The subway soon arrived at their destination, a platform with no designation other than a book. The Book Platform itself appeared to have been overrun by the library, as shelves and shelves of books were lined up all over the place. Many of them looked old and dusty, and others were clearly books printed just this year. The floor was nice and carpeted, and there was a sign that instructed those who entered to take off their shoes. A sign overhead, hanging on some chains, clearly labeled this place as Sorcerer's Stacks as well.
There was also a list of rules on the side.
1: No wearing shoes and tracking dirt and mud inside of the library.
2: Handle books wisely.
3: Theft of any book is ill advised.
4: Theft of any book in the Restricted Section is a grave offense.
5: Be mindful of other library goers.
6: Do not cause structural damage to the library proper.
7: Late Book Fees must be paid before library services can be used again.
8: Causing ruin or damage to the books will result in punishment.
9: Do not harass the library staff.
10: Use basic common sense.
Under those, an 11th rule had been scratched in.
11: Phantom, if you try to steal a book again, so help me I will make the whole city hunt you down to return it and punish you. Also I am adding the ten hitmen you killed to your late book fees.
At first glance it seemed like a fairly normal rule of lists, but some of hte phrasing felt a bit...odd. Like it had a deeper or more serious meaning. Furhtermore, it had an extra rule etched in just for Phantom. Someone took a knife, or perhaps just a dagger, and carved that into the wood.
Bell looked back at Maze, who was already removing his boots. "So, do I even want to know how these rules are enforced?"
"Assume a mix of Victorian values and supernatural excessiveness".
Bell proceeded to take his shoes off as well. There was a wall nearby with some cubbies. Maze put his into number 31, and then the number 31 appeared on the outside of his right hand. Bell put his own number 30, and then the number 30 appeared on his right hand as well in the same spot. The cubbies meanwhile appeared to seal themselves, locking to prevent theft. After that, they headed inside.
As the two entered the library proper, they could see a massive, central room that they had stepped into. Books flying all around them, and there were tables and chairs everywhere, including floating in the air along with lanterns. The entire place had lanterns everywhere, decorating the entire room. It appeared that all the light came from these lanterns as well.
However, before the two could go further into the library, they were stopped by two armor clad knights. They were at least three times as talll as them, towering over any normal human easily. However, strangely enough, one had a pirate's sword, while the other had a Japanese sword, although for some reason it had wall hooks on it as if it had been hanging on a wall, just without the wall attached.
"I am Gilbert..."
",,,and I am Sullivan".
"Fair ladies, we cannot permit you into this fine establishment...."
"Unless you pass our tests and prove yourself worthy".
"...we are both boys" Maze corrected.
"Eh?"
"You dare make us look like fools, being disguised like that?!"
"We shall just have to make the test harder as compensation!"
"You shall regret messing with us!"
The two knights immediately charged forward and attacked. Maze threw up a grenade which stuck itself into a wall, and then he teleported to that grenade location. Bell meanwhile raised barriers to protect himself against Sullivan, while Gilbert swung his japanese sword at Maze. It unleashed a flying slash, and Maze jumped off the wall and landed on another wall, taking out his pistol and firing several foam bullets at the joints. The moment they made impact, the foam spread out and then hardened, limiting their movement. Bell meanwhile found himself dodging the one with the pirate sword, creating ice on the ground to cause the overgrown knight to slip and fall.
The knight did no such thing however, apparently ignoring the lack of friction and continuing to attack. Bell ducked under the sword and slapped some of the joints, with ice growing out from where he touched to help immobilize them.
Both immobilization methods failed however, as they easily broke out and continued their attack.
"Let the punishment fit the crime!"
"A policeman's lot is not a happy one! Having to punish kids after all!"
Bell caused ice spikes to shoot out and attack Sullivan, but he brushed it off once again. Bell jumped upward and dodged, only for him to suddenly jump up to a height far higher than that heavy metal armor should allow. The blow came down on him, so Bell raised a barrier. The blow wasn't even felt, and Bell was able to land, opening his eyes. The knight also looked surprised, but the two stared at each other as a bat flew overhead, lurking in the darkness.
