Author's note- don't own characters and make no profit. Apologies again- still struggling with computer. I make revisions and fix typos but all the errors mysteriously return! Oh, and my author note mysteriously disappears. This re-posted version was done on my iPad. If it works, we will all now know that my computer needs to be housed in a lead box somewhere in the Library.

Many thanks to my beta, Valawenel, who is most assuredly not responsible for any typos!

Chapter 5, Let's Do This

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"Absolutely not. Ain't gonna happen,." Jake said with a slight drawl that hinted at his Oklahoma origins.

Atlas chuckled. "Mortal, you amuse me. I shall miss this entertainment when your short existence comes to an end."

"Glad to be of service," Jake replied wryly. "but I think you will be missing me sooner 'cause I don't plan to be here for much longer."

"Indeed? Do explain. How do you plan to return to your world without my assistance?"

"I figure that by now, my associates will have realized what has happened and will be coming for me."

"Ah well. That will be nice for us to have their company, because they too will be trapped here," Atlas said with an undeniably smug tone.. "Are they as amusing as you? Will Galeas- or as you call him-Jenkins be coming? I would very much enjoy spending a few millennia with him."

Shocked into silence, Jake realized that Atlas was right. His associates…no, his friends, would also be trapped when they attempted to rescue him. And Jake knew for certain that they would make that attempt if something wasn't done to stop them. They would come, just as Jake would for any of them. And when did this happen? When did it all change? When did these people become important to him? When did he become important to them? How did all this craziness happen?

Just one year ago, Jake was foreman at his daddy's oil rig, busting his chops by day and busting heads in the local bar by night. He lived a simple life, a normal life completely free of magic, monsters and mayhem. He kept his interest in Art History -and his sharp intelligence- to himself. His intellectual pursuits would not be something his father or brothers would understand or accept. There was no room in an oil man's life for what his daddy would call pure nonsense. The papers he wrote were published under a false identity. He had always kept that part of his life carefully hidden away, even from people he called friends. This little secret was the most interesting thing about his otherwise typical life.

Then one day an envelope arrived. It contained a creamy white card that was blank at first, but then somehow burst into script that which invited him to interview for the prestigious position of Librarian. Jake had been mystified by the invitation from the Library. Clearly it was not extended to him because of his skills as an oil man. But how could anyone have known his secret? He had torn up the strange invitation and thrown away the shreds. He would never have come to the Library had Eve not arrived looking for him - just ahead of a team of ninjas bent on assassinating him.

Jake's thoughts were interrupted by the titan's baritone voice. "I have offered my services, mortal. Why do you hesitate? Do you not trust me?"

"Trust? Atlas, I would bet a basket of golden apples that you cannot be trusted."

"How dare you..." roared Atlas, "How dare you speak to a Titan in this manner? That you, a mere mortal should doubt me in this way? It is unacceptable!"

Jake peered up at Atlas with speculation, and idly wondered if parts of the world were experiencing earth quakes due to this trembling rage. After a thoughtful pause, he said, "I apologize, Atlas. Please forgive my impudence. I can only blame my poor behavior on my fear."

Mollified by the apology, Atlas responded in a calmer tone. "Fear? What do you fear precisely?"

"Well, of course I fear that I will not be strong enough to hold up the earth. I mean, I am strong for a human but I am no Hercules," Jake said while carefully observing the titan's reaction.

"Who?"

"Hercules. You know, big strong guy- son of Zeus and Alcmene?"

"Zeus has many children. I do not know of this one."

"Well. No matter. Atlas, if we do this, I would need your promise, your oath that you will do as you say. Say it, Atlas. Swear on your brother's life that you will return here with the book."

Atlas gazed at Jake steadily. After what felt like an eternity to Jake, Atlas smiled slightly and declared, "Jacob Stone, I swear on my brother's life that I will return here with the book you seek."

"Ok, then. Let's do this."

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The Library could move. This, of course, was a very big undertaking which was not entered into lightly. But under duress, the Library could relocate itself to another place or time or even dimension. Once the threat was resolved, the Library would return. In order to do this, the Library required a connection, an anchor of sorts, to the place and time where it belonged. This connection was known as the Annex.

