B L U R B
He wants to be more than just her teacher…
Laura is about to graduate from the Time Travel Academy, but she really doesn’t want to leave. So when her handsome professor surprisingly invites her on one last trip into the past, she can’t resist. She expected a quick tour of the Great Library of Alexandria, but when they stumble onto a mysterious papyrus scroll, Laura needs to draw on her knowledge of ancient history and mythology to solve the puzzle… without getting distracted by her teacher. Anm/facademyromancenovellasetintheTimeTravelAcademy universe.
PleasenotethatwhileIhavetriedmybesttoensurehistorical accuracy,thereareveryfewsourcesdescribingtheGreatLibraryin detail.Ihavethereforeallowedmyselfsomecreativefreedomtofill inthegaps.
C H A P T E R O N E
They were already preparing the Great Hall for our graduation, but I wasn’t ready yet. Not in the slightest. Graduating meant no more lessons, no more late-night chats with my roommate, no more essays and exams. I’d have to get a job, pay bills, behave like an adult. No, I really wasn’t ready for that.
You’d think that after four years at TTA, I’d want to leave and explore the world. Not me though. I loved this place and all the secrets it held. Some of my friends were desperate to get their first time agent job, and while I wasn’t exactly opposed to the idea, I also didn’t want to say goodbye yet to academy life.
These four years had been the best years of my life. I'd never much enjoyed school, but the academy had taught me to love learning. To be fair, it was a big difference whether you simply listened to whatever your teacher told you, or whether you got the chance to see it for yourself. As part of my education, I'd travelled all over in time, first together with my teachers, then on my own on my first small assignments. I was good at it and wasn't afraid to be proud of it. Time travel was my talent. While others had to adjust to the strains it put on your body, I'd never so much as felt nauseated. Once, I'd dislocated my shoulder on my way back because I'd landed on a staircase - and then fell down said staircase - but that was the only injury I'd ever incurred.
As part of our training, we'd been able to explore a range of time periods. Once I'd become a time agent, I'd have to go wherever my
boss sent me. No more trips to exciting places simply because they interested me. No, it would be all about set missions. Still exciting, but I knew I'd miss the freedom I had here at TTA.
I sighed as I took in the robes and mortarboards people were wearing already. I was still in my normal jeans and t-shirt, my standard clothes when I didn't have to wear the academy uniform. I'd put on my graduation gown at the very last minute. Anything to not make it feel real.
"Excited?"
I turned, surprised to see Seamus Cowal, one of my teachers. I thought all the teaching staff were preparing the graduation ceremony, deciding in what order we'd get our certificates, that sort of thing. But here he was, gorgeous as ever, his green eyes sparkling as he looked at me. He taught Ancient History, which sounded boring but was anything but. Our class had been tiny, only three people, since very few time agents ever acquired the ability to travel back that far in time. Most were restricted to anything after the middle ages, but I was lucky to be amongst those who could go back all the way to the dawn of civilisation. Not that I'd ever be able to go back as far as the stone age, although that was my dream. Two thousand years was the maximum even for me. I'd been told that my range might still increase over the next couple of years while I got more opportunities for time travel, but there were limits to our technology. Travel too far and you may not come back.
I realised Seamus was waiting for a response.
"Uhm... yes. Lots."
He laughed. "Don't lie to me. You're no longer my student, you can speak your mind."
A knot formed in my stomach. I didn't want it to be over. He was my favourite teacher, not just because he was hot. He was clever, funny, determined and creative. My role model, basically. I wanted to be like him, even though it was unlikely I'd ever quite get there. I wasn't particularly intelligent. I had to study hard to get through my theoretical exams, but my practical ones always made up for that.
"I don't want to graduate quite yet," I admitted. "I know all the others can't wait to be out of here, but I love the academy. I don't
want it to end."
He gave me a warm smile. "You could always return as a teacher. That way, you'd never have to leave."
"It's not the same," I muttered. "Being a student gives you a lot more freedom."
Seamus chuckled. "Very true, but you forget, us teachers have access to all the fun gadgets whenever we want."
He turned to join me in watching the other students in the hall. Jamie, one of my friends, was practising throwing his mortarboard. I couldn't help but grin when it hit Professor Long, one of the most boring teachers.
"How about one last trip?" Seamus asked suddenly and I looked at him in surprise.
"Where to?"
He shrugged. "Somewhere you've always wanted to travel to. This may be your last chance."
Excitement started to rush through my veins, and I was close to throwing my arms around my teacher. He really was the best.
"I've got some cuffs in my office. You can think about where you want to go on the way."
He led me the familiar way upstairs to the third floor where the teachers had their offices as well as living quarters. Not all of them lived at the TTA, but a lot did for convenience, especially during the week. Some had families they returned to at weekends, but I didn't know if that applied to Seamus. He was very familiar with us students, asking us to call him by his first name from the very first lesson, but he'd never talked to us about his personal life.
Where did I want to go? I had a wish list of times and places I'd always wanted to visit, but even so, it was hard to choose. Maybe I should pick the one furthest in the past. I'd heard that they didn't let time agents travel very far in their first few years on the job.
Just when we'd reached his office, I blurted, "The Great Library of Alexandria."
He quirked an eyebrow. "Good choice. Interesting. Curious."
"What's curious about it?"
Seamus smiled as he opened the door but didn't look at me. "It was the first place I went to after my own graduation. It seems we're more similar than I thought."
He strode into the office and headed straight to a large Welsh dresser at the other end, stacked with books, scrolls and items I couldn't identify. He rummaged in one drawer until he found a tiny scroll wrapped in a plastic bag. He gently pulled it out and sniffed it.
"The smell of history," he sighed with the expression of a cat that just got a bowl of milk. "There's nothing better."
"Is that papyrus?"
