The Fanged Throne

Chapter 18

The doors opened with a loud groan, filling up the large empty room. The room was dimly lit and deadly silent. Elora stepped cautiously forward as if she was expecting to be scolded for making a noise. Her boots tapped loudly across the marbled floor, dust sprinkling on the shiny tiles. A large archway stood in front of her, leading her down a long hallway. Swallowing her sudden nerves, she tiptoed across the floor making sure not to breathe too loudly. Just when she was sure she had made a wrong turn somewhere, the hallway opened into a ginormous room filled with books.

Elora's eyes widened in awe at the sheer size of the room, the ceiling was so high it looked like it could go on forever. Rows and rows of bookshelves lined the room, the aisles were narrow and dark. A large chandelier hung from the ceiling in the centre of the room, its glow barely illuminating the area. As she stepped further into the room a small man appeared from behind a large wooden desk.

"Hello there Miss, how may I assist you?" Elora blinked at the man for a few short seconds, still getting over the sudden appearance of the strange man. His hair was white and curly, stark against his dark skin. Unlike the other people of the Southern Realm, this man was dressed modestly, with a pair of long draping pants. Upon his face sat a small pair of spectacles. Unlike the librarian at the prison, this man had a warm and friendly face, as if he was pleased to see her.

Unsure of what to say to the small man, she hesitantly asked. "I'm looking for books on magic? Do you have any?"

The man tilted his head back and laughed. "Books on magic, why yes my girl! This entire library is filled with books on magic." He continued to laugh to himself as if it were the most ridiculous question he had been asked all day. Annoyed and somewhat humiliated, Elora cleared her throat.

"Right, er sorry. Anything in particular that you are searching for?"

"Well...I'm hoping you might have some information on transference magic?" She noticed the surprise in the man's features.

"Transference magic?" His voice lowered into a loud whisper even though the library was empty, "What on earth would you be interested in that for?" He eyed her suspiciously.

"I'm just curious that's all, so can you help me?" She whispered back. The man straightened up and looked around them as if to make sure there were no prying ears, before motioning with his hand to follow him. Elora wanted to roll her eyes at his dramatics.

Together they wound their way through the maze of bookshelves, the lights above them getting dimmer the deeper they travelled into the room. They stopped abruptly in the middle of an aisle, the man scratching his temple as he scanned the titles, humming quietly to himself.

"Ah-ha!" He cried triumphantly. "This may be what you're after." He dumped a large book into her arms, a small cloud of dust burst into the air and floated in the air above their heads.

"Everything you need to know about transference is in there." He tapped his wrinkled finger on the cover of the book.

"Is this sort of magic practiced in Alzoh?" She asked, hoping he may be of even more assistance. Again, his lips twitched as if to laugh but stopped when he saw her serious face.

"No –"

"- is it because it is banned?"

He hesitated. "Well it's not outright banned, it's just not practiced, and those that do are not well-liked."

"What about blood magic?"

The man's face scrunched up in shock and his hand travelled to her mouth to cover it. Elora was taken aback by his reaction and moved her face away from his hand.