Ikto grins "Excellent, thank you Haibram! " He'll wait his turn.
Za Minyahil watches the proceedings with curiosity, and noting the enthusiasm of the others nods.
"I will try as well...seeds are carried on the wind...it could be a fine source of inspiration..."
Ikto thinks he kind of has the swing of things atop the spire, and when Iovia makes the leap, he gives her a better boost than Haibram got but she is a novice with the glider (or to flying in general) and while she gets some air, her return to earth is perhaps sooner than she would have liked.
When it is their turn, Za Minyahil surges into the air towards Ikto!
First M'baba and then Za Minyahil use the well-placed Ikto to launch themselves higher into the sky than any of the others, M'Baba even loops-a-loop while aloft bring a HUZZAH from Haibram and applause from several others who have gathered to watch and cheer. Za Minyahil also has a very satisfying flight, but without, perhaps, the panache of the rogue.
Soon enough flying time is over, and Haibram is all smiles. "If I could figure out a way to power this glider, then we'd really have something. And I heard Chizire was brewing a leaping concoction in his lab. Can you imagine getting a magical leap boost from the top of the Spire? Amazing!" He slaps you all on the back laughing, and returns to his quarters.
The day ends with you winding down and reflecting on the strange insect behavior and the oddly-mannered Teacher Ulawa, and what she might discover is going on at the Magaambya.
A few days go by and you are getting back in the routine of classwork, studying, and other pursuits when you receive a handwritten note from Teacher Ot, asking you to meet him at his office in the Heron Archives (the same building Teacher Ulawa's lab is in) after classes that day.
"I have a favor to ask, and you initiates seem particularly suited to helping with unique problems. Come prepared as there may be some mild danger to my request."
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M'baba ends his flight with a big smile on his face. He pats Haibram on the back and says "We've actually helped him with his concoction.". Afterwards, M'baba goes to the dorm to find Chirize and request the reward they were promised.
M'baba is quick to dive into his classes. He feels more motivated to grow in the school after having participated in Teacher Ulawa's insect experiment. He realizes that whatever must be going on is much too complex for him to understand just yet, so he continues doing careful notes of his classes.
As Teacher Ot asks him to meet at the Heron Archives, M'baba hears his proposition. The young man asks "What kind of danger? Climbing a dangerous mountain? Driving some angry bulls? Poking a nest of magical hornets?" He is genuinely curious.
Iovia arrives at the Heron Archives not long after M'baba. She waits to hear what the favor that Teacher Ot wants to request is.
Soon enough flying time is over, and Haibram is all smiles. "If I could figure out a way to power this glider, then we'd really have something. And I heard Chizire was brewing a leaping concoction in his lab. Can you imagine getting a magical leap boost from the top of the Spire? Amazing!" He slaps you all on the back laughing, and returns to his quarters.
"Thank YOU, Haibram, I haven't had this much fun in AGES. Let's hope it all works out and let me know if you want more help with this project. We Rain Scribes need to stick together."
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Then they get the request....
Ikto is not as comfortable with this as he would like to be. The last time they ended up being asked by Teacher Ot to show up somewhere they nearly got all killed by an ambush attack. Still, what are the odds it would happen again? Still, he reminds himself, he's grown since then and he can't be afraid of life EVERY time Teacher Ot summons him. Still, he has studied that ritual again, and gets some bells and if he can , a bit of cold iron.
Then arrives with the others.
As you wait in the antechamber outside Teacher Ot's office, you each have some trepidation of what lies in store for you. Eventually the door opens, and Teacher Ot greets you with the same clasped hand over fist bow that you saw on initiation day.
"Welcome, my friends. Enter, and make yourselves comfortable." There is a large bookcase heavily laden, a desk full of neatly stacked papers and parchment, and a sitting area with pillows of various shapes and colors on a large mat sitting on the floor. An invisible servant flits around the room offering you refreshments of tea or water and small biscuits.
When everyone is seated, Ot speaks: "As the note I sent you spells out, I have a favor to ask you." He looks at the many books on the shelf and scattered about the room with a furrow on his brow. "Some research materials I need are missing from the usual reference libraries. I've had other initiates look for them with no success, and I've spoken with the other professors to see if perhaps what I need has landed in their more private collections. Again, no success. I now know where they aren't, which tells me where they must be." He pulls out a detailed map of the Magaambya's grounds. "This building here --" he places a lens from his pocket over what appears to be a round dormitory magnifying it -- "hasn't seen use in..." He trails off and shrugs before continuing.