He nodded. "A scrap of paper from the Great Library. There's nothing on it, it was never part of a book, but it's got enough of a connection to help us get there without issue. Now here's your cuff. It's synced to mine, so you don't have to enter any coordinates. It's easier that way, considering the distance."
I'd only ever done one time jump this far into the past. Goosebumps raced across my skin when I took the cuff and wrapped it around my wrist. The metal was cool, but I knew it was going to heat up as soon as we started travelling. I ignored the holographic display since Seamus was going to do the programming. I was a little disappointed at that, because it meant that he was going to hold the papyrus. I adored everything old and would have loved to give it a sniff too. The bookshelf in my room was full of old tomes, but I didn't have anything as exciting as a papyrus scroll from Ancient Egypt. Maybe I could take a tiny piece home with me. It would be my most precious possession.
Seamus finished typing in the coordinates into his cuff and held out a hand. "Ready, Laura?"
I smiled and took his hand. "Ready. But shouldn’t we put on appropriate clothes? I doubt I’m going to blend in with jeans. And no offence, but I don’t think they’d invented the kind of fabric you’re wearing.”
He was clad all in black, with a satin shirt, sleeves rolled up, and trendy slacks. Most teachers were wearing either their uniforms or suits today, but Seamus didn’t seem the type to wear a suit, even for graduation day.
“I…yes. Of course. I was distracted.”
A faint blush spread across his cheeks. Strange. He was a teacher, he’d travelled in time hundreds of time, he should really be used to having to change clothes before taking the jump.
He took two white plastic bags from a cupboard and handed one to me. “Holographic suits. Latest tech, they’ve only given them to teachers and time agents so far. They take on the appearance of whatever’s fashionable in the time period we’re in. We’ll still be wearing the suits, but people around us are fooled into thinking we’re one of them. I’ve only tried them once, but it worked well. They gave us all a male and female outfit each and it should mould to your proportions, not that there’s anything wrong with yours…”
He cleared his throat. “I’m rambling. Let’s get changed.”
And he took off his shirt, pulling it over his head rather than unbuttoning it. I couldn’t help but stare. I’d not expected him to be so…fit. There wasn’t an ounce of fat on him, on the contrary. Hard, chiselled muscles bulged beneath his smooth skin, inviting me to touch. My gaze followed his abs to where they disappeared in a perfect triangle…
He cleared his throat again and I quickly turned, hiding my embarrassment at openly checking him out. He was my teacher, for goodness sake. Well, not anymore, but I shouldn’t be ogling him. Even if he looked like a Greek God.
“Do you want to go to the ladies’ to change?” he asked, his voice hoarse. I was so tempted to turn around. Close the distance between us and lay my hands on his chest. Heat was pooling in places that weren’t supposed to react that way to Seamus.
“No, it’s fine. Just turn around,” I muttered and opened the plastic bag, revealing a garment the colour of mother of pearl. It seemed to flow, the colours shifting, constantly changing. I’d never seen anything like it. It was light, much lighter than the clothes I was wearing, but luckily it was completely opaque.
I resisted the urge to turn around and make sure he wasn’t watching me. I just had to trust him. Besides, it had been me checking him out, not the other way round.
I changed as fast as I could. The jumpsuit clung to my body like a second skin, revealing way too much of my curves. I wasn’t as toned as him. I had boobs that pressed against the fabric and hips that my mum called ‘well suited for motherhood’.
“When does the illusion take effect?” I asked, hesitant to face him quite yet. I felt naked in this suit, even though it covered me from ankles to neck.
“As soon as we activate the cuffs. It won’t affect our shoes, but I assume you’ll end up in a full-length tunic anyway, so that should hide yours. We might be able to stop by a market and get some sandals though.”
“Do we have money?”
I finally turned and looked at him. And regretted it immediately. Goodness me. The suit revealed almost more than when he’d been bare chested. I forced myself to look at his face rather than let my eyes wander to his lower body.
“No, but we’ll think of something. We could stop at the Archive and get some currency, but the Archivist might ask questions to why we’re doing this on graduation day. Improvising is much more fun anyway.” He smirked and took my hand. “Let’s try this again. See you in history.”
C H A P T E R T W O
stumbled forward, but Seamus steadied me, his hand still holding mine.
"Wow, that was far," I gasped, trying to steady my breath. I'd underestimated how difficult the time jump would be. My stomach was a little queasy, but not enough to make me throw up. My ears were buzzing, something that had happened before when I travelled back further than a millennium or so. It would pass in the next couple of minutes.
I waited until I was sure I wouldn't embarrass myself by collapsing, then let go of Seamus's hand and looked around. We were in a small shack, nothing special, a straw roof on top of clay walls. There were amphorae all around; this had to be a storage shed.
"Where are we?"
"Just around the corner from the Mouseion. I didn't want to risk appearing in the middle of the Library where people could see us. I've experienced a witch hunt once and don't plan to repeat that experience."
"They thought you were a witch?"
He grimaced. "A story for another time. Ready to go out there and look at some books?"
I grinned at him. "I couldn't be more ready. I've been waiting for this moment for all my life."
A little exaggeration, but it was true if you considered my life to be my time at TTA. We'd talked about the Great Library in one of our very first lessons and I'd been hooked ever since. A centre of study, a collection of all the knowledge available back then. In that part of the world, anyway. There wasn't anything more precious. Knowledge was power, now as well as back then. I'd not realised that back at school, but being at the Academy had opened my eyes. I'd soaked in all the knowledge I could in the past four years, ready to draw on it during my time missions.
"We're here a couple of years later than when I first visited. Let's see how it's changed."
"Whenare we?" One of my favourite questions ever.
"143 BC. Aristarchus of Samothrace is the Head Librarian just now. A formidable fellow, one of the greatest ancient scholars."
