//------------------------------//
// Chapter the Twelfth: Making an Entrance 
// Story: Failure, Eternally Retold, Part One: The Human Element 
// by Kiernan 
//------------------------------//

When the remaining party members awoke the following morning, Terra had organized everything inside their cart and looked over any damages that had accrued as a result of their hasty retreat. He had felt, as he was pulling the cart, that one of the wheels was out of alignment. He was relieved to find out that it was just a broken wedge on the axel. That was an easy fix.

Neither Twilight nor Fluttershy had been awake last night to hear the conversation that had taken place between Nik and Terra. Many of their questions were similar in nature to those of the previous night. When Twilight found out that their destination was a library, she became quite excited at the prospect of seeing the countless books that lined the shelves. She couldn't wait to see it. However, there was one thing that had her quite confused. 

"I've never heard of the town of Gim. If the library is as impressive as you say, shouldn't it be well known?"

Terra finished his grapefruit. "It's not called the Library of Gim because of its location, but rather its owner. Gim-Palarcanus, the father of thaumaturgy, built it to house his collected knowledge throughout the millennia."

"What's thaumaturgy?" asked Fluttershy.

"It's another word for magic," responded Twilight knowingly. "But it also pertains to conjury, invocations, sorcery and supernatural elements."

"That's right," nodded Terra. "Entrance is prohibited without invitation, however. The knowledge we house is dangerous stuff. If we were to misuse it, the amount of damage we could cause would be devastating."

"And you just plan on letting us in without vetting us first?" Nik leaned forward. "I've been referred to as a dangerous creature. Who's to say I won't cause any damages?"

"You're with Fluttershy. She's not under duress, so you have Kai's approval for entry."

"That seems like a lousy security system."

"What does the security system matter?" asked Twilight. "It's a library."

"It needs to keep out the assassins. If they can just walk in, then there's nothing stopping them from attacking us again."

Terra stood up. "As soon as you see the door, you'll change your tune. And on that note, we should be on our way."

Terra lead them through the hills and bluffs, over streams and through woods, finally coming to a stop at a nondescript cliff face. For the first time since they'd met, Nik could see clearly Terra's face with enough light to appreciate it. It had been too dark the night prior, and also within the cave. He was of average height, for a pony, and his green mane was arranged into a puffy pompadour with yellow highlights. Over his dark brown coat he wore a cloak with two insignias. The first was an oak tree on a hill, the other was a blue pentagram.

"Here we are," he said, approaching the cliff face. "This is one of the six entrances to the Library of Gim."

Twilight furrowed her brow. "What are you talking about? It's just a wall."

"To the untrained eye, but for those who know where to look, it's clear as day." Standing up on his hind legs, Terra reeled back and slammed his front hooves against the wall.

Nik was expecting the cliff to part, leading them all into a room filled with books. However, that did not match what had happened at all. Nik and the girls just stared at Terra in silence as nothing changed around them.

"That's not supposed to happen. Let me try again." Reeling back again, Terra slammed his hooves against the stone. Still nothing.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" asked Twilight, cocking her head to the side. "Because it seems that nothing's happening."

Terra sat down and rubbed his hooves together. Nik saw a small spark form between them before fizzling out. "I'm out of mana," he said, having come to understand why the door wasn't responding to his attempts. "You need to use a spell to open the door, but I've run out."

Twilight approached the wall, pressing her hoof against it. She could feel some manner of energy pulsing from behind the stone, a phenomenon she was wholly unfamiliar with. "There's definitely something beyond this wall. What kind of spell is needed to open the door?"

Terra rubbed his hooves together. "It's a complex set of eight spells triggered in exactly the right order. If you'd permit me the use of some of your magic, I can open the door posthaste."

Twilight nodded and her horn took on a mild glow. Grabbing her horn in one of his hooves, Terra felt her power flowing freely into his grasp. Rubbing his hooves together, her slammed his hooves against the wall a third time. This attempt was met with success. Lightning shot out of Terra's hooves and ran across the wall, forming a pentagram. The shape rotated clockwise, slowly falling into the cliff and unrolling into a stone path meandering through a purple void.

"That's more like it." Terra turned back to the group. "This is the entrance to the Library of Gim. At the other end of this bridge lies the collected knowledge of the father of thaumaturgy. Anything you could ever want to know about magic, miracles, summoning demons or incantations lies within."

"Why in Equestria would we want to know how to summon demons?" asked Twilight. "We're not evil."

"Neither are many of the thralls you can call forth," explained Terra, starting down the path to the library. "They're just there to do the bidding of their master. Whether they take joy in doing so is up to them."

The quartet walked carefully across the bridge, with Nikolas pulling the cart behind him at the rear. There was plenty of space on the bridge to ensure that he wouldn't fall off the sides, but he still felt nervous as he walked. That feeling dissipated, however, as he found himself at the other end of the bridge. 

Gazing into the library, they saw mountainous piles of books, stacked higher than even Nik could reach without a ladder. These literary pillars twisted and writhed in every direction, forming a maze of papers. There were no shelves to hold the information, there was no card catalogue to sort out the mess, just an endless intertwining maze of limitless knowledge. Nik would have been concerned about these books reaching the ceiling, but there was no ceiling. Above them were swirling grey clouds, with lightning periodically arcing between them. 

Twilight felt a rush of energy as she entered. While it could be argued that her burst could have been triggered by the excitement of just how many books there were, or the rage she felt from the complete lack of organization and apparent care for the books therein, she could feel the flow of magical energy was higher here than anywhere she had ever been. Even the simplest of spells would have been immensely powerful if she were to cast them in this library.

"My esteemed guests," smiled Terra, stepping in front of them and turning to face them. "Welcome to the Great Library of Gim-Palarcanus."