The Library - The Complete Series (16 page)

"You can still help us!" Daniel shouts. "You can still come with us!"

I don't answer him. I don't even look back. In normal circumstances, I would have no hesitation in running my sword through his chest, but to do so right now would be to give in to an urge that I must keep suppressed. The most important thing is to get Claire to the Citadel. At first, I planned to cook her body and offer her to the Elders, but I'm starting to think that perhaps she has a great deal more to offer. Judging from the way Sharpe is acting, and the length of time she spent up on top of the shelves, I now believe that Claire represents something more important. All of that will be lost, however, if she dies before we can reach the Citadel. I can only hope that if we get there in time, there will be enough people left to help her, and to bring us to a point that will allow us to work out why she has been sent to help us.

Claire

It's hard to stay awake; instead, I drift in and out of sleep, and I get only the vaguest sense of the world around me. One moment I'm on the ground, staring up at Vanguard and Daniel, the next I feel myself passing through some kind of fog and suddenly I feel the warmth of daylight on my face. I'm being carried in Vanguard's arms, and all I can see is row after row of shelving as we make out way down yet another aisle. I soon pass out again, and when I wake up I'm on the floor, and Sharpe is dripping water into my mouth; I open my lips and gratefully feel the cool, clean water slipping down my throat. A moment later, I wake up in Vanguard's arms again; seconds after that, I open my eyes and once again see the stars above me. Finally, I fall into a deep sleep that seems to last much longer than the others, until I wake up in what feels suspiciously like a real, actual bed.

"Are you hungry?" asks a voice nearby.

Sitting up, I find a woman standing over by the window. Middle-aged and with a kind face, her skin has the same green, reptilian features of the Grandapam from the Library. Smiling, she comes over to the bed and sits next to me, immediately reaching out and checking the temperature of my forehead.

"You've had a fever," she says. "You were rambling in your sleep, talking about all kinds of nonsense. We were quite worried about you for a while."

I stare at her, trying to work out what I should say.

"My name is Natalia," she says, "and your name is Claire. I already know a lot about you. I've been looking after you while you've been sick, and now I'm going to help you as you recover. It's not going to be easy, but I'm sure we'll have you back up on your feet in no time." She pauses. "I'm a Grandapam. I'm sorry, I forgot that perhaps I look a little unusual to a human, but I can assure you that apart from my cold blood and rather different appearance, I'm really quite friendly."

"Where am I?" I ask, looking across the room. The walls seem to be carved out of pale yellow stone, and apart from the bed there's no other furniture. Sunlight is streaming through the window, and there's no sound outside at all, not even birdsong. I know I'm probably being irrational, but I can't help feeling slightly panicked; of all the strange things I saw in the Library, the most horrific was when Daniel had a Grandapam killed for food. Worse still, I actually ate some of Grandapam meat, which means I feel I can barely look Natalia in the eye. I can't help thinking back to the taste of the meat I ate the other day.

"Is something wrong?" she asks.

I shake my head.

"You're safe," she continues. "You're in the Citadel."

"The Citadel?" I force myself to make eye contact with her. Does she know? Can she see from the look in my eyes that I did something so awful? Even though I didn't know at the time what I was eating, I still consumed flesh from her species. I take a deep breath, trying to calm the urge to throw up.

"It took you a long time to get here," she says. "Your friends were very worried about you when you arrived. You were close to death, but we were able to get you back up to full strength. They told me that you're very important, and that I should spare no efforts in order to ensure that you're able to make a full recovery. Now it's just a matter of making sure you don't rush anything. Even if you feel better, your body is still mending. I don't know a lot about human physiology, but you don't seem drastically different to my own species."

"How long have I been here?" I ask, hoping to change the subject.

"Almost a week," she replies.

"A week?" I stare at her. "A whole week?"

"You've been slipping in and out of consciousness. You had a fever for a while. There was a moment when I wasn't sure if you'd make it. Even for a human, there seem to be some very unusual things about you, Claire. Fortunately, you started to rally and now, finally, you're awake. I think you're through the worst of it."