"I've heard of him... I think."
"He did a lot of studies on Homer's poems."
"Yes, that must be it. I love Homer."
Seamus smiled at me, his green eyes full of warmth. I could drown in those eyes. "Me too. Two years from now, Aristarchus will get caught up in political struggles and will have to flee to Egypt, but for now, he's respected as one of the best scholars this Library has ever had. We might even meet him, who knows."
"That would be... special." I licked my lips.
Seamus stilled, his expression changing. He was still smiling, but there was a yearning there, a flicker of... No, I had to be mistaken. I may be about to graduate, but he was still my teacher. Kind of. Ever since Lainie, a student a couple of years ahead of me, had got involved with her Norse teacher, there had been strict rules against relationships between students and teachers. Of course, there was a lot of swooning over our professors, but I didn't know of anyone who'd broken the rules.
He broke eye contact and cleared his throat. "Let's go outside. I'm not quite sure what time of day it is, and we don't want to be too late to enter the Library."
I nodded and followed him out of the shack and into a busy street full of market stalls. Smells filled the air, hundreds of spices,
mixed with the shouts of peddlers and the sound of carts driving over the uneven streets. I breathed in deep. History. I, Laura Emerald, was livinghistory. This feeling was the best in the world.
Our clothes had changed appearance, making us blend into the crowd. He’d been correct, I was wearing a long linen dress called a chiton. It was draped around my shoulders, held in place by pins, leaving my arms bare. A belt around my waist gave it shape. There were large golden bracelets around my wrists, hiding the time bracer that had brought us here. Clever.
Seamus wore a shorter chiton that ended just above his knees. His was draped around one shoulder only, leaving his left side bare. Damn, I thought I’d escaped the temptation of drooling at his chest. This wasn’t going to be easy.
He took my hand again and I let him, very aware of how easy it would be to get lost in the crowd. His skin was warm and soft against mine. It was hard to focus on my surroundings when his touch filled my mind, combined with the memory of the way he'd looked at me. Desire. That had been what I'd seen in his eyes. Pure desire.
I focused on the smells around me, the spices making it easy to let myself be distracted from Seamus's touch. A waft of something sharp filled my nose and I coughed, then laughed. This was what it was all about. Time travel. Not about doing missions for the Time Agency, but about experiencing life in all its facets.
It took us forever to get out of the hustle and bustle and reach the Royal Quarter. I'd seen old maps of Alexandria, but it was different to actually walk the city's streets.
Seamus pointed at a building in the distance.
"The Mouseion," I breathed. The Institution of the Muses.
"About a thousand scholars live here," Seamus explained. It wasn't news to me, but I still listened to him with bated breath, speechless at the magnificence of this place. "They receive free room and board and even have their own servants. A priest appointed by the Pharaoh looks after them, making sure they want for nothing. Archimedes studied here, as did Euclid and so many
others. You could almost describe it as a university campus, with lecture theatres, study and meeting rooms, dining halls,..."
He paused, giving me a small smile. "But you already know all that."
Yes, but I didn't want him to stop talking. I loved listening to him. There was a passion behind his words that made me wish he would never stop.
"Tell me more," I said simply. "No."
I looked at him in surprise. "Why not?"
His smile widened. "Because I want you to experience it for yourself. You could read everything I have to tell you in a book, but we're here now, ready to explore. They've already expanded the Library and many of the scrolls are now housed in the Serapheum, but let's take a look at the Mouseion first."
Rows of tall columns lined the front face of the building, carved with female figurines at the top. The statues looked down at us, some holding scrolls, others musical instruments.
“The muses,” Seamus whispered, the same awe I felt apparent in his voice. “A reminder that we’re about to enter their domain.”
My heart beat faster as we walked up the stairs leading to the double gates. They stood open, but several guards were milling around, lazily taking in the crowd. Not many people were entering the building, but there were stalls all around, selling everything from sweets to papyrus. I was so going to do some shopping after we’d visited the Library.
“Purpose of your visit?” one of the guards asked politely when we reached the gates.
“I was a student here,” Seamus lied easily, his Greek far more fluent than my own. “I’d like to show my cousin around.”
The guard took me in, then smiled. “There’s a debate in Zenodotus’s lecture theatre soon, should you be interested. I’m afraid the zoo is closed today, but it will re-open tomorrow, if you’d like to visit again.”
Seamus thanked him and led me inside. “Zenodotus was the first head librarian,” he muttered when we were out of earshot. We
weren’t wearing translators so we’d have to be careful speaking English where we could be overheard. My Koine Greek was passable, but it was easier to stick to English.
“There’s a zoo?” I asked quietly. “I never read about that.”
“Ptolemy II Philadelphus had a keen interest in animals and zoology, so he had a small zoo built here for exotic animals. Nothing compared to modern zoos, of course, and only accessible to scholars and royalty. Do you want to go to the lecture, or shall we look around first?”
My eyes were slowly adjusting to the dim light inside the entrance hall. It was bigger than the Great Hall at the Academy, with a walkway around the edges and massive columns that seemed to reach towards the sky.
“Although it cannot be done justice with an inadequate description,” Seamus suddenly recited solemnly, “it is so adorned with great columned halls, and statuary which seems almost alive, and a great number of other works, that, apart from the Capitolium, by which the venerable city of Rome claims eternal renown, nothing more magnificent can be seen in the whole world. In this temple were libraries beyond calculation, and the trustworthy testimony of ancient records agrees that 700,000 books, brought together by the unsleeping care of the Ptolemaic kings, were burned in the Alexandrian war, when the city was sacked under the dictator Caesar.”
“Ammianus Marcellinus,” I whispered.
He looked at me in surprise.
I shrugged. “I’ve read everything there is to know about the Library. Well, besides the bit about the zoo, apparently.”
