Finding a book, scroll, or tablet inscribed with a language she could understand was as difficult as searching for a needle thrown into the sea. Although the problem of lighting had been resolved by the glowing ball of light hovering above her head, An Fei found herself increasingly swamped by the Baek Residence’s storeroom of books.
The more she searched for a book written in either the Han traditional script or even simplified script, the more she became distracted by books adorned with glamourous cuneiform, penned in a cursive script. Moreover, the chances of discovering a book written in a language not dissimilar than that of ancient Hebrew was significantly greater than finding anything inscribed with Bei Tang’s dual written system.
But above all… it was slow, taxing on her mind, and increasingly aggravating.
“There really is too many… did Xu Lingxin even realize what I meant when I asked her to find books?”
An Fei rubbed at her forehead with the back of her hand, feeling a small amount of pain arching through her back. The young girl surveyed the collection of books she had combed through, before glancing at the unconquered sea towards the front.
“Did they not know of a method to catalogue all of this?”
She had completed a fifth – no, perhaps an eighth of the total amount of books hoarded by the Baek Family. To ask her to completely search through the entire storeroom within a day was impossible.
Thus, the young girl loudly exhaled, and made her way through the disorganized maze of tables and display stands towards the door leading out of the storeroom. When she pried them open, a brilliant glow of golden light tinged with scarlet vitality surged into her eyes, prompting her to block her vision with an extended arm.
“Young Lady? Have you finished exploring Father’s storeroom?”
An Fei blinked as the voice of a young child drifted into her ears from the side of the storeroom. Turning her head towards the source of the sound, she discovered a small boy peering from behind the corner, with eyes wide open and brimming with unbridled curiosity. But most surprisingly, the words spoken were in Mandarin, with perfect enunciation of the verbal intricacies behind each syllable.
“There are too many books,” An Fei paused before softly replying.
“…and you…are?”
“I am the Third Young Master of this residence!” the young child placed both hands on his hips and displayed a prideful smile.
“Father stated that the Young Lady can return to visit the storeroom however much she wishes! However, Young Lady, you mustn’t belittle others due to their age!”
The child’s lips rose into a dazzling curve, and he raced off into the distant courtyards after leaving behind a few confounding statements. An Fei stood in place with a confused expression, and her scarlet irises briefly flickered with amusement following a brief pause of thought.
“…just what exactly did that child mean? Was it related to another condition Xu Lingxin had proposed?”
The young girl shook her head with a dismissive sigh, and made her way out of the Baek Residence with the assistance of a few nearby servants to provide directions. With the conundrum of busy peddlers, hawkers, and civilians rushing their daily activities flowing on either side, An Fei strolled through the street with an absentminded countenance.
It was nearing the zenith of sunset, and yet she had failed to spot any indication of Xilong’s presence.
The once chatty heavenly dragon that had flooded her ears with commentary for every moment that was not occupied by breath, had not uttered a single word since the day before. She felt a quivering sensation warped by a slight mixture of angst and concern, as though she had been abandoned.
“Naïve…”
An Fei blinked multiple times to settle on a conclusion of her thoughts, and found herself amazed at the word that ultimately departed from her lips. The young girl’s lips drew upwards into a soft smile, albeit tinged with self-mockery.
It was naïve to assume that the heavenly dragon had departed in a half-hearted fashion, and it was equally naïve to hope that it would spontaneously return without any forewarning. Although, the young girl had to admit that since the world around her had changed significantly, perhaps…
“…perhaps my thinking should change?”
An Fei repeated the hopeful words in a barely audible mutter, then burst out laughing. Her actions caused a few heads to turn towards her direction accompanied by confused and questioning gazes, but the young girl seemed to not care.
“What I’ve experienced cannot be considered false, since their scars remain on my body and memory. Yet, what I’ve experienced in the past cannot necessarily be transferred to my actions now – is that the point? Observe, adapt, and learn to assimilate into this world – is that really what I should be – no, what I want to be doing?”
An Fei sung to herself whilst chuckling at her own thoughts. The young girl’s body gently swayed from side to side as she merged into the ever-flowing sea of rushing people. She sang her cynicism, and she walked her lonely road surrounded by others on all sides.
Behind her feet followed trails of black cracks, digging deep at the entrenched reality of the world as though pervasive black smog. The web of cracks followed her as she walked and extended another branch upon her steps. She stepped forward, and those who dared stepped into the cracks slowed in their movement.
With agonizing patience, the sea of humans swarming around either side of her slowed to a halt, their movements entrapped by a viscous liquid. As the overhead sun released a final warning of brilliant scarlet light, the young girl squinted and ducked underneath her arm, and spotted the creeping trails shrouded in the shadows.
Shu!
The young girl frowned, and swiftly drew the qama from her chest. The steel blade flashed amid the glorious wreath of sunlight, and An Fei’s eyes flickered with a deep unease.
“Trails, no… cracks? It seems familiar, but where?”
The young girl twirled her fingers to twist the qama into a reverse grip, and her eyes swept her surroundings with a careful glare. With her knees slightly bent and ready to spring at any moment, An Fei quickly forced herself to calm down, until her gaze fixated onto a secluded wicker chair –
“You!”
–
The Archive of Time opened only when An Fei entered, and closed each time she departed from the crystalline corridor. Whenever she was not present, the massive archive of the Sanctum would never open its doors to any of its own volition. The doors remained shut and sealed from physical contact, hence its unwelcome visitor could only resort to phasing through the boundaries.
Half of Xilong’s massive head peered from the set of doors, and the pair of golden suns forced the interior of the archives to reveal themselves. With a quiet sigh, the heavenly dragon pulled the rest of its body into the Archive of Time, and made its way towards the solitary lectern stationed in the center.
An Fei often relied upon the catalogue placed on the lectern to find the books and platforms she sought after, but Xilong spread its claws to gingerly lift the book without glancing at the pages. With the catalogue removed, the heavenly dragon tapped thrice at the corner of the wooden stand.
The sound of dragon claw knocking against wood reverberated throughout the Archive of Time, and masked the brief sound of a concealed passageway forming directly across the lectern. The darkness shrouded the crevice from normal view, but Xilong’s blazing glare caught directly onto the slightest of movement.
“As expected. He truly didn’t fall into a slumber in the first place.”
The heavenly dragon released a scoffing snort and rushed directly into the revealed passageway. As soon as its head passed into the corridor devoid of light, the scenery before Xilong began to change.
Before its brilliant eyes was a small, secluded bedroom. The bed was surrounded on both sides by a pair of towering bookshelves bulging to the brim with tomes, manuals, and stone tablets of various sizes, and a single crystal served as the sole illumination. At the center of the bedroom, and mere meters away from the dragon’s blistering gaze, stood a slender drawing table that meekly supported a man in his forties, several sheets of paper, brush, and a cup of violet ink.
The golden suns in Xilong’s eyes surged with profound light, and the man raised his head to reveal a sallow smile.
“You’re here. How long has it been since we last met?”
