Realm of the Lost

by Orsuros

Chapter 3: The Library

Silverstream tried flying one direction then another in the darkness. A bright light appeared and she flew straight toward it. By the time she noticed that a floor was underneath it, it was too late to stop herself. She landed with a thump on a hard stone floor and a few of her loose feathers flew off from the impact. One landed on her beak and she sneezed.

(Silverstream loses 2 stamina.)

She groaned. Nothing was broken, but she could feel where she’d have bruises. She looked around. She couldn’t tell if she was in a museum or massive library. Huge shelves of books lined the walls. Some scrolls were carefully unrolled and weighed down in glass cases. In some alcoves on the wall, inscriptions on stone and tablets were stored under similar protection.

“Wow! Headmare Twilight would love this place! I bet she’d never want to leave. Ocellus, too!”

Silverstream moved closer to the shelves. Many of the books were in languages she could read, but some were in languages she couldn’t even recognize. She was about to pull a book off the shelf when she heard the tap of tiny claws behind her.

She spun around and spotted a group of dragon-like creatures peeking around the corner. They spoke to each other in a strange language. Silverstream had always been good at speaking to unusual creatures. She waved at them.

“Hello! I’m Silverstream. I won’t hurt you. You don’t need to hide.”

Three of them slowly stepped into the open. They did look a lot like dragons, except they were thinner. And they had much simpler horns and fins. The tallest one was red and seemed to be male. He looked to be just a little bigger than spike, but he seemed fully grown. The other two were orange and yellow females, if they followed the same rules as dragons.

Red got bolder and approached, and Orange and Yellow followed behind him. He spoke in a cute squeaks and hisses. He seemed to want Silverstream to see something. The other two joined in.

Silverstream looked back at the shelf and reached out to take the book. The creatures didn’t seem to like that. She tried to think if these creatures had been in any lessons at school.

“Hmm… wait! I think I know what you are! You’re kobolds. But all the kobolds died off in the dragon wars centuries ago. That’s what Smolder and Fluttershy both said. They’ll be so excited if I can bring you back! If I remember right, kobolds live in little tribes that usually serve some big and powerful dragon.”

The kobolds nodded and pointed to a stone archways leading out of the room. A rune glowed above it, but it was different from any of the runes that Silverstream knew about. Red ran over to it and motioned for her to follow.

Silverstream was a little sad to see that Orange and Yellow weren’t going to come along, but the hallway beyond the door was amazing enough to make her wonder where Red was trying to lead her. Massive pillars flanked a huge hallway. Doors led to many rooms full of books that looked similar to the room she had just left. She looked up and could read the signs on metal plates above the doors.

Maps, magic, mankind… she could read the signs, but some of the words weren’t familiar. Red led her quickly down the hall. She gasped as she saw the painted carvings on the walls. They matched the signs above the doors in theme. Whoever had painted them had done an amazing job.

Red was leading her to the door at the end of the hall. There was no sign above it, but all around it were painted carvings of a dragon with books, scrolls, or stone tablets. The dragon was a faint yellow that reminded her of paper. His claws, tail, wings, and horns looked like they had been dipped in ink. In some pictures, he was happily gathering the books. In others, he was saving them from burning or ruined kingdoms. One scene looked suspiciously like Mount Aris when the storm creatures had attacked. Silverstream hummed to try to keep the bad memories away.

A rune lit up above the archway as they neared. Red ran through the door. Silverstream tried to keep up, but she stopped in place once she spotted a dragon in the center of the room. It was the dragon from the carvings. Torch was supposed to be the biggest dragon, according to Smolder, but this one might have been just as tall. He wasn’t big and bulky, though. He was long and slender. He was curled up behind a lectern that held a book. To his side, a large glass sphere full of swirling mist was held in a golden stand. The dragon looked through a large magnifying glass to read the small book. His fins and crest looked more like Spike’s than Smolder’s. His huge tail swayed slowly behind him as he placed a bookmark in the book in front of him and looked up.

“Yes, thank you for bringing me our guest, Sumac. Please stay while I figure out what she needs.”

