Xeno’s Library
This page was an early test of the ability of AI to write an adventure story.
The secret is that this web site (newsi8) is Xeno’s Library. 😉
Kept in a vault deep under the earth, known to few and believed by even fewer, Xeno’s library contained the collected essential information needed, step by step, to reboot humanity and to assure the survival of sentient life to the end of the universe.
Prologue
Our story begins after an unspeakable disaster which obliterated not only all human life, but also everything ever created by human hands and minds. In a bathesphere at the bottom of the Marianis trench, on the last day of a science mission, two young kids from different parents, Adimus and Evagilia, are enjoying a last minute sight seeing trip when the water churns and the communication line suddenly goes out. They pilot the craft to the surface and are shocked to see the ship and their parents gone.
The Island
The kids land the craft on a new island they did not notice before, all the while finding complete radio silence from every device they have. The island provides an amazing bounty of foods and fresh water. They assume it is some experimental set and avoid eating and drinking anything from it until their rations begin to run out. Physical maps and the amount of hydrogen fuel left to power the bathysphere rules out trying to find land. They have plenty of fire starters in the emergency kit onboard, so they make a fire and set up separate nearby shelters and wait.
One Month
After a month of waiting, watching the beautiful clear night skys and the seas, they decide to drive the bathysphere as far as they can safely go away from the island to see if they can see any other land. After several attempts, they find none and return home.
Exploring the inner lsland, they disover a natural sloping cave that enters the earth for what seems like miles. They return a week later with provisions, rope, food, water and improvised headlamps, determined to see if there is anything of value in the cave.
The Room
In a natural hollow, a small room with sunlight streaming from a hole far above, Adimus finds a natural dust-free flat stone pedestal with nothing on it. They rest and have some food and as they do, the beam of sunlight moves slowly toward the pedestal. As the sunbeam gets closer, they begin to notice crystals in the pedestal reflecting light around the room, like a mirror ball. As the sunlight fully hits the rock column, the lights coalese on a wall, showing an exit that was previously hidden.
The Librarian
After some twists and turns in a natural passage, they reach a large chamber with a somewhat human looking statue of the same shiny glittery rock. Was it a natural rock formation? They debated this for a while, walking around it, still not knowing. It could have been either, but the rest of the room it was in was empty. Evagilia walked the perimiter checking the wall for more hidden exits, but found none.
When they were about to leave, the statue, or pile of rocks, spoke, saying, “Welcome, I am the librarian.”
The kids exchanged puzzled looks, wondering how a pile of rocks could talk. But the statue continued speaking, its stony voice echoing across what was now a clearing. They had been transported, somehow.
“I am the keeper of knowledge, the guardian of books and stories. And I have a special task for you.”
The children stepped forward cautiously, not sure what to expect. The librarian gestured to a nearby tree, where a small bird was perched on a branch.
“See that bird? It holds a message of great importance, but it cannot deliver it alone. You must help it.”
The kids looked at each other, wondering what kind of message a bird could carry. But they were willing to help, curious to uncover the mystery.
The librarian continued, “To aid the bird, you must venture into the forest and gather three special objects. The first is a feather from a great owl that lives deep in the woods. The second is a sprig of mistletoe from a tree that grows near the river. And the third is a smooth crystal from a secret cave on the mountain.”
The children listened carefully, committing the instructions to memory. They thanked the librarian, eager to start their quest. As they set off into the forest, they wondered what adventures lay ahead and what message the bird carried that was so important.
Little did they know, their journey would lead them to unexpected places, test their bravery, and teach them the true power of knowledge. And all thanks to a talking pile of rocks.
The New Island
On the new Island, they completed the adventure tasks assigned by the library and learned new skills in the process. They missed their parents, their friends, their pets, their homes and all things human which had now vanished since the bathyshere surfaced three months ago, but keeping busy helped. Mostly, although they had started as aquantances, they grew to trust and appreciate eachother greatly as friends.
In time, they found a cave entrace very much like the one on their first island and explored it. This time, in a room similar to the first one with the pedestal, they found a small dusty button on a bench against one solid rock wall.
Xeno’s Library
Having passed the tests of courage, logic, patience and trust learned from the tasks assigned by the librarian, the kids were granted access, and when the button was pushed, the wall opened into a small but beautiful library.
On the main desk where there were two comfortable chairs, was a large book with images.
They sat in the chairs and looked at the unopened book. On the cover, the words “The Book” were printed. Adimus and Evagilia looked at eachother, then, having already browsed around the library a bit, decided to open it together.
The Book
The book was a curious story with some words they did not understand. Each page was locked by an unseen mechanism, so they could only open page one at a time; there was no flipping through pages. At the bottom of the first page they had to press on a choice of words, then the next page would unlock. It seemed like a quiz, but it also seemed to be broken, because all of the answer choices let them continue on. After reading a few pages they got hungry and stopped to eat lunch.
For months they would come back, together or separately, to continue reading the story, often having to start again from the beginning since the book would be closed if they did not arrive together. Each assume the other closed the book, but neither said anything. One night around the camp fire, Evagilia asked,
“Do you think there will be some reward when we finish the story?”
Adimus thought about it, but didn’t reply. They both hoped, of course, for some way back to the homes they still remembered after a year.
(To Be Continued…)