Chương 38: Drezo Regalia (I)
<Zero>
As Zero and Agnis entered the royal library, they noticed that it was brightly lit with glowing yellow orbs that danced magically in the air. Rows upon rows of neatly shelved books were kept clean. Each was in alphabetical order from by authors. Many colored banners lightly flapped overhead. They directed the people to the many categories available.
Overhead moving bridges criss-crossed over each other and connected to different levels. Hundreds of old magical books and relics were safely displayed behind force fields. The magical books and relics flared to life when people walked past them, causing people to stop and marvel at their contents. But the most spectacular sight was the six overshadowing marble statues that were inside the Royal Library arranged in a perfect circle. Each statue blended into the structure, supporting the roof with no other columns visible. They were the six heroes who had saved their races during the dark ages.
The first was a human male with a bastard sword raised to the ceiling. His gleaming white feathery armor and his hawk-like helmet covered the majority of his face and body. A large red garnet was embedded in his armored chest. On the foot of his statue was a plaque with his name written on it: Our beloved leader Drake.
To the left of the human male statue was a human female with a petite circular face. She was shorter, and her long wavy hair was pulled down to one side. It flowed seamlessly around her armored dress. A large round emerald glittered on the top of her oak staff, which she held near her heart as if it was precious to her. Her face looked out with concern. Her name was Lulu.
Not too far from her was an identical face, a twin female with hair cut short to her chin-line. Her face smirked with a mischievous attitude as she held onto a guitar with her right hand and a tambourine with her left. Two large citrine crystals were embedded into her instruments. Her puffy pants and her skintight top overlaid with chain mail hugged tightly against her body, showing off her curves. Her name was Lilith.
An ugly looking troll was next to Lilith. His sharp teeth protruded out of his mouth, which was set in a fierce grin, and a mohawk flowed down from the center of his head to his back. His right eye was covered with a patch, which had a black skull design with diamond jewels embedded into the eyes. He had a slightly hunched back and large feet that looked like he could easily trip over them. Zero could almost see the rough texture of the slight bumps on the troll's skin. The troll's name was Cello.
Next to the troll was a short dwarf with a bushy beard. His helmet covered half of his face, and three horns protruded out of it. The dwarf was heavily covered from head to toe in Viking-like armor. His oversized hammer was set standing next to him and his stubby fingers wrapped around it. On the side of his hammer were two large sapphires entwined with sharp, intricate designs. His name was Konnor.
The final statue that completed the circle was a male elf. His tall, elegant stature stood out proudly from all the races. Long hair was pulled back into a ponytail. His armor looked as if it was delicately made with care and love. Out of all the other heroes, he was the tallest. He did not raise his sword that was sheathed in his belt nor hold onto a shield. Instead his right hand was over his chest with an amethyst jeweled dagger. It glistened deep purple as light radiated off it. His name was Samuel.
Both Zero and Agnis walked towards the center of the library, looking with wonderment at what they saw. Agnis continually shook Zero as she pointed out different things, while Zero's jaw dropped with bewilderment.
"Look!" exclaimed Agnis as she shook Zero hard on his shoulder. "Oh wow. Can you believe that? There are actual flying paper cranes!" she said excitedly. "I remember making one of those when I was a child. I wonder what they are for?" She snatched up one of the paper cranes that were passing by her. Zero looked over her shoulder with curiosity.
Agnis began to read it out loud, "Dear Sarah, Did you know I tasted heaven? It's true. I tasted heaven the day I met you. And when we made love, you sent me flying, dancing on the clouds while the stars sent down their loving light to shine upon us…." Her voice became quieter and quieter as she kept reading the letter, and her cheeks burned rosy red. She cleared her throat.
"It's a letter to someone. I suggest we don't open them up. It's personal." She didn't explain any further. Zero understood as he too looked away blushing. He gulped.
"Let's get on with our quest. I need to find Librarian Garrett."
"Sure," she replied quickly. She let go of the crane to let it fly away.
They continued on as they both arrived at the center of the atrium. He noticed a large block of stone bathing in the sunlight coming from the windows. Golden letters were deeply engraved in the stone, radiating a warm light.
To our six lights that brought us out of the darkness. May you always bring us hope. Your deeds will never be forgotten.
"The six heroes," Agnis said with interest. "They saved the fire continent from the days of darkness. I wish I could meet them."
"Yeah, me too." Zero stopped for a moment and looked at the elf statue. "That elf reminds me of Zeraph." Zero chuckled as he pointed at the statue of the elf hero.
"Strangely enough, you're right." She grinned. "He does have a bit of an arrogant demeanor; it wouldn't be strange if one day Zeraph was made into a statue like that." She giggled. "Anyways, he said he's in the library somewhere and will meet up with us when he's done."
"Alright. Sounds good to me."
A tall looking humanoid white rabbit walked over towards them. It was wearing a butler suit and a glass monocle over his left eye. He stopped and he looked upon them with an arrogant attitude.
