Angelique blinked, turning in a full circle. "Ah, no, actually. My family never liked to read, so ours is only one story, and - I haven't been able to buy books because we've had to pay our soldiers - this is incredible," she grinned, looking around again. Then her face fell. "Won't it be difficult to find anything specific in a place this large?"
"No, actually. My grandmother enchanted the library before her death. It's filled with leftovers of her magic." She walked over to a book stand. "Great War of Seralia and Traedia!" She called out, and books began to float down.
Angelique let out a small gasp. "That's incredible," she repeated softly.
A total of ten books floated down to the trio. "This might take us a while to get through, so we should start now." Aeryn grabbed a book and moved away a little. She created a cushion of snow and sat on it.
Angelique plucked a book out of the air and leaned against a wall to read through it. Adelaide nodded and followed suit.
A book dropped into Aeryn's lap. It was a journal. She opened the pages to see a message written in Gaeilge. "Maidir leis an sliocht a theastaíonn uaidh. Seo scéal fíor an chatha. Úsáid an fhaisnéis go críonna."
"This was grandmother's journal? This is her handwriting. And it's in Gaelige. 'For the passage he needs. This is the true story of the battle. Use the information wisely.' Interesting."
"That seems rather promising," Angelique remarked. Her own book seemed much less so, as she could only read half of it.
"Oh, yes. I forgot that many of our books are in Gaelige. It's the countries original language, but it's since been forgotten by everyone not in the royal family. It's been so long that we don't have the accent originally associated with the language."
Angelique nodded. "It's fascinating, how cultures evolve like that," she mused, flipping through the book.
"It is, isn't it?" Aeryn added, more to herself. Then she turned back to her grandmother's journal, flicking through it.
Angelique bit her lower lip, concentrating. "This passage seems interesting, though I can't entirely tell what's happening." Her voice was almost lost as she trailed off.
"Is it in Gaelige? If you could, you could try and read it to me. I can translate it for you."
"Er…" she stared at the paper for a few seconds before going to Aeryn and showing her the page. "I'm afraid I'd massively botch the pronunciation."
"Is é Seralia cúis fíor an chatha. Bhí King Lukas bródúil agus feall ar King Traedia. Ní mór an mícheart seo a shocrú." Aeryn's eyes widened. "It says: 'Seralia is the real cause of the battle. King Lukas was proud and betrayed King Traedia. This wrong must be set.' I knew it."
Angelique gasped softly. "I would never have thought that Seralia started the war; my ancestors were… unpleasant, to say the least. What does this mean for our plans to end it? What do we need to do now that we know?"
"I always expected that Seralia was to blame. He's the one that Gaius got his entire personality from, despite never meeting him. It was something my grandmother always told me. Her father was an angry man, and she was truthfully surprised he ruled so long."
Angelique nodded. "I suppose that makes sense; I haven't heard much about my great grandfather."
Aeryn perked up. "Wait." She stood up, moving to a particular bookshelf. Instead of using a ladder or the enchantment of the books, she used a platform of ice to take herself up.
Angelique watched, intrigued. "What are you doing?" She asked with a quiet laugh.
The platform was less a platform and more a flat topped spire, with Aeryn at the top. She moved around a little, more ice sprouting towards her with each step she took to compensate. "I'm looking for my grandfather's old journal."
"That looks terrifying. Don't you get scared, being up so high on ice?" Angelique asked, staring up at the ice tower. Personally, Angelique was severely afraid of heights. Being on a tower, even if it wasn't slippery, would make her panic; she admired the other queen for her bravery.
"No, not really. I trust my abilities, I won't let myself fall." She found the journal, then moved to the outermost section of the ice. She curved it and slid down, the ice disappearing once she reached the ground.
Angelique nodded, smiling politely. "What's in that journal?" She asked curiously.
"You see how it's water logged?" Aeryn asked, flicking through the pages. "My mother taught me something when I was younger, before she died."
She put the journal on the floor and kneeled beside it.
Angelique cautiously went over to Aeryn and looked over her shoulder. What could have made the water damage? Maybe the queen had frozen it in ice.