The Call Of The Syrenium

I. Please Be A Secret Passage Way

Thank You to my sister @TJrebe, who helped me write the first chapter of the book. I wouldn't have been able to write it without her.

®ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
This book contains material protected under International and Federal Copyright Law and Treaties. Any unauthorised reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of the this book my be reproduced or transmitted in any form or any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording or any kind of information storage and retrieval without express written permission from the author/publisher.
©CrazyMandyAAR or
©Amanda A. Rebello.
Published on 19th Jan 2016.

***************
I stood there, staring at the entrance. I could never understand why this place, seemed to intrigue me. I always felt this enigmatic pull, whenever I passed by, which was nearly everyday, as I walked home from school.

"The Zodiakos Vivere"

It was an unusual name for a bookstore. I tried looking up the meaning of the words but they were non-existent.

So, everyday after school, I would stand in front of the store's large oak doors, engraved with various creatures of the woods, a lion, a deer, an owl and many others, hiding from view, hidden by the thick foliage of the wooden forest but still in plain sight. I was mesmerized by the art and the intricacy of each detail in the cravings. And that was just the grandeur of the door.

The walls of the store had this ancient architectural design with a mosaic boulder patterns, adding to its unusual beauty of a building from the sixteenth century, in a busy town street of Zenith.

Each day I would come and admire the store from the outside, always afraid to go in. I was afraid of the inside not living up to the grandeur of the front of the shop, afraid to enter as it was the only other link I had with my parents.

Standing in front of the doors I played with my necklace, the last gift my parents left me with, contemplating my decision to enter the store. The store that my father had loved and said that this was the place where he had met my mother for the first time ever.

Today, I had decided to enter the shop once and for all. It was my parent's tenth death anniversary. Something had prompted me to go there. A voice inside my head, merely a whisper, but still loud enough for me to acknowledge.

I walked up to the door and hesitantly placed my hand on the door knob. Taking a deep breath, I calmed my frantic nerves and pushed the door open.

As I entered all I could see was a dingy room, but when my eyes adjusted to the dim lighting, I gasped in surprise and awe.

Okay, I know this sounds cheesy but I was in Bookworm Heaven. There where shelves and shelves of books till my eye could see, starting from the floor of the store right up to the ceiling. And in the centre of the store a few independent book shelves standing in a row, parallel to each other. To light the way between each of the bookcases there were wall mounted lanterns like those seen in medieval movies or castles, all adding to the store's aesthetic appeal.

As I walked around the store in awe, my head making almost impossible angles with my neck, I was startled by a loud and strident screech, pulling me out of my reverie. I cautiously walked toward the source of the sound and encountered a relatively tidy information desk, near the entrance of the store.

How had I not seen that before ?

Looking around for any sign of life, I called out, " Hello! Is any one there ?"
I waited for a reply but when I received none I walked upto to the desk to inspect it.

Again the desk was furnished with the same intricate forest life, wood work as on the door. As I walked from one end of the desk to the other I saw a flash of feathers in the corner accompanied by a shuffling of feet.