About: dbkwik:resource/-WVkG4F_Uo4Fziw_kERwPw==

Property	Value
rdfs:label	Chronology - Volume 2-3
rdfs:comment	The graphic novels in the canon consist of fifteen in print, a sixteenth volume complete and available and a seventeenth volume in progress on the web. Starting with the fourteenth volume, the story has now entered Act 2 and the volume numbers have started over at one. Volumes in Act 2 will be identified in the chronology by the act number, a dash, and then the volume number; for example, Act 2, Volume 1 will be numbered 2-1. Eventually, the volumes in the first part, Act 1, will be renumbered to match. For a partial timeline of the events in the comic, see Internal Chronology.
dcterms:subject	Chronology
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vol	2
Characters	Mister Obsidian Dingbots Dio Zardeliv Colette Voltaire The Incorruptible Republic of the Immortal Library of the Grand Architect Dimo Bartleby Malek Varpa Phil Foglio Tarvek Sturmvoraus dbkwik:resource/b62VKfVFrMZOYEVSYLH4Vw== dbkwik:resource/fH1mj2OA6LkgJegwl9vlNg== The Muse of Time Dio Zardilev Violetta Mondarev Madame Velix Argurons Agatha's Wasp eater Andronicus Valois Franz Scortchmaw Kaja Foglio Aldin Boris Dolokhov Gilgamesh Wulfenbach Oglavia Spüdna Bangladesh DuPree Lord High Conservator Füst Madwa Korel Van Rijn Jenka Doctor Rothfuss Othar Tryggvassen, Gentleman Adventurer Zeetha, Daughter of Chump Castle Heterodyne The Unstoppable Higgs Larana Chroma Talpini Captain Vole The Beast Jiminez Hoffmann Prende Agatha Heterodyne King of the Silver Lands Aldin, Melissa Solera, Jon Solera, Agatha, Members of Raiding Party and Other Library Personnel , <Violetta, <Agatha's Wasp eater Jenka, Dimo, Stephanos Tuesday, Tuesday's Assassin, Zeetha, Violetta, Agatha's Wasp eater !Agatha, Aldin, Portable Castle, Colette Andronicus Valois, Martellus von Blitzengaard, Servant/Courtier/Minion Agatha, Jim, Dimo, Malek, Violetta, Varpa, Professor Guy , Zeetha, Aldin, Larana Librarian with goggles, Redheaded Librarian, Guinea Pig or Hamster, Hoffmann, Short Librarian, Aldin Colette, Wooster, Jenka, Füst, Party Guests/Revenants, Violetta, Agatha, Hoffmann, Zeetha, Dimo Agatha, Aldin, <Jim, Larana, Dimo Agatha, Aldin, <Van Rijn Jon Solera, Agatha, Professor Beausoleil, Zeetha, Agatha's Wasp eater, Malek, Violetta, Dimo, Professor Cheyenne Wright , Professoressa Kaja Foglio, Librarian, Professor Pavel Moxylotyl Larana Chroma, Zeetha, Agatha, Colette, King of the Argurons, Dimo, Violetta, Hoffmann, Jenka, Boris, Wooster, Füst Arguron Courtier(?), Talpini Official, Agatha, Another Arguron, Zeetha, Wooster, Colette, Violetta, Hoffmann, A Third Arguron?, Crowd of Diplomats and Others, Dinosaur Diplomat Aldin, Agatha, Colette, Portable Castle, Mini-Beast, <Corbettite Monks, <The Muse of Time? Agatha, Dimo, Lab Technician, Malek, Violetta, Varpa Arguron King, Larana, Aldin, Jim, Agatha, Madame Velix, Mini-T-Rex in Evening Wear, Mook Man, Talpini, Argurons Female British Soldier, Tripod Strider Clank? Gil, Bang, Wulfenbach subterrene crew member Agatha, Dimo, <Andronicus Valois, <Some of the Muses, Violetta, Zeetha Hoffmann, Aldin, Violetta, Ranting voice Jon Solera, Agatha, Zeetha, Malek, Professor Beausoleil, Varpa, King of the Silver Lands , Violetta, Professor Pavel Moxylotyl, Professoressa Kaja Foglio, Agatha's Wasp eater, Dimo Larana, Aldin, Agatha, The Kraków Clank of Redemption , Jim, Dimo, Violetta, Zeetha Othar, Gil, Hospital Orderly, Doctor Rothfuss Parisian Lab Technicians, Dimo Mook Man, Violetta, King of the Argurons, Mangelor, Hoffmann, Agatha, Zeetha, Party Guests/Revenants Tarvek, Mister Obsidian posing as a Librarian The Mighty Mechaturkey, Agatha Heterodyne Unidentified woman, man with snow shovel Unnamed Librarian, Anders , Bang, Gil Vanamonde von Mekkhan, Nurse, Tarvek , Bang Aldin , <Robur Heterodyne, <Dreen, <Corbettites, Agatha Othar, Gil, Wulfenbach Soldier, Temporal Researchers, Other Wulfenbach Troops, Other Wulfenbach Minions, Bang Gil, Librarian, Bang, Other Librarians and Library Cats , Wulfenbach minions and staff, Oglavia Spüdna, Wulfenbach clank Hoffmann, Agatha, The Kraków Clank of Redemption, Larana, Aldin, Violetta, Mini-Beast, Dimo Lord High Conservator, Tarvek, Mister Obsidian posing as a Librarian Jenka, Boris Dolokhov, Mini-Beast, Portable Castle, Füst, Dimo, King of the Argurons, Revenants/Henchbeings, Agatha, Violetta Agatha, Hoffmann, Larana, Colette, Aldin, Deputy Archivist, Other Library Staff/Patrons, Portable Castle, Mini-Beast, Library Cat Oglavia Spüdna, Gil, Monsieur Hax, <Othar, <Wulfenbach minions and staff , attackers, Mélisse, Wulfenbach clank Blonde Hijacker, Gap-toothed Hijacker, Hood-wearing Hijacker, Captain and Crew of Airship , Lord High Conservator Violetta, Zeetha, Larana, Aldin, <Lucrezia, <Madwa Korel, <Smoke Knights, Geisterdame, Varpa, Malek Colette, Jenka, King of the Argurons, Troglodytes, Boris Dolokhov, Mook Man, Various Other Henchbeings, Agatha, Violetta, Zeetha, Dimo Librarian and large Library raiding party, Argurons, Mook Men, Other wasped people, Mini-T-Rex in Evening Wear, Queen Larana, Zeetha, Agatha, Aldin, Dimo, Arguron King, Madame Velix Larana, Agatha, Hoffmann, Agatha's Wasp eater, Violetta, Deputy Archivist, Jon Solera, Melissa Solera, Agatha, Chief Quartermaster Salma, Catmaster, Library Cats, Colette, Library Staff/Patrons Agatha, Varpa, Lab Technician, Zeetha, ~Gil, ~Tarvek, Dimo, Malek Jon Solera, Melissa Solera, Agatha, Agatha's Wasp eater, Füst, Zeetha, Violetta Mondarev, Jenka, Other Library Staff/Patrons, Library Cats, Deputy Archivist, Member of Larana's Hunting Party Jenka, Agatha, Füst, Agatha's Wasp eater, <Really Big Monster-y Ting, Dimo Agatha, Portable Castle, Aldin, <Van Rijn, <The Muse of Time Jenka, Agatha, Assassin, Idiot Fuzzerpillar, Zeetha, Party Guests/Revenants, Wooster, Hoffmann, Colette, Violetta, Crowd of Argurons, Diplomats and Other Party Guests, many of whom are Revenants Wulfenbach minion, Gil, Bang, Wulfenbach minions and staff, Wulfenbach clank, Monsieur Hax, Mélisse, Violetta, Prende, Agatha, Larana, Malek, Madwa Korel, Voice from Off Panel Othar, Gil, Bang, Tarvek, Vanamonde von Mekkhan, Temporal Researchers, Wulfenbach Troops, Other Wulfenbach Minions *Agatha Heterodyne , Hoffmann, Jenka, Dimo, Zeetha, Larana Gil, Othar, Temporal Researchers, Subterrene Crew, Hospital Staff, Other Wulfenbach Minions Osquith, Larana, Hoffmann, King of the Argurons, Agatha, Boris, Violetta Mondarev, Dimo, Jenka, Colette, Wooster, Zeetha, Füst, Jon Solera, Melissa Solera, Agatha's Wasp eater Oglavia Spüdna, Gil, Wulfenbach Guard Units , Wulfenbach clanks Violetta Mondarev, Larana, Librarian, Zeetha, Wooster, Dimo, Jenka, Füst, Agatha, Boris, Colette, Hoffmann Larana, <Doctor Zardeliv, Aldin, Hoffmann, Agatha, Dimo Dimo, Agatha, Hoffmann, Wooster, Jenka, Violetta, Zeetha, Party Guests/Revenants, Füst King of the Argurons, Colette, Agatha, Mook Men, Unconscious Party Guests/Revenants Agatha, Aldin, Violetta, Dimo, The Kraków Clank of Redemption, =Malek, =Varpa Jon Solera, Agatha, Violetta, Dimo, Professor Beausoleil, Zeetha, Varpa, Professoressa Kaja Foglio, Professor Pavel Moxylotyl, Librarian Arguron King, Larana, Librarian, Mole Man, Madame Velix, Arguron?, Mini-T-Rex in Evening Wear, Mook Man, Arguron, Zeetha, Hoffmann, Aldin, Agatha, Agatha's Wasp eater, Dimo Gil, Oglavia Spüdna, Librarian, Bang, Wulfenbach clanks, Wulfenbach minions and staff Zeetha, Larana, Malek, Violetta, Aldin, <Unnamed Spark, <Unnamed Guinea Pig, Agatha, Jim Agatha, Melissa Solera, Jon Solera, Acquisitor, Library Cats, Library Staff, Dingbots Dinosaur Diplomat, Agatha, Wooster, Mystery Woman, Another Diplomat, Mystery Man Van, Gil, Othar, Higgs, Tarvek, Bang, Wulfenbach minions and staff, Wulfenbach clanks Lord High Conservator, Blonde Hijacker, Hood-wearing Hijacker, Airship Crew Member , Tarvek, Mister Obsidian Tarvek, Gil, Wulfenbach clank, Wulfenbach minions and staff, Madame Beauxie
Page	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 n/a TEA 2016
Text	8 BOOM! SMASH! WHUMP! FWOMP! WHAM! CLIK Later—Caption, top of panel 1.Soon—Caption, top of panel 5. SPLOOSH!ATTENTION—YOU ARE NOW ENTERING LIBRARY CONTROLL[ED] TERRITORYSign on wall, panel 6. ?U[LF]?On hull of subterrene , panel 3.DOOR [TOOLS]?On bulkhead, near door, panel 4. Soon…Caption, panels 2-3.VESP[I]? MU[ST]?Title of book, panel 7. ?AVECVACV[A]Carved above doors or windows in wall, panel 2.CLIK And eventually—Caption, top of panel 1. BLINK!KISHH BOOM!RRRUMBLE! BOOTFOOM! BOO[T] B[RIDGE]Painted on door, panel 6.FWUMP! CHOK CLAK!VUM! CLAPFWUMP! CRACKKKKCRAKKICKCRASH!74On wall, panel 7. FOOM!RRRUMBLE!KICK! FSSSHCRACKKKK FWEEP! FWEEP!FWEEEEEEEEP!KLONK!WHUMP!THUMP FZZARK!CLIK Finally—Caption, top of panel 1.CLAP! ×5 Fzit!Fzit!bzZAP WARN[ING:] DANGER[OUS] SCIEN[CE]Sign on wall, panel 1. GRRUNNNK In the Corbettite Crypts—Caption, panel 1. In the Library—Caption, top of panel 1. KLONG WHAM KRAZOKZK! Far away, beneath Mechanicsburg—Caption, top of panel 1. Later—Caption, top of panel 1.GRAB! OOOOOOOOOOO- OOOOOOOOOOOPOF!POF! P‑TONG!WUNCH PASH!CLAK! PUNCH!sniffsniff READOn shoulder of Lord High Conservator, panel 5. RvRMonogram on book cover, panel 9.CRAcKle RvROn cover of Van Rijn notebook.CLAK! SLAM![TH]OOMBGSSSHFOONT! SQUEEEEEEK Soon—Caption, panel 1. Soon—Caption, top of panel 1. Soon—Caption, top of panel 3. THUNK! Tea: It Keeps Things Civilized WHOOOOOOOOO- WelcomeOn mat at bottom of full-page panel. [BEW]ARE [THE BL]ADESSign on wall, panel 2. [BO]OM[!]CRASH! WULFENBACHRibbon on Higgs's cap, shown, at least in part, in nearly every panel.CRAK bzerk Eventually—Caption, top of full page panel.I?Carved in stone above doorway. [WARNIN]GCarved in stone to left of doorway.W[ARNING]Carved in stone to right of doorway. ???D ???KRight end of sign on filing cabinet.A REALLY BIG LITTLE BOOKTitle on cover of large book being carried by two Librarians.?EO?Two letters visible in magnifying glass held by Librarian examining a large book. pfhahSHHCLAK CLAK! BOOM! Far away, in the fortress surrounding Mechanicsburg—Caption, top of full-page panel.[WULFE]NBACHRibbon on Higgs's cap.WHUMP! Meanwhile, at the gates of one of the apparently numerous secret kingdoms beneath Paris—Caption, panel 1. tickatickaticka WULFENBACHRibbon on Higgs's cap, shown, at least in part, in panels 1, 5, and 11. A lab in Paris—Caption, top of panel 1.[LE] MONDEMASKED [BA]LLTitle and headline of newspaper, panel 1.WOOOOOOFWUMP! "Somewhere between Mechanicsburg and Paris—"Caption, panel 1.CRASH!POW! CLANGCHOP!SNAPCRASH!HOTOn pipe, panel 8.READOn Conservators scabbard , panel 8. Later—Caption, top of panel 1.CLIK CLIKCLAK!RRRUMBLE! Soon—Caption, panel 1.Lib[rary]? Sci[ence]?On Hoffmann's mug, panel 1.BOOM! F[']TAGIN TO FOGLIOSign on Library shelves, panel 2. glow!Handwritten note from the Van Rijn Hermitorium Notebook, panel 4.[Sep]tembre[re]vealed ?hair: gre[en]clot[hes:] tat[tered]Handwritten note from the Van Rijn Hermitorium Notebook, panel 5.[Aug]ust?ullb[u]?han[o]?Ho?Handwritten note from the Van Rijn Hermitorium Notebook, panel 6. [V]XXCarved over archway, panel 4.LXCarved over archway, panel 9.VOn Malek's beret, panel 9. DANGERWritten on two signs on wall surrounding ruined building. One sign also !ears the image of a skull. Aboard the airship Good Company:Caption, top of panel 1.RATTLE CAMPFIRE IN A C[AN]Lettering on firemaking device, panels 5 and 6. ELOI EATERPRETTY PRETTY PRINCESS PIXELNames on mole machine subterrene vessels, panel 5. MECHANICSBURG MUNICIPAL NEW YEARS FIREWORKSDANGERWritten on crateHappy New Year from Studio FoglioCaption at bottom of image [R]EAD [IF Y]OU [KNOW] WH[AT'S G]OOD FO[R] YO[U]Text of framed poster on wall, panel 3. MECHANICS[BURG]CASTLE HETERODYNEIllustration captions in book, panel 2.[F]IOOn book spine, panel 4. [I'M] WITH [S]TUPIDSlogan on t-shirt worn by Mangelor in panel 3. Below the text is an arrow pointing up.PAF!BOOT!BOOM! SCIENTIA EST SIMILIS FLUMINISTE CAPERE NON POSSUNT IN PERPETUUMCarved inscription over glowing opening in stone wall, out of which flows an enormous waterfall, panel 1. This is in Latin, but there is disagreement over the intended meaning. The first line is widely agreed to mean "Knowledge is like a river." The second line seems to mean, "They can't capture you forever." Some readers don't believe this is what the Foglios intended, however.TAKATAKATAKATAKARUUNCH[!] —And far above, in Paris, Martellus ponders his costume choices for upcoming ball—Caption, top of panel 2.CRAZZKK
