All right! This is the final chapter of "Fight the Power"! I found the first part a little hard to write, but I managed to write it. Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, and alerted this story! It means a lot to me when I see all this support, so thank you! :) The next story should be out very soon, so keep an eye out for it! Thanks again, guys!

DISCLAIMER: Only my OCs and side plots are mine. Everything else belongs to Naughty Dog.

It was time. I could feel it.

I didn't want to face the fact that Damas-my father-was…well…not here anymore, but I knew I would have to. Now that the war was over, I had more time to think about what had happened in the Stadium ruins, and it just made me more upset. I was still in shock over this revelation. I clutched my amulet in my hands as I got up and left the Throne Room. I could hear trumpets just outside the Palace, and I knew what was happening. Damas's-Father's-funeral. What was I supposed to call him? "Father" wasn't one I used too often in reference to somebody, so that was why I felt confused.

I was the last one to emerge from the Palace for the funeral, and once I made it outside, everyone turned to stare at me. Unlike the other times in Haven, these were not stares of hatred and disgust, but sorrow and sympathy, a first for me. It seemed like everyone knew how Damas and I were related now, as well as what Veger had said to me in the ruins.

I walked by all my friends from Haven: Ashelin, Samos, Keira, Paige, Daxter, Onin, Torn, Tess, Pecker, Eileen, David, and Jinx (who each reached out and hugged me), as well as all the Wastelanders, Seem and her monks, Kleiver, Sig, and Lena. I glanced over at Lena and noticed she was carrying a specially made cage with Count Veger in it.

"Shut your mouth and show some respect, you little bastard," I heard Lena hiss at him, "Before I shut it for you." She rattled the cage a little bit in an attempt to scare him.

"Get his ass out of here," one of the other Wastelanders said to her in response. I didn't want Veger here, especially not here. Whatever he said, it must have been disrespectful for Lena to be threatening him so fiercely. She nodded and quickly disappeared to place the recently ottsel-fied Veger somewhere else.

"I better not hear another peep out of you," she hissed at him, "Got it?" I didn't hear the rest of the exchange, but I just ignored it. There were more important things happening right now.

I took my place at the front of the processional, where Kleiver and Sig were waiting for me. The soldiers behind them held a coffin in their hands, which had flowers situated on it. "Ready?" Sig whispered to me. I just nodded silently, refusing to look at the others.

More trumpets struck up a melancholy tune as we began to march through Spargus. It seemed like the entire city had shown up for this, and why shouldn't they? Damas was their king. He had rescued them from certain death in the desert. I stole a glance at the coffin, sighed, and patted the top of it. I then noticed all the monks were carrying flowers as well.

All around the city, flags were lowered, and other Spargus citizens removed their helmets and bowed their heads as we passed by. Some of them even joined the processional.

We continued to slowly march as we approached the beach, and I realized that was where we were going to lay Damas to rest. Oh, Precursors. It was so much to process, but one glance at everyone marching beside me made me realize I wasn't alone in this.

After another twenty minutes, we finally arrived at our destination, and the soldiers carrying the coffin moved towards the front of the line, standing in the water as Seem cleared her throat. "Brothers and sisters," she began, moving to stand next to me and Sig, "We are gathered here today in a day of sorrow. To pay our last respects to King Damas." I closed my eyes for a minute.

Sig opened his mouth next. "Damas was a good king," he quipped, "A loving father, and an excellent Commander. I am here today to say how proud I was to stand by him in all conflicts. He always put everyone else before himself, and that is what made him a remarkable man. I will never forget the kindness he's shown me and to all those who were allowed to stay in Spargus."

"I'll never forget when he gave me my first vehicle," Kleiver added a few minutes later, "He told me, 'Kleiver, you're one of my best men', eh? He taught me how to keep all them cars in good shape. Good advice from a strong fellow."

To everyone's surprise, Ashelin spoke up once Kleiver was finished. "After my father banished Damas," she began, taking a deep breath to steel herself, "We kept in close contact, and I regretted not being able to stop him from being sent to the Wasteland. But he was always hopeful about the war. He always thought positively." She closed her eyes and stepped away from the coffin, and that was when I decided to say what was on my mind next. Hearing everyone say nothing but good things about my father gave me the courage to do the same. I pushed my way through the crowd as I stood next to Sig.

"Even though I…didn't know him for very long," I said quietly, "He took me in when Haven City threw me out. He helped me and my friends get back on track and taught me some valuable lessons.

