As we leave Chris' store, brushing past all of the stunningly patient people waiting in line, I think long and hard about what exactly what's been going on. I appeared at a library, as a book with a will. Over an uncertain period of time, I managed to gain a moderate amount of understanding regarding the world I exist in, such as its UI-style status system and fantasy-like objects. I was purchased by Lola, a young girl whose father seems to be rather rich. Here, people can grow to incredible proportions (or perhaps that was just Francis... more information would be required in that regard) and are capable of using magic, much like my new self. I was repaired almost professionally by Lola and there encountered a sort of gel-based lifeform, which seemed to be capable of igniting without any risk to itself. From that creature, I can pull the information that certain creatures exist which can survive unique conditions, and even potentially thrive in an otherwise hostile environment. Chris especially was a goldmine of usefulness, proving to my captors (owners?) that I could think and therefore (in a way) converse, or at least answer questions. It also confirmed my suspicion that Isaac is indeed very protective of Lola. His expression when he asked me what I was planning was... intimidating, to say the least.

Well, that's all information I can use, but it leaves a significant amount of information that I don't know and no way to express my desire to know it. Specifically, where did I come from, how did I get in the library, what's a Compendium, how soon can I cast magic, and of course: why do I have a strange feeling that someone or something is documenting my every thought and movement?

Lola, holding onto me, asks yet another question that I can't answer without a mouth. "What do you think of how you look? It didn't hurt when I fixed you, right?"

I'm not bothered by the constant barrage of questions. If I could talk, I'd show her just how many different ways one can say 'what the heck has been going for the past ten hours'.

Getting back to her question, I blinked once, and then twice. Lola smiles hugely, and I can practically feel my heart (yes, the one I don't have) skip a beat. She is so incredibly cute, and she just seems to have been getting more and more stuck in my mind since I met her. I wonder if it's possibly a forced condition?

Isaac reaches over and puts a hand on me, saying as he does, "Perhaps that's enough questions for tonight, dear. I'm sure Codex is tired."

I blink twice, but it goes unnoticed by Lola. I can't really get tired since I don't have a brain or nervous system to wear out, and the constant conversation is a massive upgrade from the persistent silence.

Lola yawns, and says defiantly, "He's not tired! I'm sure of it!"

...Perhaps not, but I believe you're getting a little sleepy. The light level has been slowly decreasing over time, and the lanterns hanging from the well-designed metal lattice above are beginning to light up with some unknown magic that I'd love to study later.

As we walk along the cobbled street, I take a few moments to appreciate the cozy shops and buildings arranged along the side of the road and the calm attitude of the passersby. Looking at the well-armored guards frequently patrolling the road, I don't feel any sensation of abuse of power. Rather, there's an air of respectful gratitude from everyone walking near them.

I'm certain that I used to live somewhere else, a very different kind of world where men died daily and poverty reigned out of sight. I don't have any specific memories, though, and even the vague information I once held on to preciously are quickly fading away. I'm not completely sure that I want to keep them, honestly. They won't help me here, and I have a new purpose in life now - namely, to help Lola grow as much as she can.

Looking at the young girl's drooping eyes, it's at this moment that I decide to promise myself this - no matter what happens, no matter what I remember, I'm going to protect Lola with everything I have.

Isaac smiles down at Lola and says something I can't hear. Tired, she responds, "Yes please." He picks her up and held her against his shoulder, where she falls asleep almost instantly. I slip from her fingers and land on the ground.

Staring up at Isaac, I can see the emotions in his eyes warring before he shifts Lola's weight and picks me up. Looking me in the eye, he said, "I want you to answer honestly, all right?" I blink in response, if not a little warily. He sighs deeply, his stern, unbreakable attitude dissolving. "I can't - I can not lose Lola too. If you're going to help her learn magic, you'd better keep her safe the whole way." I blink again, making sure not to look away. I have no intention of letting anything bad ever happen to her.

Isaac smiles tiredly. "I don't despise you or anything. Well-" he revised the thought, and continued, "I did for a few minutes. But Chris made a good point. Much as I'd like to hold on to her innocence, it's not a decision for me to make, it's hers. However, she's going to take you with her wherever she's going. I can already tell she's going to invest a lot of time in you. So I want you to answer with absolute honesty anytime I ask you something that I think I need to know. Doesn't matter if you think you should keep it secret, you're going to tell me. I don't care if it's about her brushing habits, you tell me, all right?"