The dragon smiled and beckoned for Silverstream to enter. He seemed friendly, so she tried not to feel intimidated by his size. Silverstream could see that he was resting on a huge bed of soft sand, and a gentle heat seemed to radiate from it.

“Welcome to my library, young hippogriff. In fact, I might be able to guess who you are. You look a lot like a picture I saw in that book about the royal hippogriff lines of Equus when Mount Aris was attacked. Hmm… let me get it.”

The dragon drew a few symbols in the sand. The book in front of him snapped shut and appeared on a small shelf near one of the walls. A book popped into the air in front of the dragon and floated with a yellow glow around it.

“Whoa! You can do magic! I didn’t think dragons could do anything like that.”

Silverstream couldn’t help but shout at the exciting find. The dragon chuckled and looked at the book.

“Ah, yes, my books do mention you. Silverstream. You’re a cousin to the royal line. I hope you have some interesting knowledge for me. My name is Scriptus. And I’ve learned many things over the years as I’ve gathered knowledge from numerous worlds. Rune magic is one of the more useful things I’ve learned.”

Silverstream stepped closer. It was lucky Scriptus kept his head close to the lectern. If he stretched out and stood up, she would have had to look straight up to talk to him.

“It’s great to meet you, Scriptus! You’re the biggest dragon I’ve ever met. I bet Smolder won’t believe me when I tell her how big you are.”

“It seems you aren’t afraid of dragons. Are the hippogriffs and dragons friends now?”

“Of course! Smolder is one of my best friends. And Spike is also my friend. I met them both at Twilight’s school.”

“Oh? Does Twilight have a school now? Her little friendship journal provided me a great glimpse into recent events in Equestria. I can see her ideals in you quite clearly.”

“Do you know Twilight? She disappeared, and then Cozy Glow was stealing all the magic, and-”

“Calm down!” Scriptus’s voice wasn’t angry, but it was firm. “Let’s go over this in a more sensible way. I’d love to hear all about your story, but I think you can tell it better.”

Silverstream paused and tried to think of how to best tell it. She began with the recent changes in magic and wove that into a story of how Equestria needed help. She told about how she had ended up at The Library and about how she needed to find her friends and take the magic back. She tried her best to keep herself calm and dignified.

Scriptus’s blue eyes stared into hers while he listened. He scratched his chin at a few points during the story and seemed to be thinking deeply.

“I would love to help you in what ways I can, but Equestria is only one of my many concerns. I must be ready at any time to pull in knowledge before it is lost forever as kingdoms, nations, and even worlds die. Countless secrets have been lost in the rare moments I have been distracted from my vigil.”

Scriptus looked over at the orb to his side. The mist stopped spinning and the colors revealed a city burning. Scriptus etched runes into the sand, and scrolls and stone tablets quickly began to appear with little pops in a circle of runes on the other side of the room.

“Ah, there.” Scriptus sighed. “Grandeur was nice enough to set up a system that mostly does this automatically, so we do have some time to talk. I sensed a magical disturbance just before you appeared, but you seem to be the only creature that appeared in The Library. Many of the creatures who rule parts of this land have blocked their lands from my scrying. I can sense that none of your friends are currently in the wastelands. I would have been able to feel a magical disturbance there. I hope that helps. If you want to find your friends, you should do a little reading first about this land and its many dangers. It’s the best thing to do before making any plans or decisions.”

“If it’s so bad, then why are you here?”

“To some, it’s a prison. Many call it Limbo. To me, it’s a place of freedom. I have many books on topics that rulers like Dragon Lord Scorch or Celestia didn’t want known. When I had to choose between exile and knowledge or obedience, I chose knowledge. And in Equus, I was limited to books from a single realm. Once I came here, I found ways to get just about any information or books I desire. Take my guide book, and Sumac will take you to one of my guest rooms. Also, if you want copies of any of the books that were burned on Mount Aris, I’d be happy to send them with you once you find a way back. Losing that much knowledge must have been terrible for your people.”

Silverstream shivered as she remembered the fires and screaming of the attack. She took a deep breath and put it out of her mind. Sumac tapped her shoulder and held out a book.