The two knights charged forward, undaunted by their abilities and unimpeded by anything they used against them. Bell dodged the attack, although it shattered his barriers it was so close and held so much power.
Maze fired some powerful shots from range, staying mobile all the while to bring them down. They didn't slow down or stop, even when they took a direct hit, and instead launched a flying slash at Maze. Maze used another teleportation grenade he had already set up, but it was close and he felt like he had only just dodged that by a hair as he open fired.
Still, the knights got right up to them, swinging down their weapons with all their might, when a voice spoke out.
"Halt".
The two knights halted immediately, as if their momentum had been erased. It was incredibly uncanny, as if they had been frozen in time. A woman appeared behind them, appearing in her 50s or so, and holding a book in her hand.
"I do not recall them doing anything to warrant such an attack on them, from what I have reviewed. Would you mind explaining to me how you arrived at such idiotic actions, Gilbert and Sullivan?"
"They pretended to be ladies! Just look at the way they look and are dressed!"
"They dared to besmirch our honor!"
"...they never introduced themselves as much, and you two just got embarrassed after making a false assumption. And if I had to guess, boredom as well?"
The two seemed to gulp as her tone turned frosty.
"Back to work, both of you, now" she commanded. "Apologies for those two, they are quite new".
"R-right..."
"Thanks for the help".
"Welcome to the Sorcerer's Stacks. Do not worry, such incidents like this are quite rare here. This is a place of learning, not brutality. Please feel free to use any of the unoccupied rooms. I would recommend avoiding Room 3 at the moment, a very important person is in there and has asked not to be disturbed. I can't say who it is, although..."
The woman spied the bat flying overhead.
"...it appears he had enough ability to intervene a bit earlier".
"Alright. So, you are the librarian here?" Maze asked.
"I am one of the librarians. The Master of the Library is someone else however, busy attending to matters. You may call me Madam Pomery. Also, I must thank you. You both were trying to hold back with using any wide area spells or those that could seriously damage the library right? Thank you for respecting the rules, even in such an unordinary state. Rest assured, if someone else is clearly entirely at fault, I won't mind some damage to defend yourselves".
She then handed them each a library card.
"Feel free to use this at any library to reach this location in the future during normal business hours. After hours, Platform 7 is always reliable...even if it can be a bit risky".
"Thanks. We will keep that in mind".
"Happy reading, and be careful not to become consumed by all the books".
She left as she said that, and Bell turned to Maze.
"Consumed?"
"If it makes you feel better, the dangerous books would be in the restricted section".
"What is the restricted section anyways?"
"Ah, its where the books that could potentially do a lot of harm to a lot of innocent people are kept. Books that can drive you insane, books that steal the souls of those who touch them, books that unleash plagues and famines. I have heard of one that takes over your life completely".
"...so these books are safe?"
"Mostly. The exceptions are still safer".
Maze led him over to the books that detailed sorcery, only to see another boy already sitting there. An old silver timepiece that could have been brand new around his neck, he was wearing a silver green vest, a sleeveless white shirt, and black shorts. He also had blue socks on. He was currently reading a book labeled "Intro into Intermediate Magic, Ver 3", and was sitting at a table by the side.
Stolen novel; please report.
He looked at the two, and seemed surprised for a moment when he saw Bell. The two ignored it however, and went to the nearby bookshelf. Maze helped pick out a few books to help study.
"Let's start with reading up on magical energy flow, as well as the Introduction to Newbies in the World within the World. I also have one that details some types of magic, including lightning and ice".
They got their books on a second table, with Maze making all the selections since Bell didn't know where to go regarding this.
"Ah, we should also go with Sir Merlin's Guide to Barriers".