"He taught me not to be too quick to anger, to make war my own. I'm just sorry I never got to know him as a father. I wish I could…have that chance now. To know him as a son should know a father. I'm glad I got to spend whatever time I had with him." I stepped down, and after I was finished, some of the soldiers began to play their trumpets again as they formed two lines opposite from each other. Sig and Kleiver took that as their cue to take the coffin from some of the others, and they slowly carried it towards the water as I followed closely behind them. The monks set up some torches firmly in the sand and lit them as all my friends moved forward. Many of them placed their flowers beside the torches while others scattered them in the water and on top of the coffin. The trumpets blared even louder as Sig and Kleiver waded into the sea and finally placed the coffin in the tides, allowing the current to carry my father out to somewhere open.

As the coffin sailed out to sea, Sig made one last remark. "May we all remember Damas," he intoned as we all stared out into the horizon, "A brave soldier, and a kind, but firm king. To Damas. Rest in peace."

"To Damas," we chanted, raising our fists into the air. I looked around at everyone's somber faces, and I was grateful to have the support.

Everyone from Haven approached me just as the Wastelanders quietly exited the scene. That was fine; I just didn't want to leave yet.

"Hey," Dax whispered, crawling on my shoulder for the time being as Keira, Samos, and Paige moved to stand next to me with the others in tow.

"You okay?" Keira asked, taking my hand in hers, and I felt guilty for the kiss with Ashelin from a few days ago.

"I'm fine," I assured all of them, "Thanks, you guys. I really appreciate it."

"Anything to help out a friend," Paige said, lightly punching my shoulder as she smiled sadly. I glanced over at her and cautiously returned it; she, Sig, and Dax were the only ones who had seen me kiss Ashelin, and I prayed that none of them would tell Keira. If anything, I would be the one to mention it. Not today, though. This wasn't the day for it.

"Well, you guys have been great," I said gratefully.

"Onin says that the Precursors are requesting an audience with you in the arena in two days," Pecker translated for Onin, who was waving her hands at the same time.

I sighed. It hadn't even been a week and I was already being saddled with so many responsibilities. "You guys go back to the Palace," I said, "I think I'm going to hang out here for a while."

"You sure?" Torn asked quietly.

I nodded.

"Okay, then," Keira quipped, "We'll see you back at the Palace. Feel better." She planted a kiss on my cheek, making me feel guilty once again. I could see Daxter and Paige both staring at me, watching the whole exchange.

One by one, the others turned and retraced the steps we had taken earlier until Paige was the last one to leave. I knew Dax and Sig would always let me take care of my own business, but I wasn't sure about Paige. "Paige!" I called out to her.

She turned around, raising an eyebrow as I gestured for her to come back. "Don't tell Keira about…you know…" I whispered to her.

Paige just shook her head. "Your secret's safe with me," she assured me, "But you better tell her before it gets too ugly."

"I will," I said to her, "But not now." Paige just nodded and then squeezed my shoulder.

"I'll see you later," she whispered, turning to walk away. Now that I was left to my own devices, I took my shoes off and waded into the water, fixing my gaze on the floating coffin, which was now a little further out in the sea. I guess this is it, I thought sadly as I took in the flowers and the torches that would always burn for the King of Spargus. I was sure he would be proud of me for taking a stand and defeating the Dark Makers, and that thought in itself made me smile a little bit.

"Goodbye, Father," I whispered, "Rest in peace."

Two days later…

"I can't believe the Precursors are coming," I said to Eileen and Lena as we all prepared to meet the creators of this planet. After a quick introduction, Eileen and Lena had gotten along pretty well, and as of now, we were dressed and putting the last few touches on our hair and makeup.

"I can't believe they're ottsels," Lena commented, "Is that why Veger came back as an ottsel in a cage made by the Precursors?"

"Yeah," I confirmed, nodding, "He's among their ranks now, though he doesn't look too happy about it."

"I'll say," Eileen added, "But then again, you get what you deserve."

"I'm right here, you know," Veger piped up from said cage, and all three of us turned to face him. He had tried to bite his way out, but there was no escape for him. It seemed that the Precursors had entrusted Lena with the little rat for the time being, and she was doing a damn good job of keeping him in line.

"I demand that you let me out right this instant!" he cried, shaking a tiny fist in the air. Eileen, Lena, and I all glanced at each other and cracked up, the first time I had laughed in days.

