The Black Library awaits

[Cherico]

Louis Vander -2012


The sky was cloudy, and the waters below me we dark impossibly dark.

"Lake Michigan isn't like the other great lakes."

I turned to look at the professor, we were going to beaver island to do some research.

"How so?"

He looked troubled.

"Check your cell phone."

I looked at it no bars.

"Cell phones don't work here, radio doesn't work here, satalites cant see anything on the lake, any way to communicate to the outside world that cant be delivered by mail doesnt work and if you take pictures? Well those always seem to be blured no one knows why."

I looked at the sky.

"Grey today."

"Grey everyday, last reported case of the sun shining over the lake was 1811."

"Water is black is it safe?"

"To drink yes, to swim in....well weve measured it and this park of the lake is 12,000 meters deep."

I stared at him.

"Thats deeper then."

"The Marina's trench we know, deepest fresh water lake in the world, and it gets deep fast once you get past the 500 meter mark it just dropps off like a cliff you still get islands though have no idea how they exist considering the depth, but this place. Its not normal."

Still no reception.

"Its not going to get better, like I said cell phones don't work here, radio doesn't work here."

"I assume the government's working to fix it?"

"Tried failed just like everyone else, they take advantage of though thats why the military has a base on Door island."

I looked around me.

"I don't see any Candian flagged ships."

We were getting closer to the island.

"Candian ships are not allowed in Lake Michigan."

I frowned.

"That has to piss them off."

"The Canadian government was the one who made that rule not us, look these waters...there not natural or at least not any more. These waters are not kind to people who are not tied to america by birth or blood."

I frowned at the professors unprofessionalism.

"That sounds like nonsense."

"There are three things that happen when outsiders get into the deep waters Lou, they either die, go insane or their changed. Every single time."

He looked at me with tired eyes.

"Countless sailors have died, warships have been destroyed subs crushed, if they go on american crewed ships they...they seem compelled to throw themselves off into the waters and if you keep them from doing it, they go mad. Unable to speak coherently, just staring into space and muttering nonsense. I've seen it happen and most of the people that toss themselve into the waters die."

"And the ones that dont?"

"The lucky ones? They end up being....changed."

I stared at the man and wondered how he got his PHD.

"This sounds like bullshit."

"Your from New York right?"

"Born and raised."

"The lake isn't like that, this place....there is a very deep unnaturalness to it it changes people."

"Any idea why?"

"None but I hear folk lore, ledgend says that a man named Brian Black made a deal with something powerful during the war of 1812. He wanted power and it was war time so he made a deal, the creature could have any non american's it wanted, and in exchange him and other scholars would have access to its forbidden knowlege."

"And?"

"According to local folklore a library was built full of things man was not supposed to know. If one is able to get to the island and write their name in one of the forbidden texts one will be gifted power."

We got closer to shore.

"Any proof of that?"

"Every now and then you get people who claim to have seen blacks library."

We got to the shores of the island and I looked at the endless grey above me.

"Did you bring an unbrella?"

"No."

It started raining.

"You really should have."

 

[Cherico]

Louis Vander

I stared at the row upon rows of Vanila cuttings.

"You really should have gotten one."

The professor scolded me.

"Lots of um plants."

"The Island is one of the biggest producers of Vanilla in north america."

"Really but its a finiky plant lots of labor."

"Its the island anything grows here and with out any help either and quickly. Chocolate, spices things that have no busienss thriving here well they do, it doesn't snow in the lake, and plants just seem to grow faster and with more bounty. Pretty much all of the Islands in the lake are used to grow spices, Door island for example is one of the biggest producers of Vanilla in the world. You know the part of it that hasen't been seized by the government."

We sat down in the green house and I looked outside at the greenery.

"That's why were here to figure out how it happens why these islands are so super fertile if we could crack the secret we could end world hunger, or make some farming companies incredibly rich. Probally the later but its still worth our time."

He got up.

"They grow coffee on the island you want some?"

"Coffe cant."

"I already told you, this place doesn't work by normal rules it grows here everything grows here."

"Fine a cup."

I let the professor go and leaned against the wall, a little girl walked up to me her eyes unfocused.

"Its calling for you."

I turned my head.

"What?"

"You hear its call don't you?"

The girl stared at me.

"What are you talking about?"

"It calls to people like you, the people who have to know more."

I turned away and saw a boy not much older with glasses, tossing a ball I watched it float in midair and then return to him. Most likely it was a magic trick. He tossed it again and I watched it float and then return.

