Summoner 21, page 24
No matter the reason for it being here, the skeleton had more than just a chain on its neck. I bent down to examine it further, and my heart raced as I spied something hooked onto the collar like a charm. I carefully leaned forward and unfastened it from the chain.
“Gryff, is that--” Xan began to ask.
“Yeah.” I nodded as I held it aloft for the goddesses to see. “I think it’s the key.”
“Be careful,” Sera warned me. “You don’t know if something is on that, like an enchantment, or poison.”
“Thanks, but I think it’s fine,” I assessed. “If it was going to harm me, I think it would have done so already.”
I examined the key in my hand. It was delicate, almost like it could break at any moment, but the metal contained tiny filigreed details I probably wouldn’t have noticed without enhanced vision. I admired the craftsmanship for a moment more and then crossed back over to the stone wall.
I could feel the eyes of the Archons on me as I went to insert the key, and I took a breath to steady my hands before I carefully pushed the piece of metal into the keyhole. It slid in perfectly, and when I turned the key, I heard a clicking sound.
“Oh, fuck,” I muttered. It worked.
Suddenly, the stone door began to move, and I took a step back as it swung toward me.
This was it, the moment we’d been waiting for. I wasn’t sure what we were going to find behind the door, but I hoped with all of my might it was more than just another useless chamber.
The seconds passed like hours, but when the door finally stopped moving, I was greeted by an amazing sight.
“Holy shit,” I breathed.
Chapter Twelve
“Whoa,” Carth breathed behind me. “This… this is amazing.”
“You can say that again,” I agreed with the green-skinned goddess as we stared at the chamber through the entry.
We’d just unlocked the door to a hidden library.
The room wasn’t what I’d expected it to be. For one thing, despite being locked, it somehow glowed with soft light, but when I peered around, I couldn’t find a source. Instead of the cold, gray stone of the dungeon, the chamber was furnished like the more beautiful rooms upstairs. The walls and floors were the same veined, sparkling marble, but there were a number of thick black rugs that lined the area and brought a warm comfort to the space.
The space was considerably smaller than the library upstairs, but there were quite a few bookcases full of books, and each tome was bound in varying shades of red, black, and green leather. A few other artifacts sat atop the shelves, but I wasn’t as interested in the baubles as I was the volumes.
Were we finally going to discover information about the moon entity within those pages?
“I can’t believe this has been down here the entire time,” Hunnah murmured as her sterling eyes trailed over the room. “To think, we were roaming the castle for so long without ever knowing about this room.”
“If only I’d gone down here when I discovered the dungeon in the first place,” Xan remarked.
“It’s probably better that you didn’t,” I noted. “Back then, this room probably wouldn’t have meant much to you, and since none of you were exactly on our team yet…”
“Right,” the flame-winged Archon interjected. “That’s a fair point.”
“Should we go in and check it out?” Sera prompted us. “There’s no use gawking at it from all the way over here.”
“Maybe we should make sure there aren’t any traps first?” Quilla spoke up. “The last thing we need is for one of those gnarly-looking traps ensnaring us the moment we step foot in there.”
“Quilla’s right,” I said. “I didn’t feel as cautious about the key, but we have to exercise more caution with this room. If it’s been a secret this entire time, there’s a reason for it. Plus, there’s obviously some magic involved since the room is so well preserved, and I don’t want anyone to get hurt.”
“We don’t want you to get hurt,” Sera emphasized as she rested a hand on her curvy hip. “You forget we’re much stronger than regular mortal women, Gryff.”
“Trust me, I know,” I assured her. “But it’s pretty clear the owner of this castle wasn’t a human, so they were likely an Archon or something else. If there’s even a way you can be harmed, a fellow Archon would know it.”
“I suppose that’s true,” the dark-winged goddess sighed.
“I have an idea,” Veopa proposed. “I could shapeshift into some other form, perhaps something less solid, more akin to mist, but still retain my vision. I doubt any trap would be able to affect me in that kind of form. I could search around the room for anything strange or potentially dangerous, and once it’s clear, everyone can enter.”
“That’s not a bad idea,” I admitted.
As crazy as that plan sounded, Veopa made a good argument. I would’ve preferred to enter the chamber myself, but I knew that wasn’t an option. I briefly considered the idea of equipping myself with some of my supplementary monsters, but I knew Sera would shoot the idea down in an instant. I was still technically her master, but I didn’t want to do anything that would upset her.
“Would it be better to use one of Hunnah’s creatures instead?” Sera raised an eyebrow, and Hunnah whipped around at lightning speed to glare at the yellow-eyed Archon.
“No,” the warrior goddess growled. “I will not send one of my monsters in there. My wolves might be tough, but I’m unwilling to sacrifice them should there be an actual trap.”
“You’d rather sacrifice your sister?” Sera countered in an icy tone.
“I volunteered,” Veopa insisted before Hunnah could raise her voice right back. “I wouldn’t have done so if I didn’t think I could do it. Please, master, allow me to help.”
I deliberated for a moment, and then I gave the succubus Archon a nod. “If you think it’s safe for you to enter the chamber in a different form, I think we should try it, but if anything seems off, I want you back here straight away, alright?”
