Violet's dreams had kept her up all night. The man with the beautiful face was there again, though they were trying to kill each other. Violet was quite shaken and she kept feeling her hair to make sure that it was still short and super straight, now long and curly like in her dream. She looked at her clock, 9 A.M. "Shit!" She jumped out of her bed and threw on a black tank and some black jeans, she strung a small black choker with a cross and a long black beaded necklace around her neck and located her skull earrings and boots before running out the door and down the stairs to her apartment. "Shit shit shit!" She kept saying as she ran down the street, she turned the corner to the coffee shop and ran straight passed it, waving to the waittress as if to say sorry. She finally stopped at the bookshop door and read the hours "Open: 8 A.M. to 6 P.M."" So much for keeping up with my own damn business." She said as she unlocked the door and walked in. She flicked on all the lights and then picked up the mail. Nothing to important. No bills today and a couple orders for books, she sighed and sat down behind the desk and just stared straight across the store at the rows and rows of books.<br/><br/>The phone started ringing and it brought her out of her trance and back to reality. "Vi's World of Books this is Violet...yes...uh huh...what are your prices...I don't think that's possible...no not today...ok ok...yes...thank you buh-bye." She hung up the phone and muttered something about salesmen and then got up from the desk and opened the boxes on the floor. "Now where to put these..." She then slowly busied herself making room on the bookshelves for the new load and didn't stop until the little bell on the door gave a small chime, she looked around and it was the waittress from the coffee shop. "Oh hey Sarah." "Hi, I saw you were late. If you want I could watch the place for you, I know how you are without your morning coffee." Violet smiled, "That would be great thanks!" She hugged her and left the store for the coffee shop, one of the new books in hand.<br/><br/>Violet opened the door to the shop and went straight to the counter and ordered her caramel mocha, sat down her corner table and started to read her book. She payed no attention to those who were surrounding her in the shop, instead she just let her bright green eyes flick across the pages.<br/><br/>----------------------------------------------------------------------------------<br/><br/>Vanessa was all suited up in her armor, minus the helmet, her sword was hanging from her waist and she looked extremely annoyed. She watched as some of her troops climbed aboard their horses, looking extremely confused. "Captain," she heard one yell to her, "what's this all about?" Just then the large doors to the palace opened up and a small girl hurried down carrying much too much luggage, she carefully loaded it into the tiny carriage and then Vanessa turned to see the Empress coming out the doors, Vanessa quickly got to her side with her hand on the hilt of her blade. "Your eminence, may I ask the meaning of this?" The empress looked at her with a keen eye. "Captain, the watch towers have spotted an enemy army not far outside the walls of the town, I know the walls of the inner city have much more protection but I wish to leave them and get as far away from here as possible. If they attack I trust your troops to be prepared and to well protect my palace. I am old and therefore I cannot defend myself. Please understand." Vanessa bowed to her and helped her to the carriage and then she too climbed aboard the horse. "The empress," she bellowed, "will always have our swords to protect her." With that she rode off, the other troops and the carriage following her.<br/><br/>Vanessa road to the gates of the inner city as they opened, without stopping she went straight through them and onto the outer walls of the town. She did not know where the enemy army was spotted but there was only one road to the empress's hidden palace and she hoped to God that the road was empty. No one knew of this road, but if by some happenstance they were at that one, her and her troops were in for a difficult journey.<br/><br/>As Vanessa rode she kept one hand on the reigns and one hand firmly on her sword, once they were passed the gates she was the only protection of the empress and she had to remain firm. They passed through the gates, they were out of the town. "Beatrice, scout ahead." One of her troops galloped off into the distance, into the woods, until she was no longer visible. Vanessa kept the caravan moving slowly, her green eyes darting to the woods around as well as the road ahead. Making sure nothing was out of place.