Guiding Desire (Guardian & Conduit Book 1) by Alexa Piper

Author:Alexa Piper [Piper, Alexa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: anonymous
Published: 2023-09-21T18:30:00+00:00

“When you said these were maintenance tunnels, I thought they were, you know, maintained,” Orrey said, eyes running over yet another stretch of wall that looked as if it had been cut from stone. It might have been. Lithomancers could’ve done that.

“They’re absolutely functional,” Col said, his parasol resting over his shoulder, wrist cradled on the handle. “This part of Argentea—of the Grounds—was built above some natural rock. The lithomancers back then used it for the first buildings and because it would make great shelter in case that was ever needed.

“As the city grew and grew, pushing the farmable land out, this became archival space. Some grains are even stored here, well below where we are now. It’s not anywhere near as effective as the long-term pole storage, but more convenient for researchers to get to.”

“I had no idea all this existed,” Orrey said, looking up at old-fashioned light fixtures, heavy and set up so that between each, eerie shadows loomed.

“There’s generally no need for people to know.”

“How do you know this is here then?”

Col let his parasol slide off his shoulder. “Tunnel entrances are still a safety thing everyone is supposed to know about. I personally just like to know everything about a place I can manage to find out. Here we are.”

They stopped in front of massive double doors, smooth metal. On one, there was a numbers lock unlike any Orrey had ever seen, and when Col began operating it, it became clear why.

“Is that…mechanical?”

“Yup,” Col said, turning the tumbler left and right, left and right. “Open the mystery,” he said, a quote from one of those animated shows Orrey knew even though he’d never followed it.

He pulled the right door open, and Orrey helped. The thing moved smoothly enough, but it was heavy.

“Who designed this?” Orrey asked.

“People who liked secrets. That’s enough to get inside.” Col let go of the door and slipped through into the thick blackness that lay beyond it.

Orrey didn’t. He looked back the way they’d come, ahead to where the tunnel continued seemingly without end.

“Found it,” Col’s distorted voice came from inside the blackness, which was washed away as more old light fixtures slowly began spewing brightness. “What? Were you scared of the dark?” Col asked, twirling his parasol and crooking a finger.

“No, but walking into a situation blind is, ah—“

“Stupid, I know. Now, come on.”

Orrey followed. The archives had heigh ceilings, about three Guardians high, which made Orrey wonder how deep below ground they actually were. Most surprisingly, housed on shelves and covered with some thin plastic-like material, were not digital files but rather paper, books, and boxes.

“I really feel like we shouldn’t be here,” Orrey said.

“Strictly speaking, it’s suggested to access all these in their digital versions through the main library,” Col said.

“So we really aren’t supposed to be here.”

“Of course we are.”

“This is almost like Senlas’s collection,” Orrey said, approaching one of the shelves. He saw the rows of book spines under the thin cover, all perfectly maintained. Research Diaries: Indigenous Animal and Plant Species, one read.

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