Something flickered across his eyes, something warm and soft. “I know you’re well versed in Egyptian and Greek history, I’ve read your essays, after all, but I hadn’t realised how deep your passion went. How similar we are.”
His eyes captured mine and there was nothing I could do but stare into these emerald jewels, deep and full of an essence I recognised. I could lose myself in them. Dive into the depths of his
soul. Stand before the mirror that reflected my own passions back at me.
He touched my cheek, his fingers hovering against my skin, as if he wasn’t sure if he was allowed to. I leaned into his touch, giving my permission, craving to feel his body while I was tasting his soul. He cupped my cheek and everything around us disappeared. There was only his touch, his eyes, his lips that were moving towards me…
Someone cleared his throat and the spell was broken.
“Can I assist you today?”
We broke apart and I guiltily blinked at the man who was staring at us. He was wearing a pale blue toga stained with ink. A wild beard hid most of his face and thick eyebrows towered above stern, intelligent eyes.
“Aristarchus?” Seamus asked, surprise lacing his words. “Aristarchus of Samothrace?”
The man nodded slightly. Wow. He was the Head Librarian, the man in charge of this entire Library. I’d never imagined actually meeting him. Wasn’t he supposed to be in the library, working on some of his Homer interpretations or dealing with the daily affairs of the Mouseion?
“Have we met before?” Aristarchus asked. His voice was raspy and reminded me of the sound of paper tearing. How fitting.
“No, but I have heard many things of you. It is an honour to meet you.”
The Librarian shrugged dismissively. “Likely exaggerated. Are you here to study?”
“We’re visitors to this city. The reports of the grandeur of this Library brought us here.”
Of course, he couldn’t use the same story he’d given the guard. Aristarchus was an intelligent man, who knew if he could remember all the students that had passed the doors of his institution. I’d read theories that this man had an almost photographic memory, so it was better not to lie to him.
“The public collection is to our right,” the Librarian said. “Unless you’re looking for something specific?”
Seamus shook his head. “No, we’d just like to take a look around. Thank you for your help.”
Aristarchus gave us another shrewd look, then walked away. Maybe I should have mentioned what had almost happened between Seamus and me, but instead, I turned into the direction the Librarian had pointed. A door led out of the hall, much smaller than the great entrance gates, but no less impressive. An inscription was carved into the stone above the door and I quickly walked closer to read it.
Ψ Υ Χ
“Psyches Iatreion,” I read aloud. “Healing place of the soul.”
Seamus breathed in deep. “How very true. Can you smell the papyrus?”
I sniffed the air. Yes. There it was, the smell of books, paper and ink. One of the best scents in the world. They should bottle it, or even better, put it in candles.
A pleasant shiver ran down my back as I entered the room. Rows upon rows of wooden shelves awaited us, laden with scrolls of papyrus. It seemed chaos, yet I knew there had to be some kind of system to it.
My mouth open, I walked into the library, my eyes flicking from side to side, trying to take in everything at once. Heaven. This is what it had to be like.
“Are we allowed to touch them?” I whispered.
Seamus chuckled. “They’re not old yet. Not in this room, anyway. They’re only keeping copies here, with the originals in the rooms reserved for the resident scholars or the Serapheum. I know we’re used to only touch these kinds of scrolls with gloves, if at all, but people here don’t know yet about the damage the acidity of our skin can do to papyrus.”
Gingerly, I reached out to the closest shelf and pulled out one manuscript. Every instinct in me was screaming at me not to, but Seamus was right, these scrolls were new just now. They weren’t ancient yet. And they likely never would be. In a hundred years, they’d be devoured by the fire that destroyed the library. I shuddered at the thought. So much knowledge lost. All because
Caesar set fire to his own ships, which then spread to the docks and parts of the city.
I carefully unrolled the scroll and gasped. “Hieroglyphs.”
“Can you read them?” Seamus looked over my shoulder, his breath kissing my skin.
I shook my head. “They’re beautiful though.”
Tiny symbols filled the papyrus, neat rows upon neat rows. Art and language merged into beauty.
“They have a lot of curious scrolls here,” Seamus said quietly, still close enough for me to feel the warmth of his body. “One of the Ptolemies introduced a law that forces every ship that docks in Alexandria to relinquish any scrolls it may carry. They’re then copied here at the Library, with the originals staying within the Mouseion and the copies returned to the ships. That way, the Library has amassed a wealth of knowledge from all corners of the known world.”
“Sneaky.”
Of course, I knew that, but I want him to continue talking. I want him to get closer, kiss me with more than just his hot breath.
“In addition to that, scholars and traders are regularly sent out with large batches of money to buy more scrolls on their travels. And then there are the books gifted by other rulers. No wonder this Library has grown to its current size.”
He sighed. “It’s going to start to decline soon though. By the time the fire devoured the Library, it was nowhere near as grand as it is now. That’s why I chose this year, before the Ptolemy exiles the Head Librarian.”
Footsteps approached from behind and Seamus stepped back. Cool air hit my back where he’d been warming me before. Damn, I had to stop thinking in this way. Here I was in a moment of history that I’d always wanted to visit, yet I kept getting distracted by Seamus.
I carefully returned the scroll to its place and continued my exploration of the room. I reached the end of the row and felt my eyes widen. We’d only seen a tiny part of the public part of the Library. The room continued in both directions. There had to be
thousands and thousands of scrolls here. I breathed in deep, savouring the scent of knowledge.
I put a hand against the wood of the closest shelf and closed my eyes. In the distance, men were talking, debating, and shuffling footsteps around us announced other visitors. We weren’t going to be here on our own for much longer. I better make use of the time we had in the Library.
I chose another scroll from the shelf to my left. It was tattered, looking a lot older than the others surrounding it. The papyrus groaned when I carefully unrolled it. This one was written in Greek, making it possible for me to read.
