Attention! Listen up you!

Firstly, those who are still alive:

Shadowmoon

Saphira

Ellak

Brian

Mrs. Elton

Mirax

Dasiy

Swummer

Jarvis

H.A.B.

Sandra

Paris

Richard

Nova

Annnnndd Kestrel :)

Good. Now don't die. Take a good long look at your name up there, 'cause it sure isn't sticking around on that list for very long. What's that? l forgot your name? Oh, maybe that's because you're dead.

Second thing.  Sadly, your dear author has to spend some of her time trying to learn things. Sad, l know.

She fears that she will be unable to uhold the promise to post everyday, it is more likely to be every other day. However! What she lacks in frequency and quantity, she will make up in actually trying to have some sort of plot. (which, frankly, she has been completely ignoring for the last twenty installments.)

That is all. Good day, stay alive.

(or as long as you can....mwhahahahaha--*cough*--ha.) 

Day Twenty-One

(Part Two of the Library of Voices)

Daisy wraps her arms securely around her legs, resting her head on her knees. She is tired and discouraged. The cave around her is dim and wet, water dripping from the ceiling and onto poor Daisy.

She has been wandering the tunnels for who knows how long, each turn, each tunnel as endless as the last one. All of them the same.

So--she wonders--is what she truly desires to wander endlessly? Or maybe to go insane? Plausible in the current circumstances. But she has a grasp of what she desires, and it currently is not this at all.

Tick tick. The lights start flickering. Daisy blinks, raising her head. What the--

“Cinnamon! Daisy! More cinnamon! Daisy again!--”

“She is definitely crazy.”

If what Richard desired was trying to navigate tunnels with an over enthusiastic Mirax, a half-sleeping robot, Sandra, and a cynical Saphira to mutter comments to, then this was his dream come true.

It wasn’t, by the way. Also, notes. Mirax is suffocating Daisy in cinnamon. Thoughts? Also where is Moon?

Daisy recovers from Mirax’s attack, coughing. She growls in the back of her throat. She could have handled this insanity. But this, this is going too far.

“You see, what l desired was cinnamon. And cinnamon was l granted!”

“W-what? That is the most ridiculous.”

Cinnamon, by the way, is disgusting when consumed in large amounts. Believe me, l've tried. Daisy is currently wondering why she even thought of liking cinnamon rolls.

“We’re lost, Mirax appears to have…..lost her memory? Ellak is sleep-walking and Sandra is…..Sandra.” Saphira explains. “And this library is trying to kill us all.”

Daisy nods. “Nothing new.”

“But--this doesn’t make any sense.” Richard says looking around.

“Not new.” Daisy sighs.

“What if….it isn’t real?”

The other four stop and open-mouthed wonderment.

“Mm.” Daisy yawns. “Don't have to repeat the obvious.”

“You….know this?” Saphira asks.

“What else would it be? Some convoluted corn maze? No, it’s not real.”

“Somehow that isn’t very convincing when Mirax is suffocating me in cinnamon.” Richard grumbles. Saphira pinches herself pointedly. She blinks. Alright, that is weird--

A bright lights suddenly appears. It takes them a few seconds to pinpoint the source, as the blue light gets stronger and stronger.

“It appears it’s...coming through the wall.” Sandra says, she tentatively places a hands to the rock wall….. With a sudden flash of light, part of the wall is disintegrated, leaving some portal of bright, bright light. A black and brown  falcon-like bird flaps through the tunnel, crashing into the walls from time to time.

Seconds later, another person falls through the light-portal.

The obviously distressed H.A.B. glanced around frantically. “Where is Paris?” He turns to Kestrel-the-kestrel. She screeches and flaps her wings. Nova nearly falls on Kestrel-the-kestrel from the portal. She glares at no one in particular, picking herself off of the ground.

“Oh! You’re alive!” She grins at them.

“Um….yeah?” Sandra says, confused.

“Don’t get your hopes up, because they aren’t staying like that for long.” H.A.B. sighs.

Nova nods, growing seemingly sad again.