Actions	Larana speculates that Zardeliv may be part of some conspiracy, rather than a victim of one. The others voice their suspicions of Zardeliv, given the new circumstances, and Agatha comments that finding him might be dangerous. Aldin and Larana have a whispered conversation of their own, apparently wondering if Zardeliv is looking for the same thing they are. Two Librarians are in a hunting lodge, arguing. One wants to follow orders to set a false trail and leave, the other want to catalog a rare book he's found. Before they can finish, Gil and Bang crash through a window. Bang shoots a gun out of one Librarian's hand, injuring it. The other tries to protect a book, confirming, to Gil, that the two are from the Incorruptible Library. Agatha reacts with disbelief and disapproval when Aldin says he and his brother will stay in the crypts. Aldin explains that if he did take his brother home for safekeeping, Jim would be the first to object. Not only that, but Jim has already completed numerous past adventures under severe handicaps, such as: two broken legs, no bones at all, being on fire, etc. The Curators have called Aldin and Jim the "New Heterodyne Boys." Larana says this is because Aldin's reports of the missions are "fantastical," but Aldin insists that it is all true; he cannot make things up. Agatha opens Campfire in a Can to cook food. As they pole down the river in their boat, Larana, Zeetha, and Colette engage in a little girl talk, or is that princess talk? Larana really likes Hoffman, who really likes Colette, who doesn't really like him back. But Larana has agreed to marry a mole prince to save her people. Zeetha encourages her to at least tell Hoffman her true feelings—for closure. Mistress Spüdna returns from interrogating the people who attacked Gil and his forces. She had help, from Othar, who reveals unexpected talents of persuasion. Othar not only convinces the prisoners to talk but to join Gil's side, greatly impressing Spüdna. Agatha and her party and the group abducting the King pole their way down a subterranean river winding through an enormous cavern in four boats, with carved prows like . The banks of the river are littered with debris and lined with ruins, giant fungi, and at least one giant toad. Large fish swim alongside the boats. The whole scene is illuminated by an eerie glow. A man name Stephanos Tuesday flees in terror, but before he can get out a warning, he is knifed from behind. Dimo chases the assassin, who is stopped by Zeetha's fist. Agatha's wasp eater sniffs the killer, then goes into full-blown alert mode. Agatha and company enter the tube chamber and start strapping themselves into upright, reclining cots. Violetta reveals she was keeping Agatha's wasp eater hidden and safe while the others were "bathed and brought". The chamber hatch is sealed as Agatha notices she has nowhere to strap herself in. Dimo grabs her and holds her against him, over her objections, as the tube fires. Agatha activates her device and tells her friends to jump. They do, just before an electric shock knocks out everyone whose feet remain on the floor. However, the revenants and guests are all knocked out. Agatha explains what happened and then the king is announced. Othar recognizes that they are under the Red Cathedral. Gil describes the difficulties of constructing the real-time corridors and informs Othar that he is trying to reach Tarvek Sturmvoraus, who is visible in a region of frozen time nearby. As he and Othar discuss Tarvek, a Wulfenbach soldier reports to Gil that Chronobore Outer Base is under attack. Andronicus departs with Prende, sealing the tunnel behind him and, possibly not coincidentally, flooding the crypt with molten stone. The party hurriedly prepares to leave, taking everything from the crypt they can carry; unfortunately Madwa has escaped, taking Prende's lantern with her. They rush off to warn everyone about the pending arrival of the armed and dangerous Storm King. Taking advantage of the confusion, Larana and Aldin sneak off on their own. Today's page contains filler art: a drawing of Agatha riding the Mighty Mechaturkey and below that the raw pencil art for the cover of the next, just concluded, volume of Girl Genius. The colored version appeared . Tarvek objects very strongly to being brought back to his family and attempts to resist, clubbing Obsidian with a wrench, which shatters, and kicking him in the throat. Although Tarvek's attacks have no effect, Obsidian angrily and brutally responds, exhibit amazing strength by lifting Tarvek with one hand and flinging him across a large room. After saying that he just wants to be nice, Obsidian lifts up the unconscious man by the hair and repeats that Tavek is going back to his family. Larana again declares her love for Jim, while her father reacts with shock and fury. As he begins to shout an order, Larana's father is knocked out by a very accurate throw by Jim, who uses his vision-enhancing helmet as a weapon. Larana takes out Velix with an elbow to the face and declares that she is usurping her father's rule, commanding his forces to stand down. An unseen speaker suggests that Larana's words be heeded. Jim thinks Aldin and Larana are in love, but realizes that he loves Larana. He confronts Aldin with what he has "discovered". Aldin is flabbergasted by how wrong Jim is and tries to explain what is really going on, but is interrupted. Agatha is upset. She thinks she was influenced by her embedded Lucrezia personality when she released the Muse of Time. Aldin, who is studying the notebook Van Rijn left in the Hermitorium, thinks he knows why the Muse of Time appeared there so often, and the reason has something to do with Agatha's family. Jenka, Füst enter the shaft. Jenka greets Boris happily, apparently she and Dimo are in on the King-napping plot. More explosives are used to cave in the passages behind them, blocking pursuers. Boris addresses a mysterious princess tells Agatha she may complicate things. As the wall collapses, a man emerges. He definitely doesn't look happy, or even completely human. His skin is light greenish yellow and seems to glow. Various parts of his armor and accoutrements also glow in different colors, as well as emitting smoke and vapor from various pipes and vents. He carries a large mace, which is stained with something that looks like dried blood. So this is why Prende wouldn't accept a new Storm King—the old one sill lives! Vanamonde has also been extracted from the time freeze and is being revived, but without all the screaming. He hears someone else screaming, however, and worries about it. Bang tells him the screamer is Tarvek; he is in such great pain because he is being treated for poisoning as well being revived from time freeze. The thing in the glass vessel, now clearly visible, exults in its returning strength and gloats over the mummified remains in the chair, then vanishes. As the vessel implodes, Agatha and Colette react in astonishment. From a book Aldin has found they learn that the creature that disappeared was the Muse of Time, trapped by Van Rijn, the mummy in the chair. The Grand Curators enthuse about Agatha's wasp eater so much that Agatha worriedly tells them she needs it. A deputy archivist is outraged that menaces such as Agatha, Colette, and, worst of all, Hoffman were allowed into the Library. He demands to know what could justify this, but is silenced when shown one of the newly discovered, miniature Hive Engines. Gil rushes into the room where Bang had been watching over Tarvek, just in time to prevent her from killing the last remaining Librarian. But others have escaped, taking Tarvek with them. Gil questions the survivor, who won't speak to him, but who is quickly convinced to talk by Spüdna. Larana protests that she does not want Jim killed, but her father has trouble comprehending this. To explain, Larana declares that she loves "the surface worlder". Jim reacts with surprise and joy. Dimo, thinking Larana means him, tries to let her down easy. Othar tries to spring into ill-planned action and is stopped by Gil, who starts giving orders to prepare for the attack and possible collapse of the real-time tunnels. As everyone puts on their "time suits," Gil tells Othar that he plans to extract Tarvek and escape, even though it might place Tarvek in danger. Dimo continues his history lesson: The Heterodyne Boys didn't want the Jägermonsters around because they tarnished the Boys' hero image. The Old Heterodynes didn't care what people thought; they liked being bad guys and so did the Jägers. Dimo thinks that Agatha resembles her father and uncle more than the old family and suggests that perhaps she should avoid having Jägers around, too. Agatha and party are trapped in a net by the Aruguron King and his minions. A raging Gil violently interrogates a Librarian, demanding to be told Tarvek's whereabouts. The Librarian says Tarvek has been sent on and defiantly declares Gil will never find him. Bracing himself for more retaliation, the Librarian is left alone, but when he finally starts to relax, Bang reappears and boots him in the head. Comedy is all about timing! Colette greets the King and tells him about the revenants. The King reveals that he is well aware of the infestation and is willingly serving the Other. No only that, he is helping to ensure that the rest of the world worship her as well. He orders his mooks to seize Agatha and company. Now Agatha recognizes Jenka, who reassures her about Füst and explains that even though she doesn't look and sound like a Jäger right now, she still is one. Jenka seems a little sensitive about her lack of fangs, but says that being able to pass as a ordinary human being is another way of defending Mechanicsburg, the Heterodynes, and the Jägers themselves. Agatha and company try to render the revenants unconscious. After all, they aren't responsible for their actions—not to mention that killing all those people would be a diplomatic nightmare. However, this plan isn't going well. Agatha wants to try something, but she needs a hammer. The Master took Hoffmann's away, but Dimo shows he can use his head in a pinch. Agatha and Co. are walking along a corridor in the Corbettite crypts. Who knows what might be behind the doors they're passing? But there's no time to explore! They need to track down Zardeliv for his help in finding Prende's Lantern and his knowledge of the nature of time. Unfortunately, as they turn a corner, they encounter relatively fresh blood and dead bodies, including Zardeliv's. Tarvek has been removed from Mechanicsburg's frozen time zone and is being revived. He wakes up screaming at the top of his lungs. Both Doctor Rothfuss and Gil are pleased, but perhaps for different reasons. Violetta is sure there's a trap in the crypt; Larana wonders if she's right. Suddenly, Madwa Korel, who has snuck past them all into the crypt, cries out, startling everyone. The seemingly inert Prende has sprung into action, grabbing Madwa by both arms. Prende holds Madwa suspended above her head and quietly commands her to stop. The passage of centuries has definitely taken its toll on Prende. Her clothing is tattered and falling apart. Her wig is disheveled and coming off. Her face is cracked and one of her eyes is dark and appears useless. However, she obviously hasn't lost her speed and strength. Agatha and party continue to flee the Corbettite crypts under the Library, avoiding traps and battling clanks as they go. Jim is depressed because he thinks Larana loves Aldin. He asks Agatha for reassurance, but—due to a misunderstanding—she makes him feel worse. Higgs asks Vole what he is going to do now and Vole's answers reveal that he has undergone mental changes at least as significant as his physical ones. Not only does he no longer care much about clothing but he is not even sure if he wants to fight any more. Surrounded by an electrical aura and with his eyes glowing completely white, Andronicus cries out that he can sense his sword. In Paris, Martellus is trying on his Storm King costume in a room with a sword mounted on the wall. The sword erupts into electrical coruscations, badly startling Martellus and his servant. Andronicus believes when he finds his sword he will find Van Rijn, and newly recovered sword in hand, crush him. The Librarians unseal the Corbettite crypts, which entails removing an enormous block of stone and opening an elaborate vault door, among other things. Jon, Agatha, and Co. discuss why the Corbettites installed so many traps and why Zardeliv hid himself in such a dangerous place. Andronicus is disoriented and extremely angry; he literally slavers with rage at one point. He questions Prende about the whereabouts of the Muses and Van Rijn. From his questions and statements, it is clear that he is completely unaware of the passage of the last two hundred years or so and that the last thing he remembers is facing Van Rijn while in the heat of a battle which he was sure he was about to win. Then Van Rijn did something with one of his machines and Andronicus suddenly found himself n Prende's crypt. He feels that Van Rijn betrayed him and stole his sword and that Muses cannot be trusted. Agatha is greeted by a lovely, glamorous woman who seems to know all about her, but whom she doesn't recognize at all. Agatha's amazement increases as their conversation continues, and she finally demands to know who the woman really is. The woman is disappointed that Agatha doesn't trust her; fortunately she has someone to vouch for her. Gil fills Othar in on recent history, especially the return of the Other and the proliferation of the new type of revenant. Othar asks why Gil's father isn't doing something. Gil explains that his father is frozen in time, and that he thinks his father trapped himself deliberately to prevent the Other from gaining control of him and using him to control the Empire. Dimo was around when the Storm King was originally active, and Agatha asks if the man who was just released was really him. Dimo is not sure , but he thinks so, especially since the alleged Storm King has the original Storm King's mace; and apparently is off to find the Storm King's sword. The Storm King's mace and sword are weapons of legend and objects of dread to the Jägers. The line of boats carrying the party approaches an extremely tall wall, down which plunges a waterfall, coming out of a large opening high in the wall. The opening is flanked by large statues holding books. The space behind the opening emits a bright glow and above it is an inscription in Latin. The party leave the boat and all enter a large elevator, which is powered by the falls. While ascending, Agatha discovers that Larana and the Librarians know her mother is the Other. Suddenly, they jerk to a stop. It's inspection time. Larana welcomes complications, and Agatha. She invite Agatha to escape to the Library with them and Agatha accepts. Hoffman recognizes Larana and greets her; she reacts with tongue-tied embarrassment. Zeetha, apparently reacting to Larana's present and Hoffman's earlier complete inability to speak coherent sentences in the presence of their beloved , says, "Everybody in Paris can't be like this, I mean, I've seen kids." Madwa Korel and Dio Zardeliv are standing in front of a large vault door with a fiendishly complicated locking mechanism designed by Van Rijn, discussing how to open it. They seem to know each other very well, since they are on a first name basis. Dio is stumped and wishes he had Van Rijn's notebook; Madwa has no helpful suggestions. Making an attempt on the vault is extremely dangerous; a Smoke Knight named Bartleby has already been fatally incinerated during a failed attempt to open it. Agatha explains to Jenka that her weasel's reaction means the assassin is a revenant. The assassin tries to kill the weasel, but is thwarted by a kick to the head from Zeetha. As the weasel tries to escape, more and more of the party goers are revealed to be revenants, bent on killing it, until the weasel, Agatha, and her companions are surrounded. Van and Tarvek get their first look at what has happened to Mechanicsburg since it was frozen in time. The first thing they notice are the colossal statues of Agatha, at least twelve times her actual height. Othar struggles with Gil, trying to rescue Agatha, but finds out he has been frozen in time in Mechanicsburg