Disclaimer: See previous chapter. Hell, if you recognize it, it's not mine.

I stepped out of my car as I stopped at the gate to my estate. Finally back home in the T-Veronica territory, I paused to review the brief meeting I had had with Liana, and Dark. Shaking my head slightly, I walked over to my gate. It was a simple gate, really. It was made of silver, vaguely decorated. It could easily be broken by any being with pools of strength.

Walking over to hinges of the gate, I saw a tiny blue monitor screen open from out of the gate, waiting to allow access. When I approached it, I rested my right hand on the screen, and waited for the hand screening to be done. A young female voice, with a British accent, sounded from somewhere. The voice sounded very young, like a girl at the age of 9 or so. The voice belonged to a computer system meant to represent and sound like Alexia, the Grand Mistress T-Veronica, when she was a child. My mansion housed another system similar to the Alexia one, except it was of a young boy. A boy by the name of Alfred, the brother of Alexia. I've come to call them The Red Queen and the Blue King, respectively.

"Welcome back, Mistress." The doors swung open slowly, silently.

"Red Queen, take my car back to the garage; I'll walk, instead." And with that, my car moved through the gate and toward a building in the northeast corner of my estate. I glanced around gently, my ebon gaze finally resting on my house. It was grand. Money was never a problem in this underhanded world I call my life.

"But was it worth it?" I silently asked myself. I looked down to the ground, remembering:

"What is the problem, officers?" I heard my mother say from the hall. I instantly stopped doing my homework and tilted by head toward the hallway.

"May we speak to your daughter," The officer looked around in his pocket until he pulled out a piece of paper and read something on it. "Cecelia, Madam?"

"Of course," my mother replied. I was instantly aware of what this meant, and I tried to review all things that I could have possibly done today that were considered illegal. I couldn't think of a damn one.

The officers entered the kitchen and took a seat at the kitchen table, across from me.

"Hello, Cecelia. I am Officer Charles Murray from the Maryland State Police, and I'm here to ask you a few questions. Do you understand?" he asked. I nodded slightly and he then continued, "You are the girlfriend of a Mr. Steven Burnside, are you not?" I nodded again. "When did you last see him?" "At 4 o'clock on Friday" I replied.

And so it went on. As the questions followed one after the other, I grew more worried and irritated.

"Officers," I cut Mr. Murray off, "What is this all about exactly?"

"Mr. Burnside was kidnapped earlier this week, and there have been mysterious rumors circling his disappearance." Pausing for it to sink in, and quietly added, "Thank you for your time."

The officers turned to leave but then, still in complete shock, I blurted out, "Well, where the hell is he?!!!!" My voice began to rise as I stood up. Me and Steve had been dating for awhile, and I truly cared for him. I loved him.

In order to calm me down, they agreed to tell me a little of Steve's disappearance, though it was dry information; the bone with no meat. They had received evidence pointing to a small island off Europe's western coast, though it was skeptical. They also had radio static originating somewhere in Antarctica. They left, the officers, soon after. That night in bed, I couldn't sleep. All I thought about was Steve, possibly dead somewhere. Constantly, I turned over in bed, to the point where lying down did no use. Sitting up, I slid off my bed and began to pace in the dark.

"Steve what did you do-how could you let this happen..." My thoughts went from worrying for Steve to blaming him for what turmoil he may have created. "God helps those who help themselves..." flashed in my thoughts. Suddenly, I stood rigid. Yes, God does help those who help themselves. Perhaps it was the ignorance of youth, but I became rash as I hurried about in my room to get dressed quickly in a pair of old, faded jeans, and a black baggy sweatshirt. I got my 9 mm from down in the basement and headed out the door quietly. I used my car and drove to the airport for private planes. My uncle owned a plane and taught me to fly it last summer. He gave me a pair of keys just in case I ever needed them. Clasping those keys in a tight fist as I drove, all I could think of was this objective, to save Steve.

Arriving at the airport, I sighed. How to get past the guard...past the damn gate. Parking my car in the nearby brush of the woods, I slinked my way over to the airport's entrance. Crouching down, I crawled past the guard station and through the considerable amount of room under the gate. Deciding to remain hidden for a while longer, I quietly crawled to a small garage just north of me. Arriving, I quickly opened the lock with one of the keys held tightly in my hand. Gently opening the doors open wide, now was the time to hurry, for someone may have seen those doors open. Hurrying in, I looked up at the plane. It wasn't very big. "As long as it takes me to Antarctica, I'll be fine," I thought. Maneuvering myself into the aircraft, I strapped myself in and began to work the controls. My hands were shaking out of fear and excitement, barely able to do as I commanded, it seemed. Starting up the engine, I pulled out into the runway, seeing small figures in the dark running towards me, yelling things out in vain. Pulling away, I flew as fast as I was allowed.

Several hours later, I climbed out of my plane, shivering from the Arctic winds blowing from the west. I had landed next to what looked like an abandoned base. If a base is what you would call it. Most of it appeared to be burned, and appeared to have been...blown up, almost. Rubble and debris scattered the ground everywhere. What happened here?

I found a loose door on one of the walls, and I managed to slip myself through. It was bleak inside, and cold. Water dripped far above and landed with a light tapping on the cement.

I walked through the base for several hours, hearing strange noises every once in awhile. Upon coming across a strangely, decorated door, I opened it to find a small private garden. "Mon dieu..." I muttered. I walked along for a brief time, eyeing a bizarre, miniature carousel to my left before I came upon another set of double doors. Upon opening them, I appeared to have stepped into a great manor. Portraits, although slightly burned, lined the walls. A grand staircase, or what was left of it, loomed before me. Just then I heard a door open to my right. Turning abruptly, I saw something flying at me...

And then I woke up...9 years later.