"Wait, hold on!" the boy nearby said, standing up and interjecting. "While it is true Merlin's guide is good, its meant for human mages. If you want one related to Foxkin barrier abilities, you should go with "Miko Tamako's Guide to Mystic Arts". It has several chapters related to Foxkin, and has an incredibly detailed portfolio of advice in general for Bloodlines".
"But Merlin's techniques are still quite wide reaching and adaptable, and he is one of the few confirmed people to go Beyond the Veil".
"But anyone who does even a little research can clearly see Tamako did as well. Unfortunately, due to her gender and the time period, as well as scarcity of historical records from that point, it was unable to be officially confirmed. The book burnings didn't help either. Even then, such advice is just vastly better".
"But don't Eastern Barrier styles typically have a lot of nuance and complexity to them? Its not a good idea to start a beginner on something like that".
"It is better than to teach a style that doesn't go with his flow of magic power. It would be like teaching someone how to ride a bike backwards before forwards!"
"It would still be easier to learn though".
"Only the theory! Practically, it would be much harder and could complicate the training if something went wrong".
Maze and the boy argued with each other, while Bell just stood and watched. Both seemed quite knowledgeable. Maze was arguing for more famous estabilished greats, while the boy was pointing out some lesser known works that would fit better even if they might be a bit more complicated.
"Umm..."
Bell tried to speak up, but he couldn't find an opening between the two. Even if slightly, they seemed like they were getting more heated with each and every statement.
"Merlin's is more in depth and approachable!"
"Tamako's is better suited for him and his development!"
"What do you even know about Foxkin?!"
"A lot! Storm and ice powers, as well as some in illusions. Supposedly can even breach the domain of space and time. A type of immortal. Has weaknesses to water, their strong bloodline gives them resistances to stronger diseases and poisons, but not weaker ones. Although rare, there are still plenty of sightings in this day and age, including some in this area not even a decade ago. Recently they have been in other cities and regions however. They also for some reason cannot keep up their human forms when tickled, or from other certain stimuli as well. The Bloodline originated in the far east, around Japan, China, and Korea, but has since spread out across the world. However they are still very rare. It is said that they also have healing abilities. The most famous was a girl from five hundred years ago who moved to England from Japan, supposedly a miko herself as well, named Suzuki. She dealt with a lot of evil forces before she disappeared one day".
"...alright, I admit. You know a lot. Who are you anyways?"
"Toko Sunstar" he replied. "Wizard by nature, magician by trade".
"...I feel like that is cheating, being an actual wizard while pretending to be a magician".
"To be fair, there are plenty of magicians who are real magicians as well".
"...how about we just start with the basics of magic and just go for there" Bell said, picking up a book. Maze and Toko both glanced at what that book was.
"Wait don't!"
"That's not a...!"
Before they could stop him, he opened the book and a vortex shot up from the pages, a vortex of words. The three of them were suddenly pulled into the book. Falling through a tunnel of words and pages, they soon landed with quite a thud in a grassy plain.
"Owww...." Maze groaned, as Toko sat up.
"...be careful what you open will you?"
"I thought you said the books were not dangerous!"
"This book isn't that dangerous, but that doesn't mean some of them are not magical. Ahh, my head hurts".
Leaving aside the impacts of the fall, they all had headaches. Toko and Maze proceeded to take off their socks as well, so Bell did the same.
"So why are we taking off our socks now?"
"Because there is dirt and grass below and it feels weird to walk in socks on that".
"The dirt should be fake, so it shouldn't stay on our feet, but the socks might still get dirty somehow".
It was a trivial reason, but a good one all the same.
Bell seemed to have it the worse, if only by a little. "What is with this headache? Did I hit my head?"
"No, this book is just for more...rushed learning. When the hell did you put this on our table?" Maze asked, glaring at Toko.
"What? It's true this method isn't as in depth and you should do additional studying afterwards, but its a good jump start".
"Yeah...wait, what level of simulation is this book?"