for two and a half years and Agatha is now in Paris. He takes it well, then Gil tells him there are other problems. Aldin offers to talk to Larana for his brother, but turns out to have an ulterior motive; Aldin and Larana are up to something they don't want anyone else to know about, especially "the Lady Heterodyne." Aldin hopes to use his brother's distraction over the upcoming marriage to keep him from noticing their clandestine activities. Meanwhile, Agatha warns the others about Corbettite traps, to their dismay. An envoy from Madame Desmana arrives; two actually, an elderly man, Monsieur Hax, and a young girl, Mélisse. They bring a copy of Agatha's book on the wasp weasels. Gil is eager to purchase it and Mélisse drives a hard bargain. Agatha stands before the entrance to the Corbettite crypts and starts to say something. She is interrupted by the Mini-Beast and Portable Castle, who tell everyone else that they must come along and guard Agatha with their lives. Franz is shown sitting down, holding a crate of rocket-shaped fireworks, which he is devouring with every appearance of great delight and satisfaction. Agatha is running away from him at full speed, looking extremely anxious. As Jim and Aldin's fight with the snake clank continues, Dimo tells Agatha that the reason there are no Jägers in the Heterodyne Boys stories is that Bill and Barry didn't want them around, since ordinary people hated them. When Barry caught the Jägers secretly watching over him and his brother, Bill ordered them all to stay in Mechanicsburg, which was why there weren't any around when the Heterodyne Boys disappeared. Dimo wishes the Jägers had disobeyed orders and been there to protect them. Andronicus uses his mace, which can emit blasts of energy, to start melting a direct path through walls and solid rock to his sword. As he starts to disappear into the molten tunnel, Prende pleads to have him take her along. Again, she tries to convince him that far more time has passed than he believes and the Van Rijn is dead. Andronicus begins to wonder if she is telling the truth and takes her with him. He then tells Agatha to take a message to her master for him; mistaking her for a servant, rather than the Heterodyne herself. Even though poisoned and badly injured, the Conservator continues fighting. Tarvek enters the bridge. Recognizing the hijackers as Smoke Knights, he angrily orders them to stop. Mr. Obsidian, having abandoned the pretense that he is a mild-mannered Librarian, enters behind Tarvek and holds a knife to his throat, ordering him to shut up. The Conservator manages to dispatch both of the remaining hijackers with impressive strength and skill, but then collapses, to Obsidian's satisfaction. The keyhole has been revealed. Agatha inserts the key, and, with a glow and a fanfare, the key unlocks the secret door in the bas relief carving, which slides open with a loud grinding noise. A large room that looks like an abandoned and untidy medieval alchemist's workshop is revealed. Jim tracks down Aldin and Larana, who are both battling a gigantic snake clank; Larana is ensnared in its coils. Jim immediately joins the fight, helping to free Larana. Aldin tells her to keep looking as he continues to fight against the clank with his brother, Jim. As everyone heads for the tubes, Agatha is surprised to see Beausoleil. He is escorting some colleagues from TPU: Moxylotyl, a former professor of Agatha's, and none other than Kaja Foglio. There are there to retrieve the Arguron King, who turns out to be Cheyenne Wright, a rogue professor from TPU who now has some explaining to do. Agatha tells Beausoleil that the Master of Paris must be warned; he says he'll take care of it. The elevator has stopped midway. A Librarian descends in a one-man car and greets Larana, telling her the rest of her hunting party has already returned. He also welcomes Colette and Agatha by name and asks the names of the others. He seems glad to see everyone…well, everyone but Hoffman, that is. He asks Hoffman to be considerate and leap to his death, but Larana won't hear of it. He grudgingly allows Hoffman to enter—under guard, just like Agatha. Larana argues with her father, telling him his alliance with the Other—"the most hated and feared power in Europa"—is a mistake. The King won't listen and tells her to cheer up; he has freed her from her "mockery of a political marriage" to the the Talpini Prince, Jim. In fact, he will subject Jim to a gruesome death via the "Grubby Grubs of Doom". Aldin reacts with shock and dismay to this, while Jim is apathetic. Three of the people responsible for hijacking the airship—holding a sword, a crossbow, and a dagger—are standing on the bridge, surrounded by the bleeding corpses of the captain and crew. While they are discussing whether the quarrel stuck in the Conservator's chest is coated with enough poison to kill him, he pulls it out and throws it with great force at his attacker, giving him an identical wound. The Conservator, looking very unwell, comments that it must have been a lot of poison. Agatha says that the Master of Paris must be warned about the Storm King. Larana agrees and gets permission to use the Library's tubes to send Agatha and company to the surface as quickly as possible. Larana and Jim seal their newly declared love with a passionate kiss and then Jim, as her consort, goes off with her to battle the Other. Jim enquires after her father's fate and discovers Larana has special plans for the ex-King. Tarvek starts to tell Gil about the wasp weasels he saved, but falls asleep before he can say much. Gil orders Bang to protect Tarvek. The final medical and technological procedures to flush the toxins from Tarvek's system and stabilize him in time are completed. He has survived physically, but what about his mind? Gil quizzes him to check. Tarvek responds with a long but coherent and pertinent rant, seeming as mentally sharp as ever. Gil is so relieved he gives him a big hug. Agatha joins Zeetha and Dimo, who are looking on as Jim and Aldin struggle with a large snake clank, not making much headway in defeating it. Agatha asks Zeetha and Dimo why they aren't helping and is told that, despite appearances, Jim and Aldin are winning. It's a technique known as "heroic freestyle" that her father and uncle were also expert in. Agatha comments that it is weird no Jägers are mentioned in the Heterodyne Boys stories, but Dimo says it really isn't. It is revealed that the Arguron King nearly succeeded in taking over the Library because some Librarians were wasped and had secretly turned against it. Fortunately, Violetta showed up with Agatha's wasp eater and revealed the traitors. Melissa whispers to Aldin, asking if he and Larana succeeded in their task. Aldin whispers back that they did and then, in a normal voice, tells her that Andronicus Valois, the Storm King, is on the loose. He and Agatha report that Andronicus looked insane and had an extremely powerful and dangerous weapon. A Librarian rushes in with news of an explosion and a draining reservoir. Agatha is sure that Andronicus is the cause. The explosion has opened up an escape route, some kind of service shaft. As the King rages at his minions to capture Agatha and Co., he is knocked out in mid-command, throwing them into confusion. Wooster recognized Wulfenbach whistle codes as he helps Agatha into the shaft, but the source turns out to be Boris Dolokhov, not Gil. Boris is the one who rendered the King unconscious and is bringing him along. Madwa screams in pain as the hand holding her left arm glows and hisses, looking much less skeletal than it did a moment ago. As Prende chastises Madwa, her arm is released, her hand and wrist withered and steaming or smoking. Something begins to violently batter the wall blocking the doorway, which threatens to give way any moment. Prende appeals to Agatha and the others for help; then, as the wall collapses, asks a question. Tavek wakes up in a strange bed, chained to a pipe. He surmises he is on an airship. A man bringing him food confirms this. Tarvek uses a fork to pick the lock on his chain and then holds it to the man's throat, demanding to know who has kidnapped him. The man mentions the Library and the Lord High Conservator. Tarvek becomes quite dismayed; he is afraid he must have an overdue book. Agatha offers to donate the Van Rijn notebook to the Library in exchange to access to its collections and is told some interesting facts. The Library is the place Lady Selnikov intended to bring the notebook; despite this it is not involved with The Storm King conspiracy, although it has a good relationship with Tarvek, at least much better than with the rest of his family. It was founded by Van Rijn. Melissa then inspects the notebook and finds secret writing Agatha missed, revealed by a certain frequency of light: the frequency of the King's Lightning. Agatha learns that she is also a prisoner for the duration of the raid just before one of the acquisitors takes his leave from Grand Curator Melissa. The departing party of Librarians and Cats is an impressive sight; Agatha realizes why they worry the Master. Agatha enquires after Zardilev and finds she has once again missed him, then she produces the Van Rijn notebook. Tarvek learns he's been frozen for over two years and that they're currently under attack. And not only that, he's the reason for the attack. However, Gil has been planting disinformation. The attackers are ambushed and Madame Beauxie, a member of the Wulfenbach forces, is exposed as a spy and arrested. In a large open space in the Library, Agatha is standing behind a blast shield, the smoke from the explosion she just set off dissipating next to her. She is being scolded by Aldin. In front of her is a large, complex mechanism that contains a cluster of instruments focused on the Van Rijn notebook. The device also has a hopper into which dingbots are dumping a great many books. The surrounding area is abuzz with activity. Violetta argues that the other Muses have accepted the new Storm King, and Agatha pleads that a town full of people can be freed by the Lantern, but Prende still refuses to let them take it. Madwa has recovered quickly and escapes, just as Malek shows up to warn them about her. Madwa attempts to steal the lantern, but Violetta knocks it out of her hand, disconnecting the cables. A skeletal reaches through the opening in the blocked door and grabs Madwa's left wrist. Tarvek is astonished to see the Lord High Conservator appear. The Conservator states that the Other has a stronghold in the North and the Librarians are doing everything they can to fight her, including kidnapping Tarvek, since they believe his knowledge will help in the fight. Tarvek responds that they could have just asked for his help. The Conservator replies that since Tarvek was being held by Gil, they couldn't ask, since the Librarians fears Gil is under the Other's control and can't be trusted. The mystery woman's "voucher" turns out to be a dressed-up, clean-shaven, straight-standing Dimo, who is very uncomfortable with his new look. Dimo introduces the mystery woman as Jenka, and says Agatha met her a couple of years ago, but Agatha can't recall ever seeing her before. But Agatha seems to remember Füst, although she mistakes the bear for furniture at first. The discovery of the new type of wasp engine triggers a raid by the Acquisition Department of the Library—and they mean business! Among the equipment requisitioned are bomb launchers and flame throwers, along with a full clowder of fully-equipped Library Cats, led by the Catmaster, who is surprised that his cats have taken a liking to Agatha . Colette is dismayed to find she is being held as a "guest" until the raid is over. The raiding party prepares to set off with a rousing cheer. Hoffman thinks he hears music. Dimo and Jenka rush off. Larana, egged on by Zeetha, tries to tell Hoffman how she feels about him, but she is interrupted and she never gets the words out. Agatha scolds the Mini-Beast and Portable Castle for interrupting. She intended to say that no one had to come with her if they didn't want to. Zeetha says everyone is eager to go but Aldin begs to differ. Jiminez Hoffmann is delighted his brother is coming. Agatha starts to give a pep talk, but the effect is spoiled when they come across a bunch of dead guys. Agatha and Aldin, who have been joined by Colette, enter the King's Reading Chamber, a highly-decorated, dome-shaped room. The ceiling panels are painted with scenes of the Storm King's exploits and a large part of the wall is taken up with a bas relief sculpture of the Storm King and the Muses. Colette says even if there is a lock hidden in the sculpture and they find it, they don't have the key. However, Agatha thinks she has it. The notebook is surrounded by a glowing electrical discharge and some of the pages begin to split open, revealing additional pages with previously hidden information. Hoffman touches the book and gets zapped. Agatha then safely points out that some of the new pages show designs for a complex lock and a sculpture. Aldin thinks this might be a clue to the location of Van Rijn's Hermitorium and he and Agatha go off to look for it. Tarvek says that since the Library has acted openly against the Wulfenbach Empire, Gil will be coming after them and won't be in a good mood. The Conservator is confident that the Library is well protected and that Gil has been sent on a wild goose chase while Tarvek is being taken to a secret base in Ghent. Tarvek points out that they are actually heading towards Paris. As the Conservator rushes on to the airship's bridge, angrily demanding to know what's going on, he is shot in the chest with an arrow or quarrel. As they travel through the crypts, Agatha marvels at how large they are. Violetta notices that a wall trap has been sprung and worries about her fellow Smoke Knights. But as the wall rises, a very large threatening clank appears. Agatha thinks they're probably OK, since they sprung the next trap too. Violetta thinks she and Agatha should run. Hoffman lies on his back with his eyes covered; he is in pain. Everyone worries about him; Agatha isn't sure if his eyes are OK. Larana blames herself for Hoffman getting hurt, but he says injuries are part and parcel of the hero business. In fact he demands to be allowed to keep fighting until Violetta sedates him. Agatha assumes that Aldin