We walked deeper into the library, our footsteps muffled by the thick, dust-ridden carpet beneath us. The shelves towered above, disappearing into darkness that seemed to stretch forever. I ran my fingers along the spines of books, feeling the whisper of time against my skin—each book a doorway, a lifetime, waiting to be opened. The light filtering through high, arched windows cast long shadows that danced across the ancient wood, giving the space an ethereal feel.
“So what's the goal here?” I asked, my voice low as it echoed faintly in the hollow vastness.
[Goal? Why do you need a goal?]
The voice—his voice—seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at once. I paused, looking around, but there was nothing but endless rows of books and the soft golden glow illuminating the aisles. I sighed, pushing forward through the endless labyrinth of knowledge, my eyes scanning titles that blurred together.
“So that I know how to get to the fourth floor?” I clarified, glancing up to where I imagined the next level might be, obscured by the haze above.
[Why would you want to do that?]
His tone was almost amused, as if I were missing something obvious. We turned down another aisle, the shelves growing even taller and more imposing. The air felt thicker here, charged with the weight of all the stories these walls held.
“So that I can escape this place?” I muttered, growing impatient as I scanned the towering shelves, feeling increasingly insignificant.
[No, no, no. You don’t understand. You’ve made it.]
We came to a stop in front of a section where the books glowed faintly, their spines shimmering with colors I couldn’t quite name. I frowned, trying to comprehend what he meant.
“What do you mean?”
[You made it to the pinnacle of existence. This place is literally heaven. Every book that could ever exist is here. Every world that could ever exist.]
I turned my head slowly, staring down the aisle that seemed to stretch into eternity. Books that could transport me to any reality I could imagine. Worlds where anything was possible.
“So?” I snapped, my patience wearing thin. He always had a way of dragging things out, speaking in riddles when I needed clarity.
[Want to actually be a queen? There’s a world where their leader died, and they need a new one. Want to live in a world where all people do is sit around and eat five-star food that doesn’t make you fat? It exists. Want to live in a world where your mom never died and you did? It exists. It's all here for you to find and travel to.]
I froze, my hand resting on the spine of a book. My heart seemed to stop for a moment, his words echoing in the cavernous silence of the library. I could see my mother again? The thought twisted something inside me—hope, fear, longing all tangled together. My chest tightened as I struggled to breathe.
“But... surely it wouldn’t actually be her, would it?” I whispered, my voice trembling.
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The silence that followed was heavy, as if the library itself was holding its breath, waiting for me to decide. The books around me seemed to pulse with an invitation, each one a promise of something different—a life I could choose, a reality I could shape. And yet, the uncertainty lingered, wrapping around my thoughts like a thick fog.
Over the next hour at Malice’s bequest, we started picking up books and making a stack of potential worlds to explore. He eventually told me that each world would have multiple ‘Golden Pages’ that I needed to collect in order to escape this floor. There were coins I could collect too, but I would need to collect a bunch of tools that randomly spawned in the different worlds in order to collect those.
I sighed, setting the tenth book down on the oaken table, its worn leather cover as unreadable as the rest. Each one had a different weight, a different pull, as if the stories within reached out, whispering promises of unknown adventures. The one nearest my hand was bound in deep emerald, etched with runes that flickered in and out of sight. Its pages smelled of damp earth and rain, calling to mind an ancient forest—perhaps a world of wild things, of kings and queens lost to time, waiting for their crowns.
Another was lighter, its cover pale and smooth, the edges tinged with gold. It smelled faintly of roasted chestnuts and something sweet, I felt more than heard the sound of laughter reverberating through its pages. Perhaps it was a world where laughter lingered on the air, where banquets were endless and time itself seemed to slow down, allowing everyone to feast without consequence. Yet, just beneath that sweetness, there was something bitter, something off.
My fingers brushed a third book, its leather marred by what looked like claw marks. The air around it shimmered strangely, and I could almost hear the distant clash of metal and the roar of battle—armored figures marching beneath strange, glowing skies, their every step accompanied by flashes of magic, and the cold hum of machines. I pulled away before I could get too drawn in, feeling the sting of regret and excitement tangled together.
There was sitting at the far edge of the table, a book I hadn’t dared to open. Its cover was black, glossy, and cold. For a moment, I hesitated. The air around it was thick with sorrow, and I could almost see a reflection in its surface—my reflection, but not quite. My mother’s face flickered behind mine. I could feel the weight of a choice I hadn’t made but could still make, a world where I had traded places with her.
Shaking my head, I moved to the next, its cover a deep, velvety red, flecked with silver. It was cool to the touch, but my skin prickled as though under a summer sun. I pictured an endless horizon of grasslands, where time seemed to stretch on forever, an escape from everything. But the pages hummed with life—too much life. Even there, I sensed, there were hidden dangers, unseen thorns in the roses.
Each book beckoned with its own subtle promises, each one a doorway to something...else. None of them, though, seemed like the escape I wanted. I sighed again, resting my hand on the table.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea to go into these worlds unprepared,” I muttered. “Is there anything else I should know?”
[The place you are in is an undiscovered treasure trove. Untarnished, untouched by the wars the Penitents always seem to find themselves in.]
I chuckled darkly. “I also don’t want to live in one of these worlds forever. I plan to make it out of this place.”
[That’s just it. You are making it out of this place. As long as you don’t touch a golden page, you leave Penance when you enter these worlds. I leave Penance.]
“Oh, so the truth comes out. You want out of your punishment. I thought you loved it here?”
[Yeah, yeah, whatever. I just don’t want to be stuck like this forever, and I’m sure there’s a world that can turn crystals back into real people. There’s got to be one.]
There was something different in his voice—more coherent than usual, and almost... sincere.
[Besides, I dont know why you got so ahead of yourselves with these books. We aren't going to them just yet.]
"Then where are we going?"
[You'll see.]