As Amiri stepped into the archival section of the library, she was immediately struck by a feeling of awe. The vast room exceeded her expectations, with towering shelves that loomed overhead, laden with ancient tomes that seemed to radiate a soft glow in the dimly lit space. A sense of magic seemed to permeate the air, as if the very books themselves were the source of an enchanting aura. The domed roof featured stunningly painted slopes, adorned with depictions of characters and landscapes from stories or history that Amiri couldn't identify. Although the room lacked windows, the ceiling emitted a gentle shimmer, casting a warm, soft light throughout the chamber.
Caleb stepped away to the side and gave Amiri a quick wave “I’m just going to grab Mara to introduce you. Feel free to look around for a few minutes. Don’t try to take any of the books.” The warning he gave seemed by rote, spoken so many times it was an automatic response.
As she walked further into the room, Amiri attempted to decipher the layout. She observed that the walls were lined with towering bookshelves reaching all the way up to the ceiling, and extending into the room, creating a network of intertwining passageways between the shelves. The space was a labyrinthine repository of knowledge, and for a moment, Amiri felt overwhelmed by the sheer abundance of books. Questions raced through her mind: How were the books organized? How could anyone locate a specific book in this vast space? And how did one access the volumes on the highest shelves?
She heard the faint rustle of pages turning and the occasional whisper of a student lost in thought, and she noticed that along the walls were cloistered little alcoves that allowed students privacy while they worked. The archives were a quiet place. The comforting kind of quiet though, not the quiet of three parts.
In the centre of the room was a large circular table surrounded by chairs, where students and researchers gathered to study and collaborate. Their voices were audible but indistinct soft murmurings. The table was surrounded by stacks of books, and covered in open journals and scattered papers.
Continuing her exploration, Amiri sought to understand how the librarians navigated the archives. Upon reaching the end of a passageway among the towering shelves, she noticed metal plates affixed to each terminus, displaying symbols she couldn't decipher. Entering a random section of shelves, she traced her finger along the spines of the books and selected one with an attractive burgundy cover. Flipping it open to a random page, she was met with indecipherable text. The flowing script was seamless and unbroken, giving the impression that the pen never left the page during its creation. After returning the book to its place, she picked up another, only to find it contained the same mysterious script.
“Well, this section is at least organized by language,” Amiri thought to herself, and then continued on through the tall corridor of books.
As Amiri walked along the passageways, she noticed a peculiar object hanging on one of the walls. On closer inspection, she realized it was a three-dimensional map of the archival section, seemingly crafted from a combination of metal and glass. The map was suspended within a circular frame, and as Amiri reached out to touch it, she discovered that it could rotate on multiple axes, allowing her to view it from any angle.
The intricate details of the map were impressive; each bookshelf was represented by a thin metal line, while the glass sections represented the open spaces between the shelves. To add to the magic of the map, each section of the archive was marked with a faintly glowing, color-coded symbol that corresponded to the symbols on the metal plates at the ends of each passageway. She still didn’t know what the symbols meant, but when she did, this would be an invaluable tool.
She held her hand over a section, and the map pulsed with a red light and returned to its original orientation. It continued flashing red, like a heartbeat. She stepped back anxiously, wondering if she had done something wrong.
A nearby student, noticing the red light, sauntered over to Amiri with a charming grin. "Looks like you need some assistance," he said, his voice smooth and flirtatious. "You see, the advanced features of the map are locked for unapproved visitors. But don't worry, I can help you out with that, once we get to know each other a little better."
He gestured toward one of the private alcoves, raising an eyebrow suggestively. "Why don't we go somewhere a bit more secluded, and I can show you how to navigate this place?" Amiri hesitated, feeling uncomfortable with the student's advances.
“Uh, I’m actually here for an interview…” Amiri trailed off awkwardly, unsure how to diffuse the situation without causing offence. “So, I should probably…”
“That’s even better," he replied in a confident voice. “I can show you how everything works, give you a primer.” He stepped forward, placing his hand on Amiri's arm. “I’m Rafe, by the way. Third-year student, College of History.”
Just as she was about to respond, Caleb returned, accompanied by a young woman who Amiri assumed was Mara. Their footsteps echoed softly in the quiet room. Caleb's eyes narrowed as he took in the scene, and Mara quickly stepped forward.
"Amiri, I see you've discovered our map," Mara said, her tone friendly but assertive. "I can help you with that." She turned to the cocky student, her expression firm. "Thank you, Rafe, but we've got it from here."