A Guide to The Realm of the Lost
By Scriptus

Silverstream took it and started to follow the kobold.

“Sumac will see to your needs,” Scriptus said. “Just ring the bell in your room, and he will come. You are free to go look for your friends or read my books. I would also like to hear more about events on Equus in recent years, but I would hate to keep you from your own important goals.”

“Thank you, Scriptus.”

Sumac seemed a little impatient now as he led her down the long hallway with pillars and painted carvings. They walked past all the rooms with books and out a doorway opposite to Scriptus’s room. A new hallway split into three. To the left and right were guest rooms. Those hallways ended in large balconies that overlooked a volcanic landscape in the distance. The final hallway led to an entry hall full of huge statues of Scriptus. Stairs led down to three gateways, but Silverstream didn’t get a good look at them.

Sumac unlocked the closest room on the right and made his cute noises until Silverstream stepped into the room. He bowed and handed her the key and pointed at a bell on a table in the center of the room.

Silverstream nodded and smiled at the kobold before he ran off. She opened the book and was immediately astounded by the detailed map. The Library was one of seven locations listed on the map of The Realm of the Lost. Six outer realms were divided into what looked like little kingdoms, and those all connected to a place called The Wasteland in the center. The Library was to the northwest of the center. To the west of the center was a place called The Nexus. It shared a border with The Library. To the northeast was another neighboring section called The Bazaar. To the east were the Shadow Mountains. To the southwest was the Verdant Jungle. And finally, to the southeast was a place called Jester’s Court.

The book was well written, but Silverstream had trouble with all the strange new terms in it. She put it down in frustration after trying to skim through it. Some things were familiar and seemed to make sense. She learned that Grandeur was a griffon and lived in The Bazaar. The guide book also said that it would be better to stay away from anywhere but The Library and The Bazaar without proper magical protections. Silverstream couldn’t make heads or tails of what the book was saying about what specific protections she might need.

It was too hard to focus. Silverstream felt like she had to do something besides sit and read while her friends might be in danger, and she had a few options.

1. Try to get other helpful books from Sumac
2. Return and speak with Scriptus
3. Explore the library without help
4. Travel to The Wastelands
5. Travel to The Nexus
6. Travel to The Bazaar
7. (Costs 2 friendship tokens) - Learn how to speak with the kobolds

Author's Note:

Voting closed for this chapter.
Or feel free to leave an alternate suggestion in the comments. If I see any great ones, I might use them instead.

Character sheets and story notes here.

And here's the behind the curtains rolls/events:

!mythic scene start The Library
(Altered) The Library
As an altered scene, I had to try to rethink how I wanted to start it.

Body !1d6, Fly !1d10
Body 2, Fly 3
Difficulty 5 check to not take damage after exiting the vortex. 2 stamina lost.

!mythic ask 8 does silverstream get distracted by something in the library?
does silverstream get distracted by something in the library?
Yes

Speak with mythic creatures !1d4
Speak with mythic creatures 4
!1d6
2

!mythic ask 7 Is she too distracted to follow the guide runes?
Is she too distracted to follow the guide runes?
No
Silverstream got distracted by the kobolds, but she didn't roll well enough to communicate with them on anything more than a very basic level, but they also helped guide her to where she should go.

Mind !1d6 Charm !1d8 Honorable !1d10
Mind 6 Charm 7 Honorable 8
Mind !1d8
Mind 7
!mythic ask 6 Is Scriptus impressed enough to offer special help? 
Is Scriptus impressed enough to offer special help?
No
Rolls to help determine how difficult it would be to get additional help from Scriptus. Silverstream rolled well enough to get some basic help from the busy dragon.

Mind !1d6
Mind 1
!mythic ask 4 does silverstream misunderstand something important in the guide book?
does silverstream misunderstand something important in the guide book?
No
Silverstream failed her roll to understand the guide book, but I let her get some of the very basic concepts out of it. If she has more time to look at it later, she will be able to try again.

Comments

[omegasnowfall]

im intreiged (sorry.)

keep going.