will be taking his brother home and offers to lend him Dimo, but Aldin reluctantly says they'll stay with Agatha's group. Tarvek takes a bath. Bang wants to watch, but Gil says, "No!" Tarvek doesn't blame Gil for the Empire's collapse and agrees that the Queen of the Dawn is Lucrezia. Tarvek wonders why the wasp weasels have haven't been more helpful and Gil asks, "What weasels?" Jim, Aldin, and Larana finally defeat the Snake Clank… to applause. Jim tries to congratulate Larana, but she rushes off to talk to Aldin. They have a whispered conversation about the mysterious object they have been secretly searching for. Aldin tells Larana he found it already; she is so delighted she happily hugs him. Jim witnesses all this from afar and isn't happy about it. The inside of the vault looks like a long disused storage chamber. Shelves on either side of the room, various niches, and even the floor, are full of odds and ends; books, vessels, devices, as well as storage chests and boxes. On a multi-sided columnar platform, slightly wider than and nearly as tall as a man, is a bell jar covering a seemingly levitating orb perhaps six inches in diameter with irregular glowing areas. Two cables emerge from the sides of the bell jar, apparently connected to a lantern, which appears black, but is emitting rays of light. Behind the platform is a bricked up doorway, with a small trapezoidal opening at the top. The lantern is suspended from the lintel of the doorway, within the opening, which allows beams from the lantern to penetrate into the space beyond. The most striking feature of the room, however, is the clank sitting in front of the column, propped up against it, seemingly completely inert. It appears to be one of the Van Rijn Muses; Agatha thinks it's Prende. The still figure of Prende makes the room seem like a crypt. Everyone is surprised and intrigued by the contents of the room, but Violetta warns them not to go in. Violetta joins Zeetha at the rear of the party and tells her that rogue Smoke Knight Madwa Korel, who is linked to the Other, faked Zardeliv's death. Violetta also explains that all Smoke Knights have standing orders from Grandmother to drop what they're doing to hunt down Madwa. Zeetha realizes Violetta's words are not meant just for her, as she notices two other Smoke Knights who are following them and listening. The other two Smoke Knights realize Violetta has already spotted them and are surprised and none too pleased by this. Gil isn't interested in finding out the reasons the Librarians had for abducting Tarvek, he just wants Tarvek back. And Gil is ready to use extreme measures to achieve his goal. Bang is surprised and pleased by this development. Entering the Library, Larana hands over her still unconscious father to Osquith, a Librarian. Agatha is greeted by the Grand Curators Solera , who seem delighted to see her. They explain that ordinarily she wouldn't be allowed in, but her work on wasp eaters will be so helpful against the Other that it makes up for the danger she poses. Still, they'd like to see some proof that it's true. Fortunately, Agatha's weasel chooses that moment to perch on her head and the Soleras are convinced. Agatha is surprised she missed the shine writing and asks what else she missed. It turns out to be a lot! Melissa says the Librarians don't have time to help ferret out the rest of the secrets in the notebook, so Agatha decides to try herself. She is assigned an assistant and asks him for coffee. Looking for the source of the voice, Agatha spins a chair around, revealing a mummified corpse. Briefly shocked, Agatha hears the voice calls out again and realizes that it's coming from above her. A large vessel, apparently made of dark red glass and hung from chains, is the source of the voice. All that can be seen within it, very dimly, is a head and hand. Agatha seems to recognize the situation as an experiment gone wrong and thinks she can fix it. Having stopped to eat and rest, Agatha and party break camp. Malek has returned and reports that Zardeliv has found the vault he is looking for and Varpa is watching him. To her dismay, Larana learns that Jim is nearly blind. Aldin holds out hope of a cure in the future, but for now Jim and Agatha have built a "seeing aid" from clank parts. Jim declares he can see better than ever, with new visual powers, including x-ray vision. The unseen speaker turns out to be a member of a large party of Librarians who have the Arguron King and his allies covered by a wide variety of weapons. He urges them to cheer for Queen Larana and everyone joins in, or at least tries to. At a party in the palace of the Arguron King, a Talpini official requests a royal audience for Agatha and company. A courtier replies rather scornfully, "We shall see." Several things surprise Agatha: the fact the the palaces of the Talpini and Arguron Kings are so close together , wondering how such close neighbors could be at war , and the fact both kingdoms are considered a secret . The palace is crowded with diplomats who have heard about the wedding . Aldin relates what he learned from Van Rijn's notes: Agatha's ancestor Robur Heterodyne experimented with time. The experiment summoned "angels" that frightened him so badly he smashed the device that called them up. When that didn't get rid of them, he asked the Corbettites for help, promising that, in exchange, he would never bother them in the future. The Corbettites took the device and the "angels" away, and the device ended up in the Incorruptible Library. Mister Obsidian is unfazed when Tarvek confronts him with the murder of the Lord High Conservator. Tarvek believes, since Obsidian obviously wants him alive, that the knife he's holding is an empty threat. Obsidian proves him wrong by stabbing Tarvek in the arm. Tarvek then discovers that Obsidian is working for his family and is taking Tarvek to them, to be the new Storm King. Worried by Zardeliv's silence, Dimo discovers the professor has been spirited away and replaced with a dummy. Madwa again! The Smoke Knights marvel that they hadn't heard anything about the Storm King still being alive and wonder if the Order and Tarvek knew. The Auguron King forces Agatha and her party to dress in extremely skimpy "barbarian-style" outfits, making them "fit to adorn" his court. Agatha and Aldin are mortified and angry, but Jim and Zeetha don't seem bothered, and Dimo is happy to be out of his fancy clothes. Larana is horrified that her father the King has attacked the Library, but he and Madame Velix gloat over their plans to take over not only the Library and other "inferior subterranean realms" but Paris itself! Jim and Aldin open the vault; Jim using his prosthetic "super vision" to disarm the traps and direct Aldin, who handles the fiddly bits using his safe-cracking skills. Zardeliv is still unconscious. Based on the reaction of Agatha's wasp eater, he hasn't been wasped. Violetta disparages her own skills, relative to the other Smoke Knights, and Agatha gives her a pep talk: Isn't she the Smoke Knight who walked out of Castle Heterodyne? Agatha, Zeetha and Violetta prepare for the expedition to the Library crypts then join the others, who are also ready to set off. Gil realizes that the Incorruptible Library is really behind the previous attack, which was a feint, to throw them off guard. The real attack is still to come, with Tarvek as the target. As Gil springs into action, ordering his troops to follow, the alarm sounds. Bang had to call for help? She must be furious! Aldin tells Agatha it makes sense that Robur's device would end up in the Library, which used to be a Corbettite stronghold. In fact, the Library grew out of Van Rijn's work with the Monks, studying and neutralizing their collection of dangerous artefacts, during which Van Rijn found Robur's device, still producing strange effects, in the crypts there. Agatha wonders if Lady Selnikov was looking in the wrong crypts. Seemingly overcome by deja vu, Agatha goes into Spark mode. Aldin assisting, she starts reconfiguring circuits to cause a power surge. Ignoring the Portable Castle's misgivings, she throws the final switch, causing the red glass vessel to glow with golden light and emit a loud, ominous hum. When Colette questions her actions, Agatha suddenly seems confused. As Librarians rush to aid in Agatha's decoding efforts, Hoffmann encounters Aldin, who is not happy to see him; it turns out Agatha is using a research engine originally built by Hoffmann. The Librarians have gotten carried away, breaking out forbidden books to be fed into the engine, and Aldin says everyone will get into trouble and it's all Hoffmann's fault, as usual. Vole belches hugely. He has been eating an enormous meal, with Higgs looking on, but he's full. Hoffmann asks Agatha about her progress deciphering the notebook. She has learned how to build a cow, a lot about the Muses, and a lot of recipes, but nothing about the Muse's Lantern or time manipulation; so it is hard to understand why so many people want the notebook, let alone are willing to kill for it. All that's left is the cover. Based on its appearance, Agatha tries electrifying it and something happens. Prende questions Agatha and her party, ignoring Madwa, who she considers a trespasser. When Madwa tries to speak, Prende knocks her out with a jolt of electricity. Agatha and Violetta explain they want the Lantern to help free the new Storm King, currently trapped in time-frozen Mechanicsburg, by unfreezing the city. But Prende refuses, stating emphatically that the Lantern must not be moved and anyone claiming to be the new Storm King must be wrong. Agatha objects that what they just saw didn't look like the Muse of Time. But there's a lot of new information in the book Aldin has found. Van Rijn saw her repeatedly and she had a new appearance every time. She seemed somehow ageless and outside the normal flow of time; so, near the end of his life, Van Rijn decided to capture her to acquire the secret of immortality. It didn't work out well. The other two Smoke Knights agree that Madwa is the culprit and agreed to help track her down. Aldin freaks out when he is told that the Knights have been following them since the Paris Black Market. Violetta states that the newcomers are much better Smoke Knights than she is, and explains why they were following Agatha and the others. Not so fast, the body doesn't belong to Zardeliv! It is Eugene Proutin, a member of his expedition; it has just been disguised to look like Zardeliv's corpse. Part of the disguise, and the probable cause of death, is extremely rare ghost spider venom, which makes the corpse swell and look fatter. Are people after Zardeliv's life or do they just want everyone to think he's dead? Who are these people? And if Zardeliv is alive, where is he? The Kings minions keep attacking and Agatha and Co. keep fighting them off, but the attackers keep coming. Zeetha asks if Agatha has anything else up her sleeve… that is, in her pocket to help, but she's out of pockets. The King gloats that there is no hope of escape. Suddenly, a large explosion occurs. Jenka gives Agatha a message from Castle Heterodyne: She's got to get back home and remove the time stop from Mechanicsburg ASAP, otherwise bad things will happen! Jenka and Dimo are also at the party to hunt. Jon explains the pneumatic tubes are like being shot out of a cannon, but not as much fun . Agatha isn't sure if using the tubes is a worthwhile risk, but then a large blast rocks the area where they stand, and she changes her mind. Dio and Madwa are attacked with knockout gas. Dio collapses, but Madwa escapes. The attackers turn out to be Violetta and Malek, along with Agatha and the others. Agatha wonders how Madwa escaped, but is told the dreadful fate of those learn the secrets of the Smoke Knights. Jim thinks his prosthetic eyes will allow him to open the vault and Agatha celebrates another triumph of Science! Today's page is filler art: a full page illustration showing Castle Heterodyne covered with snow. A man has just finished shoveling the walkway leading to the Castle and is sitting down, looking up in dismay as snow starts to fall again. A woman holding a mug of something hot stands next to him. Agatha doesn't think she is as bad as the Old Heterodynes or as good as the Heterodyne Boys were, but that doesn't matter. All of Mechanicsburg is counting on Agatha and her companions to save them and she won't abandon any of the monsters of the family, including the Jägers, or let them quit, just because they have a bad public image. The Portable Castle closes secret door behind them, for privacy. Startled at first, Agatha and Colette approve, while Aldin is uneasy. Agatha wonders why some lights are still after so long. The Portable Castle plugs into the circuit and discovers that the lights are indicators for a system designed to run for hundreds of years. As they wonder what is being powered, a whispery, eerie voice calls to them. Delighted to face some action, Hoffman rushes to battle the clank, but gets hit in the face by a spray of acid. Larana goes beserk, destroying the clank with grenades, while Agatha and Violetta treat Hoffman. Larana keeps setting off explosions until Dimo, worried she'll bring the roof down, stops her. Agatha and Co. have come across several skeletonized corpses in a trap; the remains of a previous expedition. Violetta says the remains can't be Zardeliv's party; they've been dead too long. Jiminez notices that Aldin is remaining calm, and is surprised. Aldin discovers that Jiminez is the moligarchy prince that Larana Chroma is supposed to marry and is displeased. Everyone searches the details of the bas relief carving for the keyhole, but the crevices are full of gunk. The Portable Castle tricks the Mini-Beast into cleaning out a promising area by startling it into emitting a gout of flame with a swift kick to the rear. But Agatha is grateful and the Mini-Beast forgives the Portable Castle. A young woman in what appears to be a military uniform is standing, sipping a cup of tea. The hand not holding the tea cup is supporting a very long rifle, keeping it balanced upright with its butt on the ground. She stands in a ruined city, inside a building with stained-glass windows, one of which has been blown out completely, along with part of the wall. A large three-legged clank or vehicle, which she has probably just shot, is collapsing.
