Call of Kuyr

by J C Gilbert

  Being The Library's Keeper certainly had its upside. However, those were married to some significant downsides. I dodged the Librarian coming into the map. Could I dodge her on the way out too? And what will she say tomorrow? My heart sank.

  I ran harder.

  There was a sudden pain in my right foot, and just as suddenly the world was becoming sideways. I tripped pretty frequently while jogging but instantly knew that this was different.

  Panic rocketed through my system as ancient pattern recognition instincts told me I was falling off a cliff. I spun about for something to hold, but there was nothing. In my panic, the map of The Library flung from my hand and spun off into the grass.

  I turned about and saw just how high up I was.

  The sun must have been close to setting. Some distant part of my mind noted that it was quite pretty.

  And then I was falling, and falling fast. The cliff must have jutted out from the mountainside because there was nothing but the distant trees below and the wind rushing in my face. I screamed in pure terror.

  This is the end, I thought. I'm going to die on this mountain, and no one will even know where to look for me. For an instant, I worried about who was going to help Mom with the envelopes.

  I closed my eyes and waited for impact.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  By this time, I was pretty used to strange things happening, but it seemed beyond a hope for something to come and save me now.

  I was wrong.

  There was a flash of light. For a moment, I was somewhere else. The Library? Were those books? Then there was another flash, and I was falling again.

  I hit the grass with a thud.

  The wind was knocked out of me, and my shoulder ached. But-

  "No way," I said to the dirt pressing into my face. I rolled over onto my back and looked up at the peach colored sky. Brilliant purples were mixing in as the majesty of the night mingled with the blush of the day.

  Gingerly, I sat up and looked around. There, in the grass next to me, was the map of The Library. I picked it up, and peered over the cliff, the cliff from which I was moments before falling from.

  "Huh," I said.

  ***

  "Well it certainly doesn't sound like anything any other Keeper has described to me before," said the Librarian, "and you are sure that you saw The Library before you were, er, how did you put it?"

  "Teleported," I said.

  "Yes, well, before you were teleported?"

  "I am certain."

  "I see. Well, you should probably avoid doing that in the future."

  "How am I meant to avoid doing it when I don't know how I did it?"

  "Maybe see if you can limit plunging to your doom."

  "Thanks," I said.

  "Oh, and about that. Did you really think it was a good idea going jogging alone in the wilderness?" She looked angry.

  "I just had to get away, OK?"

  Her expression softened. "I understand," she said with a sigh, "you are under a lot of pressure. More pressure than any Keeper before you. To be honest, I'm more than a little out of my depth too."

  "We'll get through," I said, placing a hand on her significantly more massive hand.

  "I found out something interesting today," she said brightening up.

  "Oh?" I asked. Hank was calming down now that the Librarian was acting so relaxed about the whole near-death experience thing.

  "It's about that void stone you brought back. I did a little reading, and it is apparently called the Cheathr Ark. It seems that it is another portal."

  "Portal? To where?"

  "The descriptions are a little vague on that point, only that people sometimes disappear near the stone and reappear shortly afterward. From the description, I should fancy that time moves differently in whatever place is on the other side as people who have used it always think they have been gone for hours, days even."

  "Sounds useful," I said, imagining taking a nap in another dimension with no time passing.

  "Very useful. A pity that the multiverse is in such a state or we could see about a practical application. For now, we will just leave it in the Lower Vault with the others."

  "Oh."

  ***

  True magic is when you get random time off when you really need it. I could feel myself smiling as I landed back in my room, dreaming of dreaming. It was still quite early, but I was ready for some serious sleepy times.

  The next day, I awoke later than usual and rushed to get ready for school. Even though The Library was my duty and everything, I still liked going there and was now looking forward to finding out where the next book would take me.

  "Library tonight?" asked Lilly at lunchtime.

  "Gotta stuff envelopes, remember?"

  "Oh, yea. And I've got to, um, avoid stuffing envelopes," said Lilly. "Can you get out of it?"

  "I said I would help, so I'll help," I replied, though even as I said the words, I knew what was going to come next. I know this doesn't make me the best person in the world, but I didn't really want to stuff envelopes. I wanted to go on adventures with my friend.

  "Your Mom will be working late, right?"

  "Yeah..."

  "So it will be way easier for us to be away for a longer time. This envelope thing has been a disaster from start to finish, Alex."

  "But I haven't started-"

  "A disaster. I think we should call the whole thing off."

  So, I let Mom know that I had to study for an imaginary test and she replied with the ever enigmatic 'K.' This was not the K of okay, this was the K of 'im disappointed in you Alex and we will talk later.' I hated it. People really need to be more careful in the ways they wield the letter K.

  It does things.

  ***

  The Librarian was waiting for us when we arrived. She seemed to be in a relatively good mood. Maybe the Librarian had the night off too? She was holding two books and grinning behind her spectacles.

  "I have a treat for you two today," said the Librarian, "I have two books that we can choose from. They are neither of them very urgent, probably just routine jobs, but they are next on the list."

