Library of Djaiss

Atop a mountain, but somewhere in another world, rests a small building. The large circular roof stretches up as if it itself is a mountain peek. A weather vein atop the building spins endlessly in an unfelt wind, the metal raven at the tip pointing its beak to an ever-changing North. Step inside, get out of the cold. You've surely traveled so far.

Purpose / Function

The library is said to contain everything that has ever been written. Perhaps everything that has ever been said and thought as well... It is the perfect archive.

Architecture

The visible library is small, with two floors, each a single round room. The roof is conical, allowing the library to be a small mountain peek of its own, nestled among the mountains around it. Windows cover around three quarters of the walls, with the final quarter of windowless wall opposite the door.
There is a large metal raven at the top of the metal rod atop the roof. The raven is a part of the weather vein, with an arrow point with the flow of the wind. Just below the weather vein, there is a compass. Curiously, it spins with the raven and the weather vein, North pointing downwind with the raven's beak.
Inside, the dusty library the stacks of books cover every surface. The entryway is immediately blocked by bookshelves, channeling visitors along a maze-like corridor. There are no grand open areas, no reading spaces, practically no room to breathe on the first floor. There are only bookshelves, and books, and more books.
After looping through the maze of shelves a few times, visitors tend to notice the ladder leading up to the top floor. They may begin to wonder how they ever missed it the first time. They may never see it. It, like several other ladders in the library may be used to reach higher books on the bookshelf, but this one also leads to a hole in the ceiling. The second floor. Carefully moving the ladder out of the way allows one to also use a moving platform to reach the next area as well. But why move the ladder when it so obviously reaches to somewhere unknown.
The second floor is open and well lit. Grand, unbroken windows stretch around the three quarters of the walls. The ceiling does not stretch up to the point of the roof, but instead contains beautiful stained glass depicting birds, gardens, and books. There is some unknown light source illuminating the patterns from above. There is one large chair with eleven assorted cushions spread around it. Several small desks host wooden chairs. Short bookshelves end below the windows. Atop each bookshelf there are plants. Some of the pots are built into the bookshelves... perhaps they are magically watered to prevent water damage to the books. Some plants hang from above the windows, selfishly hogging the sunlight and view. There is an earthy scent to the area.
Along the back wall where there are no windows, long steps lead downward. They are claustrophobic, with a narrow ceiling, but oddly wide steps. A railing is available on both sides. The steps wind back and forth several times. There is no light going down the steps unless the visitor brings it with them.
At the bottom of the steps, the architecture suddenly opens. Somewhere beneath the library sits the true library. First, the area is normal, with little rooms and hallways, balconies, ramps and stairways. But the further into the library basement travels, the more it appears as if the library has consumed several buildings and built walls around them. Staircases lead around the outside of a tower, which is smooshed next to another wooded structure. Arched ceilings connect the disparate structures as if there were always there and always meant to be together.*

Defenses

The library has legendary protectors, the graxtos. The most concrete description of the guardians puts them as seven cranes, three ravens, and one loval. Presumably, the bird forms are mundane disguises for their more powerful forms. Additionally, the librarian himself is said to carry a Breathe, and the power that comes with that.

History

Djaiss is an old god, arising in the decades following Thi's death. The library first appears in records around 57ToP. It continues to be prevalent in stories for centuries, sighted as a physical location, typically somewhere on Ancylo. There is a slow shift in the stories that are told about the library, until stories from around 500ToP reference the library as a mystical place filled with the truth behind every legend, but a legend itself.

Tourism

Journeys to the library are not unheard of. The most famous story of the library is perhaps The Would-be King of Croi. Those who attempt to travel to the library do not return successful. There are bodies among the mountains of Croi, where unsuccessful travelers succumbed to the elements. Wiser traveler return before the mountains claim them. Then again, no one is keeping records of attempts, deaths, and returns. So maybe someone has made it. They just never returned.

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* Please see "Imaginary Prisons" by Giovanni Battista Piranesi for the visual inspiration.

Owner

Djaiss

Characters in Location

• Djaiss