It was hard for Salt to be magnanimous seeing as he was almost murdered, but he had to remember that he only survived this long because he was being treated as a curiosity by people high above him in power and stature. And that they probably did not just kill him because they thought someone powerful wanted him alive, and pissing of someone powerful is never smart. Rousing himself from his pity party Salt set to work with his tome of tome mastery which quickly was becoming his tome of everything I need to survive and have survived. His ramshackle way of doing things would probably not work forever, he needed to set down a more structured approach. If a master book-mancer saw the way he used his tome, they would probably flay him on the spot. It had worked so far but Salt could feel its inefficiencies and inadequacies.
Salt had escaped ego death by cosmic apoptosis, an ego death that would quickly follow a soul death. He had done this because the Morn aspected mana would not fight its masters will, and Morn would not kill him and so not fight him if he sought to turn it neutral again. But the aspected mana would fight the pure and centred mana of self-change. Seeking the change of oneness with the cosmos Salt would have stood there for as long or as short as elder Trellom assistant chief librarian of the glockenspiel library would have wanted. Salt was not ready to play with these forces, but they did give excellent insights and perspectives. And so, Salt sat jotting down his discoveries over the next two silences until the room door opened to an old woman.
“Hello dear” came the soft-spoken voice the old lady as she came in and sat down in front of Salt. “I am Gudtagma the chief librarian of the glockenspiel library, do you use the honorific keeper in your name Salt.” Shaking his head Salt replied “No, not really. You see not knowing what the term or position implies or even is, has put a damper on wish to associate myself with the honorific. The only thing I know is that Nersinia gave it to me and that I was to go to the main library for my room.” Looking down at the little grandmotherly lady in front of him, he was not fooled for a second and twisted the barb ever so slightly. “Do you think the staff could show me the path to my new room, or are you here to try another assassination?”
“Now dear how where we to know someone would send such a week keeper that we could not even hang artwork in his presence. But it is good that you ripped yourself away from the danger. The Basalios painting has to date transfixed and transformed about 20.000 sentient beings into food for itself. It is quite old and seemingly wanting to devour the world, the little scamp.” Clapping her hands together Gudtagma said “how about I tell you a bit about the keeper of the light of yesterday and then send you with someone to your room.” Salt nodded affirmative at this as Gudtagma began.
“Well, you see when I went, here don’t worry I dropped out at 4 years like most sane sentient beings. But when I went here some 200 years ago the keepers of the light of yesterday was a sort of periodical or biweekly paper that students subscribed to and bought. It had all sorts of stupid and inane things in it, but every so often a spell or two to try out. Now the reason they're not around anymore are the fact that they wrote something about a MASTER and the next day there was nothing but bubbling blood in their offices. Now they were not the keeper of the light of yesterday, but some people may think that’s what you are now. Well, the actual keeper was an ancient staff member from before when there was a main library, before Nersinia probably killed it for being mouthy.”
“You see the keeper of the light of yesterday wrote down dying ways of doing magic, how people did magic back then and what magic was before. There that’s the job, now go do it.” And with that Gudtagma rose from her seat and left. As a confused Salt sat waiting for something other than this. A voice behind him said “mister salt would you come with me please, and we can see which room is yours.” Turning seeing a red robed artificer Salt said, “did you say which room?” Looking unhappy the artificer said “Yes, mister Salt I am afraid so, the library when chosen as the main library grew many new rooms. There are currently 71 rooms that we cannot open, so maybe your key fits in one of those.”
True to Salts luck these days they did not find the door his key fit in till they tried the 67 door, why Salt could not simply use arcane servants and port the key between them? Well, the artificer told him they would be counted as hostile spell forms and terminated by the warding. When asked how to summon his devil lawyer and his things he looked white in the face. Asking more and more reasonable questions like if sound could be heard by other people from his room was the screaming souls of babies frowned upon. Salt even asked about the blood smell if he sacrificed someone, and the man's face became even whiter than Salt thought possible. In the end when they finally found his door the man was nearly in histrionics from gods knows what so Salt let him go and decided to ask someone tomorrow instead.
Opening the door Salt was almost ripped from his feet as he starred into a spatial vortex. Closing the door with fingers of mana, Salt cursed loudly. Stupid, stupid, he had almost died again. Summoning a circle three arcane servant and sending it after the man that he had let go mere minutes ago, giving the servant clear instructions and the ability to talk and terrify Salt conjured a chair and sat down to wait and see the deficiency of the servant. After half a silence a crying and halting artificer stumbled towards him, trying to smile Salt said “ah, my good man it would seem this door leads to a murder hole.” The servant gripped the artificer's neck and marched him towards Salt while the man gurgled, and he urinated everywhere. Seaming at the end of his endurance the artificer collapsed with only the hand of the servant holding him up. Sighing hard and putting his head in his hand Salt motioned to the servant to let him go and come here, the servant slid smoothly across the floor and settled itself a bit behind his left shoulder.
