Master There had been silence as I entered my chamber and threw the secret passageway carrying Merna in my arms. Glancing at the female in my arms, I noticed how lightweight she was. I wondered if this was normal for her or if she did not get enough to eat. Effortlessly crossing the distance of my room, I pressed my hand on the spot where an entranceway connected my chamber with another. Dust fell to my feet as I slid open the door. I find the room has been prepared as instructed. The hint of burning wood entered my nose mixed with moisture. A small fire was lit to take out the dampness from these dwellings. This area had once been my wife’s chamber before she was taken away from me. Until now, I had no use for this place. I allowed no one to enter and left it as it had been once my wife died. I had ordered the serfs to clean the room, remove everything that was once my wife and place all the items in the old section of my castle. What remained in the room was only a bed. Frilling my brows I realised how the setup for this room was poor. I will leave it up to Merna to design this domain to her liking once that time has come. I gently place Merna's unconscious form on the bed of furs. With the fireplace being lit, I placed a log in the fire. I looked around the room once again, checking everything twice. Vividly I could see my dead wife's face smiling up at me. The bed had not been moved! The only difference was Merna had furs under her body, whereas my wife preferred silk sheets. Strolling over to the door that joined our chambers, I slid it closed. I turned my head to the sounds of Merna's whimpers. 'She will have a nasty headache when she wakes up!' I thought to myself. I huffed out black smoke from my nostrils. I watched as her chest rose up and down softly, letting me know that Merna was still asleep and would be like this for a while. Everything about this human born frustrated me. I have been doing this for eons and never had any emotions evoked. I have no feelings to express; there is only room for honour, responsibility, and the natural order of law. Human borns! They are the disgrace of our kind, yet for Merna, I have made the exception. I take my eyes off Merna, closing the door that I had originally stepped through. Swiftly directed my feet toward the main entrance to Merna's chamber, which would lead me to the hallway. In the distance, I could hear the low voices of the hunters and the rumbling of laughter. A guard was strolling by when he informed me, "The captives have been placed in individual cells according to your orders, Master!" There was a click of the door setting into place letting me know it was closed. "Well done! Inform me when the serfs start to wake up!" The key slid with ease into its slot, with a click, I locked the door to Merna's section. "Get Ashur to guard this door. When she wakes up, he will find me immediately." With a bow, “as you wish Master!” I waited only an instant before I walked away. My mind went straight to the female that was next to my chamber. It was getting increasingly more difficult to clear my thoughts of a particular female as I stomped down the hall. I was turning East into the grand hall. Passing several entrances that would lead to the other locations of my underground castle, I made a sharp turn many feet past. Heading North, my desired destination was my throne room. The rules we live by are simple: each Master of a territory has to give the trespassers, human born, time to leave the forbidden area in which they have passed. I am not allowed to capture a human born just because they are going for a nature walk. Next, domain portals could be placed anywhere for example at the edge of woods, fields or waterfronts! We can not just collect recklessly. The human born is allowed to enjoy the wilderness as long as the rules are followed, that each Master has placed. Usually, the human borns are respectful of the land they wander. If a human born should stroll through a portal, we wipe their memory and send them back. Lastly, for those who reside permanently, we can rule over our territory as we see fit. All that resides within our territory, is ours to control. I govern my territories with an iron fist, no one is above me! When it pertains to the human borns, my rules are easy for them to follow, do not stay on my land once their moon is in the sky. Do not leave their trash in my yard. Take pictures tho take nothing else! If any of those rules are broken, I will not allow the human born to leave. Those that set up lodging, never leave. For many generations, the local residences in and around Paudash Lake have been respectful. They pass this information on to their offspring, and the next generation. Every so often an outsider is a reminder that I am still here. There will be a report of a missing human born and their companions. They will never find the body, and it will go unsolved in the human born world. Though, the locals know, it is a reminder, to the community that I am the law of natural order. I already had in mind what I would do with Merna's companions. When the Master of the domain has captured the trespasser, in this situation it would be Merna's group of friends, the human born is still alive. Once a captive has consumed food that had been contaminated. Which had been offered by the Master of the domain; the transition from life to death is instant. The process is unknown to the human born as their transition happens. When a human born comes here they feel hungry once they wake up. Their nature kicks in once they see and smell what they believe is food. Without thinking twice, they indulge, greedily taking their fill. Not realizing that they are killing themselves. The master of the domain has to wait until the transformation is complete. A human born is not fully under our control until the phase from physical form to death. It has been a long time game for us to beat on who will eat first when it comes to a group of new captives. I could tell from the beginning who would eat first and who would not, Merna was going to be the issue. I sat roughly on my throne with a thud. "How will I handle this? Bribery? Fear? Seduction?" I muttered out loud to myself. Each human born was handled differently to get the goal that was desired. I would be giving Pierre to Sadragon since he informed me of the connection as mates. The females would be going to my mistress, the mother of my offsprings. Markous that arrogant waste of skin and bones, he will be given to my daughters Zefer and Alma. The last male, Steve, is fit enough for hard labour. I will sell him! Merna will be my chosen consort. Her duties will be to advise me and do the tasks that I give her. If she proves to be successful, she will oversee one of the many territories that I have acquired. Of course, she will need to be trained! Out of all of them, Merna seems to be the one who has the intelligence to survive this realm and be successful. My mind once again drifted to Merna and her red hair. With great difficulty, I pushed the thought of her out of my mind and began the gruelling work that sat before me. ‘Damn I already know that woman is going to be trouble!’