Thefinalsoundwillcatchthefirstwoman.
That was all it said.
"Seamus?"
My teacher joined me, and I handed him the scroll.
"What do you think it means?"
He stroked his chin. "Where did you find this?"
I pointed to the shelf. "Amongst the other scrolls. Is it a riddle?"
"It looks like it, but why would anyone use an entire scroll of papyrus just to put a single sentence one it? It doesn't make any sense. This Library is curated, people don't just put their own scrolls in here. But look at the handwriting, it's sloppy. Definitely not by one of the scholars here."
He was right, the penmanship was way below the standard of what I would have expected in such a prestigious library.
The final sound. "Is it talking about the alphabet? Zed?"
"Remember, they're using a different alphabet just now. The final sound would be Omega."
"The first woman.... If they're talking about the biblical story, that would be Eve. In Greek mythology it's Pandora."
"And in Egyptian culture it's X," Seamus added. "That gives us a whole lot of options, but what are we supposed to do with that? Omega will catch Eve? Omega will catch Pandora? It doesn't make any sense to me."
I stare at the papyrus, willing it to reveal its secret. "I have to say, I didn't expect this."
He chuckles. "Neither did I. But that's what I love about time travel. Something unexpected always happens. It's up to us how to deal with the challenge. Some time agents would ignore this particular challenge, but I doubt you'd let it go."
I grinned at him. "You bet."
"Then I've taught you well. Let's solve this mystery."
"Eve... Pandora... Omega... X..."
I muttered the names under my breath as I walked along the rows of shelves, somehow hoping that I might find the answer in this room. To be fair, the riddle could have been written by a student who got bored and there might not be an answer to it at all. But something gave me the feeling that this was important.
"I have an idea," Seamus said suddenly from behind me. "The Library was recently restructured and is now sorted alphabetically. Before, it was only sorted by book, since many scrolls make up the text of one book, but now, the books are arranged from Alpha to Omega. Let's take a look at the Omega section."
I followed him to the other end of the room. It was dusty there, as if not many people made it to this corner.
Seamus looked up at the shelf in front of us, bursting with scrolls. He sighed, then turned to me. "It looks like we have a lot of work to do. If you still want to do this. We could always travel back and attend your graduation."
I glared at him. "No way. Graduating is so unnecessary."
Seamus chuckled and pulled a scroll from the very end of the shelf. "How about I start here and you at the other end?"
I stared at the scrolls. They varied in quality of paper. Some were frayed at the edges, others looked brand new. Some papyrus was thick, others almost as thin as modern paper. "No, that would take too long. I think we need to search for a scroll that looks similar to the first one. An old, damaged one."
My teacher nodded and we started pacing along the shelves, each of us lost in concentration. I pulled out a few scrolls that looked old enough to be a match, but they were all covered in neat writing from top to bottom.
"Up there."
Seamus pointed at a scroll poking out from beneath a pile of others at the very top of the shelf. Too high for me to reach, but he managed to get it by standing on his toes. He was at least a head taller than me, but while I found that intimidating with some men, it wasn't the same for Seamus. He felt...right. Perfect. And totally out of bounds. I had to remember that.
He carefully opened the papyrus. "Bingo. It's the same handwriting."
I stepped closer to peer at the scroll. Our bodies touched, just a tiny bit, but enough to make tingles run down my arm.
Pandora'sHunt.
"It fits," I whispered, translating the title. "They meant the Greek creation myth."
Seamus ran a finger along the scribbled words, translating as he read them out. "Her hunt begins. The evil spreads. The path is aflame.Sinsneedtobefound. Deathapproaches.Paincomes.Hope isthelasttoremain.Thejariswiththeboa."
I sighed. "That's even more cryptic than the last one. What's a boa?"
"A snake that's for display in the zoo here. It's rumoured to be fifty feet long and can kill cattle by wrapping around their udders and sucking them dry. Obviously, that’s just a legend."
"Okay then. A cow-killing snake is guarding a jar. Wait... Pandora's jar?"
Seamus nodded. "Most people nowadays think of it as Pandora's box, but that's a mistranslation. It's actually a jar."
I grinned at him. "I know, you taught us that in our second year."
He returned my smile. "So I did. Good of you to actually pay attention in my lessons."
"Most of this refers to the Pandora legend. She opens the jar and great evil escapes in the form of death, disease and pain."
"And hope stayed in the jar. I never quite understood what that meant."
"There are many different theories about that. It may have just been a mistranslation. Why would hope be in a jar with all those
terrible things? Is it there to be preserved for future times? Or kept away from us as punishment?"
I grinned at him. "You're supposed to be the teacher with all the answers."
He raised an eyebrow. "And you're supposed to graduate today with all the knowledge you need. I'm no longer your teacher."
That wasn't just a statement. There were undertones beneath those words, innuendos that started small explosions in the chambers of my heart. No longer my teacher. I wasn't his student anymore. We were both adults who could do whatever they wanted. No more rules. No roles we had to adhere to. We were free to...
I pushed my horny thoughts aside. I had a riddle to solve and I wasn't going to get my libido in the way.
I cleared my throat and tried to focus. "There was no mention of fire in the jar though, was there?"
"No. The only connection to fire I can think of is that Prometheus stole fire from Zeus to give it to humanity. In revenge, Zeus gave Pandora to Prometheus. She opened the jar, which was actually Prometheus's possession, not hers. Sources vary on whether she did it intentionally or not. It would make sense for Zeus to have planned this as his revenge, but who knows."
"You're talking about all this as if it's real."
Seamus shrugged. "For people here, it's a real story, an account of history. Whoever wrote this riddle probably believed in it too. To understand, we have to get into their mind and that involves taking the myths as reality."