"I'm sorry," I replied with a grin on my face, "What was that?"

"You heard me, you infernal girl! Let me out!"

"Not a chance," Eileen laughed, "Why risk having you escape?"

"I'm a Precursor! You can't hold me here!"

"Now you're one of them," I said, rolling my eyes, "How about we let you out when we feel like it?"

"This is an outrage!" Veger complained, rattling the cage, "This is sacrilege!"

"Shut your trap," Lena growled, pointing a hairbrush at Veger, "All that ever comes out of your mouth is noise."

"You will all burn for this!" Veger promised, baring his teeth at us, "I swear it!"

All three of us laughed again. "Yeah, okay," I chuckled, "Nice try, Veger."

"You're not scary anymore," Eileen said, smiling as the Count glared at her.

Suddenly, someone knocked on the door, and grinning, Eileen leaped up and answered it. "Hey, Jak!" she greeted, letting Jak into the room. Lena and I pulled him in so that he could sit down with us, and Veger growled at him, though the renegade paid him no mind.

"Hey," Jak replied, "What's so funny in here?"

"Little rat over there thinks he can threaten us," Lena answered, pointing at Veger, "We've been having a bit of fun with him." Jak just shook his head at the Count, ignoring him as the latter continued to curse him out under his breath.

"So what's up?" I asked.

"Samos sent me to get you guys," Jak reported, "They're here."

At this, we all leaped up. "We're on our way," Eileen said, and we poured out of the room, almost leaving Veger and the cage.

"I want to come!" he whined, "Can you at least do that for me?"

We all considered it for a minute, and then Lena scooped up the cage from the small table it had been sitting on. "All right, you can come," she decided, "But keep your mouth shut!" Veger just sighed. Seeing him depressed was oddly…satisfying.

In the arena, the Spargus army played trumpets again, but this time, they struck up a much happier tune as we all took our places close to Damas's throne, which was now occupied by Sig. In front of us, the Precursors stood on a platform in front of some kind of vehicle. I glanced around at the serious expressions on all our faces, and I saw Lena had let Veger out of the cage, but she and Kleiver were still standing close to him, just in case.

"Thank you, brave people of this planet!" the Ottsel Leader began, raising his staff, "Onin, Samos, and all! You strength and wisdom in these dark times give us reason to fight on."

Samos looked proud from where he stood next to Keira. "My life's work, it turns out, was spent searching for a bunch of fur balls," he commented, earning a chuckle from the rest of us.

"Onin says it is a great day for the universe!" Pecker translated with a gleeful expression on his face.

"Jak, you are the greatest of heroes," the Ottsel Leader said to him, "You have turned the tide against the Dark Makers, and together, we will win this war."

"But dude," the Ottsel Surfer added, "There are, like, way more adventures in the future."

"Duh," the Ottsel Dummy said, "Or was it the past?"

"Yes, yes!" the Ottsel Leader huffed, "I was getting to that!"

"More adventures?" Jak asked, glancing over his shoulder to smile at me, "Where have I heard that before?" I just winked at him.

"I think there's something Samos didn't tell us that night," I joked.

"We need heroes like you to help us protect the universe, Jak," the Ottsel Leader told him.

Jak suddenly looked solemn. "Then you can call me by my first name," he declared, "By what my father called me: Mar." This earned a gasp from everybody else.

"Wait, wait," Ashelin piped up from next to Seem, "Jak is Mar? The Mar?" Seem just nodded, and I had a flashback to the night after the first war ended.

"I've got a feeling we'll meet Mar some day," Samos had said as he, Jak, Daxter, Sig, Pecker, and I all glanced up at the sky, "He might be closer than you think."

Had Samos somehow known that Jak was Mar? We had been in the presence of a holy warrior this whole time?

"Come then, Mar," the Precursors said, "No time like the present." Jak stepped up a little further and then turned towards his best friend.

"You coming, Dax?" he asked.

Dax stretched his arms out and leaned against Tess. "Naw," he declined, "I got all I need right here, baby. But if you need me and I know you will, you know where to find me."

"Oh, Daxter!" Tess squealed as she rubbed his stomach, "My little hero!"

The Precursors faced him next. "We owe you much, Daxter," the Ottsel Leader said, "For all you've done. For your bravery in the face of incredible danger, we shall grant you your deepest desire." Daxter leaped up and grinned slyly, and I could only guess what he was wishing for.

