Serial Saturday: "The Last Inkweaver" Part 3

Part 3

"Research Project"

The atmosphere inside those doors was hushed, and very empty-feeling.

"Wow," Terra hissed in my ear, "It's so quiet and dark in here!"

It was true, the thick, vaulted windows only let in so much light, and most of it was swallowed by the copious amounts of dust swirling in the air. The Academy severely limited the number of students could be allowed in this space at one time, and one especially did not go wandering among these shelves stocked with ancient books alone.

The Archivist led me down the rows of shelves until he found the one containing the accounts from early Gramblian history. He verified the title Scholar Mikel had written, and selected that book.

"You may record notes from the text as needed," he informed me, laying the book on a long, empty table stretched between bookshelves. Placed at the center of that table was a small box containing bound stacks of parchment and more pencils. "Please do not remove this book from the library. It is the property of The Academy. When you are finished, leave the book on the table, and I will come by and re-shelve it later. If you need another book, you must ask me first."

I nodded my thanks and glanced behind me--but Terra had disappeared. Had she gotten bored already and walked out?

The Archivist strode back to his desk at the front of the library, and I flipped open the book to begin taking notes.

"Eighteenth day of Renewal, in the Third Cycle of King Malacuse's Reign.
Explorer Senevere reports that the Western land beyond the Fforgan Mountains is indeed wild and untamed. We have charted many miles without encountering another human. Today is the third day since navigating the treacherous Fforgan Pass, and we have come upon one of the isolated communities, a cluster of family groups who seem native to this land. They are wary of us, and Senevere senses a strong undercurrent of superstition, in the way they interact with one another, and the strange quirks of their habits. When Senevere asked to speak with their leader, his words seemed to have little effect upon the people..."

I rubbed my eyes as the words began to swim. I clenched my hands into fists and focused on the shape of each word. I would not be swept into another one of those strange memory-flashes--especially since it was that very thing that landed me in such trouble in the first place!

I read on, taking careful notes on every observation Senevere recorded. It was a little irksome, the way the "careful record" seemed to skip anywhere from three to five days at once, and occasionally I found, by observing the trend in my notes, that Senevere had this habit of assuming one thing about the "native culture" and then finding out that it was actually something subversive and dangerous to the "civil reforms" cause King Malacuse wanted to implement, even in lands so far away from the central kingdom.

I had to admit, though--the more I read, the more evidence I had that supported the way Scholar Mikel taught. There were several points where Senevere introduced the term of "Wordspinner" to refer to a religious sect among these "natives" (so, not all natives were Wordspinners, but all Wordspinners were native to Western Hemptor?) who harbored some kind of resentment toward the colonization attempts directed by King Malacuse. "The land is fertile and spacious," Senevere reported, "with plenty of resources to benefit the kingdom... Yet these Wordspinners seem averse to the relocation proposition..."

I rubbed the corners of my eyes, and focused on shaping the letters as I scribbled down notes. The pencil felt heavy in my hand as I noted the first mention of Wordspinners in Senevere's account. Five days after that entry, Senevere again noted, "We have succeeded in convincing large numbers of the indigenous population to move into the newly-established cities, inviting them to pursue opportunities for trade and industry. Still, the Wordspinners continue to spread their propaganda, stirring the people even to the point of blocking the Pass and preventing any movement in or out of the Western lands."

"How's it going?"

Hands landed on the table next to me and I jumped, leaving a thick dark mark across the remainder of the page.

I scrunched my nose at Terra's cheeky grin. "Where have you been?" I hissed in a low voice. "You're not supposed to run off in the library!"

Terra blinked wide, innocent eyes. "I was just looking!" She glanced at my notebook. "What are you writing about? Wordspinners?" Her face lit up and she stared at me. "Oh, is that what the argument in History class was about?"

I clapped my hands over the pages of my notebook. "I don't--that wasn't... How did you know about that?"

Terra waltzed around the table, her eyes roaming the shelves. "Oh, I suppose I might have overheard somebody in Art say that there had been a massive row in History class--somebody trying to discredit a Scholar... and That Somebody got called up after class." She turned and gave me an unladylike wink. "I should have known it might have been you, Callista!"

I gave a small huff. "I wasn't trying to discredit him!" Gracious! Was that the rumor going around about me now? I tried to ignore Terra's amusement and refocus on my task, noting that the events took a sharp downward trend from that point onward. "The King's Army has dispersed the rebels blocking the Pass... All Wordspinners have been dispersed on either side of the mountains, no more than two or three in a large city at a time... Most Wordspinners have taken up a nomadic lifestyle, wandering from place to place and making their home in the unsettled places..." Further on, I read of the "rebellion" Scholar Mikel had alluded to, and how that had led to a series of trials finding many Wordspinners guilty of sedition, and in support of treasonous plots against the King.

The final blow came early the reign of King Phillisto, predecessor to the current king, King Desmond. According to Senevere, by the time Phillisto came to power, the Wordspinners were again attempting to seize power, gaining favor among the simple folk of the smaller villages, and attempting to spread their "religious texts laced with underhanded misinformation" around the larger cities--but already, the social and philosophical advancements had turned the tide against these "superstitious mystics", and with the ushering in of a Golden Age of enlightenment and industrial prowess came the Academies. The emphasis on intellectualism led more and more people to abandon the abstract and often harsh teachings of the Wordspinners, and as their popularity dwindled, so did their numbers, fading away to almost nothing, till the only ones left were the criminals who spoke out against the King and got arrested and tried for it anyway.

I glanced between my notes and the recorded account. Nearly everything Scholar Mikel had to say on the subject was indeed referenced in Korstan Senevere's reports. Even the partial information he would ostensibly give at the less advanced levels was still according to the recorded evidence.

What still rankled me was the way Senevere would skip three and even five days between reports, and commence discussing a rapid change in manner and dealing, saying one thing at first, and two entries later, affirming the opposite. He was consistent in his inconsistency--why could I not leave well enough alone?

I flipped back to the beginning of the book, intent on reading it all the way through again if I had to.
"I just want to find out the truth!" I muttered, more to myself than anyone else.

"Hey!" Terra's voice issued from behind me. I heard her grunt as if she was reaching for something. "Look what I found!" She dropped a second book on the table in front of me.

I jerked back as if it had been a snake.
"Terra!" I snapped, staring at her in shock. "Put it back! Only the Archivist can remove books from the shelves! I don't have permission for this one!"

"But look!" Terra pointed to the title: The Personal Account of Dobran Allius, As He Lived Among The Wordspinners. "You wanted to find out about the Wordspinners, didn't you? Maybe this has more of the kind of information you're looking for!"

I stared at the offending item. Did I really want to find out about Wordspinners, or was I only looking for information to satisfy Scholar Mikel?

Terra grew tired of waiting for me to make up my mind, and she reached for the book herself, flipping it open. "Here it is, listen! As I listened to the inhabitants of this village, I began to discern that they referred to themselves as Wordspinners, and that they professed to be guided by an ideology known simply as The Truth..."

I felt my eyelids droop and my vision blurred as Terra spoke. I tried to reach out for her, tried to tell her that something was wrong, but my voice didn't come out. My fingertips rested on the cover of the open book, and by the time my eyes refocused, I was looking at something else entirely.

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