I take a deep breath. The last thing I remember is being up on top of one of the bookshelves in the middle of the night. I was talking to someone, and then I felt something behind my back; I remember turning, and I remember feeling the most extreme sense of fear that I've ever known, and then... and then it's as if everything just stopped. I don't remember how I got down from the top of the shelf, and I barely remember the journey here.

"There'll be time for questions later," Natalia says, putting a hand on my arm. Her reptilian skin feels cold to the touch, and I instinctively pull away.

"I'm sorry," I say, quickly reaching back out to her.

"It's fine," she replies, pulling her hand away. "For now, you must rest."

"I need to see where I am," I reply, getting out of bed. I feel stiff and sore and bruised, but I manage to limp over to the window. Looking out, I see the vastness of the Library spread out before me. I'd heard it was big, but it's still shocking to actually see the aisles spreading to the horizon. In the glow of the afternoon sun, the whole place looks surprisingly beautiful, but at the same time it also looks kind of dead. There's no real sign of life out there, and there's no noise, apart from a very distant rumble, which I guess must be coming from the war.

"It wasn't like this before," Natalia says, joining me at the window. "There used to be so much life in the Library. It all changed, though, when the Forbidders came and the war broke out. People fled to the horizon and were never seen again. Since then, a deathly calm has fallen over the place. No-one knows how long this will last, but most of us have given up hoping for relief. The Citadel is the last part of this region that hasn't already fallen to the Forbidders. As far as you can see, from horizon to horizon, their influence is felt. I find it hard to believe that there can be many places left that are safe from their influence."

"I need to find Vanguard," I say, realizing the enormity of this situation. I'd hoped to find a way back home as soon as I walked into the Citadel, but I can already feel myself being drawn into something much bigger. I can't shake the feeling that there's something I've forgotten, something that's bugging me in the back of my mind. I don't feel quite normal, although I suppose that could be something to do with the fact that I've apparently spent the past week fighting for my life; still, I could swear that there's something else... something I should be remembering.

"He's busy with the Elders," Natalia replies. "They're preparing a great feast for tonight, but I'll send word that you're awake and I'm sure he'll come down to see you as soon as he has a spare moment."

"What about Sharpe?" I ask. "I need to see someone."

"I'm not sure where Mr. Sharpe is, but I'll see what can be done. For now, you just need to rest. I'm under strict orders to make sure you recover as quickly as possible, and the most important thing is for you to stay in bed and wait until your strength has fully recovered. Are you going to listen to me and do what's good for you, or are you going to put up a fight and make me take a tough line with you?"

I stare at her for a moment. There's no point fighting with her, so I might as well make her think that I'm going to do what she wants. "Sure," I mutter, heading back to the bed and climbing back under the sheets.

"I'll fetch you some food," Natalia says, smiling as she hurries out of the room.

I sit completely still for a few minutes, making sure that Natalia is well away from the door before I make any noise. Once I'm certain that she's gone, I get out of bed and head to the door. I need to find Vanguard and Sharpe so that I know everything's okay; I also need to work out how I'm going to get back to my own world, since an extended stay in the Library isn't something that appeals too much. Leaning out into the corridor, I see nothing but cold stone passages heading in either direction.

"Claire?" says a voice suddenly, and I turn to find Natalia standing just a few feet away.

"Hey," I say, surprised by how she seemed to just sneak up on me so quickly. "I was just... I mean, I just wanted to take a look around."

"You need to rest," she says, grabbing me by the elbow and leading me back into the room. "You suffered a great deal on your journey. From what I've been told, you're rather lucky to have survived at all. I've been put in charge of making sure you're okay, and I'm most certainly not going to have you racing about. Imagine Vanguard's response if he discovered that I let you go storming about like this." She gently settles me back on my bed and smiles at me as she pulls the bed-sheets back over my body. "Don't worry. You'll be up to full strength in a few days, and then you can start to find a way back to your own world."