Quotes	Agatha: "But—maybe Lady Selnikov was looking in the wrong crypts. Maybe what she was looking for is here." Aldin: "Lady Heterodyne—here's something interesting…" Aldin: "There may be a more immediate problem, Madame Curator. We found Prende's crypt. The Lantern was indeed there, and it was being used to imprison…well…he claimed to be Andronicus Valois." Violetta: "I have no idea what's going on here, but the 'Other' is involved." Larana: "I've agreed to a political marriage with a Prince of the Moligarchy. They're still free, so I really need the alliance. If I'm going to save my people—" Nurse: "There! How do you feel now, Herr Van Mekkhan?" Aldin: "It…it could be just a deep part of the relief…" Jon: "Oh, yes! Now, ordinarily, library protocol would dictate that someone as dangerous as you are would be denied entry—" Castle: "What?! Who dares?! Playing with people's lives is your prerogative!" Aldin: "Um—we—we are expressly forbidden to detonate explosives in the main stacks!" Agatha: "But I thought—I mean—aren't you a Jäger? Sorry, but it's just…your teeth…your voice…" King: "Rejoice, daughter! The secrets of the Immortal Library are now mine to command!" Hoffamnn: "Hey, there! Has my engine been helpful?" Agatha: "Yes, I've looked it over. Deadfalls, swinging blades, hidden rooms—what were they thinking?" Zeetha: "Wow! I can't wait to see what the sword's like!" Gil: "You wanted to watch him. Now you can. You're his new bodyguard." Agatha: "…He was so afraid of being killed that he hid in a poorly-mapped labyrinth full of traps?" Jenka: "Hee! I serve the House of Heterodyne in many ways, My Lady! Naturally, I require many faces! We met back in the charming little town of Zumzum!" Othar: "Ah! The young Prince redeemed from evil by the love of the Lady Heterodyne." "Because it is Thanksgiving here in the USA, we are giving our artists the holiday off. Here is the Mighty Mechaturkey to bring your our warm greetings and best wishes for the day!" Tarvek: "Well, you're obviously not from Gil, so who—" Agatha: "Is that really him? Andronicus Valois? The first Storm King?!" Castle: "…And if she dies instead of you—you will sorely regret it!" Hoffmann: "Larana! Yeah! Look! We built this completely from stuff we found down here! That old clank had really weird antique photo receptors! —And see: we've got a dial on the side— I can zoom between macro and microscopic vision! We even gave it different filters! It can do infrared, ultraviolet, and… and… uhhhh…" Thing: "Toooo laaate… Ssstill…to ssseeee humaansss afffter sssooo looonng… Issss gooood— Gooood bye…" Gil: "No. In fact he's your responsibility for now." Larana: "We're escaping to the Library. I assume you're coming along?" Tarvek: "Wait—what? No, the existent weasels. Surely, they've sent you some by now!" Aldin: "That's here. Wait…a lock? Maybe…Van Rijn's Hermitorium!" Violetta: "The sword was forged by Van Rijn himself. He named it 'Archimedes' Lever.' The stories say the King was never without it—that Van Rijn 'bound it to his soul.' The stories get kind of fanciful, though…" Bang: "Ooh! Hey! I know this great trick—where you put a sleeping guy's head in a bucket of water—" Jon: "Hmm. It's hard to say—but we have rather made a study of such things. Let me see…aside from the shine writing, I see evidence of phasing ink, momentum writing, fourth dimensional cryptograms, and lemon juice— And that's just Master van Rijn's pages. Everyone else no doubt used their own clever ways. I see you yourself favor a variant of Tarsus Beetle's Intarsia Script." Jon: "Here we are. Now, normally, we keep this area sealed off. In addition to anything that may still be sealed inside—the crypts themselves are far too dangerous to leave accessible." Jon: "…There was an assassin. She was one of the sub-librarians. We're still not sure if she was the only one— So he wanted to clear out for a while." Aldin: "The Muse of Time—according to Van Rijn, it appeared here a lot. I think I may have found the reason why. And, um…it seems to involve the Heterodynes, actually." Aldin: "Tch—You are not! I've hear all your ridiculous scenarios where Colette Voltaire 'has to marry you to save Paris—'" Larana: "Father, listen! I don't want him killed at all!" Hoffmann : "Aldin! There you are! What are you doing?" Spüdna : "Ahhh—you're scared. I can tell. So many people you knew, killed— Terrible. Yes, so terrible." Dimo: "Hy neffer saw de Storm King up close, und he alvays has a helmet—but dot guy had the Sturmvoraus noze und de Von Blitzengaard voice, und he gots Smasher—dot demned mace de Storm King used to wave around all de time—zo it's probably him, yah. Hy've seen krezier tings." Gil: "You wouldn't believe the number of attacks and infiltration attempts we've had lately—all because of you. Some simply don't want me to retrieve you—some seem to be just waiting—presumably to spirit you away once I have. Besides the one working for your dear cousin, —I have no idea who they represent." "And now, a message from our sponsor…" "HRAAAAGH!" "Happy New Year! Spüdna: "'Everybody Wants to Talk'—Extremis Press. A vanity project from my youth, I confess." "Thank you for reading Girl Genius!" Messenger : "Madame Curator! There has been some kind of steam explosion in the north cavern! The whole reservoir is draining!" Agatha: "'Master safe cracker?' Really? That's an interesting skill for a librarian…" Aldin: "I can't believe this! People have been looking for…for centuries—and you—" Aldin: "When you've been captured as often as I have, you develop an interest in locks and escapology." Muse of Time: "Aaah! I feel power returning to my limbs…such a feeling! Well done! Oh, this is glorious! Hee! You can always count on Sparks to meddle with things they don't understand! Isn't that right, you presumptuous old lecher? You thought you could catch me, and now look at you! Ha!" Violetta: "It was supposed to be so sharp it could 'cut the day out of the night—' and I have no idea what that means, either." Zeetha: "Hee. I'm surprised you're not busting down the doors!" Spüdna: "No! Herr Baron, the man is terrifying! He…he made me reconsider my calling!" Hoffman: "Ah! So—you finally hear the call of adventure, eh?" Gil: "We've manage to extend corridors of real time into the city. They're highly unstable. Don't touch the walls. —But the time bubble becomes impenetrable as we approach its center. We can't get near this area from the surface, so we tunneled up with mole machines. It took us months to map a safe route beneath the city." Hoffmann: "My—but I thought you guys were going to destroy it!" [Violetta holds up a stiff cutout of Madwa Korel's silhouette with a very realistic image of Madwa on it.] Agatha: "When I re-route these circuits—it will cause a surge in power—" Mystery Woman: "Of course! I am the head of the Mechanicsburg Diplomatic Corps!" King: "I…I don't understand what you are saying…" Vole: "It felt like Hy vos fightink in a bad dream—all slow-like, but so mad dot Hy couldn't schtop. Like Hy vos fightink for hundreds ov years. Und Hy could feel effery minute ov it. Hy means, sure, Hy likes a goot fight, yah—but—but dis vos bad fightink. Und now—now Hy dun know if Hy feels like fightink enny more. Veird, huh?" Agatha: "I have a diplomatic corps?—But Mechanicsburg is—" Violetta: "But—he's a direct descendent! Even the other Muses acknowledge him!" Melissa: "Ho—they also say that about young ladies—" Gil: "Tarvek Sturmvoraus. He was brought here. Where is he?" DuPree: "—And it's where they make those chocolates with the mimmoth centers!" Aldin: "Well, he certainly didn't seem sane! He thought he was still fighting Van Rijn!" [Now, clean, fed, and fully dressed, they join the others.] Aldin: "It's okay—that snake clank knocked me into a shelf of reliquaries—and the damned thing fell right into my lap—which is so typical… Anyway, it's safely stowed in my pocket—and we're free to leave without further hilarity." Van: "Ah—that's not going to happen to me, is it?" Agatha: "Enough! Yes, this will be dangerous, but if Professor Zardeliv's expedition made it—so can we! Of course, that's a rather big 'if…'" Gil: "Exactly! So I need to get Sturmvoraus out quickly, so we can escape!" Zeetha: "Hey, Agatha—what do you think is in all these vaults we're skipping?" Agatha: "Well, I did find some hidden information—but I completely missed this. What else is in there?" Aldin: "You're right! That's Eugene Proutin! He was part of Doctor Zardeliv's team—but…Proutin wasn't that heavy…and his hair…but that is him! I'm sure of it!" Othar: "You want to bring him out—into a potential death trap?" Violetta: "Because this was done by a rogue Smoke Knight. Madwa Korel." Obsidian: "'Alive' does not necessarily mean 'unharmed,' Highness." Gil: "No! Those bookbinders think they can just come in here and abduct people? After all the trouble I've gone to? I've obviously done too much talking and not enough damage! We're getting him back!" Mook Man: "How do we 'Stop' and 'Get them?' This is so confusing!" Agatha: "Listen. That sound means the mechanism is getting ready to reset. If this trap got them, then presumably nothing past it will have been tripped…" Bang: "This is weird—you're still talking, and I'm actually still listening!" Agatha : "Hey, guys—jump!" Agatha : "Hoffmann! I need your hammer!" Agatha : "No! No! I can fix this!" Agatha : "Violetta! Zeetha!" Agatha : "What?" Agatha : "Yeek!" Agatha or Colette: "What?!" Agatha: "'Distract him?'" Agatha: "Ah. That'll be him now." Agatha: "Ah." Agatha: "And x-ray." Agatha: "But—what are you doing here?" Agatha: "Captured?" Agatha: "Dimo! No! The pressure! I'll squash you!" Agatha: "Er—right." Agatha: "Er—yes, please." Agatha: "Hello!" Agatha: "He—you mean—" Agatha: "Hold on. Who exactly are you, really?" Agatha: "How's that?" Agatha: "I am. I think I've been used." Agatha: "I can't believe it!" Agatha: "I have a—" Agatha: "I thought you'd use your metal hand!" Agatha: "I'm not talking about myself!" Agatha: "In here? It could really be anything." Agatha: "Is everything ready?" Agatha: "It fits!" Agatha: "It's…familiar…" Agatha: "It…imploded!" Agatha: "Nnnn—" Agatha: "Oh, perfect." Agatha: "Oh, well, I—" Agatha: "Oh. Ah…this is a list of books…" Agatha: "Oh?" Agatha: "Really…" Agatha: "The assassin! He's a revenant!" Agatha: "Uh—" Agatha: "Wah!" Agatha: "Wait— When—" Agatha: "Well, I don't have a lot of time." Agatha: "Well, it'll be safe here, won't it?" Agatha: "Well, that is what I'm working on…" Agatha: "What? " Agatha: "What?" Agatha: "Why are they following us, anyway?" Agatha: "Wow. That's pretty nasty. Yech." Agatha: "Yeah…" Agatha: "Yeek! Professor Moxylotyl!" Agatha: "Yesss… I have met them…" Agatha: "Yes—maybe a bit too much, actually…" Agatha: "Yet, here we are." Agatha: "Yikes!" Agatha: "You know it?" Agatha: "—And…this device…it ended up here?" Agatha: "…Are you sure?" Agatha: "…Have we met?" Agatha: "…How do you people do that?" Aldin : "'It's open!" Aldin : "Jiiiiim!" Aldin: "Exactly." Aldin: "He called her 'The Muse of Time.'" Aldin: "No!" Aldin: "Oof—" Aldin: "Ooh! Yes!" Aldin: "Uh—" Aldin: "Unread." Aldin: "Yeah…" Aldin: "You! This is your fault!" Aldin: "You!" All the dialog below is whispered. Arguron: "Well, it is crowded down here…" Agatha: "What was that?! —And where are they going?" Bang: "Are…are you okay?" Bang: "Well, sure—" Bang: "What happened?" Bang: "What?" Bang: "Yeah, but now he's all boring!" Bang: "…Does psychological damage count?" Bang: "…Um, what are you doing?"" Boris : "I'd cover my ears if I were you." Boris : "OK, Princess—blow the charges!" Boris: "I told you to cover your ears." Castle : "Ooh! I have so much to learn!" Castle: "You appear upset, Mistress." Castle: "—But will that not also—" Clank: "Die, heathens!" Colette: "Agatha! How do you know?" Colette: "What—was that?!" Conservator : "GRARGH!" Conservator: "Huh. Feels like it was a lot." Crowd : "All Hail Queen Larana!" Crowd : "You have to be free!" Spüdna: "Ah, I see I have arrived just in time. Allow me, Herr Baron." Dimo : "Hello dere, sveethot!" Dimo: "...Oh." Dimo: "But he vos de King!" Dimo: "Hey! Dot's de King!" Dimo: "Ho! Hy luffs dot!" Dimo: "Hoy! Jenka! Over dere!" Dimo: "Hoy! Ve thot hyu vas gunna sleep all day!" Dimo: "Hoy—hyu gots to votch out for dose!" Dimo: "Ho…vell…Hy knew dot." Dimo: "Huh. Neffer mind, den." Dimo: "Hyu betcha, Mistress!" Dimo: "Hyu poppa and oncle vos verra goot at it!" Dimo: "Ow!" Dimo: "Too late! Dun vorry—Hy gots hyu!" Dimo: "Vot de—" Dimo: "Vy not? Hy iz starvink!" Dimo: "Whuff!" Dimo: "Zo vot iz it?" DuPree: "That's what makes them crunchy!" Jon: "But we simply cannot ignore your astonishing contribution to the fight—" Agatha: "So—how will my being here 'complicate' things?" Gil: "DuPree—you're always bragging about how you can track anyone." [The wall slides up to reveal a large, menacing clank.] Fluffy Fanged Creature: "Wait—he said 'Stop!'" Füst : "Sknort" Conservator: "—And these are extraordinary times. The 'Other' has gained a foothold in the north—her influence is spreading more swiftly than ever. Even the deep realms are not safe from her—and there are hints of her power even in Paris itself. We of the Library are doing what we can to fight her—but it is neither simple nor easy. We believe you know much about her methods and sciences—and we require that knowledge." Gil: "Ah—" Gil: "All right, drop the time field—now!" Gil: "Done!" Gil: "Last chance." Gil: "Let me guess. They rioted." Gil: "Mistress Spüdna—" Gil: "Oh, I assure you, he'd do the same for me." Gil: "Oh, me too." Gil: "Oh, of course." Gil: "See? I told you they were with the Library!" Gil: "There. It's cauterized. Where is he?" Gil: "This is your chance to prove it." Gil: "What? They? Who?" Gil: "When?" Gil: "Yes, yes, of course. How much?" Gil: "You're joking." Gil: "—And his chronometrics have equalized—" Gil: "—But what does the Library want with—" Gil: "…Really?" Gil: "Well, that's rather a given— Medical science can only do so much…" Hax: "Ah, well, now—let me see…" Hax: "No!" Higgs: "Kid? We all did—and then we grew up." Hoffamnn: "Oh?" Hoffamnn: "Really!" Hoffamnn: "What about the Muse's lantern?" Hoffman : "I needed the credit!" Hoffman: "Aldin! You're coming with us?!" Hoffman: "I'm getting married." Hoffman: "It's Larana Chroma." Hoffman: "It's not Colette." Hoffman: "The siren song of the unknown?" Hoffman: "Yeah. That's me." Hoffmann : "I love this helmet!" Hoffmann: "Amazing! I can see better than ever!" Hoffmann: "Hey! Aldin! Hi!" Hoffmann: "No kidding? They liked it?! Hee hee!" Hoffmann: "Uh, yeah. X-ray. Sorry." Hoffmann: "Yeah! And—" Hoffmann: "Yeah! Wow—look at it go!" Aldin: "Um—The Triumph of the Storm King takes up most of the Chamber's eastern wall." Gap-toothed Hijacker: "Depends on how much poison I coat it with, no?" Boris: "This is Princess Larana. Ah—that's her father we've just abducted." Jenka: "Dunno. Hiz head iz probably harder." Jenka: "Hm? What is wrong with your little pet?" Jenka: "Ho. Hyu iz a schmot vun. Ve iz hunting." Jim: "Wha… oh! Oh, hey!" Jon and Melissa : "Wonderful!" Jon: "Ah—well—his life was in danger." Jon: "And you're donating this to us?" Jon: "But the best ones rarely are!" Jon: "But without the smoke, fire and 'kaboom.'" Jon: "Jon and Melissa to you, please!" Jon: "Oh—surely destroying books is—" Jon: "There she is!" Jon: "Ah! 