"How may I help you?" The rabbit puffed up its chest as his hands were folded behind him.
"Uh." Zero stared at the rabbit in surprise. "Agnis, it's a talking bunny." He elbowed her.
"I'm not a bunny. I'm a proud member of the Lunar Rabbit race." The rabbit snorted in discontent. "If you will excuse me, I have more important things to do than babysit a child," the rabbit coldly scoffed at Zero. He turned around to leave.
"I'm sorry, sir. Excuse my partner. He didn't mean to offend you. It's not every day we would see someone like you," Agnis quickly replied before the large rabbit could go. "I'm Agnis and this is Zero."
The large rabbit slowly turned around, stood up straight, and looked down upon them with his head held up high.
"Well. It seems there are still some people who are polite," grumbled the rabbit as he looked down upon Zero with disdain. "My name is Reth. I am the head Royal Librarian. What may I help you with?"
"I'm looking for the book on the Ancient History of the Lotus and Zero here is looking for a Librarian Garrett," said Agnis carefully, trying not to offend the rabbit.
"Librarian Garrett, that old insane fool must still be researching that same subject. How long has it been since he started doing this? Ten years? No. Twenty years of his life wasted," said Reth with a mocking voice. His large foot thumped in displeasure. Zero couldn't take his eyes off the rabbit's foot and was thinking about many different ways to silence it. Would dropping one of the books stop that annoying tap? I wonder what lunar rabbit would taste like, he pondered. A couple more thoughts crossed his mind. He wondered what it would be like to go hunting after giant rabbits. But he shook himself out of his thoughts to pay attention.
"He will be on the third floor in the section of lost history. You can't miss him. You'll know what I mean," said Reth in irritation, rolling his eyes. He turned towards Agnis and gave her a gentlemanly smile.
"Ah, the Ancient History of the Lotus. Please come this way. You have chosen an interesting book to read. There are thousands of different variations of its contents written by different authors, but there is only one original," he purred. He directed Agnis towards her destination.
Seriously? What kind of hospitality is this! thought Zero. He couldn't believe this rude treatment as he watched them walk off. Shaking his head with discontent, he turned and headed towards Garrett.
Passing through shelves of books, he walked up the marble stairs. Its pristine clean marble sparkled with every step. Does that stupid rabbit use its tail to clean the dust off? Or maybe it rolls around on the ground sweeping up dirt with its fur. Maybe next time I should use him to clean up the place, he deviously thought. His arrogant attitude did need a bit of cleaning up. Zero chuckled and continued plotting out different ways to use Reth as a cleaning tool.
He arrived at the third floor. Rows upon rows of bookshelves were neatly kept clean and organized. More large rabbits wearing butler or maid clothes were cleaning up the bookshelves with dustpans. He thought he saw a couple of them cleaning with their fluffy tails, but just as quickly as he noticed them, they disappeared.
He blinked a couple of times, trying to see if anything was wrong with his eyes.
"I must be seeing things…Anyways, where could he be?" muttered Zero as he scanned for the librarian Garrett. From left to right all he saw were neatly organized shelves of books, but just when he was about to scan through the place again, he noticed books spilled over to the side in a back corner. A couple more tumbled over. They landed softly with a thump. He curiously peered over. What he saw astounded him. It was a complete mess. His hands twitched with his desire to clean up.
Thump!
Rows of books fell over and slid down on top of each other. An old brown rabbit with a short goatee was heavily covered in a variety of papers. His broken monocle dangled out of his top pocket. The books around him were innumerable, from tiny pamphlets to enormous old tomes.
"Gah! These doggone papers. I just stacked them an hour ago," grumbled the old rabbit as he began to sort through them again. Papers kept fluttering down in front of him and he tried to catch them. Zero walked over and helped pick up the scattered books and papers.
"That prick of a head librarian. He could have sent someone to help me decipher these texts if he had half an idea how important my work is. But nooooooo, maintaining cleanliness and order is his priority." The old rabbit mocked Reth as he tussled around papers. A couple more books fell onto the floor.
"The young'uns these days don't understand the value of knowledge. Cleanliness? Pyah. Our proud noble race has been reduced to housekeeping. If our ancestors saw this they would be ashamed! If I get my hands on—" The old rabbit was cut short as he noticed Zero standing in front of him with a stack of his books. "And you are?" The old rabbit put on his broken monocle and squinted at Zero.
"My name is Zero. Are you Garrett by any chance?" Zero moved around the old rabbit, trying to reach the desk that was already littered with dozens of books. He placed the stack gently on top and carefully pulled back.
"Yes. I'm he. How may I help you?" Garrett asked, wary of the new predicament that was before him. "If you came here by Reth's order, tell him I'm not moving from this spot." His tail pushed over a stack of books while he was shuffling around more papers. Zero watched bewildered at the clumsiness of this rabbit. He even watched as Garrett's tail dipped into a steaming hot coffee that was lying on top of the books.
