Power Conspiracy

by Pedro Urvi

  The librarian nodded to Nilsa and Egil and left, stiff-backed, to go on with his tasks.

  “If you’d like to come with me …” Sonea said, with a wave in the direction they had come from.

  She led the way, and Nilsa and Egil followed with their heads bowed.

  “You had a permit?” Sonea asked curiously.

  “Yes,” Egil said, “and it took a lot of effort to get it, but it was all for nothing.”

  “If the Grand Master has refused the permit without even seeing you, then the tome you want to see must be one of the Reserved ones.”

  “Reserved?” Egil repeated.

  “There are tomes that can’t be consulted, as Regus said, not even by the most experienced librarians. It’s forbidden.”

  “The tome is on History …” Egil let fall, trying to find out more.

  “If it’s a Reserved History tome, I know where it’ll be.”

  “You do?” Egil was doing his best not to sound too eager in order to avoid arousing suspicions, though he was dying to know more. Nilsa too immediately looked more cheerful, but merely gazed around as though she was not particularly interested.

  “On the third sub-level, at the end of the corridor, there are various halls that hold those very valuable tomes. They’re organized by area of study. The door to the Knowledge of History has a blue mark on it. I’ve never been allowed in any of them, but I’ve seen their doors any number of times. They’re padlocked and chained and only the Elder Archivists have the key, each one that of his own area of study.”

  “What a curious system,” Egil commented casually.

  “I believe it was arranged that way to protect the treasures in them better. Of course, Grand Master Lugobrus has all the keys. He carries them with him everywhere.”

  “Cautious man,” said Egil.

  “And other things besides …” Sonea bit her tongue.

  Egil and Nilsa smiled. Sonea bowed deeply and opened the main door.

  “It’s been a very pleasant visit, and you’re a sensational guide,” Egil said to her.

  She blushed. “Oh … thank you.”

  “Yes, a great guide, and very nice,” Nilsa said.

  “I’m glad you enjoyed your visit. I’m very sorry you weren’t allowed to consult the tome of knowledge.”

  “Take care,” Egil said as they began to walk away.

  “Don’t get into messes like me,” she said as she waved goodbye to them.

  Egil turned, smiled at her and waved back.

  “Clever girl,” Nilsa said.

  “Yes, bright and intelligent. She’ll go far in life.”

  “Yeah, I agree.”

  As they left the Grand Library, Egil was already thinking of a new plan: one that would allow them to get hold of what they were in search of.

  Chapter 35

  It was well into the night when Nilsa, Valeria, Gerd and Egil set out. Each of them entered Erenalia from a different direction, then went on into the heart of the city along its wide and well-tended streets. The city was sleeping, and they only met a few nocturnal passers-by who – as in any other city at those unearthly hours – were best avoided. Erenalia was a magnificent city, but like any other metropolis in Tremia, it had its share of thieves, bullies, murderers and the unscrupulous.

  They went on their way alone, with their hoods pulled up, seeking the less-illuminated streets in order to pass unnoticed. This was not a particularly difficult thing to do in other cities, but not here, because it was kept well-lit. It gave the impression that King Dasleo wanted his city to shine as much by day, with its buildings, monuments and immaculate streets, as by night, under the light of countless lanterns all along the avenues and noteworthy spots.

  Egil was coming down from the higher part, the richest and most elegant, and had to dodge two city guard patrols. Luckily they were marching as though on parade, stepping heavily, and could be heard from a block away. This was probably deliberately, so that no nocturnal criminal would dare to stray anywhere near where they were patrolling. From what Egil had been able to find out, the patrol routes formed rectangles around the rich quarters. Luckily, the four of them were heading toward the lower part of town and hoping that there would be fewer patrols there. That night there were going to be four more criminals in the great city.

  Nilsa was approaching the lower area of town from the east. She was nervous, more so than usual, which in any case was a lot more than in any other human being. All the same, she was very much aware of what was at stake, so she was trying to stay calm by all means possible. They had got as far as Erenalia, and the cure for Dolbarar was to be found here. They could not afford to fail, particularly on her account. She was not going to ruin everything at the last moment. They would make it. Egil’s plan, as usual, was brilliant, but also dangerous, as it could hardly avoid being. She took a deep breath to quell the restlessness which was creeping over her and turned the final corner.

  Gerd was walking with his head bowed and his body rather slouched forward. The people of Erenal were not very tall, and once again he stood out noticeably. Luckily they were taller than the Zangrians, so all he needed to do was slouch enough to blur the extra head of height he had over everybody in the city. He was relaxed. The plan was a good one, and he knew perfectly well what he was up against, with the result that his fears had not made an appearance. He felt good. It was true that there was danger, as there generally was whenever they went out on a mission, but the danger was a specific one: the city guards. This did not frighten him in the least. He knew they could end up in jail or be killed in a fight with the guards, but he was not afraid of them. As long as he was dealing with a known threat, his terrors left him in peace. He felt confident as he went on through the south of the city. This was the bad part, with its rabble and poverty. He was not afraid of this environment either. He knew the dangers, and he was fully aware.