'Here' is the Library's pneumatic tube system. It carries things on a huge blast of compressed air. They're mostly used for cargo—but recently, Larana and her friends have been experimenting with passengers." King : "Mangle them!" King : "Stop—" King: "Get them, you—you troglodytes!" King: "I shall! Even Paris itself! Muhahahaha!" King: "Mangelor!" King: "The surface dwellers do not know that!" King: "—Urk!" Agatha: ""Besides, I want to look around first. Hm…those lights are strange…" Lab Tech 1 : "Wow!" Lab Tech 1: "Hey, a man can—" Larana : "That's the idea!" Larana : "What?!" Larana: "Ai!" Larana: "Argh! No!" Larana: "Ha! Mission successful! Hooray!" Larana: "No! Father, you can't kill him!" Larana: "Sigh. Hello, father." Larana: "So you're the Lady Heterodyne! Amazing!" Larana: "You two have been busy!" Librarian : "Aaaah!" Librarian : "I'll talk!" Librarian : "She shot my hand! I'm bleeding! Librarian: "Forbidden—wait! You…you're—" Librarian: "I don't have to tell you anything!" Librarian: "Oglavia—I…I know that name…" Librarian: "Who are you?" Librarian: "You're dead! They killed you!" Boris: "It'll hold them long enough for us to get back to base—although I must say, your presence here may complicate things…" Malek: "For a very, very long time." Malek: "Madwa's gone!" Malek: "Why, it's St. Lavoisiér!" Malek: "…Does this mean no more kissing?" Mangelor : "Hur!" Mangelor: "Hur?" Melissa: "Good hunting, everyone!" Melissa: "Mind control. The worst crime of all!" Melissa: "We are so happy to have you here!" Melissa: "Yes!" Melissa: "You would be shot at the gates!" Moxylotyl: "It happens all the time!" Moxylotyl: "You still owe me a report, Miss Clay." Jon: "I assure you, Deputy Archivist, that your usual paranoia is overblown." Mini-Beast: "Pfah! Puny, inadequate things. I sneer at them! Ha!" Mélisse: "Yus!" Obsidian: "Still extremely pointy." Othar: "Is he…supposed to be doing that?" Othar: "You…you did all this to rescue me?" Agatha : "Silence! I know exactly what to do. Hee hee!" Malek: "Hah! Being a Smoke Knight is what I do, not what I am. In my heart, I am a stonemason!" "Ah, well—the old Baron did something that trapped all of Mechanicsburg in a bubble of frozen time. You've been here for two and a half years. We've just pulled you out. Um—how do you feel?" !Gil: "Ugh! DuPree, how can you eat those?! They have all those little bones!" Dimo: "Sure! Ve vatched over dem all secret-like. Dey vos our Heterodynes after all—und dey vos interesting. Different. Dis new hero ting—no Heterodyne had effer tried dot von—it looked like fun!" Aldin: "Oh, no. Don't you dare try to drag her into your weird fantasy life! She's already got enough problems. She's been railroaded into a political marriage with some idiot moligarchy princeling." Rothfuss: "That did it! The toxins are gone!" Spüdna: "You do? Oh, but of course! You're a Librarian! You've been peeking into the forbidden stacks, eh? Reading the dangerous books?" Hoffmann: "Yeah! It's making this super easy! Of course, it helps that we have Aldin, master safe cracker, to do all the actual fiddly stuff!" Beausoleil: "Oh, just playing escort to some of my colleagues from Transylvania Polygnostic—here to round up one of their lost professors." Spüdna: "Ah—I am Mistress Oglavia Spüdna." Spüdna: "See? That took no time at all!" Tarvek : "Augh!" Tarvek : "Z" Tarvek: "Aaaaaah!" Tarvek: "Agatha will hate it!" Tarvek: "Aieeee!" Tarvek: "Family—" Tarvek: "Fine…but you could have just asked—" Tarvek: "Me, too!" Tarvek: "Whoa." Tarvek: "…But you're willing to trust me?" Thing: "All gone…wrong…" Unidentified speaker : "Stand by for inspection!" Conservator: "The Immortal Library is very well protected—and young Wulfenbach is busy chasing what he believed is our trail along the subterranean roads—where I think he will find his going extremely difficult. Meanwhile, we are, as you can see, en route by air to a secret writers colony outside Ghent." Van: "And…it was really two and a half years?" Van: "He sounds a bit…deranged." Van: "I like it!" Van: "The tourists will love it!" Van: "Uh—is…is that…the Lady Heterodyne?" Varpa : "Hee hee…" Varpa : "Hurry!" Varpa: "I know! Grandma is going to be thrilled!" Varpa: "Yeah, I write poetry about cheese." Varpa: "…Less kissing. This is important." Gil: "Five… four… disengage pumps— three… two… retract feeds— aaand— shut down!" Velix: "Oh, yes! Say it!" Violetta: "Ah! Don't go in!" Violetta: "Ah. Traps and stuff?" Violetta: "Fair enough. I play the gamba." Violetta: "I smell food." Violetta: "Is it dangerous?" Violetta: "Me neither!" Violetta: "Sure. There's ways." Violetta: "There's a trap here." Violetta: "Too late. She got away. See?" Violetta: "Ugh, he'd do that just to annoy me." Violetta: "Wait—La Fromage Amore—that's you?" Violetta: "We've stopped!" Violetta: "Why have we stopped?" Violetta: "Why up here? Why not on the ground?" Vole: "Brrraaaap." Wooster: "Ah" Agatha: "Oh, monstrous abominations of science…artifacts of ancient civilizations whose manuals have been lost to the ages…miraculous creations of mad geniuses centuries ahead of their time…" Hax: "Ahem—The Lady Heterodyne insisted that we rush you a copy—thus we have spared no expense in getting here quickly. Ah, but Madame knew you would find it worth the cost." Anders: "If you shoot, I may be able to protect the book by stopping the bullet with my heart!" Larana : "Father. the 'Deep Dark Ones' aren't real. You made them up." Agatha: "Oh. I guess I thought Smoke Knights were…" Zeetha : "Bath first!" Zeetha: "Heh. They're fine." Zeetha: "Oh? Why do you say that?" Zeetha: "She tried." Zeetha: "Sneaky?" Zeetha: "Wait…did you hear—" Agatha: "What, really? Only, your brother got a face full of some kind of weird acid—" Larana: "And the Librarians won't like the fact that—" [A scantily-clad Dimo steps out of the tube.] [Agatha inserts the key.] [Aldin pauses to think.] [Hoffmann stares silently at Larana.] [In another part of the Library crypts.] [Loud explosion.] [Obsidian stabs Tarvek in arm.] [The secret door opens.] [The tube activates.] Blonde Hijacker: "You don't seriously think just one shot will kill him, do you?" Agatha: "Well, look here. If you analyze these vellum pages really thoroughly—you get instructions on how to build a cow." Larana: "Cool! Stick with me. We can start the 'embarrassing parents' club!" Dimo: "Ho! Mebbe he learned how to do dot from hyu!" Conservator: "It was not you we would have had to ask—and young Wulfenbach has been acting… strangely. Doctor Kau, our psychometrics man, believes his mind may not be his own—that the Other may have already subdued him. He cannot be trusted." Agatha: "It's a sort of electro-terra induction multiplier thingie." [Wrenches poisoned quarrel from his chest and hurls it back at his attacker, embedding it in the attacker's chest.] Dimo: "Sorry, sveethot, but Hy dun vant to be tied down! No hard feelinks!" Van: "Um…better… Ah…but—what's all that screaming?" Agatha: "It send a one-second electric pulse through the ground! Just strong enough to knock everybody down…" Aldin: "And now they've pulled it out because it's a 'special occasion!' …And—and then she modified it! Warped it! Made it even worse!" Aldin: "—and they are not going to happen! It…it's not? Then who—" Prende: "The Lamp is damaged. I can only watch. You must help!" Dimo: "Ho, no—iz just—vell, ve iz not in de stories 'coz ve vosn't dere. Not officially, ennyvay. Dey vos being heroes, hyu know—und dey hated effryting about de old family. Zo dey din' vant us Jägers around causink trouble! —But ve vos schneaky! Ho, yez!" Mélisse: "Fifty chocklit mimmoths—'an a perfect electroplate zapicheep card!" Agatha: "Quiet, you. I got so caught up that I didn't stop to wonder—why everything here was so familiar. Why I knew exactly what to do. I don't know how she might be connected to this place, but I think that knowledge came from Lucrezia. When that thing was released, I felt a huge surge of…of triumph! That alone is worrying." King: "Have not the deep realms always been feared by the ignorant fools above? Even as we guarded and maintained their sewers, catacombs and water networks? Even as we stood between them and the untold ferocity of the Deep Dark Ones?!" Agatha: "Don't worry, they brought us plenty! Mm. They've also brought us all of the information about the crypts they gathered for Professor Zardeliv's expedition. His team went in two days ago. Maybe we'll meet them." King : "Yes! You have discovered our secret—but too late! Soon, all the world will worship our Glorious Queen—and weep tears of joy to do so! —As will you! Mook men! Seize them!" [Gil blasts a hand-held flamethrower at the injured hand, leaving it blackened and shriveled.] Madwa: "Hmf. I'm more into death and sneaking, actually. That's why we brought Bartleby, there." Aldin: "—Is using your Accelerated Auto-Research Mega-Swot Engine! " Larana: "Spare the surface worlder, father! I love him!" Aldin: "What? You think the security to get into the Library is harsh—wait until you try to swipe extra paper towels." Colette: "Of course not. Van Rijn was a legendary Spark. Anyway, even if they did, they wouldn't have had the key—and neither do we." Spüdna: "This man Tryggvassen—the prisoners were refusing to talk. Finally, he jumped up and addressed them. He gave a rousing speech about the basic goodness of Mankind—and how, in these trying times, we should all pull together." Spüdna: "No! They wept! They cheered him! They've apologized and joined our side! My people are debriefing them right now!" Hoffmann: "You just disappeared! We were worried! You've got to take me with you when you do stuff like this! Jeez!" Zardeliv: "Fine, fine, but isn't cracking locks and stealing secrets your whole raison d'être?" Gil: "Huh—really? You know, I can't think of anything I could do to him that would be worse than that…" Malek: "If we told you, we'd have to let you live." Zeetha: "Of course! This technique is known as 'heroic freestyle.' It's really hard to master!" Agatha: "We have people counting on us. Our people. All the monsters of the family—the Jägers, the Castle, the whole town of Mechanicsburg—you all belong to the House of Heterodyne—and I will not run off to save the world and leave you behind. —So, if you think I'm just going to let you quit because you don't think you're shiny and 'heroic' enough—then you have greatly misjudged me." Zeetha: "Well, sure… but… Heh—you're a Heterodyne. Just be happy if they're not eating each other at the wedding!" Violetta: "Sure. That's why he was hiding here, right?" Aldin: "Well, not any more—it's all sealed off now." "Also, here's a sneak peek at the raw cover art for the next volume of Girl Genius" Agatha: "Well, but all I need is something to hammer this device into the ground. Oh hey! Dimo! Can you—" Colette: "'Hundreds?' What on Earth is it running?" Larana: "Oh. Well, we are fighting the other, and— We know she's your mother—" Agatha: "It's a compilation of research notes…on Van Rijn's muses. I'd like to donate it to your library—in exchange for free access to all your collections. There are a lot of references to other works—I'm hoping you may have some of them here." Jenka: "Because dere iz some kind ov really big monster-y ting coming from outside time or sumting. …Und don ask me vot dot means, 'cause Hy gots no idea! It iz attracted to de time stop, it iz big and ugly, und de vay it iz moving, de Kestle sez it vill get here in less den two years. Hyu probably dun vant to vait around to see vot heppens ven it gets dere— Zo de Kestle vants hyu to hurry op und come home." Othar: "Thank goodness! I was afraid I might be wrong about you!" Obsidian: "They are so very worried about you! They want you back—safe and sound—to assume your rightful place as the Storm King!" Gil: "Well, we had to start over from scratch, of course, but I do expect to have viable animals in less than—" Agatha: "We're on a deadline, here. Maybe we can come back some time." Agatha: "OK, that is important… And yet…you and Dimo are here. At a party— Surely it's not just for the hors-d’œuvre." Rothfuss: "With as much pain as he must be experiencing? This is far better than I had hoped for!" Melissa: "The Storm King himself? Ah—that would explain those cryptic passages in Proni's Third History…and now he's been turned loose? Oh, dear…tell me—did this person look like he'd gone mad?" Agatha: "So—the Library is connected to old Corbettite crypts?" Kaja: "One of the world's most persistent meta-stories!" Queen Larana : "People of the Deep Realms! Follow me to battle!" Violetta: "Yeah—and she took the Lantern. Everybody just grab what you can and move!" Jon: "Well, assassins aren't fools. They stay out of places like that." Gil: "This last attack was nothing but a distraction. Fools—deliberately manipulated into attacking at the wrong time—to put us off guard. Madame Beauxie was working for the Librarians, not for them." Aldin: "Of course not! I heard the curators saying I have to! They said since you're going, I have to go along to keep an eye on you! They said it's been too long since the last 'installment of our exploits!' I'm going to die, just so they can read the reports! Lady Heterodyne. In case I don't make it—here is my obituary." Agatha: "Oh, yes! We've uncovered all kinds of hidden information!" Jenka: "Tch—My teeth… Yez… But there is more to being a Jäger than having sharp teeth… Heh. Admittedly, for some of my idiot brothers, not much more, but…well—some of us have found it useful to be sharp in other ways. We are monsters, My Lady—all of us. The Jägers, the Heterodynes, even the good people of Mechanicsburg, in their way—and these are hard times for us. Dangerous times. —And so, for Mechanicsburg, I sometimes gots to clean up nice and go out visiting! Yez! Ta dah! So today, I am Lady Jenka—mysterious und eccentric beauty!" Larana: "That really depends on who did this and what their goals are. Also, we shouldn't discount the possibility that Professor Zardeliv isn't a prisoner at all. He could be working with them. We all know him as a sweet old duffer, but don't forget that he's also brilliant, his family is central to all these intrigues surrounding the return of the Storm King and Lucrezia Mongfish, and he himself chose Eugene Proutin for this trip. That alone makes me suspicious." Aldin : "He encountered her many times—always when experimenting with what he refers to as blasphemous energies." Aldin: "It says he thought he had called down angels? Ah—I haven't found anything to clarify what that means. He sent word to the Corbettites. Um—even then, they specialized in dangerous artefacts— I guess it makes sense that he thought they'd be experts on angels as well. He begged them to intercede on his behalf. They agreed to contain the device, and in return, Robur promised to never harass the Corbettite lands. One of the few promises he ever kept—so I guess whatever happened really scared him. Violetta: "Oh. Martellus sent one to keep an eye on you. Seffie sent the other one to distract him." Eerie Voice : "Hhhhhhhh…hhhyuouuu… Hhyuouu… Come hhhhheere…" Castle: "Ah, Mistress, this is interesting. The lights are but indicators. Their power source is low, but it was designed to keep something going for hundreds of years." Prende: "Your 'Storm King,' whatever his imagined claim, is not the true Storm King. The Lantern must not be moved." [Agatha , Zeetha, and Violetta wake up, bathe, and have breakfast.] Malek: "I'm going to be honest—the old Storm King being alive…I've never heard a whisper about it!" Malek: "Oh my gosh—the Master, the Lady Heterodyne, and the actual Storm King at her party?" Bang: "Nah. Prince Squealy got himself poisoned just before the time stop hit—so he gets special treatment." Hoffamnn: "Huh. Probably not what we're looking for…" Librarian: "You just missed him. —And a light-blind cloud chewer like you will never catch them now they've gone underground!" Agatha: "He's got a weird weapon and he's burning his way straight up to the surface!" Agatha: "Hey, you found them! Whoa— Um—why aren't we helping?" Spüdna: "Still, thanks to Herr Tryggvassen, I now know who sent them." Jon Solera: "It is indeed! We've even made arrangements for a lovely memorial service, should you not return!" Gil: "Wait—what?! He gets to be 'redeemed,' but I'm still a villain? He's responsible for easily half the mess I'm having to clean up!" "Agatha is not the enemy. The 'Other' is Lucrezia Mongfish. Her mother. The new revenant type is real—and there are more of them than we ever thought possible. We can't even think of them as 'revenants' any more. They're…they're just the people of Europa—living their lives…but ready to be controlled, any time Lucrezia gives the order." [Dimo is talking about the Heterodyne Boys stories, as well as Bill and Barry Heterodyne.] Agatha: "Did I say something wrong?" Aldin: "Oh—the custodial staff for this level is currently off on an expedition to scour the deep stacks…" Violetta: "Hold on… Okay. This is weird. I haven't seen my uncle in years, but— I'm pretty sure this isn't him." Agatha: "It's a design for some king of lock—a really complicated one! — And more sketches of the Muses! Oh—they look like studies for The Triumph of the Storm King!" Tarvek: "You've killed the Lord High Conservator of the Immortal Library!" Gil: "This safe area inside Mechanicsburg is only connected to the outside by a narrow, painstakingly-constructed tunnel of real time. They're attacking the only way out. If they can take it, and they're after us, all they have to do is wait." Larana: "My father has been helping smuggle them to the surface. Into Paris." Agatha: "Huh. This is creepy. This old guy can't have said anything…so—" Dimo: "It means it vos krezy bad, hy remember dot! Dere vos thunder und lightning, und effryting schmelled like