Paige and the Lost Library of Atlantis

Paige and the Lost Library of Atlantis chapter 3

Chapter 3

The lights flickered and finally came on as the door gently closed behind them. Walking around, pulling sheets off of various pieces of furniture, Billie avoided looking at Paige.

"Ok, were here, we're safe, so you say, now would be the time to tell me what the hell is going on." Paige was exasperated.

Billie sat down on a musty green couch and patted the seat beside her. "Ok, fine. You deserve an explanation to all this weirdness."

"You're damn right, I do! What does erased mean? Why did they call you a pro-" Paige yelled, as she anxiously paced back and forth.

"Come here and sit down!" Billie interrupted. Paige sat next to her friend, aware of the passion that flared in her eyes.

"Ok, how do I start. Um...all of the libraries in this realm...I mean your Earth... are connected. The connecting portal is always in the most unused room. You accidentally fell through one of those portals. It was my fault, really. I couldn't tell you that...I mean, I forgot to lock the portal. I didn't mean to drag you into this. I should've known better than to get distracted."

A tear slipped down her cheek, as she reached up to wipe it away, Paige grabbed her hand.

"Hey, it's not your fault. I am the freaking queen of clumsy. You probably saved my life. I would've totally skewered myself on a broom handle if I hadn't fallen thru your 'portal.'"

Looking into Billie's eyes, she almost forgot where she was. "Speaking of getting distracted," Paige laughed. "You left out a few details. Something about 'The Erasers' and getting 'erased.'"

"Right" Billie took a deep breath and started again. "Your Earth is not the only Earth, there are others, maybe an infinite amount. Every story in existence, written or unwritten, exists. There is power in creation. Those who write the stories may not realize it, but they are creating real, authentic worlds. Every parallel universe has parallel worlds, with stories and truths all their own. Each realm is made up of stories. This reality is a collective of stories each person tells themselves every day. Libraries are the anchors of each reality. They protect the stories and are connected to each other through the portals. I am a member of the 'Protectors of the Realm.' We guard the portals and protect the stories."

"You've heard of Atlantis?" Billie asked

"As in The Lost City?" Paige whispered, overwhelmed with what she is hearing.

"Yeah, that's the one," Billie continued. "Ages ago, the Great Library of Atlantis was connected by a portal, just as Parkerville is. The great minds in Atlantis watched over all the realms. They created the first chapter of the Protectors of the Realm. In their observations, they began to notice negative stories. More and more of them seemed to creep up, creating cruel, cold realities. The inhabitants of these new realities continued to dream of further atrocities, creating a ripple effect across all of existence.

"This is when the Atlantis protectors created the Erasers. Employing them sparingly at first, the Erasers soon gained a will of their own. At first, the Erasers only consumed the negative parts of stories. But soon, their appetite started to grow. Whole worlds started disappearing. They were consumed with spreading their 'void.' A treaty was created. The Erasers would only consume the negative realms, or stories, and leave the light in peace. In return, The Protectors would never enter the negative realms. Soon after the Treaty was formed, the portal to the Atlantis Library went dark."

"So why does the Earth, well my Earth, belong to The Erasers, and why are we in trouble? You were just saving me. It was all a misunderstanding." Paige tried to explain.