I blink once. It's going to be a long road to true trust, but I'm willing to wait. Isaac seems like the sort of person I want to know better, and I have no intention of losing any relationships. They're hard enough to find as it is.

Isaac took a turn, walking towards a fancily built shop with iron bars over the windows. If not for the phenomenal decoration and patterned front wall, I likely would have assumed it was a bank or something along those lines.

As we enter, the bell above the door jingles, and my eye takes in the surroundings. A sizable booth made of glass and some unknown glowing material was prominently placed on the right, a hefty iron padlock holding it shut, and a control panel next to it. There were several chairs on the left for people waiting, although there weren't any customers at the moment. A reinforced counter was directly in the front, a well-dressed secretary and a heavily armored guard taking center stage. Where I once would have thought the guard a huge man, I now had Francis for comparison, and so considered him to be merely large.

Isaac walks up casually and smiles at the secretary, providing a gold card from somewhere in his jacket. "How are you doing, Janet?" She smiles in return, and even the guard manages a quick grin. She says something that I couldn't hear at all, to which he nods pleasantly. "Of course. Do you mind warming it up? My hands are a little full." She smiles at the sleeping Lola and comes around the counter, giving me quite a surprise. She has legs resembling some sort of predatorial bird, over which she was wearing tough pants. Now that I have something to go off of, I began to notice other details, such as the feathers matching her natural color mixed in with her hair and her yellow-tinted eyes.

All right then, it's possible for humans to share certain traits with other animals. A strange picture floats into my mind of a person with the head of one of those gel-based creatures, and I shake it off without too much issue. I'm going to have to do some research on this once I figure out how to get hands.

Unlocking the booth, she hooked the padlock on the side of the control panel and began turning a dial. A soft glow began emanating from the inside, thin mist flowing out gently and spilling over the floor. Stepping inside, Isaac nodded at the secretary, and she flipped a switch.

Without any flashing or fanfare, we are quite suddenly in a different room, albeit in a similar booth. I blink in astonishment, and Isaac somehow notices, smiling. "I take it you've never seen a teleport booth before?" I flick my eye open and shut twice. He nods, adding with a strange expression, "It's one of the few technologies that we extracted from..." He shakes it off, not finishing the sentence, and carries both me and Lola into the front room of my new home.

I look around, startled by the sheer wealth on display. Aside from the ceiling stretching far above us, or the enormous quartz pillars, what caught my eye was the massive fountain in the center of the room, spraying colored water at least thirty feet in the air. The organized tiles that composed the floor were set in perfect coordination, and the grand staircase split into two about twenty steps up. A variety of end tables and expensive-looking vases decorated the edges of the room, and a small army of maids dressed in plain brown aprons and bonnets were cleaning it all. Everything seemed to be rimmed with gold and white marble, and if a book could whistle I would. It was genuinely incredible.

As Isaac carries Lola up the grand staircase, I notice the maids bowing respectfully. It seems as though everyone I'd seen thus far enjoyed whatever profession they chose, taking pleasure in their work rather than frustration at its mediocrity. I can't help but wonder at the careful creation and work that went into developing this unique and pleasant feeling, but I suspect that it took an unbelievable amount of intelligence and care.

Going left into a long hallway, Isaac awkwardly opens a door using the hand I'm in, and walks in, flipping a switch and illuminating the room.

I blink again. That's a lot of books.

There's a large, comfortable-looking bed with a veil-like canopy and silky-smooth sheets, but the first thing I notice is the bookcases lining the walls, and from top to bottom they are all lined with books of every color, shape, and size. There must have easily been thousands of them, and it wasn't a small room either. A small desk looked as though it had been added as an afterthought, despite the lamp placed on top of it. A dog bed sat next to Lola's, although there was no dog in sight.

Placing Lola in her bed, Isaac aims a finger at her mildly dusty outdoor clothes and channels his red lightning-like mana through them. As I watch in amazement, they change into a blue nightshirt and pants, the shoes flying off to land near the door. He catches my look and flushes uncharacteristically. "It's magic clothing, I didn't-" He doesn't finish the sentence, and instead puts me on the small cabinet next to her bed, leaving quickly.

Lying on the small desk, I ponder the incredibly long and yet somehow short day that I had just been through and realize to my surprise that I would not have rather anything else happened.