“Thank you, master.” Veopa smiled at me, and the succubus Archon’s fangs flashed in the light and brought an element of danger to her gorgeous face. “I’ll be careful, I promise.”
As the silver-haired goddess straightened her shoulders, the rest of us backed up to give her adequate space to shift. I’d seen the goddess change forms in much tighter quarters, but if she was potentially putting her life on the line for us, I wanted her to feel comfortable and prepared.
Suddenly, a low glow appeared around her, and the Archon began to dissolve into a mist that resembled the essence the monster goddesses transformed into when they were recalled to my consciousness, only it was the same silvery shade as her bright eyes and hair.
I watched the stream of mist with fascination as it pulsed through the air, and then I sensed a stir in the back of my mind.
I’m heading in, Gryff, Veopa’s voice rang out. Wish me luck.
“Good luck,” I said. “Please, Veopa, be careful.”
I’ve got this, she insisted. I’ll be right back, master.
The stream of silver mist took off and slipped into the chamber with ease, and as I waited for her return, I couldn’t help but feel antsy. I hoped the room would be trap-free, but I’d come to expect that sort of thing when it came to places in the Shadowscape. Things in this dimension always had an element of danger, and you couldn’t place your trust in anything.
I watched the mist travel and wind around to every last corner of the room, until finally, it emerged through the doorway and transformed back into Veopa.
“No hidden traps,” she announced as she smoothed her hair down. “There appear to be no malicious enchantments, no weapons. It’s just a room.”
“Thank the Maker.” I released the breath I didn’t realize I was holding. “And thank you, Veopa. I really appreciate you checking it out.”
“Of course.” The Archon nodded. “I would do anything for you, master, especially if it had to do with your safety.”
“Alright, enough sucking up,” Carth grumbled. “Can we finally go inside? The smell of this dungeon is making my stomach turn.”
“This chamber hasn’t been opened in who knows how long,” I reminded the horned goddess. “There’s a chance it’ll smell even mustier, or worse--”
“I’m willing to take that chance,” Carth interjected, and I stifled a laugh.
“Alright, let’s go,” I decided. I braced my bandolier with one hand, took a breath, and then stepped into the room.
I could hardly contain the feeling of awe as we entered the chamber, and my lips curled up into a smile as I peered around the room in wonder.
“This is incredible,” Xan breathed as she wrapped her arms around herself. “I can’t believe this has been down here the entire time.”
“Me, either,” I said.
“Who knows what kind of histories and tales those books hold,” Carth noted as she skimmed her fingers across the marble wall.
“Whoever lived here took the time to hide these away so perfectly that no one would ever find them,” I mused as I approached the shelves. “If there wasn’t something of value down here, I’d be absolutely shocked.”
“Let’s keep our fingers crossed,” Veopa sighed. “It would be a shame if we went through all of this effort only for it to be anticlimactic.”
“We need to get to work,” I suggested. “There are six bookcases and seven of us. Everyone, start opening covers and see what you can uncover. We’re looking for anything about the moon, the entity, or otherwise. If you find anything of note, don’t keep it to yourselves. Even the tiniest hint of information could be helpful.”
The Archons nodded collectively, and then we split up and got to searching.
Each of us chose a case to comb through, and I ended up pulling from the same one as Xan.
“I’ll take the top rows,” I decided as my eyes trailed over the ten individual shelves. “You go ahead and start on the bottom. We’ll meet in the middle.”
“Yes, sir.” The Archon winked at me with her beautiful amethyst eyes.
After I grabbed the first five volumes on the shelf, I chose an empty table in the far-right corner of the room, spread out the books, and took a seat.
“Master, there are some paper and quills down here,” Veopa announced as she held a stack of loose-leaf paper aloft. “Would it be helpful for us to jot down notes?”
“That would be great,” I agreed with the Archon. “Could you pass some over to me and anyone else who might want them?”
“Of course,” the succubus goddess replied, and as she glided through the room and passed out the materials, I felt like I was back in class at the Academy. It was a strange feeling, but not an unwelcome one. Though I’d spent more time out in the field than I had in actual lectures, I’d enjoyed my time as a student, and the idea of conducting research was sort of exciting.
The first book I chose was the same red as the former books in the third-floor library, and I was surprised by how heavy it was. I took care to open it as slowly as possible. With how old this castle was, I didn’t want to risk damaging the spine.
I immediately thought about Arwyn and how amazed she would be with this place. The crimson-haired professor would have been fascinated by all of these ancient materials, and I could see her glowing smile in my head.
I felt a pang of sadness as I thought of my fiancée, and I began to wonder what she was up to in Mistral, and whether or not she and the others were safe. I missed my women and children so much, and while it was easy to succumb to the gloom, I reminded myself I was doing all of this for them. The sooner we found what we were searching for, the sooner I could return home to them. Besides, it wasn’t as if I was going to abandon these books. I intended to bring back as many volumes as possible for the research team to pour over, which would surely make Arwyn’s day.