"The lowest" Toko replied.
"...well that's good at least".
"Hmm? Would it be bad if it was higher?"
"Anything that happens to us inside the book will become undone when we leave it, including anything we bring in as well. Some simulations can cause you to lose arms or legs, others can leave you completely naked, some are...honestly I never want to deal with those again if I can help it".
"But...what is this exactly?"
Toko decided to explain this time.
"Sometimes magical books are made to help someone gain the knowledge faster. However, there is a difference between just gaining the knowledge and learning how to use it. You won't be able to retain the knowledge properly until you put it into practice, and these areas are made to make you put it into practice. The knowledge got absorbed into us when we went in. You probably have the worst headache, since the rest of us are at least familiar with this to some degree".
"...great".
Bell rubbed his head, helping to get the headache go away. At the same time, several Goblis appeared in front of each of them, as barriers appeared between them all. The first gobli attacked each of them, despite being a good distance away. Bell tried to run and dodge, but his feet were stuck to the ground somehow. He couldn't summon his chains either, nor the blade, and his normal passive field was down even. Words meanwhile floated up in front of him.
"Swirl magic power into a buffer to block the strike".
The Gobli was charging in. Bell recalled the knowledge he had just been granted, and tried to do it, but he messed up on a part and accidentally had it explode in front of him. Then the Gobli used its blade and cut him in half.
Suddenly, Bell had a jolt of pain and an electric shock, as he found himself alive and the Gobli back in position. The twisting ugly metal-like creature really did look like what Maze had shown him, almost looking mecha-like. It attacked again, so Bell tried again. This time he didn't let go and kept tightening as he controlled it, and was successfully able to swirl it into a buffer to block the strike.
Then the next lesson came up. Utilize the swirled magic power into a magical attack. Bell started to recall, but the Gobli didn't freeze at all and just came at him again, causing Bell to rush into it. It had been easier before when he was just doing things instinctively, but when actually putting thought into it, he was still quite the novice.
Bell ended up slashed again, and it reset from the beginning. This time he swirled it a bit better, creating a buffer that knocked the Gobli back more, and then shot out an ice lance to destroy it.
Then the next lesson told him to deal with the other two attacking Goblis with consecutive follow up attacks, and then Bell noticed the two had moved closer and begun to attack as he had dispatched that one. Shocked, he ended up defeated once again. And it reset once again.
Bell successfully swirled even faster and better, and then defeated it faster. He then noticed the two from behind, and was able to pierce them successfully. The moment he did that, his feet were finally able to move and were no longer stuck, and he was able to move again. As he did, five more Goblis appeared.
Words floated in front of him again. "Increasing Gobli's strength from 1/3rd of normal to 2/3rds of normal. Initiating Part 2. Difficulty increased. Preparing snack break if you finish this today...wait, if?!"
Bell wanted to cry a bit, but he had no time as the Goblis became animated.
----------------------------------------
By the time they were done with part 2, Bell and Maze looked exhausted. Toko meanwhile looked more relaxed, and was eating some cake that was a part of the snack table.
"I kind of figured that would happen to you, but I thought you knew about this more...ahh...wait, I never heard your names".
"Bell".
"Maze".
"Right. Maze, you seemed more experienced?"
"...just, not really my specialty".
"Ah, I see".
Maze had his own troubles it seemed.
"Still, considering your fight against Gilbert and Sullivan, you seemed more experienced then that".
"I suspect its because this book is limited to teaching basic lessons and combat, so it disables all the advanced stuff to help teach the basics first. That probably weakened his Bloodline abilities".
"Huh. That might be it" he said, looking at Bell. "To think I would meet another Foxkin myself though. Do you know any specifics about your bloodline? You could have some interesting ancestors".
"No. I got this power from a ritual site. My family has nothing to do with the supernatural".
"A ritual site granting a bloodline power? Thats just ridiculous" Toko stated.
"There is a bounty in the high millions for him".
