[CONSTRUCTION IN PROGRESS]
[I moved some stuff from the start of this CH back to the end of CH15, so the buildup to Crimson's arrival at the Novum Archives is now there instead]
[CHAPTER START]
The Novum Archive is, well, the new Archive.
It was built atop the ashes of the old one, using the same exact skyland and granite foundations, but with a different layout. Once, it was all domes, but now it's all towers. Dozens of them, all arranged around a sprawling stone structure of grandiose proportions, with columnworking and masonry inherent to its every facet. The tallest tower of them all is built in the shape of a lighthouse, and that is what Xikarius the Elder calls home.
There are few words that can accurately depict how enormous the Lighthouse is. Mythical. Colossal. Gargantuan. It's the kind of gigantism that boggles the mind. The sort of structure that leaves all who witness it wondering just how in the Hells it was ever built at all.
I again break the airway laws, staying in draconic form well into the approach and only changing just seconds before my wings hit the columns, slowing my momentum just before my feet hit the floor at a hurried jog. The patrollers don't come around here at all. What kind of draconid is going to break the law at the fucking library?
I am.
But first I need to find my ex-girlfriend.
The Novum Archives are as busy as ever. There's a line at the audience desk, which handles appointments for all of the higher level Scribes, who essentially have office hours for students, scholars, and researchers. I run right past them and head for the information desk, frantically waving a claw and wing as I reach it.
"Penny!" I call out, nearly jumping over the desk to get to her. "Hey! Hey! Sorry, I–Hello, how are you? You look lovely today. Sorry, I need to see the Elder, right away!"
The ivory and pale pink dracofae perks up at her desk, her resplendent powdery moth wings twitching with alarm. With a sharp glance around, my ex-girlfriend, Penelope, drops whatever it is she's doing and hurries over. Smoothing out her medium length pink skirt and fixing her soapy iridescent white hair, she gives me a stunned look as her fuzzy pink antennae tick around atop her head.
She has a librarian's voice. Soft but audible. "Crim Crim? What are you… Is everything okay? You look…"
"Winded? Yeah, I just sprinted here from my place. Sorry, I'd love to catch up afterwards, but this is really important."
"O–Okay, sure. Um. The Elder, you said?" She slips over to the audience desks and inspects one of the schedules for a moment before coming back over. "I'm… not sure what to say. He's booked until next week. I don't think there's anything I can do… I'm sorry."
These questions of mine are burning me.
They hurt. They ache. They're tearing me apart.
I can't wait a week. I can't. I have to know. Now.
If I have to pry the answers out of him, I will.
"Who's next on the list?" I ask Penelope.
She blinks, flickering her pink tongue. "Hm?"
"Who's next? Who is Xikarius seeing next?"
"Ahh… Legend Aurelius, the Gilded Saber."
"I mean, who's the next Fable he's seeing?"
"Oh. That's… Um." Without warning, she walks away to check the schedule again. When she returns, she stares at me for a moment, then goes back and does it again. Penelope is a little spacey and I adore her for it. The second time she comes back, she tells me, "Right after Aurelius."
"Okay, that's good. Who is he seeing, Penny?"
"Who?"
"Xikarius. Which Fable is he seeing after Aurelius?"
"O–Oh." Off she goes. Here she comes. "Salyx."
I wait for more. "Who's Salyx?"
"Hm? Oh. Salyx? That's…" And a fourth time. "She's a researcher at the Whitestone Academy. The appointment is about… Um." She stares at the counter between us for a few long seconds. "Geology. Volcanic deposition. Gemstone formation."
"Good to know. What species is she?"
"What?"
"What species is she?"
"Species?"
"Yes, Penny, what species is Salyx?"
She looks at me like I just sprouted a second head. Then she abruptly walks away, over to the schedule for the fifth time. "A lung dragon."
"Damn. No way I ca–Ah. Penny?"
She comes back from checking a sixth time. "Sorry, I meant wyvern. Like you, Crim Crim."
I know exactly how I'm going to get in. "What time is that appointment?"
"Whenever Aurelius is done, I suppose. Legends have higher priority and all. He's… in there right now. I think. Oh, hello."
I've hopped the counter to hug her and kiss her forehead. She's only up to my chest, she's amazingly soft, and she smells like strawberries and lilac blossoms. Happily returning my embrace, she hums in content as I massage her antennae.
"Thank you, Penny. It's great to see you."
"Aw. You too, Crim Crim. I missed you. While you were gone… Are you okay?"
"Um. Ablaze with the drive for discovery."
"I understand." She smiles. Pretty. "Do you need anything else?"
"Can you point this Salyx draco out to me?"
"What? Um… Who? Salyx? Do I know her?"
"You're perfect, Penny. In every single way."