burning copper. Ve called it 'Slasher.' Krezy bad!" Varpa: "—But the Order must have known, right? You served Prince Tarvek, do you think he knew?" Obsidian: "Eh, I was never much of a reader. Now—are you going to give me any trouble?" Aldin: "Some of the Reference Masters hid it. They said it was too useful…" "Muhahahaha! At last, miserable surface-worlders, you have fallen into my clutches!" Troglodyte: "Oi—you make dat sound like a bad thing!" Hoffmann: "Yeah! Aldin's always getting caught by pirate queens and evil priestesses and stuff—and they always put him in these silly loincloth outfits." Spüdna: "A few minutes are all I need, Herr Baron!" Aldin: "It looks like he didn't create her— He was trying to capture her. From the look of these notes, it was the work of a lifetime." Jenka: "Well, at least you will remember Füst! Füst! Be a good bear and say hello to the Lady Heterodyne!" Andronicus Valois : "What is this place?! Where has that treacherous conjurer sent me?" Obsidian: "Why—your loving family, of course, Highness!" Prende: "My creator is dead! He used the Lantern to keep you from destroying all you had built! I do not lie to you! You know I cannot!" King: "Oooh! I see! You want to kill him yourself! How like your dear mother you are!" Aldin: "I think there is a fundamental flaw in your logic…" Aldin : "You went and took Professor Ixibod's Extemporary Political Science class, didn't you?" King: "Of course I can, my dear! I have minions, and soldiers, and lots and lots of pointy—" Mystery Woman : "Shh. Look happy. Ve iz havink a jolly party conversation." Gil: "I'm just telling you all this to keep your delusional heroics from destroying the barrier array. I'm here for Tarvek Sturmvoraus." Violetta: "This guy's hair's been bleached and partially shaved. The apparent weight gain is due to ghost spider venom, which is probably what killed him. These wounds were made when he was already dead." Dimo: "Ho, yez. Dey iz already vinning, no problem." Dimo: "Whoa! Dot's enuf! Hyu iz gonna bring de whole place down on it!" [They are interrupted when the elevator they are riding lurches to a stop.] "We are taking a small break for our Christmas celebrations, so today we are leaving you with a picture of someone else working. We hope you have a lovely day, and we will see you next week." [The King is cold cocked with the hilt of a sword.] Agatha: "Okay, this is the last of the outer gates. From here on, it's probably going to get really dangerous. I'm pretty confident I know what to watch out for—but if I'm wrong—um—" Gil: "Don't be silly. You'd miss tormenting him. Keep him alive and in one piece." Agatha: "Well, I could use a break, let's go have a look. Everybody here's so wound up with the research engine, they'll never even miss us." "We have made a special New Year wallpaper for you out of today's silly drawing. Agatha: "I'll bet this is it. Lady Selnikov had it with the book—and the Monks did say she'd stolen both." Othar: "—And he hasn't even exploded! Well done! His mind is probably still unstable, though." Aldin: "So—if that lock was built in as part of the sculpture, nobody's ever noticed it—" Agatha: "Er…well— I…um…suppose not? Uh oh." Larana: "It isn't here! I couldn't find it anywhere!" Agatha: "Okay. See this mark here? That means it's a trap that will kill you. And this mark here…" King: "Fools! You dare insult me?! You! Lady Heterodyne! Do you truly believe that the Glorious King of the Silver Lands is so unaware of the doings of his people?! Ha!" Tarvek: "I might! If you wanted me dead, you'd have already done it—so that weapon is—" Beausoleil: "His daughter wrote to the University, and they've come to take him back. Apparently he's got twenty years of grant expenditures to explain to the Board of Regents." Violetta: "Until recently, I would have said 'No…' But it turns out he's better at keeping secrets than I'd thought." Nurse: "Oh, that's just Prince Sturmvoraus. The Young Baron pulled you both out at the same time!" Othar: "I have made him my apprentice hero, you know!" Hoffmann: "What? How? The Lady Heterodyne's the one who—" Bang: "Yup, it was pretty exciting—the Empire crumbling, Gil running around being a crazy man…too bad you missed it." Agatha: "Really? But…er…I'm pretty sure I'd remember…" Lab Tech 2: "You always say that, but it never happens." Bang: "Oh, that's nothing! You should see the really big ones! He's got 'em all around the outer wall of the city! You can see them from all over the valley!" Moxylotyl: "That is a rogue professor of color theory—who disappeared into the field twenty years ago—while supposedly studying the court painters of the Dark Empire of the Altai." Mystery Woman: "Oh I know—but not to worry! That won't last! I remember easily a dozen times when the town has vanished, gone to sleep, or been supposedly destroyed…" Dimo: "Op to de city, and ve is gun be blamed for it. Hyu betcha. Hy gots hyu professor guy—vere's de nasty lady?" Zardeliv: "Yes… Well… Ahem—I did learn quite a lot, thanks to him…" Agatha: "Zumzum…Oh—that's where the Circus picked up Dimo, Oggie and Maxim—but…" Madwa: "Oh? Was it about the ignition of human bones? Because I could have told you all about that…" Beausoleil: "Ho ho! A bored barbarian queen…a brash adventurer…" Aldin: "Lady Heterodyne, if we take him back now, he will complain for months. He will actively seek me out, follow me around, and tell me at excruciating length why we shouldn't have 'run away—' and while he is doing so, he will drag me into six 'adventures' worse than this death crawl can ever be." Gil: "Eh, it's partially a side effect of the poison cleanse—and none of us were getting any sleep back when the time stopped. I'm surprised he stayed awake as long as he did." Colette: "Your Majesty! I bring greetings from the Master of Paris— Ah—and your court appears to be infested with revenants." [Tarvek, in pain, grabs his wounded arm, but can't think of anything else to say.] Varpa: "Listen. This party is about to be crashed by a giant undead Storm King! The Master will be there." Agatha: "Hey, isn't it good if your family likes the person you're marrying?" Aldin: "Yes—I think we've found Master van Rijn." Arguron: "Ah! You are perhaps amazed by the glorious architecture of the Arguron King's palace? Our stately fashions? The superior beauty of our people?" Melissa: "That magnificent monograph on the wasp eaters!" Lab Tech 1: "Still, as long as there's a sexy, scantily-clad Underworlder on board—" Jon: "Oh, yes. The Corbettites left them extremely well defended. I assume that is why Professor Zardeliv wanted that book of yours. It contains a far more comprehensive inventory of the crypts' security measures than any we had on file." Hoffmann: "Uh—the Master confiscated it. He said I broke the sewer lines for six blocks." Tarvek: "Ah, no—look. That's the Reims Cathedral beacon on the horizon. We're heading for Paris." Dimo: "Huh…but Hy guess Hy ken understand vy dey left us behind. De old Heterodynes, dey vos bad guys. Dey never cared what ennybody thought ov dem. Dey did voteffer dey vanted, and laughed about it… "But dese hero types like hyu poppa, dey gots to get along vit pipple if dey vants to get any proper heroing done…and pipple really hated us Jägers. Ho, yez. "Hyu remember how ve vos ven hyu found us, yah? Me, Maxim und Oggie hanging in a row in de town square, all nize and neat. Heh. Ve vos pretty bad guys too, hyu bet. "Enny hero dot goes running around vit a bonch of Jägermonsters— iz going to haff a hard time getting pipple to even give dem a chance. "Ectually, hyu seem more like hyu poppa den enny of de old family— so dot's sumting hyu might be vanting to think about too." [Dimo grabs Agatha and holds her flat on top of him.] Agatha: "There! See? They set off the next trap, too! They're probably fine!" Hoffman : "I guess you've worked out by now that I'm the 'prince' you're stuck marrying…" Aldin: "There's a lot more about her in here than there was in your book." [Dimo pounds the device into the floor with great force, using his forehead.] Obsidian: "I am trying to be nice about this, sir. I am told I can be very nice. Indeed, if I have one complaint about this job—[…]it is that it is that I rarely get a chance to be nice. …But, nice or not, back to your family you go." Osquith: "Ah! Lady Heterodyne, I must present you to our Grand Curators of the High Western Stacks!" Hoffmann: "Hang in there, Aldin! This is one tough clank!" [Larana and Aldin have a whispered conversation away from the others.] Castle: "Ah—Mistress, what are you trying to do? " Zeetha: "I don't think even that thing would slow these guys down." Larana: "No—I mean—what have you done—you've actually attacked the Library!" [A large electric discharge envelopes everyone whose feet still touch the floor.] Colette: "Check the deep parts of the relief for a hidden keyhole! Look! There's something right in there— Eyrugh. It's gum." Violetta: "Ignore it. Grandma always hated Lucrezia. She broke off all our family's alliances with everyone still loyal to the 'Other.' But Madwa and her group had been slavishly loyal to Lucrezia. They refused Grandma's ultimatum, and stayed allied with the Geisterdamen. That's where they get the Ghost Spider venom. Madwa had six secret recipes that used the stuff, and she never shared with anyone. That guy back there died of number three. If there's a chance to take them out, our Smoke Knights have standing orders to set aside all other assignments and rivalries and do it." Mystery Woman : "Now, listen: I have just had a message from the spymaster." Jenka: "Dot von't hold dem for long—dey can dig like anyting down here." Fluffy Fanged Creature: "I know, but then he said 'Stop!' It'd be bad to get it wrong…" Gil: "Agatha wrote this! —And Madame published it. Of course! She must be selling copies to everyone… Ooh! This—amazing! Just this page will advance our program— Wait—'blood pumps?' What kind?" Jon: "Well, it's a little bit like being shot out of a cannon—" Agatha: "But look! It's revealed a whole new page of hidden diagrams!" Agatha: "But—there's a drawing of the Muse of Time in my book and I've seen her! That wasn't her!" Things: "IIIII— Hhhere. I. Hyuuuu— Afterrr sssooo looonng…" Bang: "Ooh! Ooh! If he's already dead, that'll foil their plans!" Spüdna: "—But then I realized I wouldn't be able to spy on people any more, so nuts to that!" Agatha: "Well, it's more that they're lit at all. This place has supposedly been shut away since the time of the Storm King." Gil: "I certainly do. Oh, I see! This makes so much sense… Here, turn the page—" Agatha: "I thought libraries were supposed to be quiet." Dimo: "Ennyvay, dis is Jenka vot hyu met a couple years ago." [Agatha shuts off the x-ray filter. Hoffman's helmet seems to be overheating.] Andronicus: "My blade is no longer shielded from me! I can feel it!" !Gil: "…Tarvek is being taken to Paris—and that is where we work best!" Hoffman: "It stings! Like a really mean grapefruit!" Dimo: "Besides, hyu know, most of us Jägers iz hundreds ov years—zo zumting different iz better den gold! Eh, but den, vun time, Master Barry caught us schneaking around vatching—und Master Bill ordered us all to stay in Mechanicsburg. Dot's vy none ov us vere dere ven dey disappeared. Ve should have been dere. Ve should haff gone vit dem." Malek: "What are you doing?! The Master won't be there! He never attends parties!" Tarvek: "The Incorruptible Library? Oh no! Oh no! I must have an overdue book!" "We hope you have a grand evening, with a wonderful 2016 to follow!" Agatha: "Ah. A classic example of excessive top-down minion management causing inefficient—" Deputy: "These are times, Sir, when 'paranoia,' as you put it, is perfectly justified! The Deep Realms are in turmoil, just as the Master of Paris likes them—and you welcome his daughter? And the Lady Heterodyne! Daughter and successor to the very enemy we fight— And, worst of all, that walking catastrophe, Hoffman! I am still sorting out the last disaster he left us! What could possibly justify letting any of them in?" Jenka: "Und de Kestle sez dot hyu gots to hurry op und get dot time stop off de town—" Othar: "…Or they could try to trap us here; to die or get caught in this 'time stop' of yours." Larana: "Oh, it's all right. They always do this. They didn't have to stop us so hard, though… Yikes." Larana: "Things are bad, down here. The Other's mind control—well—you saw my father's court. The Librarians are terrified! They've sealed their whole domain, even the 'secret' entrances students use. If you'd tried sneaking in, you'd have been caught for sure!" Violetta: "The Jägers called it 'Smasher,' but its real name was 'The Platonic Solid.' He got it from Queen Albia of England—but I have no idea where she got it." Gil : "What? Of course not! You just happened to be here and my team didn't know any better!" Malek: "I studied ecclesiastical architecture at the University." Agatha: "Oh, that's all lovely, but— your King's palace can't be more than two hundred meters from the palace of the Mole King." Tarvek: "I'm surprised the wasp eaters haven't proved more useful. Are these gammon cuffs? Seriously?" Deputy: "…And yet you let these…these menaces into the Library!" Hax: "Now, now, Herr Baron, this is not a library—" Bang: "Yeah. That's normal. He always sounds like that when he's in pain. Takes me back…" Hunter: "This. This wasp engine, and many others, was found in the Arguron Palace." Librarian: "He—he isn't here! This is just a waypoint! He's been sent on!" Melissa: "It certainly will. This book is the reason Margarella Selnikov was being hunted across Europa. She was supposed to be bringing it here." Guy with Facial Markings and a Big Axe: "Does that mean 'Stop attacking?' He just said 'Get them!'" Colette: "So we'll do it ourselves. Where are the cleaning supplies?" Larana: "Hear me, people of the deep realms! I, Larana Chroma of the Silver Lands, hereby claim the throne of my father by the ancient tradition of filial usurpation—as is my right and duty! I, your Queen, command my loyal forces to stand down immediately! By sacred treaty the Great Library must remain free and neutral!" Gil: "Keep him that way. A lot of people seem to want to kill him or steal him." Prende: "Ah—and did you wonder how I know that your friend is not the Storm King?" King: "Done? Done? Why, I have allied our people with the winning side! Even now, our forces prepare to overrun not only the other, inferior subterranean realms, but even—dare I say it—?" Aldin: "Er…we do get a lot of students in here…" Mélisse: "It's a comprehensive monograph on the wasp eaters, Herr Baron!" Jon: "—And don't forget—to read what you want—" Prende: "Ah—you speak your truth, yes…and I am pleased that my sisters persist—but you and they are wrong." Melissa: "Fine. Mind control and destroying books. It is anathema to everything our library stands for!" Deputy Archivist: "Tch. Not that nonsense again! Hmf. The story is that Old Master Van Rijn had a private room hidden away somewhere in the Library. The apprentices still go looking for it, where they're shirking— It's long since been proven that the room in question is nothing but the King's Reading Chamber." Agatha: "Sure, but if there is a keyhole around here, these little fiddly curls would be a good spot for it. Let's try cleaning some of them out." Agatha: "That clank was pretty old, so the acid had lost a lot of potency…but it did get right in his eyes." Mini-Beast: "—Then you people protect her with what remains of your miserable lives!" Jon: "These were the Corbettites. I believe they thought it was 'awesome.'" Conservator: "I did say these are extraordinary times…" Tarvek: "It is! It's Agatha! A colossal statue of Agatha!" Librarian: "Quite simple, young woman! If you are spies, revenants or illiterates, why, then we can simply tip you out into open space! Ha ha! So much easier to clean up!" Violetta: "—But if that's the case, why did Uncle Zardeliv go in without waiting for the book?" Agatha: "Oh. They've sealed the hatch—but—wait— Wait! They're aren't places for everyone!" Agatha: "Nothing. There's lots of stuff about the Muses, Tarvek will be thrilled, assuming we ever find a way to rescue him—but there's nothing about time manipulation that we haven't already found." "Ho. It's Stephanos Tuesday. He…moves goods. Sometimes even his own. He is one of the people we are here to find." Agatha: "Wait…this is…this was some kind of experiment!" Vole: "But…but Hy kent be a general! De Masters vill neffer trust me! Hy haff done all kinds ov horrible tings!"