"Ya know," he started, "I could really use a snazzy pair of pants. Like yours." I knew it! I thought triumphantly to myself.

The Precursor pointed his staff at Daxter, and in a flash of light, the ottsel suddenly found himself sporting a pair of pants.

"Wow!" Tess cried, "Those are sharp! I wish I had a pair just like that!"

"Be careful what you wish for," the Ottsel Leader advised before pointing the staff at Dax's girlfriend. We all heard a pop, and then, Tess was gone and an ottsel was in her place. I could hear a low rumble in the audience as everyone went, "Aww!"

"That's so cute!" Eileen cooed from next to David.

Daxter approved as well as he whistled. "Don't worry, honey," he assured her, "You get used to it. Oh, and you might wanna shave some parts. Trust me on that." He pulled her in for a kiss when the unthinkable happened.

"Hey!" Jak called out, interrupting Dax and Tess's kiss instead of the other way around, "Thanks for everything, partner!" He gave the ottsel the thumbs up.

"You are a great hero, Daxter," Seem said in reverence, bowing to Dax.

"This is gonna be good," Dax decided, "They think I'm a god…and they're right!"

"Our hero!" the other Precursors from inside their vehicle chanted. Jak then flicked his gaze to me, where I was standing a little further away from Daxter and Tess.

"Paige!" he addressed me, and I glanced up at him as I bit my lower lip.

"Yes?" I asked, bowing slightly before I noticed he was grinning.

"It's okay," he assured me, "You don't have to bow."

"But you're Mar," I reasoned, "It only seems fair."

"No, it's all right," he replied, "Anyway, thank you."

I stopped bowing. "For what?" I asked. He couldn't possibly be thanking me for making all the mistakes I made, I thought, Could he?

"For listening," was all Jak said, "While we were out here."

I just smiled as everyone stared at me. "You're welcome," I retorted, folding my hands.

"Ahh, yes," the Ottsel Leader chimed in, "I was getting to that, too. We would like to thank you as well, Paige, for your unwavering loyalty to Mar. When we gave you your mission during the first war, we were hoping you would become a Guardian of Mar while he was young to atone for your mistakes in the Fortress, but you have done much more than that. You have been a good friend. You still carried on with your unofficial title even after the mission had been completed, and for that, we will also grant you one wish."

Wow, I thought, Guardian of Mar. They sure put a lot of pressure on me back in the day. It made sense, though, to have to watch over the person I had helped to hurt in order to make up for that.

I closed my eyes for a second. "I'd like to be able to let my friends know when I'm coming back," I decided, remembering how Keira had told me how I should have given them a heads up to my return.

"Done," the Precursors declared, and I felt a slight pinching in my body. I guessed that was going to take care of it somehow.

"You have to leave again?" Dax cried from next to Tess.

"Just for a little while," I assured him, "But this time, you'll know when I'm back." I nodded at everyone.

"Time to leave," the Ottsel Leader said, glancing at the vehicle again.

Suddenly, I heard a loud sigh, and I turned my head to see that Veger was staring down at the ground from where he stood near Kleiver and Lena. "This is going to be a long trip," he groaned, moving forward to leave with Jak and the other Precursors. Lena frowned and was getting ready to stop him when Kleiver suddenly stepped on his tail. In that moment, Lena's expression turned from angry to victorious as Kleiver picked Veger up.

"Where do you think you're going, little bugger?" he asked, "I've decided I want me own sidekick and you've been nominated." Veger waved his paw in front of his face, and I widened my eyes as I began laughing to myself. Being an ottsel was already torture for him, and being Kleiver's sidekick was the icing on the cake.

"Go ahead, Kleiver," Lena encouraged, "You can have him."

"Oh, no," Veger moaned, "I'd rather be back with Lena." Kleiver suddenly placed the ottsel on his shoulder like Jak and Daxter.

"We're gonna be a great team," he said to Veger before growling and holding up a fist, "Just don't make me angry!" Oh, man, I thought, That's going to be a nightmare for Veger.

"Are you ready, Jak?" the Precursors asked as we all faced them again, "We have something to show you."

"What?" Jak questioned.

"The universe!" After glancing at all of us one last time, he climbed into the vehicle with the rest of the Precursors, which closed and then took off into the sky. We just stood in awe for a minute as Jak disappeared, and nobody could think of anything to say until a few seconds later.

"Jak!" Dax yelped, and I whirled around to see Jak standing behind his friend.

