ALL NOVEL Loop 254 - Part 123
“Does anyone else get a strong feeling of not being wanted somewhere?” Cal asked, receiving several blank stares in return. “Okay, so just me? Andy, I don’t know how to explain it, but this room really doesn’t like me for some reason.” They were standing in the eight-sided entrance, and from the moment Cal walked into the room, he felt something trying to push him back out of it.
“Is it really that hard to believe a library wouldn’t want you entering?” Ethel asked.
“No, I’m being serious here. This place really doesn’t want me here, any idea what’s going on, guys?” Cal asked, looking at Andy and Bill for answers.
“Nope, that’s new. Bill, any guesses?” Andy answered.
“This is just a guess, but the Under Library’s flow of time is in a giant state of flux. Cal, on the other hand, is now basically an anchor in the time stream. It likely abhors his presence, and for that matter, what would happen if Cal himself died here? Probably something to consider,” Bill explained. Not that his explanations answered much for Cal.
“Let’s try not to find out. Hey Library, I’m coming in, so quit with the weird push,” Cal said towards the entrance. He wasn’t sure if the library could understand him or just chose to ignore him. Either way, he felt no difference after his complaint.
“Stay close to us, Cal. It might help,” Bug said as she walked up next to him. The rest of the dogs quickly joined her. It looked like she was right. The push wasn’t entirely gone, but it was much weaker now.
“Thanks, how’d you do that Bug?” Cal asked. Whatever Bug had been through had certainly left her with some valuable abilities.
“It’s hard to explain unless you experience it, but it’s hard for the Under Library to see me, and I’m trying to extend that protection over you as well. It’s not perfect, and I doubt I could do it without Alfred and Gretel. I’m glad it’s helping, though. Now, let’s go smash some robots!” Bug’s tail began to wag back and forth furiously. Her excitement was almost infectious.
“YEAH!” Frank yelled from behind them and suddenly charged ahead through the door.
“Shit, after him quick. We were supposed to get the others before the fight. Stop him if you can,” Andy yelled, taking off after Frank as his yell started.
Cal, like everyone else, joined Andy in the chase while reevaluating if Bug’s excitement had only been almost infectious as he ran. As the first clashes of battle came from ahead of them, he decided it was something he would worry about later. Now was the time for a little less friction. It was almost certainly too late to stop Frank, which meant it was time to help him instead.
“Dammit, Frank, I wanted to get Ralth at the very least before we started this,” Andy yelled, dodging the first of a robot librarian.
“What’s done is done, Bill. Can you can break off and get the others? We might need the help. Everyone else hit a robot!” Cal yelled out instructions, having gotten more used to group fights on Pluto. He wasn’t taken totally unprepared by Frank’s premature rush.
From a door behind the desk, replacement librarians were streaming in faster than Frank’s fists were currently taking them out. As Cal let loose several bolts of lightning at the incoming horde, a potted plant that had been knocked off the desk in the melee started to grow rapidly into a barrier that stemmed the tide, at least temporarily.
“It won’t hold long. The plant may look like a common fern, but convincing it to grow felt like talking to Cal. I have no idea what it actually is!” Ethel yelled into the din of the fight. Holes were already appearing in the foliage that had given them a moment’s reprieve.
“Just how many of these things are there?” Cal yelled to Andy. There had to be at least a hundred already out here.
“No idea. I’m not even sure if we can destroy them all or if we just need to shut off their access to this wing. Cal, Bug, follow me. We need to be ready to clear the room on the other side of the door the moment the plant barrier falls. That should let us push further in and hopefully buy some time for Bill to get his furry ass back here,” Andy barked out the order loudly.
“Got it,” Cal said as he leaped over the desk and released a charged particle cloud he had been building. “I wonder how well their circuits handle electrical disruption on this scale.”
“Good idea, build as big of a lightning ball as you can and blast it through the door at the first opening you see. Bug, you keep us alive as we fight our way inside,” Andy continued his orders. Cal quickly remembered why he preferred his friend to be in charge. It freed his brain to focus on the fighting aspect of the battles, more time for channeling, and less need for tactical worries.
The opening soon presented itself as the plant was suddenly vaporized by a blast of something from inside the room. Cal wondered if they understood their mistake the moment his own explosion went off inside the room, followed by Andy’s gravity tampering, leaving nothing standing. “Go, they’re all down!” Cal yelled, seeing the aftermath.
“What the hell is that?” Andy asked. The robots were popping out of a mirror that was standing uncracked on the back wall.
“Oh, I saw one of those on Pluto. Frank, get in here. We need you to smash another giant mirror!” Cal yelled back.
“Another?! The Tree Titan knows just how to handle those!” The giant tree man replied as he charged past Cal and Andy directly into the mirror. His body worked perfectly as a battering ram, and once again, another giant mirror device was shattered.
“Okay, this was actually easier than I expected,” Andy said.
“Really wish you hadn’t said that now we are doomed,” Cal replied.
“Actually, things are surprisingly quiet out here. I think we got them all. Do you want me to send out shroom scouts?” Albert asked as he joined them behind the remnants of the reference desk.
“I don’t know enough about how your powers work yet, Albert, probably best not to send any extra mana creatures into the stacks, but thank you. Let’s go see if we can catch up with Bill,” Andy replied.