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The lights within the library were dim. I felt cautious, noting an absent of personnel while Timaeus and I scuffled in passed the sliding doors. The foyer yawned broadly, leading towards many wide bookstands.

"It's over this way," said Timaeus, indicating the public archives.

We walked through a doorway into a dark room. A large computer monitor connected to a very big monitor placed against the middle of the wall, with a wide, long tower underneath the table.

Timaeus approached the control panel. His white hair fell just beneath his shoulders as he stared stoically at the buttons while configuring the computer's settings. I watched the flashing of the monitor while Timaeus employed himself agilely with the buttons and keys.

The Rowan necromancer was an experienced programmer and computer scientist, and as of now he was opening and closing a sequence of programs, fast, their windows flicking across the large screen.

Although I had conferred with Timaeus an hour ago with the intention of discussing tasks appointed to me by our work agency, the Amagiri, currently I felt a resurgence of memories, for although Timaeus and his brother Crito and Delaigo and I worked for the same government agency, we had been working separately for a considerable time.

During my Junior year in highschool, the four of us and formed a heavy metal band called Time Scape, and although we used to practice quite a bit in the beginning, a few years later, after only performing several small time gigs after many months of practice, we decided to put it on hiatus as we went off to find different jobs. I used to work part time quite a bit during those days, too, before I landed my job at the Amagiri as a reconnaissance agent.

"Ah, here it is," said Timaeus. "Information pertaining to the Kingdom Heads." I gazed at the screen. "The fifteen Kingdom Heads of Elacruse were set up as a sun dial," said Timeaus, "to course the trajectory of the three suns: the major and minor suns of our binary, and the larger sun further away from us. Also, many of the minarets in Emerald Center function off a lunar calendar, so there are probably other ancient astronomical edifices within the same vicinity of the Kingdom Heads and the Seven Hills of Emerald Center as well."

I laid back in one of the lounge chairs of the archives, still gazing at the screen. "Yeah, the faces on those maoi were kinda weird," I said casually, only half paying attention now. There were some statistics on the computer monitory, but I did not give the same magnitude of interest Timaeus did.

The night was dark now, and about an hour and a half had passed since I first met with Timaeus. I had more personal matters going through my mind than astronomy and sun dials than the more academically-minded Rowan.

"You feeling tired?" I said after several moments of silence elapsed. But the Rowan was still focused on the screen. "I'm not, not really." And then I stretched, not so much out of exhaustion but rather a need to move myself from my lackadaisical posture. My tail flicked while I moved my arm muscles.

Reminisces flickered through my mind quite suddenly. I thought of the last few years of my life, and how they differed substantially from my friends. After graduation I decided against attending university, because I had always felt incompatible with formal schooling. Timeaus, on the other hand, continued studying and studied hard. I just didn't have that kind of discipline for academic pursuits.

I didn't feel bad about never attending college, and to be quite honest I was glad to be away from school. I just didn't enjoy the experience, and probably never would. When I graduated I didn't attend the ceremony, because there were other things I'd rather be doing instead with my time. I remember being an underachiever, talking in class, and just not turning in and doing any of my work. It wasn't that the material was hard--far from it--I just didn't care about it.

When I was nineteen I landed an entry level job at the Amagiri, nothing high paying or prestigious. The idea of being a combat specialist like my friend Delaigo did not appeal to me, so I worked in the scouting department instead. I eventually worked my way up, though not to officer status. There were limits to how high you could reach without credentials and money anyway.

Aside from my work within the agency, I was a poet and a playwright. It didn't pay as well. Most of my work within the agency involved technical know-how and research and investigation. I sometimes welded and worked in computer maintenance in freelance since my work schedule with the Amagiri was kind of loose. also worked as a male stripper sometimes. These days, as I had told Timaeus previously, my hobbies, and just life in general seemed to satisfy me less, with the exception of perhaps my interest in literature, theater, and poetry. Depression was an all too common occurrence on a regular basis with me these days, and within the last few weeks I socialized a lot less.

Timaeus steadily removed his focus from the screen, and apparently there were many astronomical statistics windowed within. M y tail flicked curiously while I gave him a soft look. Steadily the Rowan removed the windows from the screen, and it returned to its default status.

He sat down.

"So tell me more about this," said Timaeus. "You didn't seem to care all that much once I revealed the answer to the mystery to you."

Aside from my aforementioned depression, lately I'd been experiencing suicidal tendencies in my day to day life. I felt as though maybe there were some better reality awaiting me in the afterlife, and I already experienced demystification with the more worldly affairs. Also, it was a common occurrence in my experience not have any of my thoughts and feelings taken seriously. Maybe it was a karmic debt I just didn't understand at the moment. I often felt as though I had been born during the wrong time in history.

At first I considered not telling him and distracting myself instead, however lately, like I said to him earlier, the usual means of deviating my mind were no longer working.

"I'm having money problems," I said. "Bad. I might be evicted soon. I haven't been able to find work in the last month."

"There's a Vril tournament coming up sponsored by the Amagiri," said Timaeus after moment's reflection. "I could gather my brother Crito and you can call Delaigo. There's a cash prize for 1st 2ndand 3rd place. It's a small one hosted in Nicklebridge, which isn't that far from here. Crito and I can pay for your admission fee. Also, if you need help with paying the bills, you can move in with Crito and I, we won't mind that much, I'll talk to my brother about it."

I thanked him profusely and then we departed a few minutes later. I learned that Timaeus was working at another lab, although I did not get around to asking him that many questions about his new job. His brother Crito was absent on an assignment.

When I reached my hotel lobby, I promptly fell asleep after half an hour of reading. I had traveled to Brier Rose Reach for an assignment given to me by my agency--I did not get many of them, though this time I did, and it just so happened that Timaeus was stationed here at the time. The details of my assignment I had to keep confidential. When I woke up the next morning, I would travel to Calypso Island just off the coast of Brier Rose Reach.