Rafe’s charming smile faltered, but he nodded, retreating back to his previous spot with a disappointed look on his face. With the student gone, Mara turned her attention to Amiri.
“Sorry about that. Some of the male students here are incorrigible. They want to nail anything that's not bolted down.”
Caleb coughed at that and said, “Present company excluded, of course.”
Mara turned to him and just stared. Caleb grew red, then redder, the already bright spots on his cheeks darkening into a full flush.
“I need to head back to the reception desk now, Ri. I’ll hand you off to Mara for the last part of the job interview” Caleb stammered out, looking anywhere but at Mara. Amiri watched with interest, wondering what their deal was.
Caleb soon departed after a friendly “good luck, catch me in the hall on your way out no matter what the result is,” and Amiri was left alone with Mara.
Mara watched Caleb leave with a bemused expression on her face, then turned and gestured for Amiri to follow her.
“I am one of the Adjunct Archivists. If the Library Historia is a human body, then Head Archivist Dornamell is the hand, and we adjuncts are her fingers.”
Amiri had a dozen questions flit through her head, each one starting from normal and then trending towards inappropriate - the tame being “Who is the head?” or “What would the soul be?” and the inappropriate being “Is the Library Historia in this hypothetical male or female, and if so, who gets the genitalia?” She finally settled on asking:
“If adjuncts are the fingers, what are librarians?”
“Good question,” Mara smiled. “I always liked to think of that position as the nerves of the body. Librarians connect and facilitate communication through all parts of the library.”
Stolen novel; please report.
“Does everyone anthropomorphize the library?” Amiri wondered out loud.
“No, definitely not” Mara laughed. “It’s just my own particular idiosyncrasy, my way of making sense of the complex world we find ourselves in.”
“Now,” Mara stopped before a large organized set of desks. “I believe you have one more task to complete. If you do manage to complete it, we will then have a conversation and get to grips with your current knowledge.” Mara leafed through a folder and pulled out Amiri's essay and history, which she had submitted when she applied for the role. “The Head Archivist sent these over today, but I haven’t had a chance to read through it yet. Do you mind showing me whatever clue you have to solve, and I’ll find someone appropriate if you need to ask questions?”
Amiri reached into her satchel again, coming back with ‘A Beginner's Guide to Spellcasting’, and flipped the cover open to the foreword written by the Head Archivist. She scanned the text again before handing it to the adjunct.
“The answer lies where the stacks meet the table. LMF 002.114 HIS.”
HA Dornamell
Mara’s lip quirked up at the corner as she read the words. “Ah,” she said. “The puzzle changes frequently, you see. The Head Archivist hates it if someone applies and interviews, then afterwards spreads what the task was, so she regularly changes it. In this case, I will not assign someone to you.” She turned to look at her timekeeper on the table. “It’s almost exactly a single bell past noon. I will give you two more bells to solve the puzzle and come back to me here.” She gestured at the area without looking. “This place is compass North on the map. There are four maps in total, one in the East, West, and South sides of the room, and one near the centre of the chamber. Any one of those maps should help you orient back here.” Mara trailed off, looking thoughtful. “Do you have any questions before you go?” she asked.
Amiri thought for a moment. She had so many questions about aspects of the library, the archives, the job. Everything. But a question now? That helped her with this task? She shook her head. "No, I think I'm ready. I’ll be back before two bells have passed.”
Mara raised an eyebrow, but then smiled. “I have faith that you have the skills needed. Good luck, Amiri.”
With that, Amiri stepped back into the labyrinth of bookshelves that formed passageways and corridors in beautiful patterns as far as you could see. Every shelf held a variety of brightly coloured spines and faded books, with text embossed in bright silvers, gaudy golds, and even some that looked like enchanted thread or metal. It was a vast place, these archives. She, however, had a destination in mind.
She wasn’t sure exactly where the large circular table was that she passed by earlier, but she knew that was where she wanted to be. The students had piled their manuscripts, papers, and books up in precarious columns all around where they were working. Piles are just stacks by another name, Amiri thought happily.
The table was in the dead centre of the room, and wasn’t too difficult to find after all. There were more than a dozen students that fit easily around the table, and it looked like other students also left their reference materials and useful notes here when they left as well. Amiri recalled Caleb saying that books could not be taken out of the library.
The problem was easily identifiable, but not easily solved. Amiri didn’t know how to go about finding the call numbers without poking into the students' stacks of books. She didn’t mind doing it, but didn’t know the protocol, and it seemed something that would be easy for students to get quite tetchy about.