Once my quill was prepared to take notes, I opened the book, and I was surprised to discover the pages were filled with similar black glyphs as the beige book I’d taken from the library the first time I’d been in the castle. However, these glyphs were slightly different from the others. They still held a bit of familiarity like the ones in Carth’s book, but in a stronger dose.
“Strange,” I remarked, and I brought the book closer to my face. Unsurprisingly, that didn’t do much, and I let out a slight huff of frustration. “Damn it, I just want to read you.”
Suddenly, a tingle ran up my spine, and my head swam with dizziness. I used one hand to brace myself on the arm of my chair and then closed my eyes. Was it just exhaustion finally catching up to me, or was this something different?
I waited until I no longer felt like the room was spinning, and when I opened my eyes, I was greeted by a surprising sight.
“What the fuck?” I breathed.
The glyphs in the book had been replaced by the Mistral language.
How had that happened? Just moments ago, the books were impossible to read, but now they were written in my native tongue?
I thumbed through the pages to make sure it wasn’t just my mind playing tricks on me, but sure enough, every page was filled with Mistral. Was it an enchantment of some sort to keep prying eyes from reading classified information?
“Gryff?” Xan peered over the top of an emerald green book. “What’s going on? You look as if you’ve seen a ghost.”
“No ghosts.” I shook my head. “But something here is definitely strange.”
“Stranger than being in an ancient hidden library in a dungeon?” Carth raised an eyebrow.
“Stranger than that,” I replied, and then I quickly explained to the Archons what had just happened. Each of them looked up from their books as I recounted the shift in language, and their eyes appeared as if they were about to bulge out of their skulls.
“So, you can actually read these?” Hunnah asked as she stared down at her book.
“Yeah.” I frowned. “Why, can you not?”
“I can somewhat, but not without difficulty,” she admitted. “Whatever language was used to pen these books is far older than anything I’ve read before.”
“How is that possible?” I wondered. “To me, it reads just as plain as the common tongue.”
“You are the Beastmaker,” Sera pointed out to me. “If anyone here can read this language, it makes sense that it would be you.”
“It sounds like you unlocked some sort of magic that allowed you to translate it to your own language,” Carth suggested with a slight tilt of her head.
“That’s so strange,” I muttered, and I peered back down at the book. The words appeared to me as clear as day, so why couldn’t the Archons read them, too? “I managed to make it happen by expressing my frustration. Maybe you could try that? Urge the book to become more readable?”
“We can attempt it, but I don’t know if it will do any good.” Hunnah frowned.
“So, Gryff, what does it say?” Quilla prompted me as a serious expression settled over her fairy-like features.
“That’s a great question,” I replied. “I haven’t had a chance to actually comprehend the words.”
“Well, take a little while to examine it, then,” Xan proposed. “It may turn out to have something useful, or it could be something as trivial as a diary. It’s really hard to tell without inspection.”
“Got it.” I nodded at the umber-skinned goddess. “I’ll start looking through. If it doesn’t seem to have any importance, I’ll move on to something else. There are so many books in here, and I can’t expect the first one I pulled to be the precise one we need.”
“No, but it would certainly be convenient if it was,” Sera chuckled. “It would save us a lot of time and effort.”
“Well, you’ll be the first to know if it’s the one,” I laughed lightly.
The library fell back into silence, and I settled further into my chair and began to read through the book.
While the language was clearly Mistral, the words themselves were a little outdated, and I found myself struggling to comprehend the formality of it. I wasn’t a poor reader, but it was as if this were a different dialect of the common tongue that I wasn’t familiar with, something old-fashioned. I forced myself to take my time as I read through the pages, and I dedicated myself to analyzing each paragraph with the same amount of focus as I had in school before an exam.
The book turned out to be about monster identification, and while it was interesting to read about the old ways they classified creatures, I wasn’t seeing anything that even vaguely resembled the monster on the moon, so I ended up moving on to the next book on the shelf.
I continued on with this for what felt like hours, and after I closed the fourth book, I took a break and looked around at the other Archons. I could tell they were struggling to comprehend the texts as well, but I appreciated the effort nonetheless.
“Anyone find anything?” I wondered as I stood up and stretched my arms above my head.
“Unfortunately not,” Xan sighed, and the Archon raised her hands up and began to massage her temples. “These books are interesting, but they don’t seem topical. They almost feel like they’re decoys.”
“Do you think they were placed down here to conceal the real book?” I inquired.
“I think there’s a strong chance,” the azure-winged Archon replied. “Why would you fill an entire hidden library with books that don’t matter? Why go through all of the effort?”
“They were probably worried about someone breaking in,” I said as my brain caught on to what Xan was thinking. “They kept so many prisoners down here, I’m sure they wanted further security in case the key to the room was lost or stolen.
“Then there has to be something of value in here,” Hunnah mused. “It’s like all of the books in the upstairs library. The only ones that really mattered were the ones hidden away on the shelf.”
“Then let’s try to find that shelf,” I announced.
The Archons and I began to comb through the books at a faster pace, and we placed the rejects in stacks on the marble floor. It didn’t take long for the stack to grow as tall as me, and once the stack grew too cumbersome, we started another.