  The list was something that only existed in the Librarian's head. It comprised every book which was damaged by the chaos storm in The Library, and it ranked them according to urgency.

  "So we are ahead?" asked Lilly.

  "In a manner of speaking. The two of you have already patched up more worlds than several historical Keepers that come to mind, but there is still much work to be done. The list is long and full of terrors."

  She handed us each a book. The one she gave me was green and seemed to have an ocean depicted on the front. The title read: The Seas of Baast. It looked thick.

  "The Book of Martin," said Lilly, examining a red book. "Who is Martin?"

  "A religious figure, I think, so should be quite a peaceful fellow."

  "And what's this one about?" I asked, holding up my book.

  The Librarian frowned. "I'm not too sure. Whenever I try and read ahead, the words get all jumbled up. There is a powerful stabilizing element in that world, so I'm not worried about it falling apart or anything, but I can't really tell you what to expect."

  "The Book of Martin it is then," I said, taking it from Lilly.

  The Librarian took back the other book and regarded it carefully. "Maybe it is best I spend more time with this one, anyway."

  "What are we looking for in this Martin book?" asked Lilly.

  "Not too sure yet. Best you just go on ahead and scope out the place. I'm sure you will notice if anything is out of place. And when you are back, the book might reveal more to me."

  My mind went to the Cheathr Ark, the void stone we retrieved from the last word. "Is there any possibility that we could take the Cheathr Ark?"

  "Alex, your job is to remove the chaos elements, not take more in. The Book of Martin is not as robust as many you have entered. Even the smallest amount of magic could lead to its destabilization. Even enteri
ng this world puts it at risk, but it's a risk we have to take. No, it's better that I hold on to the stone. It is probably best that you don't try any flame magic either. Just keep the book nearby and come back here at the first sign of trouble."

  "If you say so," I said. At least she wasn't telling me to hide it in a cave this time.

  "Ready, Lilly?" I asked, grinning.

  "You bet," she said, taking my hand. I opened the volume and began to read.

  The truth? Well, my father was out of touch...

  CHAPTER SIX

  There was an explosion overhead. We ducked to avoid the falling rubble. We had landed on the cobbled street of a sandstone city. Smoke and dust were all around. Lilly was rubbing her head.

  "You OK?" I asked.

  "I think so, but ow! What's with the big bada boom?"

  There was yelling and shouting out in the street, but it was almost impossible to see what was happening through the haze. There was a flash of purple light from across the square, a zapping sound, and another explosion nearby. My ears were ringing.

  "We need to get out of here," I yelled over the sharp tone in my ear.

  Lilly nodded. Staying low, we exited the alleyway and edged along the street. People were hiding behind things in front of the buildings. It looked like there had been some sort of market, interrupted by - by a battle?

  I made eye contact with a frightened-looking man with an enormous mustache. He was dressed in what appeared to be medieval garb. Great, another world where I am perpetually out of place.

  Then what was the explosion?

  As we crept, the dust began to clear. Out in the clearing were about two dozen figures. It was some kind of street fight.

  "Holy shit, does that dude have horns?" asked Lilly, pointing.

  Sure enough, there was a stooped figure wearing a ruddy orange cloak. Two-foot-long horns protruded from his partially visible forehead. He seemed to be muttering something in a guttural tongue. He rose up, his claw-like hands and directed them toward an oncoming black-clad foe. Red lightning erupted from his fingertips and rocketed towards the figure in black.

  "So much for no magic," I said.

  "Which one do you think is Martin?" asked Lilly.

  The man in black jumped to dodge the attack. Two enormous black wings unfolded from his back. He beat them hard and took flight toward a nearby clock tower. The magic caster in the orange cloak arched the red lightning upward the best he could, but it fizzled and went out. He collapsed with the effort. The caster then barked a command over his shoulder and two men came running to his side. He pointed to the clock tower, and they ran toward it. They were both carrying hefty battle axes which caught flame when they swept them into the air.

  The winged caster drew what looked like a pistol from his belt and fired at the oncoming men. It flashed with the same purple we had seen, and there was an explosion in the square. He missed his mark.

  "Well, this is pretty epic," said Lilly, "but I am having the distinct feeling that we are out of our depth here."

  There was shouting from across the far side of the square. I looked to see two men dragging back their comrade. He was also clad in black but did not appear to have any wings. There were a couple more shots fired from pistols, but they soon died away.

  The horned caster was helped to his feet. A ghastly smile crept over his face, and he retreated with the rest of the gang.

  The square was silent.

  I saw movement nearby as the mustached man emerged from his hiding spot. He looked cautiously about, inspecting the shadows carefully. Then quite suddenly he leaped into action. From nowhere he seemed to produce a whole cart full of turnips, a table laid out with an assortment of buckles, and at least six bottles of wine.

  "Kanboor's finest turnips!" he shouted, you won't find any better.

  "The fu-" started Lilly.

  The mustached man was not alone. Before long, the square was filled with a hundred different voices, all vying for the custom of a crowd which seemed to come from nowhere.

  "Massage? Massage?" called a lady from a nearby building, "make your body better?"