Jenkins had been serving as the caretaker of the Annex for more years than anyone could remember, and more than Jenkins cared to remember. The Annex was ancient, but then, so was Jenkins. He was born Galeas, though over his very long existence, he had been known by many names. Librarians, wizards and other magical creatures presumed that he was immortal. This was not the case. Though the process took far longer than the life span of a typical human, Jenkins did, in fact, age.

Today he was feeling that age.

His bones ached from within. There were lines on his face and his hair had turned gray since the days he was known as Sir Galahad. His life in the Annex suited him. For hundreds of years, he led a solitary existence of study and research. Other than an occasional brief visit from a Librarian, he spent his days alone. He was content with this quiet life, having discovered that living for such a long time could lead one to be disappointed in mankind.

The first indication that his peace was about to be shattered had been the arrival of newly appointed Librarian, Flynn Carsen.

Flynn Carsen was brilliant. Jenkins had never met anyone quite like him. He admired Flynn's keen intelligence so much that his puppy dog exuberance was almost tolerable. And Jenkins did have to admit that despite his private contention that Flynn would come to an early -and probably spectacular- end, this newest Librarian had proven himself to be a force to be reckoned with.

Fortunately Flynn's visits to the Annex were few and far between, leaving Jenkins to enjoy his solitude most of the time. But of course, that was before. Solitude was before. Peacefulness was before. Quiet was before. It was all before a particularly nasty attack was waged against the Library which resulted in the abrupt disappearance of the Library from this world and the equally abrupt appearance of Flynn in the Annex with a new Guardian and three very green Librarians in Training.

Three. Not one, not two, but three very noisy, very inexperienced, very annoying Librarians in Training were now annoyingly and noisily underfoot.

As far as Jenkins knew-and he knew quite a lot- there had never before been more than one Librarian at a time. It was always one Librarian and one Guardian. But this…this chaotic group of mismatched individuals bickering and competing and disrupting his cherished solitude was almost more than he could bear.

Jenkins did not like this situation at all. No, not a bit. Yes, he conceded to himself that Flynn had done wonders with their training. And Eve had made great progress with their defensive skills. And, he supposed, the trainees had proven their worth once or twice. Yes, they had demonstrated some potential. They were learning to work as a team. And sometimes, just on rare occasions, he was impressed by their fortitude and their rather creative solutions to some unique situations. But they were also undisciplined, brash and about as trustworthy as a basketful of kittens in a yarn store. Oh, and noisy. Very, very noisy. If Jenkins needed a reminder of how much he missed his solitude, this book fiasco would certainly do the trick.

Eve and two of her frustrating charges sat around the table looking at him expectantly. Setting aside his annoyance with one last scathing glare, Jenkins began his discourse. "In order for you to travel into the book, you must choose another chapter. To return, you will need the other half of the couplet…"

Cassandra raised her hand like a school child in class. "Why would we need to choose a different chapter? Why can't we just go where Jake is?"

"Because, Miss Cillian, the book was written by one man for one man. It is believed that the connection, the thread between the two worlds is delicate and can support one traveler only. If you use that same page, you run the risk of breaking the thread that links Mr. Stone to this world. You may strand him there permanently."

"But you believe we could use another chapter to go there?" Eve asked.

"It's a theory."

"Oh, a theory." Ezekiel muttered under his breath. "That's reassuring."

"The challenge," Jenkins said, "would be to find a way to reach the chapter Mr. Stone is in from the chapter that you are in. And that would be after you found a way to locate and retrieve the book. Oh, and one more thing- it is likely that you will only have one shot at this. Legend suggests that a person can only use the book once."

Cassandra stared at her folded hands in her lap. "It seems hopeless."

"Nothing is hopeless," Eve said briskly. "This is the Library and you are the Librarians. This is what we do. Let's get on with the plan. Jenkins, any suggestions for where to start?"

Jenkins had been carefully browsing through the book, using a pencil to turn the pages and wearing a blank look. Lines of concentration etched into his face as he fought to keep his thoughts neutral and his emotions in check while in contact with the book.