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Sitting down in the chair Salt pondered, he knew he did not have the same reactions to things as others. That he lacked a certain involvement in others that his cohort had was clear in his subpar performance of illusionary terror spells during lesser Nerisian illusion class. But how could he not see that he was running the artificer ragged, he had been with him for a mere 2 silences yes, but his terror stank. This day, on this day, during this week perhaps he had done many stupid things, things he could himself see was stupid. Why had his perception abandoned him, was he under a spell or curse. Very probable but why not just kill him or enslave him, where they waiting for him to sleep. They would be waiting for a long time then as a twin-soul he never slept.........
How do you draw the line of self-check when the smallest thing can kill you? One is proud when one sees the big things, one is pleased at the medium and fine with the small things. But when the problem is elementary what tells you to do the normal when you are abnormal? It had been 8 days since he got his whole soul back, his body and mind could go forever, he had designed it to. But his poor broken little soul, he had not even taken the time to down a soul sleep potion. And he certainly didn't carry such a thing with him, no his soul and Will where his trump cards, he certainty never needed to worry about them before.
So, he needed a safe room to sleep in, in order to find a safe room to be in. Learning at last that all his intricate plans where critically flawed without sleep, he decided to burn one of his hidden trump cards. Getting to his feet and calling his servant back into the scroll, he left the artificer where he lay and proceeded out of the main library. A blissfully nonviolent walk later Salt found himself in the Cafeteria and proceeded to section JB6 a place where newbies can go for a daily lecture of relevant information pertaining to their studies. Now only newbies are allowed in this place, but a proctor may inspect any place his newbies are allowed except for their room. So, Salt simply entered the massive amphitheatre where an automated ghost was lecturing on school rules. Finding a corner, he conjured a bed a muffling, darkening, not my problem suggestion and warning warding, and promptly fell asleep.
Waking sometime later Salt set himself a full scan body, soul and will. Plucking tracking, tracing, suggesting, bleeding, and other parasitic spells from himself took time and effort but after hours he finally felt somewhat uncursed. Feling himself rearing to go, Salt promptly lay down and slept again. Waking anew Salt went through another scan finding little, rising and banishing his conjured spell forms Salt simply walked out. Walking to the inner section of the Cafeteria he had himself a lovely and crunchy meal. After one of the most fulfilling meals of his life Salt cast a simple tempus spell for the time, it was high in the silences and days had passed. So, many days in fact that the main library was moving again in a mere 11 hours, Salt could not quite remember where the honorific would be moved to. Rising from his seat and stepping out of the Cafeteria over to a jobs board, he threw a Chainglass chit to a messenger mage and said. “Show me the next 5 places that will become the main library, and their 3 primary fields of study.”
The wizards' eyes became blank as his mind communed with the bord and his own specialised concept of knowledge, before he said. “The list is as follows in 10 hours 46 minutes-” braking inn Salt said “skip precise measurements of time, give percentage based on the chance, only give two for each slot if two libraries are at 30/70 split. I can't stay here all day.” Stuttering the messenger processing in many planes at once he finally steadied himself and proceeded to say. “List follows: 1 The autumn garden 99% for winner. Primary fields of study The circle, Death, Life. 2 Mundane arts of the worlds 99% for winner. Primary fields of study Architecture, Law, Manor management. 3 Red blades of our worlds 87% for winner. Primary fields of study Planar conquest, mana enrichments, war. 4 Tibi Roths cave 73% for winner. Primary fields of study occultisms, rituals, planarlings. 5 Wonderlings 71% for winner. Primary fields of study Alcamy, magic equipment, god making. Where you satisfied with your answer? Would you like a subscription to-” Salt walked off as soon as he had heard enough, plans and schemes shifting in his head, he turned a corner and headed for Mundane arts of the worlds.
The carousel of the library wars were weird and byzantine, most times the libraries fought for placement with bids on what they could give and teach. This made it so about 20 or so libraries were considered top and traded the honorific between themself. But not all students had need of the most powerful spell or esoteric knowledge, and the more helpful you are to students the more points libraries accrue to bid on placements. This leads to weird things sometimes like; a small library barely larger than the front of the job's hall becoming Main library if it had saved for a 100 years. But some libraries just out right say I am not playing and go for mundane things and knowledge, things the other library's do not care about because there are no magic or magical books on the subject to grow strong from. But sometimes a student needs that knowledge, and this has led to a weird thing where libraries on mundane things like maps, heraldry and allegiances of non-magical kingdoms top the list in points every year or so. Which was why Salt was going there now, starting his domestic relationship with a weak library was probably better for his health than a powerful one like he just tried to.