"...alright, that may actually give some credit to it. Ritual Sites have been known to do things that exceed the norm, but grant Bloodline powers? Even for ritual sites, that is kind of...out there. I mean, Bloodlines are literally encoded into blood. It's not even granting a power, you literally would be turning from a human into a fey".
"I mean, it is possible".
"The moment his parents found him, they would have freaked unless they knew. It's not just something you can hide. Are you sure, have you asked them?"
"My dad is out of town...and my mom is dead" Bell said, his tone lowering at that second part.
"Oh...I am sorry to hear that. How did she die exactly?"
"Car accident". Bell's tone gave away his disinterest from going into it anymore.
"I see....maybe you actually inherited something from your dad then?"
"Wait, why did you brush off the mom so easily?" Maze asked.
"Because if it was her, she wouldn't have died. Not from that. Are you sure that was how though?"
"...yes, because I was in the car with her".
"...sorry to dredge up painful memories. Still, your dad probably would have sensed it, so I suppose...still, a Ritual Site granting a bloodline power?"
"It is already known. However, apparently Bell became the key for it. Thats why so many people want him".
"That is...rough for sure. All the bounty hunters can really be a pain, not to mention the assassins".
Maze noticed a dip in his tone, and took a look at Toko.
Is he speaking from experience?
Maze couldn't help but wonder, but before they could continue, the break neared its end as more lessons approached.
"Looks like chat time is over".
"I hate this book!"
----------------------------------------
By the time they finished, it was just about lunch time. The three of them had all brought lunch with them thankfully, and so long as they didn't make a huge mess, it was okay to eat in this library.
By this time, Toko had successfully won Maze over on choice of books, partially due to the fact he had some special knowledge in this field as well. Bell had been too focused on his own fight to see, but Toko must be quite skilled. He cleared all his stages in less than half the time they had.
"I see, so you have a ridiculously large amount of magic power. That lets you sort of force spells out despite not going through the proper steps. Of course, it either causes limitations on the strength of the magic themselves, or can give you some form of blowback".
Bell remembered when he unleashed that big spell during the fight against the swordsman at the Emporium. It not only was burning off his clothes, it had a major impact on his arm. He definitely couldn't keep something like that up repeatedly, so learning how to do things was good. He just sort of pushed the power out into what he wanted to happen.
Afterwards, they approached some less...irritating books. Admittedly the last book had helped him understand things that would have normally taken far longer, but he didn't find it very pleasant and that was apparently a low settings one. He decided that he would try studying up normally and then doing practice himself rather than jump back into those.
It was no wonder that Maze had shown such disdain for them.
In particular, one thing that Toko had suggested to him stuck out though. It was a tale of old stories. It contained a lot of things he might need to know in case he encountered others, but among them were many tales of the Foxkin Suzuki. It also featured a Melinda le Fey as well in a few of them, as well as legends of a mage known as Zeke. There are also tales of a vampire, often referenced as "The Bat" or "Bloody Brat". The vampire apparently was famous for being a playful friendly sort, a silly person who often acted the age he appeared as and was frozen as. But he also punished the wicked and smited evil, especially those who would target children by using himself as bait.
It was a bit storybookish, and it reminded him of fictional tales and fairy tales in how they were set up, but apparently they were all accurate. Toko also alluded to the fact that "fairy tales were not as fictional as people think", leaving a rather ominous presence in his mind as Bell thought back to the sword in the stone run by Maybell le Fey, or whatever her real name was.
Was that the real Excalibur then? No, impossible....but wasn't there a Morgana le Fey in Arthurian Legend? Could all three of them be related?
With these questions in his head, he decided to ask them later, but for now, he had to focus on his magic studies and learn what he would need to defend himself.
All the while, a figure wearing a raincoat watched over them from the darkness, a few bats fluttering around. The only skin one could see of them was their fair hands and legs and feet, as the rest was shrouded in shadows and covered by the raincoat.