"But you don't really believe in Zeus and Pandora?" I insisted. He wiggled his eyebrows at me. "Don't I?"
I huffed in frustration. "Sure you're not my teacher anymore? You're certainly behaving like it."
"Am I?"
Suddenly, he was close, too close. His hands cupped my face, drawing me towards him, and then his lips were finally on mine, warm and hard, kissing me just like I'd craved. Better than I'd imagined.
I leaned into him, moulding my body to his while he ravaged my mouth. His tongue nudged against my lips and I opened my mouth with a small moan, letting him in. His arm wrapped around my waist, pulling me even closer until I was pressed against the hard planes of his body. And something even harder.
I returned his kiss as much as I could, but I couldn’t match the wildness of his lips. He was devouring me, claiming me, and I’d never felt anything better.
“Do you need any assistance?”
A raspy voice from behind the bookshelf made us break apart, breathing heavy and wide eyed. I bet my cheeks were scarlet red. My lips were tingling with the echo of our kiss. I wanted more, but this wasn’t the place. We kept getting interrupted.
“We’re fine, thank you,” Seamus replied in Greek, his voice hoarse. The shuffling footsteps stopped just before the man was going to turn the corner and see us.
“Alright then. I’ll be at my desk.”
I smiled at Seamus as the man seemed to walk away, leaving us in peace. He grinned and took my hand. “So?”
I gave him a quizzical look. “What?”
“Did I behave like a teacher?”
A snort escaped me. “No, definitely not. I’m so glad I’m no longer your student.”
“As am I. It’s been torture, these past few months. Seeing you in class every day but never able to show my feelings.”
I stared at him. “Months?”
“You didn’t notice? Good. That means I managed to control myself.”
“I… I don’t know what to say.”
“With what I’m planning for us to do next, you don’t need to do a lot of talking.” His grin widened. “Although we should find a different place than the Library.”
Was he talking about… sex? The heat already very present between my legs turned into a raging inferno. He wanted me. He’d been fancying me for months. This day was turning out to be not so bad after all.
Seamus held up the papyrus. “Shall we finish this riddle, or should we leave and find a bed?”
The desire pooling in his emerald eyes made me want to throw myself at him, but we were in the Great Library of Alexandria. I could control myself for a while longer.
“Riddle,” I breathed, my voice shaking. I licked my swollen lips. “The guard said the zoo is closed today though.”
Seamus shrugged. “Let’s see about that. We might be able to sneak in.” He lifted his arm and started typing something into the holographic display of his time bracer. “There we go. We now look like members of the Royal family. That should make them let us through.”
I looked down at myself. My clothes had changed without me even noticing. This technology really was extraordinary. While my dress had been linen before, it was now made from a flowing fabric that seemed a lot more expensive. Several necklaces had appeared on my skin, together with bracelets and a bracer on my upper arm.
“I’ve heard they’re planning to offer hoods in the future that will simulate matching hair and makeup,” Seamus said as he studied me. “But you will fit in with the way you carry your hair now. It would be a lot harder if we were in the Renaissance. Those women went a little overboard.”
His chiton hadn’t changed much, except that the fabric was softer and lined with gold. A matching bracer had appeared on his arm.
“They show that we’re of the same family,” he explained when he saw me looking at it. “Let’s try not to meet with other Royals, they might realise that we’re impostors.”
My heart beat a little faster at the prospect of being caught and exposed. Luckily, if we were, we could just use our emergency buttons and be transported back to the present immediately. It was a painful way to travel, but faster than first putting in coordinates and giving the bracelets time to calibrate. I’d only had to use the emergency porting once, but my stomach clenched at the memory. That had been the only time I’d ever puked after travelling.
We left the library, luckily not meeting anyone on the way out. Explaining why we’d changed clothes would have been a little hard. Back in the grand entrance hall, we turned left, and I let Seamus guide me. He seemed to know the way, walking confidently amongst the scholars and guards. Some of them bowed their heads as we passed. The royal disguise seemed to be working.
He led me through wide, airy corridors until we reached a door leading outside. Two guards were stationed here, looking at us curiously.
“The zoo is closed, my lord,” one of them said with a bow. “Apologies.”
“I need to see the boa,” Seamus replied, undeterred. “I had a dream, a vision, and I need to make sure it’s still alive.”
The guard’s eyes widened. “A dream? Of course, right away. The problem is with the lions anyway, so showing you the boa should be no issue.” He bowed again, deeper this time. Did he think Seamus was some sort of soothsayer?
The other guard opened the doors for us, and a blast of fresh air tousled my hair. I hadn’t realised how stuffy it was inside the Library. Not that I minded. Even here, away from the bookshelves, I could still smell the soothing scent of papyrus and ink.
We followed the guard into a large courtyard. Every inch of ground was taken up by a multitude of plants. Palm trees towered above shrubs and flowers; ferns grew side by side with cacti.
“The previous Ptolemy had an interest in botany,” Seamus explained quietly. “He had plants brought here from all over. Not many of them survived, but these are the ones that did.”
The guard led us through an archway along a path lined with small marble columns. At the end of it, below a roof held by tall white columns, was a large cage. This definitely wasn’t like a modern zoo. The cage door, large enough for Seamus to walk through without crouching, was framed by two columns carved to look like snakes curled around a tree. They were so lifelike that it was clear they’d been modelled upon real snakes, probably the ones waiting for us in the cage.
I stepped forward, but the guard held out a hand. “Let me check on the beast first, my lady. It can be a terrifying sight.”
I rolled my eyes as soon as he’d turned away. I’d seen snakes before. Big ones, too. I didn’t like it when people mollycoddled me.
Seamus winked at me and took my hand. “In case you get scared,” he said loudly, giving the guard an excuse for why we were holding hands. I grinned at him.
“Oh yes, I get scared a lot.”