“Paris isn’t here.” Richard explains.

“Oh great.” Nova says. “Now we have to go hunt her down. Again.”

“Well at the very least we could have found the original Kestrel! Being a bird is really inconvenient for us!”

Kestrel-the-kestrel awkwardly lands at their feet. She flaps her wings. They blink. Frustrated, she hops around, tilting her head, trying to say something. Richard frowns.

“Oh--oh no. we’re too late, Kestrel. Too late. Can’t stop it now.” H.A.B. says.

“What are you talking about?” Mirax asks.
He either doesn’t hear, or doesn’t care to respond.

Kestrel-the-kestrel screeches, distressed. She hops around, agitated.

“Dancing….? Running? No, extinction? Eating soup? Sinking ship!” Daisy tries to guess.

Kestrel-the-kestrel screeches at the last one, getting very excited. Nova sighs. “That doesn’t matter, you know. That’s not what we came for. It’s too late. C’mon, Kestrel, H.A.B.” Without further ado, the three fall back into the portal.

“That doesn't make any sense, we aren’t on a ship--”

“Someone wants to be on a sinking ship.” Richard says quietly. The tunnel lurches, jerky sliding at an angle. The CBers fall into a heap. (“Ellak! Get your teeth away from me!”)

“That is--”

“Absurd? Yes and very much so.”

The sound of roaring, faint water reaches their eyes. Hesitantly, they skitter down the slick, sloped floor.

“Oh my--” Mirax falls into the water. Fortunately, it's isn’t deep but it’s ridiculously cold. She yelps.

They appear a have chanced upon an underground lake, huge and deep.

And in the center is a cruise ship.

Her name is Titanic 2.0.

And she is sinking, slowly.

Saphira squints at the single figure aboard the ship. “Is that…..?”

They can only actually think of one person who would like to be up there.

Swummer.

With a groans of buckling metal, the ship kneels over on her side, splashing water.

The lone figure is nowhere to be seen

~~

Paris has run into Jarvis, Moon, Mrs. Elton and Brian. She is, understandably, frustrated.

“What are you doing here?” She growls. Moon is taken aback by this, Paris is usually the peppy, cheerful one. Jarvis just rolls her eyes, sighing. “If you’ve been stuck with them for the last three days, you’ll get used to it.”

“What?! Three days?”

“Well…..time is relative.” Jarvis offers.

“Not this relative!”

Moon shrugs. “Maybe it is.”

Paris sighs. “Three. Days. This is how long l've been stuck here. I did find some sort of key.” She show them a fairly large, but simple iron key.

“So?”

“My--no, l can’t even--Argue! Why can’t you open your eyes?”

Blink blink.

“What?” Mrs. Elton asks.

“Oh never mind. You don’t understand, do you?” She starts pacing, to the bemusement of Jarvis and Moon.

“Look. we’re trapped in this place together, and there’s only one way to get out. There’s something very important that l need to say here.”

“And that is….?” Brian inquires.

A searing white light leaks through the rock wall, making the five turn around.

With a blast, the light bust through. Kestrel-the-kestrel flaps through and promptly runs into the wall. H.A.B., fortunately does not. Nova does.

“Oh, you again.” Jarvis grumbles.

“Again? No--don’t tell me about it. We don’t want any more paradoxes. Paris! Important: do have the key?” Nova says.

“Yes….?” She says hesitantly. She produces the rather random key in question.

“I think that’s unavoidable by now.” Moon says.

“Paradoxes here, paradox there. You're changing the course of history. Good job.” H.A.B. sighs, rolling his eyes.

“But--we in the present--we’re making history.” Jarvis says.

“Not exactly what l meant….oh never mind. I've said too much already. Kestrel, Nova, we have to go. Probably going start WWlll on the way.”

Nova doesn’t respond. “It’s too late, too late.” She mutters. “We don’t have any hope…..”

“Maybe we could…..?”

Nova shakes her head to his unspoken question.