"I believe, Col. Baird, that this chapter on Athena may do the trick," Jenkins said.

"How so? " Eve asked.

Jenkins shifted in his seat and gazed up at the ceiling as he shared his thoughts. "As legend goes, Athena was the favorite child of Zeus. She was unique in that she had no mother, but rather sprung spontaneously from Zeus' forehead, fully grown and clad in armor. It was said that her bond with Zeus was strong, and that having come from his mind, she shared his love for intellectual pursuits. There is a story in which she gave him a gift that pleased him more than any other thing he had ever owned. It was a gift he treasured greatly, a book filled with magical tales that completely captured the attention of the reader. One might theorize that this wondrous gift could well have been a Carron's couplet book, the couplet book that mates with this one."

"Got it," Eve said. "I need to get this book from the mythical goddess of warfare and find a way to get it to Jake who is somewhere near the end of the universe holding a planet on his shoulders and then use it to get us both home safely. No sweat."

Cassandra looked appeared worried. Ezekiel appeared calm, though Jenkins could see his knuckles whitening as they gripped the table. Eve looked as she always looked- somehow both resigned and yet ready for a challenge.

Ezekiel broke the tension, aiming a snarky quip at Eve. "Athena, who? I thought that you were the goddess of warfare."

Tension broken and sheepish grins all around, Jenkins noticed. Ezekiel's mission accomplished.

"Ok, people." Eve commanded with authority. "Let's do this!"

"Oh, wait. Wait," Ezekiel said. "I think that Cassie, Jenkins and I should leave the room before you do this. It wasn't a particularly pleasant experience for us when Jake did it." Ezekiel tilted his head slightly in Cassie's direction. The message was not lost on Eve or Jenkins.

Jenkins stood suddenly, nodding in agreement. "Excellent thought, Mr. Jones. Let's go Ms. Cillian. Out, out, out, both of you." And turning back to face Eve as he herded the others out, he said in a lowered voice, "You know what to do, Col Baird? You will need a strong emotion to activate the page. You know that you and Mr. Stone cannot both use the same chapter to return? You know-"

"Yes, Jenkins," Eve interrupted. "I know."

As Jenkins ushered them out of the room, he took one last look over his shoulder and saw Eve, eyes closed in concentration, reaching her fingers tentatively towards the book which was open to a stunning illustration of a beautiful, mythical warrior goddess, who actually did remind him of Eve. Once the door was closed, they each rested against the wall of the hallway, nervously waiting. After only moments, they heard the big swooshy boom and felt the floors and walls tremble as a spear of brilliant light flashed under the door.

Cassandra was still wobbly and Jenkins not as young as he used to be, so Ezekiel with his quick and agile steps was back through the door well ahead of the others.

"Oh, no."

"What? What?" Cassie said as she stumbled to an abrupt halt behind him.

"It didn't work. She's still here." Ezekiel said with disgust. "Now, what?"

Eve sat exactly where she was when they left her, but now looking off into the distance, with a unfocused eyes and a blank expression on her face.

Jenkins strode forward. "Col. Baird, did you feel a strong emotion when you touched it? You did touch it, correct? Did you experience anything? Col. Baird? Eve?" Jenkins lowered his voice. "Eve. Are you ok?"

"Eve! Eve!" Cassandra's distress was palpable as she grabbed Eve's shoulders and gently shook her.

"I'm fine. Its ok, honey, I'm fine," Eve said reassuringly as focus returned to her gaze.

"Ah," Jenkins breathed a sigh of relief. "Well, we apparently need to work some more on the logistics of this. Perhaps some more research will shed light on what went wrong and you can try again."

Eve shook her head sadly. "Sorry, no. Trying again won't work."

"Why?" Cassie asked.

"Because Jenkins was right," Eve said. "You can only do it once and I already have."

This shocked everyone into silence. Jenkins saw that something was indeed different. Eve still looked resigned but no longer looked ready for any challenge. He felt a nagging sense of trepidation. Eve finally looked up at the group and spoke.

"I returned six months ago."