"It was carved from an enormous tree stump as a dormitory, but was converted to a library before the whole project was abandoned. Please, go and see of the books I need are there."
He smiles and nods as if to encourage questions.
"You mentioned the possibility of danger, Teacher Ot. What dangers did you anticipate when you wrote that? That information would give us some insight into what we might face."
Iovia asks her questions in a polte tone.
Teacher Ot nods his head with appreciation at the wise question. "Since the old library has been long abandoned, I cannot say with any certainty, but as you have been accosted by gremlins in the past, and as the strange behavior of insects on the campus of late has been noted, by you and others, then perhaps you should be prepared for either, or both, if you open the door into rooms that have not been trod in by students or faculty in some time. Maybe other danger also, but I would expect those, if any."
Za Minyahil hustles into the meeting, mud still up to their elbows and the knees of their robes.
"I'm sorry I'm late, everyone, I was helping the leshies do some planting in the Grove and got into such a meditative state that I lost track of time."
They let the others fill them in on the request and nod.
"Knowing our luck? That gremlin who attacked us will be holed up in there waiting to take her revenge," they comment.
Ot has made a written list of the texts he is looking for, and he hands it to you on a folded slip of paper. They are:
- Studies in the Habits and Migration Patterns of Birds and Drakes on the Continent of Garund, recorded in a leather-bound book
- An Expanded History of the Lesser-Known Peoples of the Mwangi Expanse, recorded on vellum and bound by leather cords
- The World Between Worlds: Exploring the Planes and Demi-Planes, Volume 4, recorded in an extraordinarily large leather bound book
- Treatise on the Various Communicative Methods of Non-Vocally-Projecting Entities, recorded on a scroll that whispers when unrolled.
- Collected Field Notes of the Druid Mata Digemari, a small chest with cramped writing covering its wooden surfaces.
"I also seek any other texts that seem interesting, regardless of the condition. I am expert on magical and mundane means of restoring older tomes, so I don't mind if the books are damaged."
"It is possible your gremlin nemesis, or worse, is hold up there, but find what you can, and if it is too dangerous, return to me and report, and we will find other methods."
Za Minyahil glowers a bit at Teacher Ot's recommendation to retreat if things get too dangerous, but says nothing. Their pride still stung from their previous encounters with gremlins, and they were tired of having their betters bailing them out. They wished to prove themselves.
"I will clean myself up before we go. Retrieving the books will be worthless if I ruin them with muddy hands."
The abandoned dormitory turned library is an an overgrown section on the far north side of the Magaambya campus. You find, wrapped in vines and other overgrowth, the stump of an enormous tree, perhaps 150' in diameter. Its upper surface features several lightning scars, though it is unclear whether these strikes killed the tree or occurred later. Windows, just visible beneath the concealing vines, are covered with a thick film of dust on the inside. The vegetation around the door, which stands wide open, has recently been hacked away, providing easy entry. A chain of silver bells lies discarded on the front step.
"It seems very clear someone is inside. Between the hacked away vegetation and the broken chain, someone cleared a way in. We should be careful." Iovia tells the others.
M'baba sees the construction and is in awe. He peeks at Za Minyahil to see their reaction to such a tree stump. He says "It's a shame it's no longer a library."
He proposes to continue carefully "There may be natural hazards as well as what the professor mentioned."
Za Minyahil nods to M'baba.
"I agree. I'm a little surprised the Magaambya couldn't afford to do something with the building to keep it in use rather than just let it lie fallow. I thought it was publicly funded. Are there really so few students that they couldn't reuse it as a dormitory?"
The others can tell the wooden wheels in their head are turning as they take the building in.
flashback to with Takulu Ot:
"You may have learned that gremlins are allegedly affected by bells. Cold iron also proves effective against them as it does most fey."
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M'baba takes a trip to the Powerpile and buys himself a bell. He hangs the bell on his belt so as to have easier access to it, but in a position that it doesn't ring from him just walking.
M'baba tells Za Minyahil "Maybe after we're done with the place, it'll be easier to refurbish it." with a smile.