“No, we’ll just make it worse if we do. I don’t know, just don’t know…...l can’t save them all.” The three of them start to slowly, bit by bit, get more transparent.
“Wait!” Paris calls out. “What is this key? Is it good or bad? What can it do?”

“Just--remember this: Underwood. Don’t forget Underwood. Please don’t, whatever you do…..” Nova’s tearful voice trails off, as they disappear.

“Underwood.” Paris repeats softly. “Underwood. Underwood.” She stares a long while at the key.

~~~~

End Day Twenty-One. Rest in peace, Swummer.

Paris is acting like a protagonist! Exciting!

Not that I know what the heck is happening...but I've got to remember, Underwood.

What do you think the key unlocks? The key is made of iron...

I think there was an iron door somewhere- but it was back at the hotel. You don't think the hotel is involved, do you?

The whole iron thing was probably unintentional. But you never know.

Hmm...

You know, you're right, this is exciting! I hope I don't die... 

Despite lack of response, the brave knight that is T³ brandishes its sword and battles onward! Stopping is unacceptable, yet the conditions worsen. Yet T³ fights still! 

Good work. 

Btw, finished that book you really liked, about the uh, peregrine ;) 

Soo, I THINK IT IS RICHARD!

But... what does Underwood mean?  

Day Twenty-Two

(Part three.)

After a rousing round of “Kumbaya” around the campfire, they watched the stars until dawn and everyone lived happily ever after and they definitely didn’t die--

What’s that? A parallel universe version of things?

Oh, okay.
Well then.

After a mumbled round of “Oh my darling, Clementine” (which is a very depressing song, by the way) Moon was about to inform the newest member of their party, Kestrel (the human one) about yesterday’s previous events and their encounters with her avian double. However, Paris grabs her by the arm, mouthing, paradoxes and shaking her head. She doesn’t think Kestrel should know. Previously, they had discussed as to who and why the three had come to warn them and of what important the key that Paris possessed was, but they only thing they concluded was that the majority of cake doesn’t exist or is venomous. They had, however, found a delicious, all natural, organic, dairy-free, soy-free, nut-free, gluten-free, sodium-free sugar-free, additive-free, zero calories, low fat, no carbohydrates, no artificial sweeteners, family-farm grown, all vegan, vegetarian, pesticide-free, cruelty-free, grown in the U.S. of A., all local, water-free, atom-free, molecule-free, protein-free, no added flavors or colors, meal of….nothing.

On a more cheerful, they had finally got their bearings for once, having found an abandoned library of sorts,  built into a huge cave. Except….there were no books, nor even traces of any. Jarvis laughs, as they enter, confusing everyone.

“Don’t you see?” She asks, throwing her arms wide. “This, this my friends, is the Library of Voices!”

“Where’s the voices?” Brian asks, peering over her shoulder. “Looks pretty….l don’t know, ordinary?”

Jarvis rolls her eyes. “How very anticlimactic.”

~~

Moon pokes around the empty shelves, in hope of maybe finding something.

The library is ancient, hundreds of years old. The maps, partly falling off the walls, show a world far different from our own, perhaps, quite literally, when the dinosaurs ruled the earth. It feels like a quiet, depressed place, the air cool and dry in the manner of older places, the wood paneling on the walls dark and smooth with age, the leather on the chairs cracked like spider webs, faded carpets softly blending into each other, endless, tall shelves lining the horizon, a huge hourglass placed in the center of it all.

It is a beautiful place, yes, but also distinctly…..strange. Irregular splashes stain the wood, disturbingly sticking in one’s mind. There are deep stab marks in the wood of the shelves.

Moon stands on her toes, running her fingers along long gouges in the wood. And as she does, she hears something. She turns around, but it is gone.

Huh.

She turns to the shelf, and then there is is again. At first faint, like a whispered conversation, muttering that you can’t quite form into words. She stills, straining her ears.

And then--

I've been running for so long.

All of it. I just ran away from it.

I wonder if they hate me for it.

I don’t know.

She frowns. It seems to be someone’s morbid mutters, like thoughts. It feels like reading someone’s mind. (which is rather hard to do, you know what ilm talking about if you’ve tired to it)

She moves to the other shelf.

Once, there was the toothbrush.

It was perfect.

But perfect didn’t make money. So then, they had to put a motor in it. And then a new handle. Then flashy colors.

But it was still a toothbrush.

Still perfect.

One shelf yields entirely sunflowers and ponies, another is the sound of someone humming heavy metal into a party disconnected microphone at noon. She pauses, confused. They are noises--as the name implies of the Library--a collection of noises. But--why? What? Who?

~~

“What now?”

“Alright, let’s think about this more...logically. They obviously were uneasy about this key. Something bad? l mean, what do keys do?”

