Down and out, and out of luck, we're spinning but the needle's stuck
"Watch your step." Biting the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing at his contortions, Maea pretended she hadn't seen his stumble. She trailed light fingertips over the spine of the old volumes as they passed, affectionate the way one might stroke a cat or a favorite blanket.
"Books are more than just words," she replied in response to Talyson's grumblings. "While they certainly contain important information on everything you might want to know about this world, they also allow a glimpse into the minds of the person who wrote it. Each volume carry fragments of thought left behind by the authors, spanning across the years from before the first war and all across the centuries of isolation." She smiled at Tal, a bit melancholy. "For a long time, this library was everything the people of this region had to explain the world. As far as I'm concerned, it's the single most valuable thing in the whole of the Hollowed Grounds."
Leading the way into a hallway and down a spiraling flight of stairs, Maea threw a long look at the Loreseekers old quarters but passed them by, making for the knowledge keepers office. Scholars and librarians, they were few in number but entirely devoted to the care of the books, regardless of the comings and goings of guilds and leaders. More permanent than even the Spire itself, Maea remembered being frightened and fascinated by the robed figures as a child. It had been an early aspiration of hers to join their ranks, until she learned of her failing eyesight and better understood what it meant to give her life to a task.
Knocking on an unassuming looking office door, there was no answer. Daring to crack the door open peek inside showed the room to be empty,. Humming to herself, quiet footsteps echoing in the stone-walled hallways had her look over her shoulder, at a quite keeper burdened with a stack of ancient Scrolls.
"Excuse me - do you know where we might find Ms Thrushwick?" Maea asked.
The robed figure, a young man with sandy hair, nodded and pointed to where he had come from.
"In the archives. But she's a bit busy, there's been an accident."
"An accident? What happened?" Maea shot a quick look at Tal, growing worried.
"A shelf collapsed, and we discovered some paper wasp nest. Old, but they have done some damage to the collection. Ms Thrushwick is understandably distraught."
"I see. Thank you for your time." The young man nodded and moved on.
Maea turned to Tal. "What do you want to do? We could come back later, or check to see if she will receive your delivery anyway..."
"Books are more than just words," she replied in response to Talyson's grumblings. "While they certainly contain important information on everything you might want to know about this world, they also allow a glimpse into the minds of the person who wrote it. Each volume carry fragments of thought left behind by the authors, spanning across the years from before the first war and all across the centuries of isolation." She smiled at Tal, a bit melancholy. "For a long time, this library was everything the people of this region had to explain the world. As far as I'm concerned, it's the single most valuable thing in the whole of the Hollowed Grounds."
Leading the way into a hallway and down a spiraling flight of stairs, Maea threw a long look at the Loreseekers old quarters but passed them by, making for the knowledge keepers office. Scholars and librarians, they were few in number but entirely devoted to the care of the books, regardless of the comings and goings of guilds and leaders. More permanent than even the Spire itself, Maea remembered being frightened and fascinated by the robed figures as a child. It had been an early aspiration of hers to join their ranks, until she learned of her failing eyesight and better understood what it meant to give her life to a task.
Knocking on an unassuming looking office door, there was no answer. Daring to crack the door open peek inside showed the room to be empty,. Humming to herself, quiet footsteps echoing in the stone-walled hallways had her look over her shoulder, at a quite keeper burdened with a stack of ancient Scrolls.
"Excuse me - do you know where we might find Ms Thrushwick?" Maea asked.
The robed figure, a young man with sandy hair, nodded and pointed to where he had come from.
"In the archives. But she's a bit busy, there's been an accident."
"An accident? What happened?" Maea shot a quick look at Tal, growing worried.
"A shelf collapsed, and we discovered some paper wasp nest. Old, but they have done some damage to the collection. Ms Thrushwick is understandably distraught."
"I see. Thank you for your time." The young man nodded and moved on.
Maea turned to Tal. "What do you want to do? We could come back later, or check to see if she will receive your delivery anyway..."
Maea
