Jarudiel stared at the dusty, fragile old book in his hands with a sense of mild wonder. This was the Theorems of Pandgram, the most sought after and the most daring book of animancy ever written. And here he was, stealing it from the prestigious library that doubled as the temple of Wael, a god that he helped out just the other day. Stealing the book right after receiving the trust of the High Priestess as well as the key to the restricted room the book was located in. Betraying both a mortal and a god who trusted him with their secrets.
Well, such was his life.
He wouldn't be holding the book in the first place if he was going to let his conscience intervene. In his opinion it was more fair to pass the book and its knowledge forward than it was to keep it under lock and key just because a few people thought the knowledge dangerous. Perhaps Wael would understand and forgive him for this, for all it mattered. He had made up his mind and was going to take it without bothering to second-guess his choices after. The only thing that was making him stop and stare at the book now was the fact that he was considering its value, not his moral choices.
This was a damn rare book. Possibly one of a kind, considering how many of them had been burned back when the scandal behind them had been fresh. Even if it wasn't the last copy, there wouldn't be many of them left, and there was no accounting for the condition of the others; there may be missing or torn pages, some of the writing might be smudged or waterlogged or stained, the cover might be moldy or burned. The fact was, this copy seemed to be in perfect condition and there was a high chance it was the last one that was still completely legible. Taking the book from the library and giving it to a random animancer to do what she wanted with might end up being a crime against literacy, if she somehow lost the book or got it destroyed.
There was only one logical step to take here.
Jarudiel slipped the book into his breast pocket, picked up a similar looking book from the nearest shelf and put it in the chest the original book had been hidden in. He then reset the trap on the chest and made sure it looked untouched to anyone looking at it. Lastly, he casually walked out of the library, waving a cheery goodbye to a few of the scholars on his way. Nobody was going to suspect anything or connect the disappearance of the book to him.
He found his waiting companions in the Fox and Hound Inn. Aloth stood up the moment he made eye-contact and walked over to Jarudiel for a private word. Most of his companions preferred "plausible deniability" and didn't want details of his occasional less than savory dealings.
"You're done with your shady business already? I thought it'd take you longer to walk to Brackenbury and back", Aloth asked quietly, a worried frown marring his face.
"Change of plans", Jarudiel answered, equally quiet. "I have the book, but I figured I don't want to risk it by giving it to Nedyn yet. The Sanitarium is currently the single most hated place in this city, so I really don't think it wise to have one of the rarest books in Dyrwood located there."
"I suppose that's a... fair assessment. What are you planning then?"
Jarudiel smirked.
"Did any of the scriveners in the dormitory seem like the trustworthy type to you, or should I look elsewhere?"
"... I'm fairly sure copying it is very illegal, not to mention time-consuming", Aloth said, although he already seemed resigned to the fact that Jarudiel was going to do what he wanted to no matter what. A fair assessment, as he put it earlier.
"I'm fairly sure stealing is illegal", Jarudiel countered, his smirk never fading. "As for the time, Nedyn doesn't expect the book anytime soon, considering that I told her it might take a while to gain Grimda's trust and get the book the clean way. I believe I told her that I'd frequent the library for a while until the people there knew me and would think nothing of me wandering around and snooping. Now that we found a quicker way, there is a lot of time to spare before she gets impatient. Besides, I've heard that scriveners are fast writers, and I was planning on hiring a few to my keep anyway."
Aloth gave a deep sigh and rubbed the bridge of his nose in exasperation.
"One of the younger ones is sure to be clueless enough to not even know what they're getting into. They'd be easy to convince into believing they're doing Wael's work by copying an old book", Aloth suggested in the end, earning a bright smile from Jarudiel.
ooooo
Weeks later, as Jarudiel watched the Sanitarium burn when he and his companions rushed towards the Hadret House to tell Lady Webb of what happened at the animancy hearing, he couldn't help but feel morbidly smug. He couldn't yet know what would become of the practice of animancy in Dyrwood, how much priceless knowledge was being destroyed right before his eyes, or whether or not Nedyn and her belonging were inside the burning building. But at the very least he knew he had managed to save one part of the legacy of animancy.