“Unlock things?” Mrs. Elton offers.

“Oh come on. Yet again.” Jarvis grumbles, as a searing bright white light starts to come from the cracks in the wall, eventually exploding into a portal of light. This time, it’s only Nova who falls out of it.

“Okay.” She takes a deep breath. She looks around, seeming to do a head count.

“Are you going to say anything useful Nova? Where are you by the way? What are those….portal things?”

Nova shares her head. “Sorry. l can’t tell you anything. Just that….when l come from, things are very bad indeed. “

“Oh my. Isn’t that convenient.”

“Okay. l can’t stay long. just one thing, Paris. Underwood is very bad as we have found out. Avoid it at all costs!”  Paris, at this point, is very ticked off. No one is explaining anything to her, and then these three just keep appearing all over the place with warnings. She thinks; heck, if they don’t explain it to me, l'm not going to do what they want!

Nova starts to pace. As soon as she is out of earshot, Paris says, “l am sick of this. I'm not going to listen to them!”

“But--” Brian says, “Shouldn’t you always listen to warnings from strange visitors? Like in movies--”

”This isn’t a movie! There are no villains, no heroes, no happily ever afters! Things never will turn out that way!” Paris snaps. “Things aren’t going to work out. Quit being so optimistic!”

They don’t say anything for a long while, taken a bit aback. Seems that Paris isn’t the most cheerful one these days.

Yet...this place seems to be wearing on her, tearing her down, in a way that the others have not been affected by.

Nova glances at the wall. “They should be coming….right about--”

Now. she is now joined by Kestrel-the-kestrel and the one, the only, Hotairballon.

The bird screeches at the sight of Kestrel (the not kestrel) who stands still, as if electrified.

Jarvis glances between the two.

“Oh dear. Paradoxes….?”

Suddenly, the cave begins to shake violently, dust raining from the ceiling, cracking the floor. As it slows, the huge hour glass in the center flips over. No one wants to be around when that runs out.

“Okay, okay.” Nova grabs onto the wall. “Because you all died last--”

“Don’t tell them!” H.A.B. snaps.

“Okay, fine. So. there are four exits. one leads the way out of the library. The others are dead ends. We have nine people, each tunnel takes forty minutes to explore, twenty there and twenty back. So by splitting up, we should be able explore the exits, find the one that leads out of here, report back and get out of here before the hour is up. However, there is a catch. Two of the people here, including Kestrel-the-kestrel and H.A.B., are possessed by the voices of the library. The voices only affect their communication. They may or may not lie about which exit is the one out. L know that l'm not processed, because l’m a robot. So. we need to get out of here alive.”

”Wait--” Mrs. Elton asks, “How do you know all of this?”

“Because l had to dig your bodies out of the wreckage--”

“Keep quiet!” H.A.B. hisses. “They don’t need to know any more than they do.”

The hourglass is ticking.

The game is on.

~~

Meanwhile, in our other group of brave adventurers…..

Daisy is having a midlife crisis.

“I could never decide whether l liked puppies or kittens better.” she says to Richard. “Like--these life change choice and l had never thought about it! It’s very important!”

Richard nods, absently mindedly, in hope of making her quit talking. The adventures had set up (and by setup l mean Sandra thus declared this the territory of her newly created country of no name and everyone else apparently citizens) their camp in a dead end of a tunnel. Somehow, during that night, they were suddenly sleeping on an island of rock in the middle of a pit of pencils.

Pencils are terrifying. And dangerous. Ellak and Sapphira, the brave dragons that they were, hurriedly exited the scene, on the case of searching for a way out. They have not returned, nor, Richard suspects, are going to any time soon. He is trying not to think of the ways a pencil can kill you. They come anyways.

Stab you in the eye

Lead poisoning

Bleed to death from a pencil cut

Trip on one

Get in a car accident from writing with one

Go blind from staring at one

Attempting to use it and instead end up poking yourself with it

Throw it at the wall in anger but then it bounces off the walls and stabs your eye out

Sling shot ammunition

Suffocating someone with a pencil drawing

Cutting down a tree for one, but it falls on you

All if those--frankly, are very real and very horrible ways to die.

“See--” Daisy rattles one, “it's just that both are soooo cute! And at seeing either of them, ny brian would just freeze with the instinct to pet them!”

Pencils can kill kittens and puppies, too. Richard realizes with horror.

“And l never could have thought to chose either one!”

cuteness does not repel pencils and other stabby-stabby things.

“Cinnamon….cinnamon…” Mirax mutters, softly.

Pencils can kill cinnamon. Pencils can kill Mirax, and Daisy and…..pencils can kill Richard. Pencils can kill anything, he concludes.

