by W. D. Newman
CHAPTER 11
THE LIBRARIAN
“Are we all going?” asked Nob. “The Librarian of the archives is a rather strange character.”
“He’s a bloody frightening character,” said Gob with a shiver. “I don’t think he would be very agreeable with the whole lot of us traipsing through his rooms.”
“Let’s do this,” said Gabriel. “Amos, if you will, take Louise and Casey through the Merlin tree to Faerie. Gob and Nob will go with you. We’ve setup a garrison with stables near the tree. Jonah is running the post and, once you arrive there, he will outfit you with horses and escort you to the lodge at the base of Mount Gazafar. That will be the location from which we will plan this entire operation. Hob, Ben, and I will go to Dwarvenhall to search the archives. If we find a depiction of this Dragon’s Cradle or any other structure on Crag that we can use as a point of reference, we will try to convince the Librarian to part with it. If he cannot be persuaded as such, then we will have to either sneak the illustrations past him or make a copy of it to take along with us.”
“Wait a minute,” said Casey, reaching into her pocket. “I’ve got my cell phone with me. Why don’t you take it with you?”
“What’s a cell phone?” asked Gob.
“For Pete’s sake, who are we going to call here,” Ben asked, ignoring the inquisitive dwarves who were crowding around Casey to see her phone.
“You obviously can’t call anyone, Ben. Don’t be such a smart-aleck.”
“Then why do we need to take your phone with us?”
“If you find a drawing and you can’t take it with you, then you can snap a picture of it.”
“Oh, I see. That’s actually a pretty good idea,” Ben admitted.
“What does it mean to snap a picture?” asked Nob.
“Yes, please show us,” Hob added.
“Okay, but real quick,” said Casey. “Everyone stand together in front of the mantel. You three dwarfs stand side-by-side. Amos, you and Gabriel stand behind them. Grandma, are you and Ben getting in the picture?”
“No,” said Louise. “I don’t know how I could ever explain a picture like that if it ever got out.”
“I’ll delete it right after I take it.”
“No, but thanks anyway. Go ahead and take theirs and let’s get moving.”
Somehow, Casey got the three dwarfs, the elf, and the shape shifting giant posed in front of the mantle. She thought getting the three dwarves to sit still for a few seconds would be nearly impossible, but when she said ‘say cheese’, all three of them quieted down and stood still to see what she would say next; they were hoping to hear ‘ham’ and ‘biscuits’. Casey quickly took their picture, before they realized she was not talking about food and then pulled the photo up on her display screen to show them. They were all amazed.
“Is this a sample of the magic from your world that you call technology?” asked Gabriel.
“Yeah,” Ben answered. “I guess we kinda take it for granted, because it is some pretty cool stuff when you think about it. Hey Grandma, why aren’t you fussing about me going to Dwarvenhall without you? That’s not like you. Are you feeling okay?”
“I’m feeling just fine,” Louise answered. “Dwarvenhall is a safe place and you are in good hands with Gabriel and Hob. When we get to Faerie though, I am not letting you two out of my sight! Now, see if you can open the pathway. We will wait here until you are safely on your way.”
Ben had the map fixed firmly in his mind. He studied the sketch of the West Gate that Nob had completed with help from his friends. It really was a great illustration and the detail was astounding. Especially for being completed in such a short span of time. Since the drawing was done in ink, Hob pointed to various parts of the picture and described things that could not be portrayed in ink alone. He went into great detail about the texture of the large timbers from which the West Gate was built and the colors of the rock cliff where the Gate was hung. He described the grasses, the brush, and the small bushes that grew around the edges of the gate. He even described the noises and aromas that drifted up to the gate from the small town of Mountain Rest in the valley below.
“I think I’ve got it, Hob. Everyone stand back and make room for the opening.”
Once everyone was clear and the end of the study was open, Ben grasped the staff tightly and cried out, “Scooby Doo!” The black hole popped open at the end of the room and hovered there, waiting for them to enter.
“We will meet you in Faerie when we have found what we are searching for,” said Gabriel. “I do not expect this to be a quick trip for I have heard the archives at Dwarvenhall are vast. It may even take us a week to locate something that will serve our purpose.”
“Well,” said Louise, “I will give you three days. If you haven’t found anything by then, Ben can open a pathway back to the castle and you can come back through to send a messenger to Faerie to let us know that everything is okay. You can also let us know how much longer you expect to take to finish the task.”
“Fair enough. If you do not see us in three days’ time, I will send word of our progress.”
Ben hugged his grandma and he even hugged his sister too. Then he turned to Gabriel and Hob, who were waiting by the opening. “Hey, déjà vu,” he cried.
“Déjà vu,” Gabriel inquired?
“Yes. It a word that’s used to describe a feeling that you’ve already done something that you’re about to do. Me, you and Hob going on another adventure together; since the three of us went to the Great Oak Forest a few months ago, what’s happening right now feels like it has already happened some time ago in the past. Déjà vu.”
“Ah, you are right,” Gabriel agreed. “It does seem that we’ve been here before. At least this time there will be no snakers to sneak past. Come, let’s be off.”
Louise watched Ben follow his friends into the dark opening. She waited patiently until the black hole snapped shut and then turned to Amos, “Lead the way. We might as well get this horse ride over with; my backside is aching just thinking about it.”