  "What are you looking for?" said a man so close that I jumped.

  "Oh, nothing," I said.

  "Then you have come to the right place," he said. He grabbed for my arm and tried to lead me away.

  "No, thank you," I said, pulling back.

  "What do you need? Transport? To Tunran maybe?"

  "Not today," said Lilly.

  "Maybe tomorrow? Low price. I'll give you the evening price."

  I tried ignoring him to make him go away.

  "No, thank you," said Lilly.

  "You want one?" said a lady. She seemed to be referring to the bracelets and beads on her arm.

  This was all a new kind of hell for Hank.

  The lady started putting one of the bracelets on my wrist. "Very nice," she said.

  "No thank you," I said, starting to panic

  "You don't like my bracelets?" she asked. "I work so hard."

  "Lilly, we need to go," I said, turning to see where she was. She was a few stalls down, trying to remove the hat which had been placed on her head, but hats were being placed there faster than she could take them off.

  "No, thank you," she said again. "No, thank you. No hat today, thank you. No, thank you."

  I grabbed for Lilly and pulled her away from the market. A single hat fell from her head as we hurried away.

  "There were just so many hats..." said Lilly in a daze.

  Hank had burrowed out an entirely new section of my innards and was now kickboxing the walls.

  "I don't know what was more frightening, the guns or the lady with the bracelets," I said, resting against a wall and peering back towards the crowded square.

  "How can you even ask that?" asked Lilly, "guns are nothing. I thought sales people back home were frustrating. I feel so yuck!"

  "I know what you mean," I said.

  "So we are going back to The Library?" asked Lilly.

  Hank was beginning to calm down, and things were getting more manageable now that I could breathe. I didn't want to waste the night by heading back so early, and at least we knew now to avoid the market.

  "I think we should look around. At least figure out what kind of place this is, and maybe what that battle was about."

  "Apple, miss?" said a voice.

  I turned around to see a girl holding a basket of apples. Lilly had jumped back, clearly still spooked by the market.

  "Oh, no, thank you," I said.

  "It's alright," said the girl, smiling. She looked to be about twelve and was wearing a crimson cloak. She took my hand and placed an apple there.

  "It's a trap!" said Lilly.

  The girl laughed. "No, just have a taste."

  I hesitated. I wasn't really hungry, but I didn't want to be rude. I looked at the apple and then back to the girl.

  "Go on," she said.

  "Can you tell me, that fight before, does that sort of thing happen a lot?"

  The girl shrugged. "All the time. Just a little bite? You won't regret it."

  I sunk my teeth into the crisp flesh. It was perfect.

  "So? What do you think?"

  "It's delicious," I said with a mouth full of apple.

  "I'm so glad!" said the girl. "That will be only ten thousand denar."

  I almost choked.

  "The surprise is real," said Lilly, her tone flat.

  I swallowed quickly. "I don't have any money." My heart sank as I watched her face drop.

  "Nothing?" she asked.

  "I'm sorry, we are strangers."

  "You looked like strangers."

  "Like targets?" suggested Lilly.

  The girl was dejected. She sat on the stone stair of a nearby house. Lilly was looking at me with satirical eyes, but I think she missed the genuine sadness of this girl. I sat down next to her.

  "I'm really sorry about the apple," I said, feeling a little silly for repeating myself.
>
  "It's not that. It's my dad. I hate selling things at the market. Everyone is always smiling, but no one really cares. My dad is sick, you see. I have to bring some money in."

  "Well, the apples are very good. I'm sure someone will buy them. Did you grow them yourself?"

  She gave me a look, which strongly implied that I might be an idiot. "Of course not."

  "Come on, Alex, we have things to do," said Lilly, "like, say, anything else?"

  Lilly was beginning to bug me. She could be super kind when she was paying attention but somehow managed to miss just how much people needed comfort.

  "What happened to your dad?" I asked.

  "He is a fisherman. He came home last week and seemed fine, but then the next day he couldn't get out of bed. It's like he is paralyzed."

  "Could be related?" I suggested to Lilly without much hope.

  "Unlikely, but OK," she said, sarcastically.

  "Why don't you take us to him. It might be that we can help him out," I said. The girls face immediately lit up.

  "You really think you can help?" she asked.

  "Not promising anything, but maybe," I said.

  "Thank you so much!" she wrapped her arms around me and gave me a squeeze. "My name is Mary," she said.

  "Pleased to meet you, Mary. My name is Alex, and this is my friend -"

  "Miss grumpy pants," interjected Lilly. She was clearly annoyed with me. I'm not sure I could blame her really, but something was telling me that I should at least try and help the girl. And the Librarian encouraged me to follow my feelings, right?

  ***

  Soon Mary was leading Lilly and I through the streets. We learned that the city was called Kanboor and was the principal city in the area. It was built on an artificial island in the middle of a harbor. Now that we had the leisure to look around, I could see just how much care had gone into the city's construction. The city itself was bisected constantly with canal after canal. The square where we landed was the exception where massive amounts of dirt must have been transported for the land market.