TERRITORY WARS: The Royal Ballads (On Hold)

Chapter 3b: The Feast

Just as Losdir suspected, Lord Rumner walked towards the Lofter's Keep where the grand library stood at the highest tower. The castle unlike other castles had three keeps: Meadow's keep, Lofter's keep and the Stronghold keep. All three keeps stood at the castle's centre and formed a ring connected by linked bridges. The rest of the towers formed along the ring. This made the king's castle tall and almost formidable.

Elvon had history and most of it was found in the Lofter's keep. The gold of the castle was stored here somewhere, Losdir knew. When they arrived at the grand library, Lord Rumner looked up from his parchment (for the first time since they began walking together) and unlocked the door with a bunch of keys. One key did not open the library door but a set of keys. Losdir watched Rumner slide in key after key until a click could be heard from within the lock and they entered.

Everything in the castle was beautiful and therefore the library, grand at that, could not be an exception. It had upper and lower levels. At the lower level, where they stood; was a fireplace, foamy chairs stuffed with pigeon feathers, and a table and chair at the other end of the room which backed a window with large blue curtains. The book-shelves on the lower level were few with fewer books in them. These books though, Losdir knew where newly added.

A serpentine step made of gold led to the upper level. Up there - Losdir knew - were a lot of shelves filled with books, parchments, ancient scrolls and other manuscripts. There was also a magnifying pole which made everything closer than usual. Lord Rumner used it to espy things in the castle's courtyard and things nearing it's gates.

There was an odd addition though; down here on the lower level, was a square glass case on a stand guarding a frail and crumbling map of the realm of old. Losdir recalled it was always at the upper level while the new map was kept in the lower level. They stood side by side now closer to the fireplace than Rumner's worktable.

Lord Ruminer rolled the parchment and flung it at a pile of similar paper. He sat, studied Losdir and looked at the fireplace.

"One can only hope that that's not a fairy portal."

Losdir examined the fireplace, "It actually is."

Lord Rumner frowned, "How can you tell?"

"Well, you see; the one I used to get here had engravings on its surface. But-"

Rumner was beside him now, holding a magnifying glass to study the symbols,

"That's fairy language, believed to be extinct, I wonder if I could find a book of translations for it." He paused, remembering Losdir had said a 'but'. "But what-"

"This is a leading portal."

Rumner gave him a puzzled look, "How can you tell?!"

Losdir shrugged, "I just know."

Magical people understand magical things and magical things draw to magical people.

A conjuror he had once met in Olean said those words to him. If the conjuror had not been half- mad, Losdir would not have found it hard to believe him then. Now, he did.

Losdir continued, "If we can only get it to work though; maybe tell the king..."

"No," Rumner dragged the word. "I will not have my library turned into a transport station. Now, that is not what I brought you here for. I have a little work for you."

Lord Ruminer's little work was a fluke. Little work did not involve arranging every book in the library and putting each one in it's right place. Little work did not involve sorting out letters that the letter-birds had brought to the library this morning. When Losdir asked why he hadn't seen the birds, Ruminer said they had been sent to dispatch messages.