LITMIR.BIZ

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was the only word Jim could think of to describe the room in which they stood, for the ceiling receded into a gloom that prevented the naked eye from perceiving its exact height. Around them, massive columns rose to support the invisible ceiling, and row upon row of shelves joined them in an orderly fashion. The aisles they formed, and the intersecting rows between them, produced a layout like a chess board. At each junction a slender stand had been erected, graceful ironwork that bent, swan-necked, and ended in a hook from which a small crystal hung from a metal chain. The crystal provided just enough illumination to allow those in the room to see to the next lamp.

      ‘Amazing,’ said Amirantha, as he regarded the row upon row of books.

      Jim echoed his tone when he said, ‘I’ve been to the Royal Archives in Rillanon, but this library dwarfs them in scope. How many volumes are here, Pug?’

      ‘I’m sure I have no idea,’ said the magician as they moved between the shelves; some vanished into the gloom above, and most held ladders set on rails along the wall. ‘Perhaps the librarian can tell you.’

      ‘This is Sarth?’ asked Amirantha.

      ‘That Which Was Sarth,’ corrected Pug.

      ‘I don’t follow,’ said the Warlock.

      Turning with a wry smile, Pug said, ‘Before the invasion of the Emerald Queen’s army, the Ishapians abandoned their abbey near the town of Sarth.’

      ‘I still am not clear,’ said Amirantha following Pug down a long narrow passage between vaults.

      Pug stopped and said, ‘The Ishapians have a prophecy, or perhaps had is a better choice of words. It said that a great upheaval would come upon the land, and after the destruction of the west, only That Which Was Sarth would remain.’

      Amirantha looked at Jim, then Pug, and said, ‘Was Sarth destroyed during the Emerald Queen’s invasion?’

      ‘Essentially,’ said Pug, ‘though the old abbey itself survived relatively intact; how it would have fared had the brothers still occupied it…?’ He shrugged.

      ‘So, they made the prophecy come true,’ said Amirantha, as Pug resumed walking.

      As the Warlock and Jim caught up, Pug said, ‘Perhaps. Or perhaps there is more destruction headed our way, and only this place, That Which Was Sarth, is destined to survive it.’

      ‘Exactly where are we?’ asked Amirantha. ‘I assume somewhere underground, as I did not notice anything resembling a window in the last two vaults we passed through.’

      ‘We are very deep underground,’ said Pug. ‘As to where, I promised the monks I would never reveal their location unless I have their leave. You were transported here by magic outside your understanding, so I can safely assume that you have no way of returning here after our visit.’

      Amirantha chuckled. ‘Indeed.’

      They reached a large door and Pug pulled it open. The room behind it was small, a table occupied half its area, over which stood a white-haired magician in black robes. ‘Father,’ said Magnus to Pug as they entered. Then he greeted Amirantha and Jim.

      Next to Magnus stood a monk dressed in the simple light brown robes of the Ishapians. He was a nondescript man of middle years, with a round head topped with a thatch of brown hair cut in a tonsure. He inclined his head in greeting and said, ‘Pug. You bring us guests?’

      ‘Brother Victor, these are our friends; may I introduce James, Baron of the King’s Court in Rillanon, and great grandson of Lord James of Krondor, also known as “Jimmy the Hand”.’

      The monk smiled. ‘We possess a wonderful story about your ancestor that you may not have heard before,’ said the monk.

      ‘And this is Amirantha, Warlock of the Satumbria, a people from across the great ocean. He is something of an expert on demons and I have need of his wisdom.’

      ‘Your vouching for them grants an indulgence,’ said the monk. ‘But the Father Superior may not be so kindly disposed.’

      ‘Which is why I came straight here,’ said Pug with a nod.

      The monk smiled. ‘So I should mention your visit when? An hour or so after you depart?’

      ‘That should be ample time,’ said Pug. ‘We don’t plan to stay long, unless the need arises.’

      ‘Well then,’ said the monk wearing a wry expression, ‘what do you seek this time?’

      Magnus turned to Amirantha and Jim, ‘We’ve been testing Brother Victor’s vast knowledge on every subject imaginable.’

      The monk held up his hands, palms outward, and said, ‘Hardly that.’

      ‘He is the living index of where everything in this vast library is to be found,’ said Pug.

      Amirantha said, ‘Simply, prodigious; but don’t you keep some sort of written record here, too?’

      ‘Of course,’ said the monk, ‘and a dozen of our brothers labour ceaselessly to update our records as new material is gathered, but until they complete their task, we make do with cobbled together notes, and this.’ He tapped the side of his head with his forefinger.

      ‘What do you know of the Demon Brothers?’ asked Pug.

      The monk’s expression stilled. After almost a minute, he closed his eyes. ‘I believe there has been mention of them…’ His eyes widened. ‘Wait! I’ll be right back.’ And Brother Victor hurried from the room.

      The four remaining men exchanged curious glances, which became expressions of deeper puzzlement as they continued to wait. Half an hour passed before the monk finally returned, a dusty, old, leather-bound volume in his hand.

      ‘It should be in here,’ he said as if he had only just stepped out of the room then reappeared.

      ‘What is it?’ asked Pug as the monk laid the book down on the table and opened it gently.

      ‘It’s the chronicle of one Varis Logondis, a Quegan trader who lived about four hundred years ago. He was a compulsive journal keeper who believed every detail of his life deserved to be recorded.

      ‘In fact, most of his life was unremarkable, unless you happen to be an aficionado of travelogues, long discourse on mercantile trends, or the state of Varis’s digestive health on any given day during his life. But, he does remark in passing on many contemporaneous issues, which are useful in providing corroboration or refutation of other histories and accounts of the same period.

      ‘But one of his remarks has stuck with me over the years.’ He scanned the page. ‘Ah, there it is. Let me read it out loud, the dialect is somewhat antiquated and his spelling is atrocious. “In the evening, we came upon a village, by name, Hamtas on Jaguard, whereupon we were welcomed at an inn by name, The Restful Station. There did we encounter soldiers of the Empire, at their ease after a battle.

      ‘“I remark upon this for two counts,”—I am certain he meansreasons here—‘“the first, that they were not of the militia, but were legionaries from Queg that had been haste posted to this region, and the last, that they had struggled mightily against the Demon Brothers and their living dead.”’

      ‘Four hundred years ago, most of the Bitter Sea was still under control of the Empire of Great Kesh,’ Pug remarked.

      ‘What is truly interesting about this passage, Pug, is that its timeline supports two other sources that we are aware of, one of which is in our possession.’ He looked at the magician and his two companions with a satisfied smile. ‘Varis wrote sixty five volumes over his lifetime, so I had to skim a couple before I could locate this passage.’ He pointed to the page and said, ‘The other source we possess on that struggle is a fairly standard tally of captured goods returned to Queg by the expedition Varis encountered. We know that he was surprised to find Imperial Legionaries in that town instead of local soldiers, and both accounts imply that something significant was being

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