I tucked it into my belt pouch. I could create one myself if need be, but I didn’t see any reason not to take the one I had already found. Then I returned my attention to the room around me. Aside from the stylus, the only remaining objects of possible interest were a small silver bound book and an intricately carved wooden box. The box caught my eye first, for the artistry that went into its carving took my breath away.
I opened it carefully and found myself puzzled by the contents. The interior was lined with soft fabric, now dry and brittle with age. Nestled within that fabric were a number of plain gold rings. Each was identical and scribed with delicate runes set in a very particular pattern. It looked like an enchantment but there was very little residual magic contained within them.
Worked into the pattern were Lycian letters, spelling out one word on the exterior, ‘Illeniel’. I turned one of the rings over carefully in my hands and spotted more writing on the inside of the band, again in Lycian. The words were tiny but they appeared to read ‘trusted guest’. That’s an odd phrase to put in a gold ring, I thought.
I counted the rings and found there were twenty one within the box, though it appeared there might have been more originally. I pondered them for a good while before I set them aside for another day. I had a feeling their purpose would become clear to me later… probably while I was sleeping or bathing. I always did my best thinking when I was relaxed.
Finally I turned my attention to the book. I had been restraining myself thus far, since it was what I desired to look at first. I had saved it for last since I knew it might well take me a long time to make up my mind about its value.
It was a very compact item, no more than six inches in width and only slightly taller. Even though it was bound in silver it wasn’t more than half an inch in thickness and would easily fit into a shirt pocket or pouch. The metal exterior was covered in runes, but unlike the others I had no idea what their purpose was. The arrangements were unlike anything I had ever considered which made it hard to guess whether it was safe to open or not.
“I could stare at those patterns for a year and probably not understand what they’re supposed to do,” I said out loud, as if giving voice to my thoughts would make them more reasonable. “Sooner or later I’ll have to take a chance, and one thing I rarely have the luxury of is time.” Having said that, I felt sure it was true. It’s still stupid to open something like that without at least having witnesses in case something bad happens, said a small voice in the back of my head. I quickly hustled that voice down to the basement of my mind and had it locked away where it wouldn’t bother me anymore.
“No time like the present,” I said, and then I undid the metal clasp that held the book closed and flipped the cover open. As I did the runes around the edge of the metal began to writhe and move, as if they were alive, something I had never seen runes do before. A golden light suffused the metal and it felt as though the book itself jumped in my hand, in fact it startled me so much that I nearly dropped it. Gritting my teeth to steady my nerves I watched as the book expanded to slightly more than twice its original size. Once it had finished growing the runes grew still and the book resumed its more usual dormant state. I let out a long held sigh, grateful there hadn’t been some sort of trap.
I looked at the title page and felt my heart jump with excitement when I read the words there. ‘Index of Enchanting Schemata’ was the name of the book. As I stared at it I remembered Moira’s words, “The Illeniels were well known for the many mage-smiths and skilled enchanters they produced throughout history.” This was the first sign of that. Nothing else I had found in the library had so much as hinted at the secrets of enchanting, much less providing full-fledged schemata. I had despaired of ever finding any guidance in the lost art I had somehow re-invented.
I began thumbing through the pages idly, wondering what I might find. One page was titled, ‘Schemata for trans-spatial storage apparatus’. The designs seemed strange but I recognized some similarities with teleportation circles, though the resemblance didn’t go very far. Another page held a diagram for something called a ‘self-locking door’, and yet another contained the schemata for a ‘stasis field effect’, whatever that was.
A cursory examination told me that the book held very little in the way of instruction or explanation. Whoever had owned this book previously had obviously made it to be portable and durable, and he or she hadn’t needed much in the way of explanation. This was a book for someone already well-practiced in the art of enchanting, for what it contained were formulae and fully functional diagrams of enchantments.
Still I would rather have a book of functional designs rather than a primer with no real world applications. I had already discovered the basics on my own anyway, or most of them I hoped. I felt certain that using these I could work backward to figure out how they worked. Many of the designs I found were similar to ones I had already created. I gave myself a mental pat on the back, not bad for a beginner, I thought.
Eventually I decided I should go back outside before anyone started looking for me. Closing the book I watched as it quickly shrank back down to its previous size. It really was an amazing effect, though I still didn’t understand how it worked. Looking around I tried to discern the mechanism for re-opening the door.
Thankfully it was just as simple as entering. The wall behind me held a similar pattern to the one I had activated on the other side. I reached up to touch it but a stray thought made me pause. Given that I was in a secret room it seemed obvious I should make sure no one was outside before I opened the door again. Normally I would simply use my arcane senses to check whether anyone was nearby, and I did try, but I failed.
In most cases failure isn’t that unusual, but this time was an exception. I was unable to sense anything beyond the small room I stood within. It was as though I had entered a small bubble of reality, encapsulated by an endless void. Now that I was paying attention the sensation was shocking.
It reminded me somewhat of my first experience with the shiggreth, when I discovered I was completely unable to sense their physical presence, except as an absence. This was similar, except now the effect had extended to the entire world; the only thing I could perceive was the tiny room I was inside. My heart rate sped up as an involuntary moment of panic sent adrenaline coursing through my veins. I got my fear under control quickly. I had never been one to let fear trump reason.
Taking a slow steady breath I put my hand out to the pattern, where my fingertips should activate the enchantment that controlled the door. As my fingers touched it I felt the same tingle I had felt before and then I became aware of the world beyond the room I was in again. The door didn’t open, for I hadn’t withdrawn my hand yet, but the connection between me and the enchantment had restored my ability to sense the world outside.
Interesting, I thought to myself. The enchantment must make the room itself invisible to mage-sight, and conversely it makes it impossible to sense the world outside when you’re within it. It was a cunning piece of work and I found myself admiring the cleverness of whoever had originally designed it. Not only was the room undetectable from the outside, but whoever was inside could see to tell if anyone was outside before opening the door, although that would probably make them visible to mage-sight.
“Can’t have everything I guess,” I said to myself and then I took my hand away from the enchantment. Seconds later the door opened and I stepped out into the main library. The door closed behind me and once it was shut I could no longer sense anything of the room I had just been inside. That really is a clever piece of work, I thought. I hoped the pattern would be among the other schemata I had inside the book I now held. Not that it mattered… I could copy it from the walls themselves if need be. I felt sure it might be useful to me someday.