I open my mouth to argue with her, but there's something slightly menacing about her smile. I get the feeling that whatever I do or say, she's determined to make me stay in bed. I guess I need to play a very long game, and wait until I've gained her trust. Besides, Vanguard and Sharpe should be along soon to tell me what we're doing next.

"Sure," I say meekly. "I'll stay in bed." Damn it, I sound so polite and obedient; I want to vomit.

"That's what I like to hear," she says, grinning as she heads back to the door. "Don't go anywhere, Claire. I'll find you something to eat."

Once she's gone, I force myself to stay in bed. The last thing I want to do is make this Natalia woman think that I'm tricky. Although it's good to be in a proper bed and away from the aisles of the Library, I can't help thinking that there's something a little creepy about this place. Natalia seemed so keen to make sure I stay in my room, and I find it hard to believe that Vanguard would just drop me off here and then not bother waiting around to see if I'm okay. Taking a deep breath, I look over at the door and suddenly I realize I'm being dumb: there's no reason for me to just sit here and wait to be told what to do. Pulling the bed-sheets aside, I stand up and head back to the door.

"Here you go!" Natalia says, suddenly returning with a tray of food. She smiles at me as she stands in the doorway, blocking my way. Once again, I can't help feeling that her pleasant, helpful demeanor is being used to hide a more calculated and controlling agenda. There's no way I'm getting out of this room; not yet, anyway. "You seem determined to keep getting out of bed, Claire," she continues after a moment. "I can see I'm going to have to keep a very close eye on you."

Epilogue

The creature sleeps on top of one of the shelves, feeling the warming glow of the sun on its back. Its belly is still full, and movement will be difficult for a few more days. This, though, is how it lives: it eats irregular, huge meals, and then sleeps for many days. It knows that no-one will disturb it, and rarely will it stir until the digestion process is complete. After all, it has an entire soldier in its stomach, including all the bones; it will take time for the body to break down entirely.

Today, though, something is different.

Suddenly, the creature opens one of its eyes. At first, it can't be sure why it has woken, but it knows there must be something nearby. Raising its head, the creature turns and looks toward the Citadel. After a moment, something in one of the windows catches its attention. The creature opens its other eye and finally realizes what it's seeing: a human girl, standing at the window and looking out across the Library. A few seconds later, a female Grandapam joins the human, and leads her back into the room.

The creature stares at the empty window. The presence of a human female is not a surprise; the creature already knew that she was here, and that she was to be allowed safe passage to the Citadel. But as it sniffs the light morning air, the creature picks up the scent of blood. For a moment, the creature can think of nothing but the sensation of human blood in its jaws; to pick that body apart would be a wonderful experience. The creature knows, however, that it can do no such thing. The time might come when the human is considered fair game, but for now she has been marked as off-limits.

Figuring it can't do anything to change the situation, the creature slowly closes its eyes and starts drifting off back to sleep. In its belly, the soldier's body shifts position a little; it has only been a few hours since the meal, and oftentimes these soldiers take a while to die. Enjoying the sensation of its prey still struggling to get free, the creature starts to dream of the day when it might eventually be allowed to hunt the human.

Book 4:

Comes a War

Prologue

She's here. She's close. Soon, she'll be coming up the stairs.

I've waited so long for this moment. I remember the day, all those years ago, when I was told about her. I was told to expect her, but also that the wait would be almost intolerable. I was told that all the pieces needed to be in position, in anticipation of her arrival. Reluctantly, I agreed. I mean, it wasn't exactly my idea, but I understood that I had a certain debt to pay. If I didn't agree to play my part, I would probably have been burned to pieces. So I agreed. There have been times when I've regretted that decision, but at least I seem to have made it through the darkness.

I wonder what she looks like? It's been so long since I last saw her, and I'm sure she's changed a great deal. My heart is racing at the thought that I might see her face, and hear her voice, and maybe even touch her skin. She'll need me, of course. After all, that's why I was left here in the first place: it was decided long ago that she'd eventually need someone, and I was nominated. I wasn't exactly thrilled at the prospect, but nevertheless, here I am.

I'm ready.

I'm waiting.

After all these years, the moment is about to arrive.