Afterwards he says "Well, we aren't going to find the books by staring at the building. Let's go. Be wary that whoever came in first might have set some trap to alert them if someone else comes."
As the group enters, Iovia brings up the rear of the quartet.
Ikto picks of the chain of discarded silver bells and goes in with the others.
"Mind if I borrow one of those bells, Ikto?" Za Minyahil asks. When granted one, they bind it to the hilt of their sword, giving a few test swings to make sure its jingle isn't muted by the clash of iron.
He certainly hands one over.
"Better safe than sorry." The druid nods. Deciding he may hang a bell in his room at this point.
The garland of silver bells tinkle lightly as they are picked up and tied to belts or weapons or worn like a necklace (as intended). The bells are made of silver and worth 10gp due to the valuable metal. The sound is charming, and perhaps reassuring, but it does make move silently impossible.
The door is ajar so entering the stump library is not too challenging. The interior is dark, but some light filters into the space from the filmy and vine covered windows -- enough to provide dim light throughout the space. Ceilings, unless otherwise specified are 10' tall. Any interior doors are simple lightweight wood, and any locks or latches were removed when the dormitory was transitioned to a library.
"We'll need to be able to see." Iovia says, and then she makes sure that we can.
As the team enters the stump-library, Iovia and then M'Baba fire up light spells and the illumination goes from dim to bright in the area surrounding those spells. A quick glance around the area shows this circular room has been packed with shelves in every space that could viably fit one, and few where it can't. Books are wedged in sideways or simply thrown on the floor, their pages smeared into illegibility. Seven closed doors lead to other room around the central core of the stump structure.
Bookshelves here are 8ft tall while the ceiling is 10' high. The bookshelves are all wearing out, overladen, and badly balanced but no traps or other dangers are immediately visible.
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M'baba looks around and starts looking at the books to see if any are what the professor asked, or remotely readable for that matter.
He says a bit sad "There are only two reasons to leave these books behind. Either the people emptying the building didn't care about the knowledge within or they were in a hurry and had to prioritize. For our sake, I hope it was the former."
"Or, at the time, they didn't consider the books needed, and could just walk over if they wanted them. Or, they were short on storage, and the shelves here worked just fine then. Or they expected work to start again here quickly, and things changed. The damage here could just be the neglect of time." Iovia throws out a few suggestions of her own for why the books were left behind.
Like M'baba, she does check shelves to see if they can find any of the books they were sent here for.
Za Minyahil follows the group in and joins in the search for the books, though they're not as invested in the search as the others, trying to keep an eye out for anything that might be lurking among the mildew-laden shelves and tomes.
Ikto admits "I do not have the power to sense magic as some of you might, perhaps seeking to ...what's the word? detect it, would lend clues?"
Iovia's search is rather meticulous. She takes a pile of books off one shelf, looks at each book's title, and if it is not one of the ones they seek, it goes back on the shelf. When she finishes with a shelf, she marks it with a large X with chalk so that her classmates do not search the same shelf.
The initiates set to work in the stump library, looking through the myriad books, and trying to systematically mark off shelves they have already searched to prevent duplication. As Iovia, Ikto and M'baba search through the piles and piles of discarded books, they quickly see that many of the books seem ruined, all the ink in them is either partially or completely smudged to illegibility if not rubbed off the page altogether. Not every book, but many, especially those that lie open or tossed about the room more haphazardly.
Instead of focusing on the tomes in the old library, Za Minyahil keeps an eye peeled for trouble. Remembering the wide open door, he expects there could be something else in the stump room. As he peers about, he sees something flitting at the edge of his vision, just a quick movement, and then its gone. Peering more closely, he thinks he can just make out the shape and outline of a small creature of some kind, lying stock still in the small space between the top of a bookcase and the ceiling. He does not see the movement again, but can, now that he's seen it once, make out a small creature up there...
Iovia, still unaware of the spying creature, hums a little to herself as she continues to methodically search the shelves.
"Anyone find anything?" Ikto says sighing at the ruined books, "So many tomes are smudged to the point of ruin."
Iovia continues to search the bookshelves. She feels that if the creature were hostile, it would have attacked. Since it has not, she keeps focusing on the task at hand.
Ikto looks at the creature and tries speaking to it in various languages.
"Hello, I am Ikto Banashee. Do you know what happened here?"