The Mongrifier growled and spat as he stalked the bookshelves looking for books.
The last time that girl had dropped a bookshelf on him and now there was another in his domain.
Why couldn't a creature of darkness get any peace? He just wanted to eat some books and digest the stories so he could sleep.
But no!
These humans! Dreaming of the libraries through ancient threads -- always managed to disturb his sleep and when he tried to shoo them away, they vanished.
He picked up a book from a shelf and tore a chunk of paper from it. He digested the story in his mouth. It was about a boy with a scar on his forehead. The alliterations on the pages got stuck in his teeth like fish scales and he spat those out. He chewed some more and started to feel drowsy with the effect the book was having on his brain.
Then he heard the footsteps. "Fucking hell," he thought, "not again."
Mr. Kosmos walked through the bookshelves, looking up at the shelves as they vanished somewhere in the darkness above him. This was the second night he was dreaming of the library and he was not even a reader. The musty smell of old books was everywhere. What little light shone through the windows told him the time was somewhere between evening and night. He looked out of the large glassed windows, but he didn't see anything he could recognize. He stepped ahead carefully, making as little noise as possible. Last time he had seen the lupine creature lunge for him and woken up. This time, he didn't want to face the creature. One instance was enough for him.
He felt for the black card in his pocket and it thrummed assuringly against his fingers. The surge of confidence from the touch of the card told him that he could take on the creature and whatever it brought to him and then rule the library as the Supreme Librarian.
He looked at the books on the shelves. There were hardbound editions in languages he didn't know. Gold and silver adorned the spines of the books with thick letter in alien languages naming the books and authors, he hoped. There was not even a single book in any language he recognized. He took a turn and saw another row of shelves going as far as the eye could see.
Maybe I am in the wrong section, he thought. The black card in his pocket was starting to feel warm and he took it out and placed it in his hand. A small line of LED lights lit up on the card. It made an arrow. He had never seen the card do something like this, but then again, most of the things the card did were beyond his understanding anyway. He followed the arrow as it changed directions, from bookshelves to dusty rows and cobwebs and the stench of rotting stories.
He walked deeper into the library, listening for any sound from the demonic creature he had seen. The books started to whisper to him. Soft susurrations, that called out to him and told him to pick the books up, but the card kept him focused. There were times when he felt pulled too strongly, but the card's shard edges in his hand brought him back to following the directions on the surface of the card.
He walked for hours. Seemingly lost, but the card still kept leading him. The library must be kilometers in area, he thought. How many, he had no idea how to calculate.Then the arrows on the card pointed to a book shelf. There were books in English on that shelf. He recognized some of the titles, but most were alien names to him.
Right in the middle of the stacks, a book -- black as a brick, it sucked all the light like a black hole. He raised his hand towards the book and felt the hair on the nape of his neck rise in a fear. Something was watching him.
His finger touched the book and he heard a low growl behind him. Angry and it seemed like it had a lot of teeth. He grabbed the book and started to pull it out of the book shelf.
Right then, the black card pricked his hand and he dropped it. A moment of panic and all his confidence vanished like vapor. He bent down to pick the card and something large moved in the area where his head was and slammed into the bookshelf, toppling it, throwing books all around. With just the book with black spine in his hand.
He looked at the thing that stared right at him with hatred in its eyes. He looked back at the demon and growled a sound that was a pretty strong imitation of the menacing growl emerging from the demon's throat.
The creature lunged at Mr. Kosmos and he opened the black book.
The world around him froze in a snowglobe mimicry. The big demon wolf, sprawling in air, reaching for his head with claws outstretched, maw of doom open, salivating, madness in its eyes. His own hand shielding the black card with his body with the open black book in front of him.
Everything started to melt in a fever dream of black and blue. Mr. Kosmos knew he was going to wake up, he braced himself and woke up with a scream to find a dark knife hovering inches from his throat.
A man with a rictus grin on his face had the knife in his hand.
"Well, well, well, I was just about to cut your throat in your sleep. But now that you're awake, maybe you can tell me where the black card is."
"Why don't you ask that thing?" Mr. Kosmos pointed behind the smiling man.
The Mongrifier's low growl filled the small motel room.
---
Don't go walking in libraries in dreams, you might bring back creatures that do not really belong in our world.
