The Library

Archie walked through the almost-silent streets. The sound of his footsteps was the only thing that could be heard as the noise reverberated off nearby walls. He was glad, as this meant that there was nobody around who could potentially kidnap him or something of the like. The quietness was almost soothing.

Archie had always preferred silence to loud noises. Whatever it was about being in a room full of people made him uncomfortable. It wasn't because any of them could probably kill him at a moment's notice, but because when a group of people talked all at once, he struggled to make out what they were saying. It was much easier to be by himself since all he needed was him, himself, and he, so to speak.

Archie always wondered why the streets were so quiet at night. Was it overprotective parents? An irrational fear of what lay beyond the city walls? A mixture of both? He was never able to figure out why. It didn't matter to him, though, since it just meant that he could walk around in peace. Archie checked his phone, a relatively new phone that he'd got for his prior birthday, looking at the time. 17:03. Three minutes past five in the afternoon. "I better speed up. I don't want to miss dinner again." Archie told himself, remembering the last time he missed dinner because he got so engrossed reading a book at the library. His mother was worried sick. His father didn't care too much.

He saw the library just up the road, and let out a sigh of relief. It was a large building that had large wooden pillars holding it up. Think of the Greek Parthenon in its built state. That was its general shape. It was constructed mainly of wood, but it had steel supports to make sure that it wouldn't crumble. It was well insulated to ensure that it stayed properly warm in the winter and it was also surprisingly weather-resistant.

He never could remember how long it would take him to walk to the library, so he was always worrying about how long he could spend there. Archie had more than enough time to spend looking at books today. He walked up the steps towards the library, opening one of the doors as they creaked slightly. He gazed at the massive amount of books that were lined up on the bookshelves as his mind pretty much just melted. If you couldn't tell, Archie loved reading books. It was one of his favourite hobbies. A writer used their imagination to create a story that others could enjoy. Archie just found so many things intriguing about it. How did they come up with the story, how did they plan everything, and how did they get someone to publish it for them? It was all so interesting to him.

"Ah, there's my favourite bookworm!" The librarian that was sitting at the reception desk exclaimed, looking over at Archie. "Hello, Ms Green," Archie replied, walking over to the reception desk with a smile on his face. "Any recommendations for me today?" Archie asked, prompting a grin from the librarian. "You've read all of them already, Archie. You know I can't recommend you anything else." Ms Green replied, nodding over towards the fantasy bookshelves. "Feel free to check over there in case something new came in." Archie nodded his head and made an affirmative noise in response. He walked over towards those bookshelves and browsed the spines, looking for a name that'd interest him. He skimmed past books labelled "The Tales Of Picaro" and "The Magatsu Containment Files", looking for something that had an intriguing name.

Archie smiled as his eyes glanced at a book titled "The Tale Of A Lost Spirit". Archie grabbed it off the shelf, intrigued by the name. He sat down to read it for about ten minutes to give it a shot. He wanted to see if this was a book that he should bring home. However, about five minutes into his reading session, he felt Mother Nature calling his name. He stood up and left his book on a nearby table, making sure to remember the page that he was on. Archie walked down one of the various hallways to reach the bathroom, where he did his manly duties. Five minutes later, a relieved Archie walked out, stretching as he began to walk back to where he left his book. He was almost out of the corridor when he heard something like glass shatter behind him, causing him to turn around. He stared down the hallway, noticing a door that he had never seen before. It had a sign on it that read "DO NOT ENTER" in large red letters. Simply seeing this made Archie curious as to what could be contained in it. So, as any curious child would do, he opened the door, expecting something like a staffroom inside.

When the door was fully opened, Archie could not believe his eyes. Inside the room, there were shelves upon shelves of books that he had not read before. "Why would they hide such a veritable collection of books here?" Archie asked himself, wandering around, checking out the names of the books. He found books with names like "The System Of Hope" and "The System Of Eternal Flames", yet he couldn't find one that had a different name. They all seemed almost identical except for their names. Just as he was about to open a book titled "The System Of God's Assistance", he heard a small whisper coming from a book at the very end of the room, on a shelf by itself. He walked over to it, imagining the whisper in his mind. He looked at the spine of the book, noticing that its title was different from any other. It was "The Wordless Warrior". Archie picked up the book, looking at its cover. There, it read "The System Of Silence". He opened the cover, and read the text on the inside of the cover out loud.

"To the one who reads this book, heed my warning well. If you do not read this correctly, your life may turn into hell. To gain this power, the power of violence, you must give up your voice, and live in silence. The gains you earn will be far beyond any other, and you may finally be able to surprise your own blood mother. So use this system, if you dare try. It will show you how high, the human race can fly." Archie read, opening the first page. He tried to read the text imprinted onto it, but it was in a language that he could not understand. Suddenly, the pages began turning themselves, speeding faster and faster as if he had no control over them. A pastel blue light began emanating from the book as Archie fell to the ground, his legs turning to jelly. He looked up at the book, watching it hover in mid-air as he tried to grasp it. He heard the sounds of footsteps rushing over to him, calling his name. "Ms...Green..." Archie said before blacking out.

These would be the last words he would ever speak.