~~~~

A little interactive storytelling here! Solve the riddle, as outlined by Nova.

Re-cap:

-Nine people, two may or may not lie about their findings of the exit. Nova is not possessed.

-Four tunnels, only one leads to the outside.

-One hour until the library collapses, it takes forty minutes to explore each tunnel and report back.

So! How do you divide the party to find the exit?

If the majority of people solve it correctly, the CBers in the story will survive! If they don't….well, there will be consequences. NO CHEATING. You have two days to solve the riddle. If you aren’t feeling like using some brain power…..well, you very well might die.

Also: l am terribly sorry for how confusing the last two days have been. But, bear with me, they will make sense in the long run. Thank you :)

*panics and runs about in terror* I momentarily forgot about the riddle! Aah! I don't want to die!!! Aah!

...Um, Sydney?

Oh. Right. Well. Um. Carry on, then.

Before I begin, I have a question: do we have any materials? It wasn't stated in the riddle, so I assume not, but cell phones or even a large ball of string would be extremely helpful.

If not, this is my proposed solution: 

I might be wrong but I think the solution is to send everyone down a tunnel with a partner. One team will have three people, which could be an added precaution against liars, or could be useless. We'll see. When everyone comes back, compare reports. What are the chances that the two maybe-liars will both a: lie and b: head down the same tunnel? To find the liars, send the teams out and see which teams disagree when they come back. If one or two teams disagree and one agrees that their exit is the way out, the team that agreed must be correct. Take that tunnel. If two teams disagree about their exit, and the other two agree that their exit is not the way out, we can conclude that the two liars are on the teams that disagree, and one of their tunnels must lead to the exit. We know one of those two tunnels is the way out. Then...well, it's fifty fifty with twenty minutes left and life or death stakes. No time to deliberate. We've got to take risks. Make a quick choice and pray it's the right one.

But wait, will the liars lie only about their findings or about everything? We could just ask everyone what c-a-t spells (or some other simple question), and if someone answers wrong, they're the liar. If that works, send a bunch of non-liars down the tunnels and go down the tunnel that's the way out. And if it turns out the liars lie about only their findings, we can just use the partner system, then ask each person immediately after they report their findings whether it was a lie. That could work! Unless the lying changes randomly. There are just too many variables! I think this will work, though. And if not, I hope this long-winded post is helpful to someone. I'll be back tomorrow. 

Oh, one more note: are the liars aware that they are lying? If so, then they can have a signal. We can ask the liars to hold up three fingers if what they say is a lie.

I'll stop now. I hope this is useful, if kind of frantic. Sorry if this seems like senseless ramblings, or is way too complicated.