Airi woke up in a garbage container, buried under a pile of wooden splinters. She could feel phantom pain in her skull and recalled how it had burst open. She had a strong desire to cry, but for an unknown reason, felt no tears welling up in her eyes.

That was it, her original body was gone, forever. The archivist didn't even bother to preserve it. She felt betrayed.

Airi scrambled out of a steel box and shook fine, wooden dust off her hands. She observed them in disbelief. They were masterfully crafted out of pink birch, with white, concave embellishment in form of vines and leaves. When her fingers ran through her new skin, she could feel how hard and uncomfortable to touch it is, how she was stuck in an unlovable shell of her former self.

Airi felt anger. - "I'm not helping the Academy!" - She shouted, her new voice hoarse and rough. She immediately put palms on her mouth, and fell to her knees, curling up and wobbling back and forth in distress.

She breathed heavily and felt how the air wheezes in her brass lungs clogged with sawdust. That sensation didn't allow her to calm down.

Airi wrapped arms around her legs. - "I don't want this." - She uttered silently.

As the hours passed, the darkness of night was slowly giving its way to a gentle, autumn sunlight. Airi had her time to think, she stared at the curved, wooden pathways atop trees. She didn't know where she was, what she should do, and why her, but she knew one thing.

That she should let the emotions go, even If briefly.

"The Academy is in danger." - She tried to get used to her voice. - "The Academy is full of brilliant people. If I help them, they'll help me find a normal body."

Airi directed her gaze at the sun, she shielded her eyes from its rays and checked what lied ahead of her. Not afar, she could discern a wide trunk of a tree with small and round, orange windows. Slightly to its left, were clusters of tree-houses stacked on top of each other, but what drew her all attention was to her right. Under a line of lanterns and ceramic roof tiles, was a large bookstore.

A tall figure, with a monocle and long ears, was sweeping its porch, occasionally coughing. On its shoulder was a small, clockwork sparrow, which whistled out a cheerful melody. It contrasted the stern and tired expression of its owner.

Airi decided to take the first step and say 'Good Morning' but quickly realized that her legs aren't working as intended. Their movement was clunky, and the knees didn't bend well. She would fall and get up, over and over again. She pummeled the boards beneath her with frustration, unwilling to move any farther.

“You seem to be broken.” - She heard a voice over her head, it was the elf. He was extending his hand toward the girl.

“Thanks.” - Airi uttered, clutching his fingers. She clumsily got back on her feet.

“Are you heading to my shop?” - The elf figure asked.

“Precisely.” - Airi replied.

“Allow me to carry you.” - The elf suggested.

“You really will?” - Airi uttered with gratitude.

“If that's not an issue, for you, my young lady.”

Airi waved her head. - “No, it's okay!” - The elf's sparrow moved from his shoulder onto Airi's head, and the man put Airi on top of his shoulders.

“Contrary to what you may think, your frame is nice. It's very light. It only requires a few adjustments to function properly, and a little cleaning.” - The elf explained as they walked. - “Just take good care of your phylactery, and it should be okay.”

Airi felt embarrassed to admit it. - “I... I don't know where my phylactery is. My mentor never told me.”

“Oh, so you were sent here by your elders?”

“Yes.” - Airi nodded.

They were already at the door of a shop, the elf lightly kicked them open and a bell rang above their heads. Coughing, the elf rested Airi's small corpus on a counter.

“I used to fix automated dolls when I was still young, give me a moment.” - The elf said, then disappeared into the back room and Airi had a moment for herself.

She observed the interior of the store, it was a hollowed tree with an intact core at the center of the shop, where a spiral bookcase climbed high to the top. Next to it, was a steel cart on a rail, that would allow the librarian to reach the highest books.

Of course, too, there were rows of smaller shelves at the bottom. On each, was a collection of folk tales, legends, or fables – there were no scientific literature, biographies, or historical books. If you searched for anything grounded in reality, this shop was not a place to look.

The man returned with a crate of tools and took out a screwdriver, he crouched next to Airi and began removal of her legs.

“...so your elders, why did they send you here?” - He asked as he worked.

“To warn the Academy!”

“The Academy? Why?”

“The Jesters are coming!”

“That does sound serious.” - The man said, but strangely, there was no concern in his voice. He yanked Airi's knee and the leg detached easily. Next, the elf inspected the steel joints and applied a tiny drop of oil.

“Can you help me?” - Airi asked.

“...how...” - The man pushed the leg back into its place, it took a considerable amount of effort. - “...umpf... exactly?”

“I need to send Academy a message! Do you have any tools of transmission?”

“I'm afraid you're a few planar jumps too far.” - The elf said, and started working on the other leg.

Expression of concern painted on Airi's face, she didn't expect to land that far off.

“...but no worries, our sail-ship, the mother-tree is docked and leaving tomorrow. You might want to embark on its journey across the death of seventh.”

“Will it get me to the academy!?”

“No, but you'll land pretty close. Might be enough to establish communication.” - The elf finished fixing Airi's lower limbs. He moved to the tool crate and took out a balloon-like instrument with a sharp, rubbery needle. - “Now, I would like to clear your lungs. Open your mouth.”

Airi listened to a request and waited until the elf finishes sucking out the dust and splinters. It took a while and was quite uncomfortable, but when it was over, the annoying wheezing was gone.