"I couldn't leave ya, Dax," he said, "With all our adventures ahead of us, you wouldn't last a second without me!"

"Good to have you back, soldier," I replied, smiling until I felt my mouth would ache.

"Ahh," Pecker sighed, "What a team we are!"

Daxter faced him, keeping up their rivalry from Haven City. "Yeah?" he challenged, "Well the next adventure, I call the shots. Put 'er there, partner." He extended his paw to shake one of Pecker's wings, but pulled away at the last minute.

"HA!" he laughed as Pecker frowned, "Psych! Oh yeah, life is good."

"How did you get back so fast?" I asked, tilting my head to the side.

"I finished what the Precursors wanted me to do," Jak explained, "And then they sent me back to this moment."

"Makes perfect sense," I mumbled, "Did you see Veger? Kleiver made him his sidekick."

"Oh, boy," Jak replied, and we all glanced over at Kleiver, who was taking the cage from Lena and placing the recently changed Count back into it.

"We're gonna have a lot of fun together, eh?" Kleiver was saying to Veger, "Come on. I've got a job for us to do, and you're just the little critter to do it." Veger pressed his face against the bars, almost silently pleading for us to rescue him as Kleiver shepherded him away from the rest of us. We all just grinned at him, and for extra measure, I blew him a kiss.

The next night…

As the afternoon rolled into the evening, all of us got together in the Coast Section and decided to hold a festival in celebration of the end of the war. We stayed mostly in the marketplace in order to leave Damas's memorial by the beach undisturbed, and Seem brought the wine of the Precursors, the same wine Veger had offered to me when he kidnapped me. As we all helped ourselves to snacks, we filled our glasses with wine and held them up in the air.

"To Jak, the hero of this planet!" Samos declared.

"To Jak!" the rest of us chanted as we clicked our glasses together and took a sip. Veger wasn't kidding, I thought, This is good wine. I quickly glanced around as I spotted Onin standing near Sig. She had a glass of wine as well, and I remembered how drunk she had gotten at the end of the last war.

"So how does it feel being a hero?" Daxter asked, "Along with me, of course?"

Jak chuckled tentatively with a smile. It was the first time he had truly smiled since all this had happened. "It's been crazy," he admitted, "But good."

"I love your new pants, Dax," I complimented as the ottsel hopped around, showing off his new outfit.

"I'm just glad to finally have them again after three adventures!" he chirped.

"See? I told you you'd get them again," Jak joked, taking another sip of his drink.

"How about you?" Daxter continued, facing me after taking a swig of wine, "Miss Guardian of Mar?"

I laughed and swatted at him. "That was a nice surprise," I said, "I guess I was sort of a bodyguard, huh? When I went on all those missions with you? I even tried to protect the Kid!"

"You mean me," Jak corrected, chuckling as well.

"Same difference."

"Well, you did have my back." It felt good to see Jak laughing and smiling again after his tears two days ago. Granted, his eyes were still darkened in sadness over Damas, but he was coming to terms with it. And with being Mar.

"So," I began hesitantly, "How are you feeling?"

Jak looked thoughtful just as Ashelin, Torn, Keira, Eileen, and David swaggered over to us. "I don't think I'll ever be okay with what happened to Damas," he replied, "But I know he's still watching over me."

"And we've got your back, too," Torn added patting Jak's shoulder as we all just stood around him and gazed up into the night.

The party lasted for hours, and once everyone had burned out and decided to go to sleep, I took a private room for myself in the Palace, but not before I grabbed a pen and paper and left a note for Jak and Daxter.

Jak, Dax, I wrote in the, Precursor lettering, I have to leave. I'm sorry this is so sudden, but I promise that you'll both know when I'm coming back, because I definitely have plans to. Take care of yourselves, both of you. And tell the others that I'm sorry and that I'll be back soon. Your friend, Paige.

There. That would take care of that. I left it by Jak's sleeping form as I crossed back into my room and laid down to sleep. Just like last time in Haven Forest, I fell into a deep slumber as my head began to hurt. I could feel it. I was going home.

I felt myself break out into a cold sweat as I finally regained consciousness. Why did it always have to be this way? I couldn't even say goodbye to any of the others. Nevertheless, I was glad to be going home after being away for so long.

As Anna's room returned to me by degrees, I strained my ears as I listened for the sound of the bathroom. I bet she'll be out soon, I thought, It'll be like I was never gone.

