magicalarchaeologist

The Tower of Books

Not this big in reality

For someone who is such a quiet individual, it appears that Istredd's imagination really ran wild. What people find when they walk into his tower is that it is all books. Many bookshelves, running all around the staircases, all seemingly organized well. There are small nooks where people can sit and read if they want, but this is the place to wander and appreciate if you are a book fan. There are ladders in strategic locations if you'd like to go searching for fun. A key part of it is that you can put out your hand and 'call' a book to you at any point and it will be filled with as much of the book as your mind unconsciously remembers.

OUTSIDE

Where once stood a giant dark monolith, and then stood the Tower of the Gull, now has a tall brick and stone building that appears to be a lighthouse, with the very top of it a bright shining light. A two-floor staircase must be taken to walk into the library. There are torches at the bottom, halfway up the stairs, and at the entrance. They are usually out unless for some reason there are clouds or dark skies around the lighthouse, which happens occasionally. The light appears to always be on, beckoning to others who are curious to investigate. [ooc: tower image from here]

Reading Nooks

Visitors Choose

A unique detail about the bizarre format of the book tower is that there are nooks and places you can go and sit with a book to read. Istredd can often be found in these when he's in research mode. However, his Horizon moves around the person who arrives. If someone wants a nook of their own, it'll just appear to them in a hall to the right of them, exactly how they want it to look.

BELOW

There is a basement underneath his tower that will be inaccessible to anyone who is not Istredd or Yennefer. Only for the two of them does a door open and allow them to go inside. It turns into the secret place they used to spend time together in the Tower when they were young.

THE RAVENS

Istredd told his roommate Lucifer to make ravens in his Horizon if he wanted to, and during a stressful period of time, he made many, many ravens in the library. After the stress cleared, five remained behind to stay. Wanda Maximoff named them after teas: Anise, Ceylon, Assam, Oolong, and Rooibos. Anise is the leader of the conspiracy, Ceylon pecks at Istredd when he's not paying attention or staying too long, Assam pecks Lucifer when he's being childish, Oolong is the least friendly, and Rooibos is very friendly and playful.

THE CONSPIRACY BOARD

Hidden in a small, private reading nook of Istredd's domain is a painting. Chart of Hell by Sandro Botticelli, framed. If one were to remove the painting they'd find numerous theories on the back of it. The painting seemingly changes shape to nicely fit the notes, and does not change weight. Close allies of Lucifer and Istredd know where to find it naturally. Anise, the leader of the five-raven conspiracy, may choose to show others the way. Read the conspiracy board here.

LEOSYLPHS

While in Nocwich recovering from his injuries in the Pit, Istredd had an unexpected visitor in the form of a leosylph. Geralt placed it in his room and left. It stayed with him and Lucifer while he recovered but he brought it back to the Free Cities representative on the way out. He liked the little creature so he made his first living creature to mimic it. He then ended up making two so they wouldn't be that outnumbered by the ravens. One leosylph is black with red eyes. He named him Reficul as a private joke between him and Lucifer. The other leosylph is identical to the one Geralt brought him, a pretty baby blue, who he named Lara after Lara Dorren.

"Usually docile and sleepy, but likes to get up to mischief at night (especially the young ones). Loves high places and getting into little nooks and crannies that are a pain to get them out of. They have retractable claws and sharp teeth, so getting scratched or bitten if one doesn't like you is a possibility. They make high, trilling noises and purr when happy."

FENRIS MECH

Shepard decided to add to Istredd's group of creatures in the library by including a FENRIS Mech from her planet. She knew that Istredd never knew advanced technology and that it would be a surprise to him. The mech can often be seen wandering around the bottom floors, and it will act like an average dog to any newcomers, dancing around them or showing excited attention. The mech's name is Darganfod.

CODE BY TESSISAMESS