Page 74 of Taken By the Fae King

His eyes light up, and he bows again. “Any new knowledge would be most welcomed here.”

Kyven turns to me. “There are a few things I must attend to, but I thought you might like to explore while I am gone.”

“Yes.” I smile. “I’d love to learn more about this place.”

He presses a tender kiss to the back of my hand and then leaves. I notice Talyn leaning against a column a few aisles down, his green wings folded tightly to his back. Kyven has appointed him to guard me, and I do not mind in the least.

Talyn is good at his job. He never hovers, like some of the Florin guards used to, and whenever I look up, I am always able to find him easily.

“You do not mind spending time in here?” I ask.

“I quite enjoy this place,” he replies, his light green eyes traveling over the large room. “It is quiet in here. Peaceful,” he adds. “Like a sanctuary from the outside world.”

I nod. “That’s part of the reason I used to love the library in Florin,” I agree. “It is a good place for reflection.” A faint smile curves my mouth. “I am glad you appreciate it, because I anticipate spending much time here.”

He dips his chin. “I look forward to it, my queen.”

Scholar Norlyn’s pride in the collections housed in the library is easily heard as he gives me the tour. The entire structure is massive, consisting of multiple levels. Fortunately for me, there is a spiraling staircase carved into the inner ring of the tree that allows access to each section. Orbs of gold and white fae lights hover throughout the space, illuminating the book spines and scrolls along the shelves.

I’m still carrying my candle with me, so it’s easy to read the spine of each book and the labels on the ends of the shelves. It’s amazing that such a spell even exists.

By the time we reach the lower levels, it’s nearly midday. Norlyn turns to me with an apologetic look. “Forgive me, my queen, but I must go. Part of the enchantment upon the candle can be used to guide you through the library. If you ask it for something specific—a certain book, or a genre or interest—follow the direction of the flame. It will guide you true.” He clears his throat. “I regret cutting our tour short, but I need to see to the calming spells.”

“Calming spells?”

“Yes. Many of the books in this library are old and they have seen many things. Depending upon whose hands they passed through, some of them are prone to violence.”

My jaw drops. “What?”

“In ancient times, it was popular to enchant the pages,” he explains. “To make them come alive, so to speak. It made them more engaging to the masses, it seems.” He shrugs. “But that practice fell away after the first few hundred years of use because the books became… agitated, for lack of a better word.”

“Agitated?”

“Oh, yes.” He blinks several times. “Some of them violent even. The other scholars and I spend an hour each day casting a calming spell over levels five through ten.”

“That many?” I ask incredulously.

“Yes.” He sighs heavily. “As I said, it was a popular practice during the time of our ancestors, and they produced a great many tomes during those centuries.”

“What happens if the calming spells are not used?” I ask, curious to know.

“Destruction… mayhem of all sorts.” He shakes his head. “It’s why we decided to group those books together. They can fight amongst themselves if the spells do not take, instead of damaging any of the other books that lack the magic to mount a defense, you see.”

I blink several times, my mind attempting to conjure an image of a rabid book, but coming up short.

And now that he mentions this, I realize that we bypassed those levels entirely, and I cannot help but be curious. “May I see one of the spelled books?”

His brows shoot up to his hairline a moment before he regains his composure. His gaze shifts behind me, and I glance back at Talyn. “I—I suppose it would be all right. You do have your guard after all.”

“Are these books dangerous?” I ask.

“Oh, some of them are revolutionaries. They grow extremely agitated when they sense royalty or nobility nearby.” He gives me a pointed look. “You see, they still believe they are living in the time of King Danvyr and Queen Catheryl,” he says as if that explains everything. “Complete and utter tyrants they were.” He shakes his head. “Trying times, my queen… a rather dark page in our people’s history. Fortunately, King Kyven’s ancestors gained control of the throne and things were soon righted.”

He tips his head to the side, considering. “However, there is one book I could safely show you. If you are still interested.”

“I am,” I reply quickly, eager to see a book literally come to life.

“Follow me,” he says, and Talyn and I trail behind him.

---