Sure enough, the bathroom door opened, and Anna stepped outside just as I flicked my gaze back to the TV, where the main menu was flashing on the screen. "All right, I'm back!" she announced cheerfully as I quickly sat up and straightened myself out.

"Good," I said, "Now we can get started with this game." I was dying to tell her about my adventure, but I knew she wouldn't believe me. Who would?

"You okay, Paige?" Anna asked me, tilting her head to the side, "You look really tired."

"I'm fine," I assured her, "It's just been a long day. You know, with that bitch from the track earlier today."

"Yeah," my friend agreed as she sat next to me, "So, this is the third game in the series. What happened in the first two?"

I took a deep breath. "Well, I never played the first one, but this is what happened." And with that, I proceeded to fill her in on all the events of The Precursor Legacy, followed by Jak II. While I was describing the storyline of the latter game, I noticed Anna was narrowing her eyes as she considered me.

"Wow," she commented once I was finished, "The games must be really good, then, for you to be describing them in such detail."

"What do you mean?" I asked, confused.

"It's almost like you lived them or something. Especially Jak II."

HA! I thought to myself, She couldn't be more right if she tried. "They are good games," I admitted, "My sisters got me into them. Want to see Jak 3?"

"Sure," Anna said, sitting next to me as I restarted the game to play the cutscene I had accidentally skipped in the beginning. I felt a mix of emotions as we watched Count Veger banish Jak to the Wasteland, and I found myself feeling both angry at how much of an asshole Veger was and happy that I knew he would get his comeuppance later.

"Paige?" Anna asked, noticing my facial expressions.

"Sorry," I apologized, "But I hate Count Veger with a passion."

"So you've already played the game before tonight?" my friend inquired.

Too late, I realized my mistake. "Oh!" I gasped, "Well, I sort of had a preview…"

I tried not to look at Anna a few minutes later during the cutscene where Jak and Daxter first met Damas, for I was sure I was going to start crying spontaneously. Instead, I glanced down at the cover for Jak 3. I didn't want to spoil the game for her.

So for the next few hours, we continued to play the game, and I even let Anna play for a while as I slowly began to relax and enjoy myself. This was going to be a long night.

Later on that night…

Even as Anna and Paige had eventually met up with their friends and tried to stay up all night, Paige realized she couldn't, and she ended up falling asleep on Anna's couch. Anna, however, was still awake as she considered her friend. Paige had been awfully mysterious during the time they were playing Jak 3, and she was determined to find out what was going on. Good thing Paige is a heavy sleeper, she thought to herself.

Getting up so that she wouldn't wake up Paige, Anna tiptoed back into her living room, where the Playstation 2 was still hooked up, and she placed the Jak 3 disk into the tray. She waited impatiently for the game to load, and she skipped over the opening cutscene before getting to the main menu. However, something strange happened.

The minute she hit the Start Button, Anna suddenly felt a shock from the controller. She quickly dropped it and covered her mouth so that she wouldn't scream. In that moment, a message began to flash across the screen, and Anna rushed to turn the television down. "Guardian of Mar," a deep voice began, "Do you wish to return so soon?"

"Guardian of Mar?" Anna echoed, "What are you talking about?"

It took a minute for the voice to realize something. "You are not her," it pointed out, "But you are her friend."

"You mean Paige?" Anna asked in shock.

"Yes."

"What the hell?" Paige's friend asked, floored.

"Tell her that there will be more adventures in the future, and you shall become a part of them if you wish. There will be more trials for her."

"But how do you know her?" Anna questioned, but then a second later, she realized why Paige had been able to describe everything in vivid detail. Although she didn't believe it, it was the only possibility.

Was she…sucked into the game somehow? She asked herself, Yeah, I think that's what it was. I'll have to ask her.

"Be careful, young one," the voice warned as Anna became more and more afraid, "For you may fall into a trap one day."

"What are you talking about?" Anna demanded, but the voice was gone and the game returned to normal. She found herself hyperventilating in order to calm down. She was confused. Paige? A Guardian of Mar? Who was Mar?

"Oh yeah," she whispered to herself, "The founder of Haven City Paige was telling me about. But this is freaky. She couldn't have been sucked in. It's impossible."

But the possibility of Anna joining Paige on another venture was something else entirely. If only she could get her friend to confess to everything, then she wouldn't feel like she was being left in the dark.

And with that, Anna turned everything off and returned to her room, anxiously awaiting the next day, and the day after that.