The guard stepped back from the cage. “The boa is asleep. It is safe to approach.”
“Give us some space,” Seamus commanded, using his most authoritative teacher voice. “I shall need silence.”
The guard bowed and walked back along the path, stopping twenty metres away from us. Far enough to keep us in sigh but not hear what we said. Finally, we could switch back to English. Speaking so much Greek was giving me a headache, especially when having to stick to this ancient form and not the modern Greek. At least all my hard studying was coming in handy today.
"Let's look at this snake," Seamus muttered and slowly approached the cage. I didn't hesitate in following him. We peered through the bars side by side, searching for the supposed monster inside.
The snake was kind of disappointing. Yes, it was long, but it was also asleep and didn't look in the slightest as if it had ever killed a cow. There was also no sign of a jar, filled with hope or otherwise.
"I expected more," I whispered in English. "Do they really think this is a special, fearsome snake?"
Seamus shrugged. "Most myths are based on disappointing truths. I shouldn't have expected for this one to be any different. Can you see a jar anywhere?"
"Nope. Maybe it's been removed? The note looks like it was written years ago. The jar may no longer exist."
"No, it's the papyrus that was old. The ink wasn't faded a lot, so I doubt it was older than a couple of months, but then, I'm not an expert."
"Should we go inside? Maybe it's behind the snake."
Another random document with no related content on Scribd:
"Voima täss' ei paljon auta, usko auttaa enemmän.
Tehköön, kell' on eessä hauta tilin kanssa elämän. Yksin seison Suomen suossa, laulun valtaa vartioin, itse synnin syvän vuossa ijäisiä ihannoin.
En ma tiedä koska kuolen. Totta toinen jatkaa työn. Tuolla puolen riemun, huolen seison, laulan sekä lyön. Aseitani muutin, mutta aatteitain en milloinkaan. Jos ma kaadun, kaatunutta, veikot, verin suojelkaa!"
Linnulle kirkkomaalla.
Lintunen lehdossa kirkkomaan, kuoleman käkönen kumma, laula mulle ja laula muille, taivaan tuulille, metsän puille, kuolema kulkee kulkuaan, mieleni minun on tumma.
Kukkuos, lintunen kuolonmaan, vaivani minun on vaikee, laula haudoilla haaveiden, viritä virsiä nuoruuden, Suomi on suuri kirkkomaa, hautojen sävel on haikee.
Kun minä kuulen sun lauluas, silloin mun kesäni kerkee, silloin mun murheeni unhottuu, saapuvi jällehen kukkain kuu, kaiuta kuoleman-kauneuttas, heläjä, elkösi herkee!
Raiu ruskoja uuden koin, laaksoja rauhan laula, meissä mennyt on rikki jotain, sortunut tarmo suurten sotain, ylitse kalpojen, kalmistoin hoiloa, hopeakaula!
Minun tieni.
Minun tieni ovat etsijän teitä.
Onneton, ken mua seuraa!
Ma olen huono opas. Käy tieni kautta harhain. On kotiin jäädä parhain jokaisen, jolla koti on.
Mun kotini on siellä, missä taivaan tähdet tuikkii.
Minun tieni ovat taistelijan teitä! Sorja sotilaan on hangella maata päänalaisena kilpi ja vierellänsä kalpa, ja joka hetki ajatella: Henkeni on halpa, mut pyrintöni pyhin on kaunis, kallis, suuri, ja ylpeä kuin jumalien uni.
En toveria tielleni tahdo. Mut jollakin jos sama mieli palaa, hän kulkekohon sinne ja minä kuljen tänne, ja kummallakin virehessä olkoon jousen jänne. Voi olla, että yhteen me metsätiellä tullaan silloin nuoli vinhahtaa tai tullaan ystäviksi.
Ja erotahan jälleen. Onneton, ken mua seuraa! Mun lauluni on latuja, ne käyvät ristin rastin, enkä tiedä itsekään, ne kunne käyvät asti, kaupunkeihin, kyliin, korpien syliin enkä tiedä, milloin ma levähtää saan.
Nauruunsa kuolija.
Voi, miten halveksun minä teitä, maidonkarvaiset katsojajoukot, te, jotka syrjästä seuraatte, kuinka eksyvät,
syöksyvät syntiset, houkot.
Ylenkatson ma ylpein mielin teitä, te tunnot tahraa vailla: sen, joka seppona seisoo ja takoo, kourat on nokiset myös sepon lailla.
Vasten kasvoja teille ma heitän lauluni uhman, riemun ja huolen. Nouskatte sotaan, jos te sen voitte, taikka ma nauran ja nauruuni kuolen!
Eikä mun haudallani saa haastaa, että ma koskaan töitäni kaduin. Seisoin ma hetken, katsoin ma taakse lähdin taas eespäin laajemmin laduin.
Vanha kannel.
1. Puro.
Tuli hieno herrasjoukko sinimetsän siimeksehen, näkivät vierivän vetosen, haastelivat haavemielin: "Katso, kaunista puroa, kukkarannoin rientävätä, kuinka sen kuultava vesi on,
kuinka armas aallon päily keskellä kesäisen lehdon, sinimetsän siimeksessä!"
Haastelivat haavemielin.
Kulkivat kohin kotia kaupunkihin kaukaisehen, tehtaat jyskyi, koski kuohui, kaupungin sillalla sanoivat: "Hyi, miten rupainen virta, ruma, rutsattu, likainen, ostohyödyn orjuuttama!"
Naiset nipristi nenäänsä, herrat heitti keppiänsä.
Ällös huolko, herrasjoukko! Virta on samainen virta, joka pulputti purona sinimetsän siimeksessä. Saasta jää jälelle, virta vierivi eellehen, merehen elontyönsä tehtyänsä.
2.