She decided she had to ask one of the students and hope that they could explain the system to her. She looked around the table at the nearest occupants, trying to find someone approachable or friendly-looking. She settled on a young woman who was totally engrossed in a book; she had long dark hair, and it fell like a curtain, framing her face. She seemed very focused, but not unfriendly. Amiri sidled up to her.
"Excuse me," Amiri said softly, trying not to be the loudest voice in the room. The student looked up from her book and let out a soft sigh.
“What do you want?” the student replied. Her voice was terse but not unkind.
“I’m really sorry to bother you, but I’m here for an interview, and I need to find a specific book among the stacks,” Amiri gestured around the table at the piles of books and manuscripts and papers that made their own little city of towers all across the table. “How do I go about looking for a book if the piles belong to students? Are they all student books? Will they get annoyed if I quickly leaf through them?” Amiri rushed through the last few questions.
The student seemed a little bit bombarded by Amiri and drew her book towards herself as if it was a shield. Then she sighed again, closed the book, and put it down on the table.
“Yes, we do get annoyed if people look through our stacks. It may not appear to be in any specific order, but everyone has some method to their madness. They don’t last long here otherwise.” She started leafing through her own pile beside her, and drew out a sheaf of paper with some notes of it, then curled the page and handed it to Amiri, tapping at a crest on the bottom corner of the page. The crest was circular, and had a main central image of a telescope, surrounded by a ring of celestial bodies - a sun, a moon, and several stars. There were more elements to it, but the paper was gently pulled back by the student before Amiri had a chance to look further. “Each student has a personalized crest - we design it during enrollment. Students use the crests to mark their stack of books. The library staff do the same, let me show you.”
The student rose, carefully navigating around other people's stacks on the floor, and walked a short distance before locating her target. She gestured to a collection of books and papers that seemed virtually indistinguishable from the surrounding piles. "This stack contains research materials that a student has finished using, and they've marked it for the Mixers to return." She removed a thick sheet of paper from the top of the pile and handed it to Amiri. This sheet was more akin to sturdy cardstock than typical paper. The emblem featured a circular design with a central image of an open book, its pages gently fluttering – clearly enchanted. Additional elements included ribbons, a quill dipped in ink, and a luminous crystal hovering above the book. "Materials marked for the Mixers are up for grabs, so no one will mind you browsing through them. However, the most useful reference or translation books are usually claimed right away," she remarked, casting a glance at Amiri. "Which book did you mention you were looking for again?"”
“I don’t know specifically, I just have this call number for it,” Amiri got a piece of paper out of her satchel, scribbled down the code LMF 002.114 HIS, and handed it over for scrutiny. “What are mixers, by the way? It’s not a term I have heard before.”
“Magical Indexers,” the student responded, while frowning at the call number. “Nobody calls them that though, not even themselves. They work in the libraries to organize and catalogue books. They usually have some manifestation that makes it easier, or some kind of trick memory where they never forget where a book was meant to be. Nope, doesn’t mean anything to me.” She handed the paper with the call code back.
Amiri nodded, feeling incredibly grateful for the information she had been able to obtain. “Thank you so much, I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your help.”
The student offered a small tight smile before nodding and making a beeline back to where she had been sitting before, re-immersing herself in her book.
With a sigh of relief, Amiri started with the pile directly in front of her, finger tracing down spines of each book to find the attached call code and see if it matched. None did in this pile.
She started to search through the stacks, careful to avoid any marked with personal crests. She started a slow revolution around the table. “Where the stacks meet the table” was her clue, so she did not want to venture far from it. She was making good progress, but time was also against her. She checked her watch and noticed with shock that nearly a full bell and a half had passed and she still hadn’t found it. Half a bell left.
Beginning to panic, she circled further around the table and frantically scanned the piles left out for the mixers.
20 minutes left.
10 minutes left.
She found it. It was in an innocuous pile, almost underneath the table itself. The book the call code identified was Guardians of Knowledge: The Art and Craft of Historia's Librarianship. How fitting.
With a triumphant sigh, Amiri clutched the book tightly to her chest and began making her way back to where the Adjunct Archivist awaited. A surge of exhilaration swelled within her as she thought of her accomplishments. She had unravelled the puzzle, endured the library's trials, and navigated the archives to claim her prize. She truly belonged here, working as a librarian within the hallowed halls of Library Historia, adjacent to the College of History her parents had attended years ago. This was the place where she could discover her own grimoire, the answers she sought, and the path ahead. It all started here, where her journey truly began.