“Now, only your voice.” - The elf put his ear next to Airi's throat and knocked a few times on her neck. - “There.”

He unscrewed a small hatch to her windpipe, then moved pliers inside. He carefully removed levitating rings from there and replaced them with new ones.

“Sing something.” - The elf requested.

“Twinkle, twinkle, little star...”

The librarian nodded with a pleased smile. - “Good.”

Although the voice was clearly an upgrade to Airi's equivalent in flesh and boosted her self-esteem, it was still hard to forget what it once used to be. - “Thank you.” - Airi uttered softly, then jumped off the counter. Her eyes laid on collections of short stories. - “You have a lot of children's books, do they visit often?” - She asked, curiously.

The elf sighed. - “Not anymore, not anymore.”

“Why? What happened?”

“The evacuation. We're in the middle of a war with the Möbius.”

Avi shuddered. - “...then, why did you stay?”

“These trees, are my home. I'm waiting until they call me, to join the military... until then, all that is left is to reminisce... unless, my darling, you are interested in reading.”

“Oh. I am! Please tell me, do you have any tales that you would recommend to a little girl, like me?”

The elf smiled with nostalgia. - “Of course, of course. Do you like penguins?”

“Penguins? What are they?”

“Cute aquatic birds, they tend to inhabit cold planets in standard sectors.”

“I would love to learn more!”

“Then, I have a book just for you... The Enchanted Enclosure.” - The elf reached a shelf behind him and gifted Airi an illustrated novel. - “You can take it with you, it would make me happy to know that not everything here will be lost.”

“I'll treasure it.” - Airi said, hugging the book to her chest.

“Of course, If you find anything else that sparks your interest, it's on my tab.” - The elf added.

“Really!?”

The shopkeeper just nodded, smiling.

Avi walked back and forth, observing the titles on bookshelves. - Lost in the Mountains, Labyrinth of Wonders, Unraveled... - She couldn't make a choice without peeking at the contents, so she took the nearest book and opened it, then sat on the floor and started reading, forgetting about the entire world.

Airi didn't have any physiological needs anymore, so she fully absorbed herself in the reading. Half of a day passed faster than she could imagine. The elf didn't disturb her and focused on cleaning the shop, but occasionally he would answer the girl's questions about the books, what brought him a little bit of needed happiness.

Airi just finished 'Journey to the Rooted Hold' and put it back on the shelf. - “I liked it! Where is the sequel?”

The elf fixed his monocle. - “Sadly, the author died before she could finish it.”

“Oh...” - Avi saddened. - “...it will always be an incomplete story.”

“Perhaps, but the dreams live on, when you board the sail-ship, you can follow Sara's quest with eyes of your imagination.”

“Does the Rooted Hold really exist?” - Airi asked.

“Its ruins drift across the death of seventh, sealed by the servants of the witch.”

“...so is the legend of the first astronaut true!?”

“That, I do not know, but what lies inside, beyond a reasonable doubt, is of great importance.”

Airi's glass eyes glistened. - “She who dreams the realities, seeking the way to resurrect the only person who loved her regardless of her curse.”

“...and she, who sought beyond the veil, breaking the principal doctrine of demiurges. She who denounced the gods as liars. She who laid the foundations of extra-celestial pathways. She who broke the codex of arcane, and flooded the realms with primordial maelstroms. She, who unearthed the pale necromancy. Don't forget that. She was not a tragic hero, but a villain.”

“...but it all happened... because of her curse, and because nobody accepted or believed her.”

“One's circumstances aren't an excuse to break all the fundamental order and rules, and bring havoc upon the world. She had a choice, and she decided to chase after the wrong star.”

“...but that star was her only hope. That, or she would suffer in silence, alone for eternity.”

“...and that would make her, an unsung hero.”

“I don't like unhappy endings.” - Airi commented. - “...especially ones this sad.”

“Sometimes, it's what we must accept.” - The elf replied.

Airi lifted her head, her eyes determined. - “No, this story deserves a better ending!! I know it!”

The corner of the elf's lips raised. Momentarily, there was a strange sparkle in his eyes. - “Then, write one.”

Airi had a perplexed look. - “Me?”

“Why not?”

“...but I don't understand half of what's in that book! How do I figure out a solution!?”

“Nobody said it's going to be easy.”

“...but ...where would I start?”

“Read, learn, travel, listen, experience... try and fail, fail over and over again, but get up each and every time.”

Airi pondered intensively. - “I... I can try to continue Sara's quest.”

The elf suggested. - “...or start your own!”

“Airi's quest...” - Airi uttered.

“Oh, so that's your name. It's sweet.”

“Thank you... I never asked yours.”

“Elraendel.”

“Elraendel. Thank you for everything.”

Elraendel just smiled and looked at the rays of a setting sun. - “You sound ready. I think I'll not hold you here any longer. You better board the mother tree.”

“Can I have a little request, before I go?”

“Of course.”

“Be there, when the ship leaves. Wave me a goodbye.” - Airi said, shyly.

“I will.”

Airi jumped to Elraendel, hugging him. - “I'll not forget you!”

The elf just patted her hair, staring at the sun and although his days were likely numbered, he knew that a younger generation will take his place.