The Old Library

*"The library is a place that exists outside reality. Thus, the entrances are difficult to find, but they are abundant and on every world and in every reality hidden in the dark corners of forgotten places. It is said that it is easier to find the library by accident than by searching."*

*-/u/TheRealBobbyBass*

## Description

The library is a seemingly infinite maze of shelves and corridors. The structure of the library seems surreal and dreamlike to those from other planes of existence; normal laws of physics do not seem to apply and usual precepts of architecture are completely ignored. Floating objects and paths leading in odd directions, including the vertical, are commonplace. Time does not seem to pass in the library, and a dim, murky twilight prevails throughout most of the structure.

While much of the library is similar (endless shelves upon shelves of books), there are distinct locations within it. One of the best-known of these is the Courtyard, one of the only places in the library open to fresh air. It is just as paradoxical as the rest of the structure, with floating patches of something that can't entirely be called earth and a sort of dreamlike inconstancy to its layout, but the greenery anddd the open sky provides a welcome relief from the ramped gloom of the rest of the Library. Other locations include the Clocktower (created as a futile attempt to provide some sense of day and night to the timeless place), the Crypt (the final resting places of those residents of the library who succumb to violence or accident), and the Catacombs (mysterious, winding tunnels inhabited by the bodiless spirits of fallen Librarians and the enigmatic Spiderfolk). There is also a fabled Restricted Section, where even the Librarians dare not go, although rumors claim that it is stalked by a terrifying rogue librarian who bears a tome of forbidden knowledge who calls itself "The Yiffarian", accompanied by a mysterious helper known only by the single enigmatic adjective of "Zesty."

## Contents

The Library is home to a vast (in that it is infinite) collection of tomes. Many of these are precious tomes written in one of the many languages used throughout the multiverse, salvaged or copied from other repositories of knowledge. Others, however, perhaps the vast majority, are written in the language of the Library, which, when spoken or written, seems like complete gibberish to the audience and yet is perfectly understandable. These tomes contains knowledge of every time and every place, although texts written after the time that a given reader comes from will simply appear blank.

## Inhabitants

The primary inhabitants of the Library are a species of insectoid creatures known only as the Librarians. Though their forms and habits vary, they tend to have certain features in common. In general, Librarians have bodies covered with dull, grey-black chitin, usually covered with thick robes and coats. Nobody has ever seen the face of a Librarian, but their glowing green eyes and shining white teeth are visible beneath their hoods. Usually, Librarians possess four arms and two legs, although two-armed, six-armed, three-armed, and even no-armed Librarians have been observed. Librarians fulfill most of the basic tasks of the Library, from sorting and transcribing the books to keeping pests at bay and slaughtering those who threaten the precious tomes. Mortals in the process of becoming librarians have been dubbed "thralls"

In constant struggle and opposition to the Librarians are the Silverfish, a common nuisance in the library who feed on books and harass travelers. These humanoid insects possess two pairs of limbs and have long, jointed antennae growing from their heads. Their name is derived from their shining carapaces, which are platinum-silver. Though less intelligent than the Librarians, they are capable of constructing and using tools and even, in certain conditions, learning to read. Silverfish have a hive-like structure, in which wandering groups of males pay allegiance to solitary Queens. There is also a third set of Silverfish, known as Brutes, which are large, imposing males who protect the others.

Related but opposed to the Silverfish are the Drones, a subspecies that was domesticated by the Librarians long ago. They are darker in color than the Silverfish, having black and green chitin and glowing green eyes. In addition, they tend to have four arms and small wings used for gliding. Highly intelligent, Drones handle much of the day-to-day tasks which the Librarians are too busy to attend to or simply don't think about. However, they are also particularly susceptible to the dangers of the library, and can be easily corrupted by cursed or arcane texts.

Living in the Catacombs underneath the Library is a reclusive species known as the Spiderfolk. Large, burly, and four-armed, they live a quiet farming existence far from the hustle and bustle of the world above. Though generally peaceful, they can make formidable enemies when roused. They have large, spiderlike fangs, from which their name is derived, along with their habit of producing silk.

## Location

The connection between the "real world" and the Library is complex and mysterious. It is said that all times and all places are connected to the Library, but little else is known. Some say that entrances to the Library are found in hidden caves, others say that they are mysterious doors, while still others claim that the Library can be entered by means of certain books.

For mortals visiting the Library, the experience is surreal and disorienting. Time does not seem to pass in the library, and you will always exit in the same place and the same moment you left. And while the Library contains the sum of worldly (and otherworldly) knowledge, no traveler has ever left with any memories of the place save the information that they came to the Library to find.

For the residents of the Library, travel is rare but not impossible. Certain Librarians, such as the Wanderer and the Biographer, are known to travel in the worlds outside, and seem to come and go as they please. The mechanism by which this works is unknown.

## Sources

https://www.reddit.com/r/The\_Old\_Library/comments/k7bqys/some\_lore\_i\_wrote\_about\_the\_library\_canonized\_by/

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UVvKUl1voRaADVWdVVFOhXO34dwLoB7s7GIUfjmJRBg/edit?usp=sharing