  An unpleasant-looking individual came out of a side street and approached him. From his way of walking, Gerd was immediately alerted to danger.

  The stranger brought out a knife and brandished it threateningly. “Give me all you have,” he said.

  Gerd did not even stop. As he walked by, with his last step he calculated his assailant’s trajectory, then the moment he spoke he delivered a tremendous punch to his nose, using the momentum of his own movement. The robber fell backwards with his nose broken. He did not get up again.

  Gerd went on walking. “Pathetic apologies for robbers, as far as I’m concerned,” he murmured to himself, shaking his head.

  Valeria was nearing her goal by way of the west of the city. So far she had had no trouble; she had been quick to hide from a chance encounter with a patrol of the city guard, sand that was all she had to report. She had seen a few people in the distance, but had identified them as workers beginning their day before sunrise: bakers, butchers and those other professions who started working long before the other citizens got up, so that by the time they went shopping everything would be fresh and ready.

  Up to then, the adventure with the group had been just what she had anticipated: full of emotions, dangerous situations and unexpected twists in their plans. Nothing that she had not been expecting when she had joined the Snow Panthers. She enjoyed strong emotions, she was a girl of action, not one of those who watch from outside. She had always been like that. It was one of the most notable things about her, and one of the reasons she did not get along with her father, who considered it improper in a young lady. There was very little of the charming young lady or damsel in distress about her, and that was how she wanted things to be. Her father, on the other hand, considered this fitting for a boy but not for his daughter, and she had argued with him to the point of exhaustion about this.

  She gave a snort of annoyance as she strode on. That was the way things were with her father, and she was delighted to be a long way away from him, from his influence and his way of thinking. Besides, she both wanted and needed to be close to the Panthers. Unfortunately, Las
gol was not with them, which had been a disappointment as she would have liked to have shared that adventure with him, to have had him by her side during all those days and then see what would happen between them. No matter how much in love he might be with Astrid, she was never going to accept defeat. Relationships were always complicated, so that there was no telling what might happen in the end. But even in Lasgol’s absence, being with Egil and seeing the things he had in mind was deeply interesting. On top of that, Nilsa and Gerd were a delight, and with them you could go to the end of the world.

  Egil arrived at his target, the Grand Library. The hit had to be quick and accurate, and they needed to leave the city before sunrise if they did not want half the army of Erenal after them. He waited at the northern corner of the great square in front of the majestic and (for an erudite or a book lover) wonderful building which held the greatest collection of knowledge in Tremia. A moment later Nilsa appeared at the eastern corner, and they signaled to each other. Valeria appeared from the west and signaled in turn. Gerd took a while longer to reach the southern corner and get into position.

  Egil rubbed his gloved hands together. The moment had come to act. Two soldiers were guarding the door of the library, with two others at the back. At the slightest indication of danger, they would sound the alarm, and two hundred paces to the north was an army post with over a hundred soldiers in it. Egil calculated that there would be some seventy-five resting inside. If the alarm was sounded, they would get to the library quickly and his plan would have failed.

  More than that: if they did not achieve their purpose that night, probably they never would. Once they realized that someone was trying to get into the grand library, its guards would be even more watchful, and their own options would vanish like smoke. They would not manage to save Dolbarar. They would have to deal with any obstacle as it arose, because there would be no second chance.

  He sighed. They had to do it. Everything would work out all right.

  He made a sign to Nilsa, who began walking. The plan was under way. Egil went on to the building next to the Grand Library. It was rectangular, very long, and compared to the superb library, it looked like the work of an apprentice. It held the accommodation for the librarians. The three hundred and more who made up the Order worked in the library by day, but ate and rested in this other, much simpler and more functional, building. There was no watch kept on its door. Unobtrusively, and waiting until the guards at the door of the library only fifty paces away would not see him, he checked to see whether it was shut.

  It was. They could not get in. He had expected this. Further along the wall was another ornamented door to the part of the building they needed to gain access to, but it would presumably be shut too. They had no choice but to enter through the most distant part. He went to the back of the building, the butlers’ entrance. These were the people in charge of attending to all the librarians’ needs. Nilsa was already waiting for him by that door, which was smaller and more utilitarian. Egil searched in his Ranger’s belt for a picklock.

  “You’ve come prepared,” Nilsa whispered from where she was hidden in the shadows, against the wall.

  “I guessed we’d need them.”

  “You know how to use them?”

  “Well, not really, but I’ve read how they’re used …”

  “You’ve read?”

  Egil shrugged. With an apologetic glance, he set himself to try and pick the lock. It did not look like it was particularly strong. It was the service door, after all, and it made no sense to put an expensive lock on it. He worked on it for a while, but could not open it.

  “Let me try,” Nilsa whispered.

  “Are you sure? You don’t exactly have steady fingers.”

  “Luckily the numskull taught me how to use them.”

  “Who?”

  “Viggo,” she replied with a giggle.

  “Oh … of course.”

