ambulance. Why?” “He’s in the chat room.” Princess: WK have you been LARPing? Whiteknight: No. Froggy: I’m the one who does that. But I’ve never shot a fellow LARPer for real, not with an arrow. I accidentally hit someone with a knife. Striper: Isn’t that called stabbing? Froggy: I threw it at him. Flower: How is that an accident? Froggy: I was only going to pretend to throw it. It slipped out of my hand. Striper: A likely story. Whiteknight: Lol. Probably. Specter: No, I’m talking about Whiteknight. He’s that elf and he shot me. “Milta,” I swore in elvish. “Problems?” Roy asked. “Yeah. Duncan is claiming I’m an elf. Do me a favor and type that I’m not. “Why can’t you do it?” “I can’t lie, remember?” “Not even in typing?” “Not at all.” Roy sighed and joined me. Roy as Whiteknight: I am not. Specter: Liar. I saw you. Roy as Whiteknight: I am not an elf. Sean may have shot you. I did not. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: How are you lying? Whiteknight[»]Froggy: I’m not. Roy chuckled. “She’s going to kill you.” “I’ll give her a case of wine. She doesn’t know it, but my dad made Unseelie wine too. Queen Titania commissioned him. After six hundred years, she may be getting low.” “And you’re not?” “I used to be a vintner. I’ve made my own. It’s lousy, but I can get drunk off it.” Specter: Liar. You’re an elf. So is Froggy. Froggy: Now I’m an elf? Isn’t there supposed to be only one? Specter: I have pictures. Striper: You do CGI. Pictures mean nothing. Flower: We don’t care if they are elves. They’re our friends. Specter: Even if he tried to kill me? Phantom: Sean shot you in self-defense after you killed eight women and shot at him and a police officer. Phantom[»]Whiteknight: I’m on the phone with a Major Flannigan at Northridge army base. They’re looking into how he’s online. Striper: Wait, Specter is the serial killer? Phantom: He is. Specter: How do you know what happened? Froggy: It was in the papers. He probably read it. Speedy: Does anyone have Cookie’s contact information? We need an admin to boot someone. Specter: WK had a broken leg. How did that happen? Whiteknight: Can someone get rid of him? I’ve humored him long enough. Phantom[»]Whiteknight: I sent a message to Cookie but Flannigan wants him on until they track him down. Whiteknight[»]Phantom: Track him down? What kind of security does our military have? Phantom[»]Whiteknight: He was still in the hospital. Between you shooting him and the fall after, he had worse injuries than you. Whiteknight[»]Phantom: Nobody ever told me more than he was alive and in custody. Roy as Whiteknight: I was in an accident. “If you take too long to respond, they’ll get suspicious,” Roy pointed out. “Why do you even care?” “Because this is the one place where everyone treats me like just another person.” “I don’t do that?” “Now you do. And some of my neighbors are starting to too. But at first, you didn’t. And others still don’t. It’s not like that here.” Roy as Whiteknight: I am not Sean. I am not an elf. I did not shoot you, though, with these accusations, I’m starting to want to. Leave me alone. Pictures of Kat and me popped up on the screen. Mine was the one that was taken when I was a prisoner with the army. The one of Kat was from the night she’d been freed after having been kidnapped by one of the other chat members. She’d been too weak to use a glamour to hide her charcoal skin and yellow eyes. Whiteknight: That image has been all over the internet for years. Froggy: And that’s my LARPing costume. Cobra was crazier than you and made me do that. Specter: What about this? The next picture was of me with my arm around Kat at the police station the same night. Froggy: That’s me later that same night. And that’s Sean. He took me home that night. He was making sure I was okay. Whiteknight[»]Phantom: That was from the station’s security cameras. Phantom[»]Whiteknight: I’ll let Thompson and Flannigan know. Roy as Whiteknight: That isn’t me. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: How are you lying? Whiteknight[»]Froggy: I’m not. Roy as Whiteknight[»]Froggy: The elf boy never lies. You know that. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: Roy? I thought it was Sean on here. Does he know you’re using his account? Whiteknight[»]Froggy: We’re both here. I asked him to help me. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: You’re both a couple of Qramas. “What’s that?” Roy asked. “There’s no good translation. But it’s not good.” Whiteknight[»]Froggy: I should warn you that I told Mor you’re my cousin’s half-sister. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: So if you’re found out, so am I? Whiteknight[»]Froggy: Sorry. Phantom: Specter, WK isn’t Sean. Morisis: No one here cares anyhow. Sean’s never done anything wrong. You killed people. And now you’re coming in here trying to cause trouble. Specter: Never done anything wrong? He shot me. I almost died. Phantom: You shot at him first. Specter: This is Major Flannigan. Specter isn’t here anymore. He won’t be causing you any more trouble. Phantom[»]Whiteknight: That really was Flannigan. Specter pickpocketed someone’s phone. Cookie: Sorry all. I hadn’t realized the trouble he’d caused. I’m banning him now. “This is the high-security facility you couldn’t break out of for six months?” Roy asked. “I was only conscious for two months and yes, I could have broken out. Shandalar told me not to.” “Why?” “She didn’t say.” Froggy[»]Whiteknight: I think it’s time I told Mor the truth. Whiteknight[»]Froggy: It’s probably a good idea. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: Would you be there in case things go badly? Whiteknight[»]Froggy: I’m out of town. I probably won’t be back until the new moon on Saturday. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: What if I set something up before sunset? Whiteknight[»]Froggy: You really want me there? Froggy[»]Whiteknight: Well, it does involve you too. But yes. I’ve never told a boyfriend before. The few friends I have told didn’t always take it well. “Go, help her out,” Roy said. Whiteknight[»]Froggy: I’ll be there. Call me when you have it arranged and let me know where. Froggy[»]Whiteknight: Thanks. I will. Whiteknight: Night all. Enough excitement for today. I logged off wondering how much pride Kat had swallowed to ask a Seelie for help.