"It doesn't care how old you are, it never cares. It called for him too, to my brother. Mommy tried to stop him stop it, but daddy told her it was impossible to stop it. The island wanted him."

Her voice was haunted.

"Well he was born here."

"Not this island, the one with the library it calls to people like him to people like you. Its hopeless to tell you to stay away it always gets what it wants."

She turned away and I stared at her in confusion and got up the boy stared at me.

"She's not wrong."

It seemed to be a trick of my imagination but it was like he was speaking inside my head but I didn't see his lips move."

"It always gets its way eventually."

"What does?"

He smiled and the ball floated in the air and I couldn't find the string he controlled it with.

"I wont spoil the surprise, but its waiting for you."

 

[ATP]

Cthulu Plwang?
would be more interesting,if the same deal made Tecumsech in 1810.We would have independent indian state.

 

[Cherico]

Louis Vander



I felt some one smack my face and then shivered, my t-shirt was soaked in the rain, my pajama bottoms were like wise soaked. I blinked.

"Its after you."

The voice was tried and I looked at the officer, she was female.

"What's after me?"

"That place likes scholars of all kinds, yeah its after you."

She waved me over to a covered bench and I looked at the docks.

"I was just sleep walking."

"Have you ever walked in your sleep before?"

I bit my lip.

"I thought so."

She shook her head.

"The only reason I bothered stopping you was because its raining, no one should face well that wet and cold."

"You make it sound like this is a common thing."

She chuckled.

"Because it is."

"Look if there was some weird eldritch thing in lake Michigan the government would know about it."

She stared at me.

"The lakes been like this for hundreds of years, the federal government knows about this, the state governments know about this the local governments know about this. This place is an open secret buddy, government stopped trying to keep this place secret long time ago."

I opened up my mouth.

"What ever your thinking it wouldn't work, lakes big and covers a lot of coastline, ban everyone from it? Not going to happen, they just tell people to stay in the shallows for their own safety. If a tourist doesn't listen then its not our problem."

She leaned back.

"I've had this conversation before and I will likely have it again."

"This is a bunch of nonsense."

"Heard that too, I'm not going to bother stopping this when it stops raining, lake always gets what it wants."

I decided to humor the woman.

"And what does it want?"

"To feed, I think that's the reason why this is an open secret. The lake gives a lot, you can drain as much freshwater as you want wont ever affect it, hell thats how michigan gets all of its water. Fishing? We don't have quotas there's always plenty of fish good fish and their huge, islands here can grow anything, and people like you well the library gives them power."

She pulled out a flask.

"Its a lure, a way to get prey to come to it, all of it. When it changes you keep it under your hat don't go around bragging because thats just playing into its game."

She got up.

"You have an umbrella?"

"No."

"You really should buy one."

 

[Cherico]

Louis Vander



The professor looked at me as we studied soil samples.

"Heard about your sleep walking."

"It happens."

He looked up at me.

"Did it ever happen to you before you came to the lake?"

"No but it happens."

He sighed.

"It was a mistake to bring you here."

"My record is impeccable."

He sighed.

"I'm not questioning your record or your skills your the real deal when it comes to being an academic and a scholar. Some one who actually wants to know more about the world."

I smiled.

"That's a bad thing in this case."

"Our goal is to study how the soil here works."

"I know and I needed some one who's mind was closed but you have a drive to know more instead of pontificating about how smart you are. I needed some one like the later with a work ethic. I honestly thought you were like that when I talked to you, looks like you proved me wrong."

I stared at him.

"I don't know if I should be insulted or not."

"Just help me with the samples, Id like to get as much work with you done before we have another incident."

He put a pair of handcuffs on the table.

"What's this."

"Handcuff yourself to the bed before you go to bed."

"I'm not going to do that."

He looked at me.

"I'm not going to pay you for anytime you spend missing."

"I'm not going to go missing, you people are just being supertitious and you should be above this nonsense."

The man shook his head and we went back to work, the soil composition didn't seem any different from the surrounding areas. But something here was allowing plants that shouldn't thrive to do so easily. If we could crack the code it would revolutionize farming. I kept up at it checking everything I could. The day ended and I walked around the Island looking for a place to eat.

It was disapointing.

"Not even a macdonalds."

"Only resturant in town is the hotel I'm afraid."

I sighed and went back, the hotels resturant was packed and I went and ate some very mediocre food and then went to my room. I looked at the handcuffs and shook my head and went to bed, later on I would come to regret my decision to ignore my seniors advice