The last time that girl had dropped a bookshelf on him and now there was another in his domain.
Why couldn't a creature of darkness get any peace? He just wanted to eat some books and digest the stories so he could sleep.
But no!
These humans! Dreaming of the libraries through ancient threads -- always managed to disturb his sleep and when he tried to shoo them away, they vanished.
He picked up a book from a shelf and tore a chunk of paper from it. He digested the story in his mouth. It was about a boy with a scar on his forehead. The alliterations on the pages got stuck in his teeth like fish scales and he spat those out. He chewed some more and started to feel drowsy with the effect the book was having on his brain.
Then he heard the footsteps. "Fucking hell," he thought, "not again."
Mr. Kosmos walked through the bookshelves, looking up at the shelves as they vanished somewhere in the darkness above him. This was the second night he was dreaming of the library and he was not even a reader. The musty smell of old books was everywhere. What little light shone through the windows told him the time was somewhere between evening and night. He looked out of the large glassed windows, but he didn't see anything he could recognize. He stepped ahead carefully, making as little noise as possible. Last time he had seen the lupine creature lunge for him and woken up. This time, he didn't want to face the creature. One instance was enough for him.
He felt for the black card in his pocket and it thrummed assuringly against his fingers. The surge of confidence from the touch of the card told him that he could take on the creature and whatever it brought to him and then rule the library as the Supreme Librarian.
He looked at the books on the shelves. There were hardbound editions in languages he didn't know. Gold and silver adorned the spines of the books with thick letter in alien languages naming the books and authors, he hoped. There was not even a single book in any language he recognized. He took a turn and saw another row of shelves going as far as the eye could see.
Maybe I am in the wrong section, he thought. The black card in his pocket was starting to feel warm and he took it out and placed it in his hand. A small line of LED lights lit up on the card. It made an arrow. He had never seen the card do something like this, but then again, most of the things the card did were beyond his understanding anyway. He followed the arrow as it changed directions, from bookshelves to dusty rows and cobwebs and the stench of rotting stories.
He walked deeper into the library, listening for any sound from the demonic creature he had seen. The books started to whisper to him. Soft susurrations, that called out to him and told him to pick the books up, but the card kept him focused. There were times when he felt pulled too strongly, but the card's shard edges in his hand brought him back to following the directions on the surface of the card.
He walked for hours. Seemingly lost, but the card still kept leading him. The library must be kilometers in area, he thought. How many, he had no idea how to calculate.Then the arrows on the card pointed to a book shelf. There were books in English on that shelf. He recognized some of the titles, but most were alien names to him.
Right in the middle of the stacks, a book -- black as a brick, it sucked all the light like a black hole. He raised his hand towards the book and felt the hair on the nape of his neck rise in a fear. Something was watching him.
His finger touched the book and he heard a low growl behind him. Angry and it seemed like it had a lot of teeth. He grabbed the book and started to pull it out of the book shelf.
Right then, the black card pricked his hand and he dropped it. A moment of panic and all his confidence vanished like vapor. He bent down to pick the card and something large moved in the area where his head was and slammed into the bookshelf, toppling it, throwing books all around. With just the book with black spine in his hand.
He looked at the thing that stared right at him with hatred in its eyes. He looked back at the demon and growled a sound that was a pretty strong imitation of the menacing growl emerging from the demon's throat.
The creature lunged at Mr. Kosmos and he opened the black book.
The world around him froze in a snowglobe mimicry. The big demon wolf, sprawling in air, reaching for his head with claws outstretched, maw of doom open, salivating, madness in its eyes. His own hand shielding the black card with his body with the open black book in front of him.
Everything started to melt in a fever dream of black and blue. Mr. Kosmos knew he was going to wake up, he braced himself and woke up with a scream to find a dark knife hovering inches from his throat.
A man with a rictus grin on his face had the knife in his hand.
"Well, well, well, I was just about to cut your throat in your sleep. But now that you're awake, maybe you can tell me where the black card is."
"Why don't you ask that thing?" Mr. Kosmos pointed behind the smiling man.
The Mongrifier's low growl filled the small motel room.
---
Don't go walking in libraries in dreams, you might bring back creatures that do not really belong in our world.
well well well .. this is definitely going places !
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