"Unhand me , woman!" Mars stepped back. The idea of a stranger touching his person offended his senses. 'Who does this creature think she is putting her hands on me?' He thought to himself and then addressed her in his haughty, I-am-the-emperor tone of voice. "Are you trying to play at some game, Madame?" Mars stepped back up the stairs. "How do you know my name?" Mars reflected on the name,<span style="font-style: italic">Anthony</span>. 'I have not been called Anthony in at least a decade.' "You must know me? Do you not know who I am!?" Mars became indignant. Afterall, he was the emperor. Of course this creature knew who he was.<br/><br/>"Madame, I must ask again, how do you know my name!?" The boy who Haven knew as Anthony died a long time ago. Mars took his place. Once he tasted the smell of a fresh kill, he no longer possessed that irrational fear. He was in total control of his faculties and deserved to be called,<span style="font-style: italic">Mars</span>the name his parents chose for him. Anthony was his devil may care rebellious name he chose, to deny who he really was. To deny he was a Lokken and to deny his parents who were more concerned with protocol and doing what is right and proper. Mars was never concerned with what they thought was right, only what<span style="font-style: italic">he</span>thought was right. The two rights are mutually exclusive.<br/><br/>Mars looked at his guards. "Take this woman, and place her in the dungeon. She has assaulted the emperor of Alathea. I need to consider what it is I am going to do with her." As the guards escorted the woman to the dungeon, Mars thought about her. He could no longer expel her from his mind. There was something about her that seemed extremely familiar, but he could not place her. He knew he had never met her when he served the previous emperor. 'She was not of noble birth, that was clear. The woman just does not know her place!'<br/><br/>Mars returned to the library to think about what to do. He sat in solitude contemplating her fate, 'Based on her appearance, she has never stepped foot in<span style="font-style: italic">Fastborg Palads</span>or the previous emperor's palace.' Mars taxed his memory trying to recollect the time he spent as an apprentice with Sahayle, the Victorious. He immediately dismissed the woman as being one of those fellow apprentices. Mars did not care for the others, aside from the Mute. "What was her name?" Mars uttered the question aloud as if the books would respond. He tried to dream of those days. 'It must be....' Mars thought hard, 'forty years ago. Arrow? No. Darthus? A laughable fool' Mars chuckled about this arrogant fool. 'Valeria? no...Wait! Could it be? He dreamt of an earlier time when he finally felt free of his father's rule...'The books?'<br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="font-style: italic"><span style="text-decoration: underline">Daydream</span></span></span><br/><span style="font-style: italic">Haven and Anthony would emerge in a dark dusty hallway, the girl lead him safely to his chambers. "Thank you, Haven." He smiled at her. "Thank you for bringing me here." He had the largest smile he had ever mustered on his face. He was extremely excited. His heart was bursting with emotion. He grabbed the girl and squeezed her tight, lifting her slightly off her feet. Then just as quickly, setting her back down and backing away in embarrassment. He caught himself and began to apologize. "Sorry!" He exclaimed. "I didn't mean ta...to...to do that! I got carried away with it all." Anthony fumbled with the words. "I have never done anything like that in my life. You have no idea the hell my life has been. You are my savior. I can't thank you enough for bringing me here."<br/><br/>Anthony turned and looked at the two chests. They looked surprisingly familiar. He glared at the chests, studying them. He looked back at Haven with that doubtful, furled eyebrow expression and the slight smile that wouldn't quit. He wanted to say something. He pointed at the chest, looked back at them and then at her. Finally, he walked to the chest and lifted the lids. His clothing, books, possessions and the lacquered wand were all contained inside the chest. "But how?" He spat out in confusion. "How did they...?" He looked up at Haven. "This is the best day ever!" he whispered and stared at Haven. "I know I am going to love it here!"<br/><br/>______________________________________________________________________<br/><br/>So Haven helped Anthony unpack the chests. There was a mahogany wardrobe similar to one Herod, his oldest brother used at Fastborg Palads in Norfell as a boy. Anthony hung his robes in the wardrobe and stacked tunics and trousers in the drawers provided. Meanwhile, Haven placed the books on a set of shelves against one of the walls. Though she was clearly unversed in many civilized conventions such as shoes and curtsies, she seemed quite comfortable among the books. She arranged them neatly and efficiently, by subject then author. She read each of the titles, "Magic and You," by Karl Strauss; "The Art of Divination," by Reginald Clarkson; "Conjurations Made Simple," by Arthur Coyle Donan and there were more, many more. She ran her long fingertips over each spine, and opened a few glancing down at the print and pictures contained within, studying their pages.<br/><br/>Most of the trunk was filled with books that Haven quickly realized were nothing more than rubbish. They were rubbish pieces of paper covered in ink bound in leather rubbish. Her silence would not permit her to reveal the truth even if she desired to tell the truth. She looked up at Anthony with sad eyes. Anthony looked at her and she gave a quick furtive glance away. She could not tell him, but knew he would find out eventually. Near the bottom of the chest were stacks and rolls of parchment, bottles of ink, quills and Anthony's journal. She arranged all these articles on a desk and stood near the door as though she were about to leave, her hands clasped behind her back.<br/><br/>Anthony finished with the clothing and saw the lacquered stick on the desk. Anthony looked at the wand and then at Haven. "I see you found my wand," Anthony smiled. Haven smiled wondering if he was serious about this stick. "I fashioned it for myself about three or four years ago. It has served me well. Watch this." He picked the wand up and pointed it at the wardrobe. He uttered a few words, "Abracadabra, Shalamazoo Heterus Ponus, calamity Sue!" and with a flick of his wrist, nothing happened. <br/><br/>Haven waited to see what would happen. She wanted to laugh or giggle, but could not, she covered her mouth from instinct, but nothing would come out.<br/><br/>Anthony looked at the wand. He looked at the wardrobe and then looked at Haven. He was slightly embarrassed and then begat to talk to her to cover his embarrassment. "How come you don't talk? Were you born that way?" He waited to see how she would respond. He didn't know her well enough to translate her expressions into words. No one in the world he came from communicated in that manner. He was unfamiliar with understanding expressions. It just didn't happen to him.</span><br/><br/>Mars enjoyed the dream, but quickly dismissed it. There was no way the woman he encountered today, was Haven. Right? The doubt and confusion enraged him. He was ready to vent his frustration on someone or some thing. But his frustration prevented him from doing anything.<br/><br/>'I was such a fool when I was young to believe in those trashy books! The wand!' Mars thought about the dream, the day he left his parent's house, the book, the mute and the wand. He stood up and walked to one of the bookshelves. The lacquered stick was still there. Only this time, it had been blessed with magical properties. He could use the wand to draw the life force right out of a person. To extract their essence. It made them weak. And if he didn't let him, they perished from the drain. But this drain, also made Mars stronger. He thrived off this ability. It was one of those addictive forces that made it difficult for him to quit. In this sense, he truly enjoyed the man he became, Mars Lokken.