Toisin siellä, toisin täällä.
Tahtoisin puhella kerran kera noiden päivän lasten, rintamaiden riemulasten, ehtoisan etelän lasten, heidän, joill' on henki, hehku, sanat suussa suitsevaiset, kynä kuin kypene, laulu laaja niinkuin linnun lento.
Haastella halaisin heille: Toista on soitella somasti kesken viinin viljelysten, kera kukkivan kevähän, alla täyden päiväntähden. Toista laulella runoja, pystyttää pyhätulia kesken kiljuvain kinosten, hallan maassa harmajassa.
3.
Tuuman jos sulatit täällä, vaaksan pakkanen pakasti.
Tuulien erehdys.
Kuulin tuulien puhuvan:
"Suureksi puhaltakamme
Suomi, luokamme lujaksi, vakahaksi, valppahaksi!"
Tuulet taivahan tulivat, puhalsivat päälle Suomen, maa meni muruiksi, särkyi kansa, kantelo hajosi, sora-äänet yksin soivat. Tuo oli tuulien erehdys.
4.
Armain kuoleman ajatus.
Pelkäsin unia ennen niinkuin peikkoja; levolle menin kuin mestauslavalle. Miksi? Mietin. Ol' elämä armahampi yön unia, nukuin nuoruuden suruihin, heräsin huomenen iloihin.
Siitä asti kuin pimeni päiväni, mustui mun eloni onnen orsi, kaikk' on toisin yön unet on ystäväni, päivät peikoista pahimmat, vaikeinta valvominen — armain kuoleman ajatus.
5.
Ei ne kaikki kuollehia.
Ei ne kaikki kuollehia. joita kuolleiksi sanovat.
Meren mustassa mujussa monta nukkuu nuorukaista, meren suuren soutajata, laivatouvin laittajata. Kun tulee tulinen ilma, myrsky merta myllertävi, nousevat aaltojen selille, lainehille laulamahan.
Mik' on laulu kuolon lasten?
Laulu päivästä elämän.
Mikäpä elämän lasten? Laulu kuolon kuutamosta.
Ja mik' on Jumalan virsi? Laulu kerran keski-yöstä.
6. Sateenkaari.
Kaari korkea kohosi, ihmislapset ihmetteli.
Hetken heijastui, katosi, mylvähtipä myrskyn kannel, soi sävelet, Luoja soitti, kajahteli kaikki taivas ihmispeikkojen peloksi, sorasävelten säikkymiksi.
Noin jos lauluni olisit kaari kaunis taivahalla, enne ukkosen edellä, merkki rautaisten rakeiden!
Jumalien keinu.
Kenen korkeat jumalat keinuunsa ottavat kerta, eivät ne häntä yhdessä kohden pidä, he heittävät häntä välillä taivaan ja maan — siksi kuin järjen valon häneltä he vievät.
Ja kuka maailmoiden mahdin kuuluttaja on,
hän tänään pilvien ääriä kulkee, ja huomenna makaa maassa niin syvällä kuin koski, mi vuorten kuiluissa kuohuu.
Kuka keinussa jumalien keinuu, ei hällä elon aika pitkä ole, syyn, syyttömyyden hän huiput nähköön — sitten tulkohon tumma yö!
Tuska.
Hiljaa, hiljaa, muuten kuolema tulee, nyt ollaan oudoilla ovilla. Hiljaa, hiljaa, tai kätkee kaikki, nyt jousi on liiaksi jännitetty.
Ei askeltakaan, ei ees, ei taakse, nyt parhaint' on pysyä paikoillaan. Hiljaa, hiljaa, aivan hiljaa, ettei risukaan risahtais.
On malja täysi, Yks pisara lisää — ja kaikki kaatuvi kerrassaan.
Hiljaa, hiljaa, hiiren-hiljaa, niin pieni olla kuin mahdollista!
Mut se kestää kauan. En kauan jaksa. Mun valtaa raukeus, väsymys.
Hiljaa, hiljaa, ei äänt', ei sanaa, yks' liike pettää voi piileväisen.
Jumalan kiitos! Hän ohi kulkee. Kai kohta saanen ma hengähtää. Mut hiljaa, hiljaa, ei viel', ei vielä, mun täytyy kestää tai kaikki loppuu.
Väinämöisen laulu.
Ei iloja monta ihmislapselle suotu: yks' kevään riemu ja toinen kesän ja kolmansi korkean, selkeän syksyn riemu; kyntää, kylvää, korjata kokoon, levätä vihdoin rauhassa raatamisestaan.
Ei suruja monta ihmislapselle suotu: yks' sydämen suru, elon huoli toinen ja kolmansi korkean, ankaran kuoleman suru; ystävä pettää, elämä jättää, taika on ainoa sankarin työ sekä tarmo.
Miks' laulaisin siis minä, jolle on kantelo suotu, riemuja muita ja murheita muita? Taida en lukea tähtiä taivahan kannen, en kaloja meren, en kukkia nurmen. Laulan ma siis, mit' on ihmisen laulaa suotu.
Ei sovi urhon tietoja, taitoja laulaa, ei esiintuoda. Sankarin sopii laulaa vaan, miten vaihtuvi vuodet ja viikot, miten kipinät syttyy ja jälleen sammuu ja kuinka kulkee kuolon ja elämän laki.
Kaikki on muu vain välkettä taivahan kaaren, katinkultaa, laineiden läikkyä. Sankarin laulaa sopii niinkuin meri, suurena, pyhänä, peljättävänä lempeenä niinkuin lepäävä yö yli maiden.
Monta on laulua, monta myös laulujen miestä. Yksi on laulu ylitse muiden: ihmisen, aattehen, hengen ankara laulu. Kansat katoo, ei katoa mahti, jonka on laulanut mahtaja kansansa rinnan.
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