"Gahh!" Garrett tossed the papers in his hands into the air. "Dang coffee. Who put that there?" Garrett rubbed his scraggy tail and shook it. Brown blotches of coffee stains flicked onto the pristine white papers.
"Dang it. Look at what I've done." Garrett waved his hands in discontent.
"Uh. Sir?" Zero tried hard not to laugh.
"Yeah? What is it?" said Garrett with displeasure in his voice. His large foot stepped around a pile of papers that looked like it was about to tip over.
"I'm not from Reth. I actually came here to deliver something to you. Also, if you know anything about Drezo…" Zero thought for a second, trying to remember the name. He snapped his fingers a couple of times and scrunched up his forehead.
"Ah. Yes. Drezo Regalia." Zero's eyes snapped open.
"What did you say?" Garrett turned around slowly, his interest piqued.
"Drezo Regalia." Zero repeated louder than before. Does he have hearing problems too? thought Zero. He was a clumsy rabbit with hearing problems, not a combination that he wanted to deal with.
"Drezo Regalia. Drezo…Regalia." Garrett rolled the words on his tongue, trying to remember something. "That name seems so familiar. It's on top of my head…" Garrett mumbled as he paced back and forth. He thumped one long foot on the ground.
"I swear I've heard that from somewhere. Could it be some kind of item? No, that doesn't sound right," murmured Garrett as he scratched his head. His ears flopped over to one side.
"This is from Tyrell at Tino's Egg Shop. He said that you might be able to decipher it." Zero rummaged in his bag as he handed the torn page to Garrett. Garrett read through it quickly.
"Hohoho! I can't believe this. This is the missing information that I've been searching for." Garrett tapped the papers with his hands as he excitedly went over to his desk. Rummaging through the drawers, he pushed aside the books that were lying on top of it. Stacks of books and papers fell off to the ground. Zero side-stepped out of harm's way and Garrett pulled out a large book from the shelf next to him.
Zero glanced at Garrett as if he was crazy. Now he knew why anyone would be upset about cleaning up after him. He just created a new mess right after it was clean.
"Look here. This stands for fire. This means water." Garrett's fingers pointed from the torn page to another open book. He looked upon Zero with an ecstatic face.
"Boy, did you know what you just found?" Garrett smiled from ear to ear.
"Uh…a torn page?" Zero said, unsure of the question. He didn't know if he should entertain this senile fool or just leave right that second so he wouldn't get caught up with anything else.
"Very funny, kid. It's the lost history of this city. It states here…" Garrett motioned Zero over to see. Zero carefully walked over the stacked books while he tried not to tip them over.
"Here. It talks about the heroes that slayed the tyrannical ruler of the City of Terra. His reign was so atrocious that the time period became known as the fallen ages. Cannibalism was rampant when the king ruled. They called him the Cannibal King, because he slew his enemies and ate their hearts to gain everlasting life. But it doesn't end there. Upon the king's death, the six heroes were cursed to live a wretched life. What happened to them is unknown." Garrett stroked his goatee, thinking about what he found.
"It doesn't make sense." Garrett paced back and forth. Zero looked at him questioningly. He wasn't sure where Garrett was going with this. "How could the heroes go missing? They were known throughout the Fire Continent." Garrett's thoughts were engrossed in the information he was given. Just as quickly as he began pacing back and forth, he stopped.
"What do you mean, the Cannibal King?" asked Zero. It was a topic that piqued his interest. Cannibalism was not much heard of these days.
"Ah yes, the king who devoured his enemies. The reason was to gain their strength, power, and immortality. He was so deathly afraid of someone stealing his arts that he killed anyone who challenged him. Somewhere along the line, he took it too far and started to believe that by eating them he would gain their power and life."
Zero balked at the thought of someone eating someone else. There were still parts of the real world where small groups practiced cannibalism. He wasn't so sure if he wanted to meet someone like that any time soon.
"Kid. It seems Tyrell trusts you deeply if he sent you to me. I need you to go to the top floor and get me a book. It's a very special magic book. It's called the Record Keeper of Historia. Bring that to me, and don't get caught by Reth. That aggravating son of a—" Garrett stopped himself from going any further. Zero looked upon him with curiosity.
"Ahem. Just bring me that book. By then I should remember something about this Drezo Regalia. The entrance to the top floor is next to the giant reptile skeleton," said Garrett. He cleared his throat and continued to mumble to himself about the torn page that he was given.
Quest updated.
Meet with the librarian GarrettBring back the book Record Keeper of Historia from the top floor of the Royal Library.
Difficulty Level: D
Reward: Unknown. Possibly a book?
Failure: Tino will not give you any more quests and your association with him will fall tremendously.
Zero quickly nodded and left. He power-walked off towards his destination.
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