"Aww. Thank you… You too… Um. Crim Crim?"
I'm half paying attention, scanning the audience reception area, but I glance back down at her. "Yes, Penny? What is it?"
Her antennae brush against each other and her hands do the same as she shrinks a little and nervously looks away. "I… I… missed you. And… I want kisses…"
"Oh, absolutely. Over here."
I pull her aside and kiss her behind the filing cabinets. A moment or two won't hurt. Sounds like I'm waiting for Salyx's number to get called anyway, and I can still hear the receptionists announcing appointments from here. I'm listening closely. Multitasking.
Penny whimpers a little, pressed up against the wall and standing on her toes to reach me. The gorgeous little dracofae loves her kisses. In fact, kisses and nuzzles are all she ever wants, and sadly for our relationship, she just doesn't like sex. Our wants and needs were simply different, so we split up on amicable terms, but I'm still her one and only for this sort of thing. I like it this way, and she does too.
With her, I keep things fluffy, as she calls it. Soft, sweet, slow kisses with mostly just lips and a few light licks, all while I hold her in a close embrace and nuzzle our faces together as I mutter in her pointed ears about how cute she is and how soft her wings are and how pretty her hair is today.
Ohh, she goes weak in the knees for it.
I love pleasing her like this. She's fun.
As I kiss her cheek, I whisper, "How's that?"
"P–Perfect," she huffs, a little red. "Just right… Just enough…"
"Good. Always happy to provide. I have to go, sweetwing. I'll come back and see you soon. Promise."
"Please…" She clings to my robes. "Um… Can I… Tonight?"
"Hm? You want to come over? Sure. Zip might be there too. Extra nuzzles for you, if you like."
"Mm. Yes, please… I like Zip…"
"Alright then. I'll pick you up after this."
"Okayyy… I'll be here, Crim Crim. Bye…"
"Bye, sweetwing." I give her a good sharp kiss and taste her lips a little, just enough to leave her flustered antennae spinning as I snicker and walk away. "See you tonight!"
I suppose I have more friends than I thought. Tonight's going to be really nice, and I'm looking forward to it. I'll cook something good for them both. But right now, I'm plotting a trick that'd make even Umbra's head spin.
The Fallen Queen's, I mean. Not Umbra.
"Alright, Salyx. Who might you be?"
First up, as is the case with all good plans, is preparation.
Getting my notebook from my bag, I scribble a few things off the top of my head that I know about the subject, scratch out a few questions ahead of time, and make the page look more authentic with a few odd diagrams and such. With that done, I hurry into the reception area from the direction of the stacks, making sure I appear to be in something of a tizzy.
"Shit, hey! I–I have an exam at fucking dawn! I need some serious help! Does–Does anyone know anything about corundum formation? Rubies, sapphires, emeralds?"
Most of them ignore me. Assholes.
Feigning more anxiety, I run my hand through my hair and exhale in frustration. "Damn it! Damn it. Please! I'll go straight to Dean Siobhan and fill out a commendation!"
Now they want to help. Suckers.
"Wait, wait, wait, my professor said–Professor Mathis spoke very highly of someone named Salyx? Is there a Salyx here?"
"That'd be me, cousin. Your professor certainly referred you to the best. What is it you need help with?"
Got her.
She's the green and tan bullhead thicktail wyvern, with an annoyingly arrogant air to her. I rack my brain and ask a few bullshit questions about volcanoes, making sure they're simple and open-ended to keep her talking as much as possible so I don't have to. After a couple minutes, I make up a reason to be done and thank her for her time, assuring her the dean will hear of her altruism and dedication to helping new students.
Just as I'm leaving, I notice a group of dracos barely concealing their laughter as they point out my hooked talons. That's easy enough to disregard. I prefer it this way rather than facing an actual confrontation. I'm easily able to put it behind me and move on.
I slump into some seating at a table not too far off, flipping open The Great Incineration just so it looks like I'm doing something while I keep a sharp eye on Salyx. After an agonizingly long hour on the edge of my seat watching the damn clock as it approaches sundown, I finally hear her name called.
She goes deeper into the library, toward the atrium. I dash right out the front door. As soon as I'm clear, I change forms and accelerate to a breakneck sprint up to the top of the Lighthouse, where I change back to humanoid form and tell the attendants that, yes, I am Salyx. Of course. Volcanic deposition and gemstone formation, yes, yes. I even recite some of the things Salyx told me down below to sell the scheme.
Just as I'm being allowed inside, the beat of wings announces the arrival of a green and tan bullhead thicktail wyvern. I skip right in and through the vestibule, thanking the attendants as they close and lock the doors behind me.
I now have Xikarius the Elder all to myself.
Flicking my tail with pride, I stroll right in.