Rejected (Shadow Beast Shifters, #1)(34)

I leaned down so I was closer to his level. “What is the Solaris System?” I whispered.

Gaster shot me a conspiratorial smile, and I was half in love with this tiny dude and his helpfulness. Pretty sure outside of Simone and Dannie, I’d never had anyone be this nice to me. “It’s a transport system powered by the library. Connected energy portals that allow us to travel between the multitude of worlds. Each of the doorways here”—he waved his hand—“connects to one of the lands.

So, I’m a goblin from Faerie.” He pointed out the door with the alluring music I’d almost walked through. “And Chester over there is a water sprite from the land of Karn, which is mostly water.”

This time, he pointed to a door that was about ten feet from us, faint swirls of blue visible in the white grain.

And Chester… The Karn inhabitant was waif-like, with icy blue skin and a body so androgynous that I would never have been able to guess gender. Maybe they didn’t even have the sort of gender I would understand on Karn. They had four arms, the second set a little shorter, and I presumed they were useful in the water. Not wanting to overtly stare any longer, I turned my gaze away, waiting for Gaster to continue.

“Marin is a transcendent,” he said, picking up on my cue. “Closely representing the angels of Earth lore, they reside in Honor Meadows.”

Marin was a tall statuesque being, female in appearance. She was dressed in what looked like black and gold armor, with shiny black skin, and grey-tinged feathery wings emerging from her back.

Wings that looked very much like they belonged on an angel. “Wow,” I whispered as I took in the full picture.

She was beauty personified, as if each plane of her face had been lovingly carved to perfection.

Her long hair reminded me of Simone’s, thick and blue-black. Unlike Simone’s, though, Marin’s hair was in a perfect braid, ending around her calves.

Whatever Honor Meadows was, I could only assume it was filled with more angelic-looking beings like Marin.

“You reach their lands through there,” Gaster said, pointing out a door farther down the library.

This was so incredibly hard to understand and comprehend, but maybe because I stood within these walls filled with so much knowledge, none of it felt overwhelming.

Gaster continued on, pointing out animalistic beings, akin to a centaur who merged human and animals. Horse, goat, panther, and bird hybrids were in the library, but I was assured that in their land of Brolder , there were many, many others.

“Are there any dragon beings?” I asked seriously, still half-existing in an epic book hangover from my last shifter read.

Gaster didn’t miss a beat at my random question. “Not dragons like those depicted on Earth, but we do have great beasts who wander the worlds.”

Great beasts? I mean, if there was anything greater than the Shadow Beast out there, that would be a seriously scary sight to behold. But I was totally here for it.

Gaster continued his journey through the library, introducing me to many of the faefolk, including pixies, banshees, sidhe, trolls, and ghouls.

“In Faerie, there are hundreds of others,” he said. “It would take me weeks to list them all.”

“The universe is so much bigger than I expected,” I breathed, feeling both insignificant and emotional by my discoveries today.

“This is merely a tiny slice of the larger piece,” Gaster said, his smile still firmly in place. “But today, there’s no need to worry about this new life you’ve discovered. Let’s first find you some human comforts.”

I nodded, following him as he picked up the pace. His legs might have been half the size of mine, but the dude moved like an Olympic sprinter. I commented on that, jokingly huffing like I was out of breath. “We’re strong and fast,” he said, looking me over like he was seriously concerned for my health. “Don’t try to keep up. Goblins are able to move at top speed over long distances, and it’s best to remember that my assets are yours to use when you need support in whatever you undertake.”

I tilted my head, once again confused at the way I was being made to feel “at home” here. “Does Shadow know you’re, uh, looking after me like this?” I asked.

Gaster nodded. “Oh, yes. He knows everything. Don’t worry. This is all planned.”

Wonderful. I felt a lot better about being part of Shadow’s plan… not.

Gaster continued on his mission, and I stayed close by, trying to ignore the many curious lookie-loos around the room. I might have been side-eyeing all the new lands and their inhabitants in the library, but many of them appeared to be just as interested in me. I wondered if it was due to Inky on my tail, or was “shifter” a new race to cross their path?

As we closed in on the beginning of the library with its own shimmery portal that connected to the long, white hall, Gaster stopped. “This is the room of need,” he said, gesturing to a plain white door.

He stepped forward and knocked twice before it swung open.

“Six daems,” a disembodied, near-robotic voice chimed.

Gaster pulled some shimmery gold nuggets from his tiny pocket.

“Make sure you get everything you need while inside,” he told me before the surprisingly strong goblin shoved me into a completely empty white room, the coins tinkling after me, vanishing into the seamless, shiny floor. “Wait!” I shouted as the door slammed in my face.