  Nilsa took the picklock and set to work. For a while it did not look as though she was making any more progress than Egil had, but suddenly there came a metallic click. She turned the lock, and the door opened.

  “You’re fantastic!”

  She smiled. “I have good friends who teach me well.”

  Once inside the building, they closed the door behind them so that everything would look normal. Nobody was going to be watching that entrance, but it was better not to take the risk. The room was dark, and they had to feel their way. On their right was another door which led to the store for the building, so they tried the door on the left, which unfortunately was closed too.

  “These librarians lock everything,” Nilsa grumbled.

  “I think the butlers are in charge of this area, but it seems logical to me. They’re efficient.”

  It took them a moment to open this door, then they went into another room which was also used for storage. They passed two more, at a crouch and in silence, but this part of the building seemed deserted.

  “We’ve got to get to the area where the librarians sleep and get across that,” Egil said.

  Nilsa nodded.

  “We have to get to the noble part of the building, at the far end, where the Master Archivists and the Grand Master have their chambers.”

  “At the far, far end, right?” Nilsa asked unenthusiastically. She could already guess the answer.

  “That’s it, at the far end.” He smiled. “If it were easy, it wouldn’t be fun.”

  “I think it would be even more fun,” Nilsa retorted. “I’m not too keen on crossing the whole building in the dark, with three hundred scholars asleep inside it.”

  They went on until they found the central corridor. Everything was dark, with neither lamp, torch, nor lit candle. They went on bent almost double, hugging the wall, with Egil leading the way. Although he could hardly see a thing, he guided himself by touch. Suddenly he stopped.

  “Table,” he whispered.

  “Okay.”

  Egil skirted the table, pressing himself against the wall. Further on they bumped into two chairs and another table close to the wall. Luckily they did not knock anything over or make any sound that might betray them.

  “I can tell you,” Nilsa whispered, “I have the feeling that at any moment a librarian’s going to come out and bump into me.”

  “Well then, keep your eyes and ears peeled,” Egil whispered back.

  “You just wait and see me trip, or else knock something over. I can’t see a thing.”

  “Keep your concentration up. You’re doing very well.”

  The corridor ended in a large furnished hall, with huge armchairs and long study-tables with benches along them.

  “This is where they must meet to study and talk about their business,” Nilsa commented.

  “Yeah, it looks as though the three corridors end up here. This hall is enormous. Let’s get across it fast.”

  As they did so, Nilsa bumped headlong into a table. Luckily nothing on it was upset, and the sound of the impact was hollow.

  “Are you all right?” Egil whispered.

  “Is it me, or did my head sound hollow when I hit it?”

  “Your imagination.”

  “Yeah … sure …”

  “Your head is full of thinking matter.”

  “Don’t try too hard. It sounded completely hollow, and now I have a lump on it. On we go.”

  They went on into another long corridor, which would lead them to the far end of the building. They hugged the wall and moved forward blindly, crouching. If they came across any more furniture, it would be Egil’s head which would reveal its presence.

  “They’re all asleep,” Nilsa murmured.

  The moment she said this, a door opened halfway down the corridor, and they saw a light.

  Egil hid behind an oak closet with his back pressed against the wall, and Nilsa immediately did the same. They saw a librarian coming out of a room, carrying a lit candle.

  “I jinxed it.”

  “I think he’s going to the privy.”<
br />
  “Communal?”

  “Yeah, now he’s gone into it. We’ll have to wait for him to come back or somebody’ll see us halfway along the corridor.”

  “If they all start getting up to go to the privy, we’re screwed.”

  Egil’s eyes widened. “Let’s hope that’s not the case.”

  “Didn’t you foresee this in your plan?”

  “The fact that they should all suffer from acute incontinence just when we’re inside?”

  “Yeah … that.”

  “Well, what d’you know, I hadn’t actually thought of that.”

  “And here I was thinking you had everything covered,” she giggled.

  “Come on, I mean everything, absolutely everything …”

  Nilsa smiled at him and gave him a friendly jab with her elbow.

  They waited for the librarian to come back, then followed the corridor to the final and most luxurious part of the building.

  The three corridors gave on to another study hall as enormous as the one before. Beyond it an intricately ornamented door led to the chambers which belonged to the leaders of the order. The door was not locked when Egil checked, and in fact it made no sense that it should be. The Order of Knowledge had no treasures other than wisdom. They found themselves in a room which mirrored the one they had just left, except that it was more elegant. This time a pair of oil lamps were burning. Egil guessed that these must be in case the leaders could not sleep, or else wished to read or study in the chamber.

  The final corridor was considerably wider, with a very elegant carpet, almost certainly of Nocean origin. Two lanterns illuminated the corridor. They came to a very elegant door, with impressive carvings.

  “This one?” Nilsa asked unsurely.

  Egil wrinkled his nose. The doors along the corridor were all similar, as were the carvings on them. The only difference was the eye engraved in the center of each: huge, each one a different color. These huge eyes, which seemed to be inspecting their souls, were blue, green, red, brown, and other more distant colors.

  “How curious …” Egil murmured abstractedly.