Extras	dbkwik:resource/I3KemVTsg6yudL9kUvvTgw== --01-02 --06-06 The Girl Genius Universe version of Paris seems to have a newspaper called "," just as the Paris of our Universe does, although if Agatha's timeframe corresponds to our late 19th Century, it predates the well-known newspaper of the same name in our universe by decades. There is a Mimmoth visible in panel 2. Jenka seems to have Füst on a delicate leash, which is either much stronger than it looks or only intended to be of symbolic value. Vole has undergone extensive physical changes as a result of from the Mechanicsburg time-freeze bubble. Agatha's objection is based on the phenomenon she saw way back near the start of the story and a drawing in the Van Rijn notebook she looked at much more recently. All that can be seen of the Muse of Time is the head, torso and left hand, apparently connected to the torso by an arm. It is unclear whether the rest of a humanoid body is present or would even fit within the vessel. It has a skull-like face and a seemingly metal body with inset lights and dials. It seems to be partly organic but mostly mechanical, with the ornamental details common in devices in the Girl Genius universe. It seems to be glowing slightly and disappears in a flash of light. In panel 3, Tarvek comments, "I'll feel bad if your lovely collection of Florentine philosophy is damaged." As pointed out in the discussion for this page, was from Florence. Tarvek could be indirectly commenting on the elaborate, almost Machiavellian, plot the Lord High Conservator has in motion. He may also be fond of Florentine philosophy because he is rather Machiavellian himself. is German for penny. In panel 10, the Mini-Beast says, "But you must let me show you an amusing trick with pfennige and railroad tracks!" This probably refers to the "trick" of putting pennies on a railroad track to flatten them. The claim that this can derail a train is an urban legend in our universe. However, this "trick" can be dangerous for those putting the pennies on the tracks; perhaps this is what the Beast has in mind, when it says this to the Portable Castle. On this page, Jiminez Hoffmann is shown only in flashbacks illustrating descriptions of their past adventures as told by Aldin, who is also depicted in the flashbacks, as well as in present time in the comic. The titles of these escapades include: The Adventure of the Haunted Topiary, The Secret of the Perfectly Spherical Cow, and The Mystery of the Cyclopean Binoculars. There was also "the thing with the Naked Mole Rat Queen." When Bang says, "I know this great trick—where you put a sleeping guy's head in a bucket of water—," it seems to refer to the widespread belief in the real world that if you put a sleeping person's hand in a bucket of warm water, they will wet the bed. Bang, of course, gives the trick her own personal twist. Among the many invented terms on this page are the real-world terms "lemon juice", a simple invisible ink; "cypher" , a means of encoding a message; and "steganography", a means of hiding a message. Jenka says that Füst is a Jäger bear, but at this time it is not clear what that means. A bear that drank the Jägerdraught? This page recalls a in Castle Heterodyne , with Zola Malfeazium giving the warnings. A clowder is a name for a group of cats. It is not clear what Tarvek means when he uses the phrase "gammon cuffs." The shirt he is regarding when he says this has what appear to be knit cuffs. Some fans have speculated that the intended meaning is false or deceptive, based on an older meaning of gammon. Almost everyone believes that all of the by Klaus, including Gil, as he makes quite clear on the next page. As far as Tarvek knows, however, he The fact that Jim is the adopted son of the Mole King is revealed on Jim witnesses Aldin and Larana embracing on Kaja translates Jâger speak. Larana and Aldin snuck off during the . Mimmoth sighting in panel 3. Page title: "Shoveling the Walk" There is a in the real world. This page features a full-page panel. There has been at least one other four-eyed character with the same arrangement of eyes, a man addressed as "Doctor" by Bohrlaikha back when she He has only made one appearance so far. Othar's eyes are shown on this page. We have seen them at least once before, in This page is the first direct evidence that Aldin and Larana were acting for the Library in making their secret search for a secret object. The fact that Agatha says she needs her wasp eater seems to indicate that she is still dependent on it as an antidote to Tweedle's The x-ray filter on Hoffmann's goggles seems to work more like the x-ray specs found in ads in the backs of old comic books were supposed to than a real x-ray device. The poison is from the Nullabist knife thrown by his cousin Tweedle. Tarvek and Van get a close look at the massive complex of fortifications and buildings that Gil has caused to be erected around time frozen Mechanicsburg, which were first shown in the comic in volume 13, on pages and , and which can be seen as a single image here. Lady Selnikov died while through the the crypts or vaults in St. Szpac. Agatha's wasp weasel and Füst are frolicking in the background of this page…at least the weasel is frolicking. Dimo seems to have come for the hors-d’œuvre as well as the hunt. The scene in the large first panel is complex and a bit confusing. At first glance, it seems as if the river is flowing towards the waterfall. But on closer inspection it seems that the river ends in a second waterfall facing the visible one; all that can be seen of it is the water pouring over the edge, but there is a line of posts connected by chains to help keep boats from going over the edge. Presumably, both the visible and hidden cataracts plunge into the same unseen depth. Varpa made a in the previous volume, but is not addressed by name in this volume Malek is not identified by name until The identity of the princess Boris calls out to is revealed on the It was that, unbeknownst to Larana, the mole prince she has agreed to marry, is none other than Hoffman, the of the Mole King. Goethe's lost book, The Binding Arbitration of Faust, is mentioned by Anders. Presumably, the title is supposed to be a humorous variation on The Damnation of Faust. It seems safe to assume that the Goethe referred to is the Girl Genius universe analogue of the of our universe. However, real-world Goethe never wrote a book called The Damnation of Faust, but rather a play called ', but generally just referred to as Faust. The composer wrote a major musical work called ' and the science fiction writer wrote a short story called, "The Dalmatian of Faust." The princess Boris was talking to on the is revealed to be Larana Chroma, daughter of the King of the Argurons. Appearing on the cover: The Goldfish , a Mimmoth, The Winslow, a Hugo award statue, a Fantod, a tablet with Commandments XI through XVI, and a host of other objects. St. Lavoisiér may be named after , the "father of modern chemistry", or rather his analogue in the Girl Genius Universe. Larana has been in love with Jim for a long time, but has never been able to bring herself to tell him so. We first see evidence of this Advertisement for Tea. This seems to be the second in a series, being posted in the previous volume. In the SFX text in the comic, each "CLAK" is immediately followed by a "CLAK!" and then, after a pause, a "BOOM!" The action is a bit hard to interpret, but it seems that Larana is arming and throwing grenades at the clank, one after another, ultimately destroying it . The Library is a very large, impressive structure, filled with many wonders. These include what seems to be a stuffed dragon hanging from the ceiling, an enormous cylindrical aquarium, a huge terrarium containing a full-sized tree, and cats the size of medium to large dogs. This page confirms the fan hypothesis that the beings called forth by Robur Heterodyne, which he thought were angels, were actually Dreen. However, neither Aldin nor Agatha know the true identity of Robur's angels. The hidden room is large and round, with a domed ceiling and openings to many alcoves or corridors in its walls. The ceiling is painted with stylized stars and hung with models of planets. It is full of medieval-looking laboratory equipment and is a mess, as if it was the scene of a fight or was abandoned in a great hurry. Suspended above the center of the main room by four heavy chains is a large, semitransparent red glass gourd-shaped vessel, within which can be seen the silhouette of an object disturbingly like a human head. A bas relief is a mostly-flat sculpture carved into a wall. The bas relief sculpture in the King's Reading Chamber in entitled The Triumph of the Storm King and depicts the Storm King striking a heroic pose, surrounded by the Muses. As was pointed out on the forum for this page, the spider in panel 1 might be surprised because “larana” is pretty close to the word for “spider” in Spanish ... or French, for that matter . The word "FTAGIN" or "F'TAGIN" may be intended to be or to suggest the word "fhtagn" from "The Call of Cthulhu." There is strong reason to believe that the King and and Velix are Revenants. Presumably, the rest of the beings with them have also been wasped. The Arguron King bears a striking resemblance to Phil's caricature of Cheyenne Wright, as shown on this for example. is a fan term used for expendable low-level bad guys whose only purpose is to be defeated by the hero. Although Hoffman doesn't know what the musical sound he is hearing is, the long-time Girl Genius reader recognizes it as Agatha heterodyning, which hasn't happened in the story for quite a while. Concern over what Agatha will do while in the madness place seems likely to explain why Dimo and Jenka prepare to rush off in panel 1. In panel 4, a small door or hatch is visible in Prende's back, looking very much like the battery compartment in a toy. This seems mostly likely to be a joke, and doesn't necessarily mean that the Muses actually run on batteries. If the creature in the small glass tank in panel 1 is a guinea pig or hamster, in a cage lined with cedar shavings, then its comment about "the ancient cedar writings of my ancestors" takes on a whole new meaning. The mace is revealed to be called The Platonic Solid . On this page, panel 1 depicts a blackboard and panels 4 and 5 depict notebook pages containing formulas and diagrams. These do not seem to be intended for close analysis and no attempt will be made to reproduce them here. We have a clank that can generate powerful electrical charges which incinerate its clothes; the Anevka Sturmvoraus clank body, built by Tarvek. On the other hand, the Muse Tinka is able to big enough to knock out Eotain and Shurdlu without burning up her outfit. Agatha's dingbots appear from a secret compartment in the Library, carrying the Van Rijn notebook. It is not clear how the dingbots or the notebook got there. We haven't seen Boris since of volume 12. His name is mentioned once in volume 13, however, in panel 3 of Tarvek is lying on the floor, where he collapsed by a poisoned knife thrown by Tweedle. His head and shoulders are being held up by someone, whose face is not shown clearly, but is almost certainly Vanamonde von Mekkhan. Vanamonde was right behind Tarvek just before the time freeze. The Mangalore are a race of aliens who serve as villains in the film . This is not identical to the name of the creature shown on this page, but seems close enough to be worth mentioning, even though the aliens from the film bear very little resemblance to the monster in Girl Genius. Fixed! Larana's name is spelled "Lorana" in Aldin's second dialog balloon in panel 3 of this page. Aldin addresses his brother as Jim, at least during times of stress. The Arguron King's palace has columns, domes, or small chapel-like structures, some with cryptic carvings, topped by statues of tentacled . Jim still has on goggles with multiple lenses, which apparently were under his helmet, but it is not clear how much vision he has without it. A colored version of the cover for Girl Genius The City of Lightning is included below the page image . It is not clear whether Gil knows Tarvek has been poisoned and will without treatment once time starts up for him again, even if he survives the time-freeze extraction process. Higgs may be in the background on the far right of panel 4. The page is in color now. The page is in black and white. The character whose name has just been revealed to be Madame Beauxie can be seen on these earlier pages: announcing the attack and passing on Gil's orders The "Diet" in the phrase the "Diet of Kraków" is most likely meant to be an of the . An imperial diet was a formal deliberative assembly of the whole Empire. In our universe the most famous of these was . However, in our universe, there is no historical record of an Imperial Diet taking place in
names used	Wasp eater Dio Zardeliv Van Rijn notebook The Other Colette Voltaire Europa Madame Desmana The Incorruptible Republic of the Immortal Library of the Grand Architect Dimo Jägermonster Baron Klaus Wulfenbach Tarvek Sturmvoraus dbkwik:resource/ENn1pTUJPtFIQwgcHO_4-g== dbkwik:resource/d55wyNbC1iMO1u7rs6BcEA== The Muse of Time Mechanicsburg Dio Zardilev House Wulfenbach Andronicus Valois Prende's Chronometric Lantern Mole King Nullabist knife Paris The Muses Simon Voltaire Grandmother Ghost Spider Gilgamesh Wulfenbach Martellus von Blitzengaard Corbettite Monks Lucrezia Mongfish Madwa Korel Everybody Wants to Talk Van Rijn Revenants Spark Xerxsephnia von Blitzengaard Castle Heterodyne Margarella Selnikov Larana Chroma House Sturmvoraus House Heterodyne Smoke Knights William Heterodyne Vespiary Squad The Heterodyne Boys Timeskip Hive Engine Agatha Heterodyne King of the Silver Lands Angels General Grandma, Duke Smollet von Magmar, Flamethrower Lords, Fire Monkeys, The Master , Giant Undead Storm King Corbettite Order, Storm King, Master Van Rijn, The Library, The Heterodyne's Device, Corbettite Crypts, Lady Selnikov Localized Electrical Phantasms, St. Lavoisiér , The Univerity , Smoke Knights, Gamba, La Fromage Amore, The Awful Tower, Grandma Victims , Wasped People , Smoke Knights, Lord High Conservator, Larana, Prende, The Lantern, Andronicus Valois, The Storm King Himself, Proni's Third History, Van Rijn, Weird Weapon Captain Renard, Reflex Armor, Those Bookbinders, Him Comprehensive Monograph on the Wasp eaters, Madame Desmana, Lady Heterodyne/Agatha, Chocklit Mimmoths, Electroplate Zapicheep Card Sturmvoraus Family, The Incorruptible Library, Sturmvoraus, Monsieur Hax, Agatha, Zapicheep Card, Madame Beauxie, The Librarians, Bang, Entanglers The Muses, The Triumph of the Storm King, Van Rijn's Hermitorium, Old Master Van Rijn, The King's Reading Chamber Smoke Knights, Zardeliv, Varpa, The University, Old Clank The Immortal Library, Master Van Rijn, New Storm King , A Town Where Time Has Stopped , The Lantern, The Other Muses, The True Storm King Big Angry Hacksaw Clanks, A Heterodyne Corbettites, Diet of Kraków Curators, Lord High Conservator, Storm King Custodial Staff, Deep Stacks Eugene Proutin, Ghost Spider Venom He , Paris Larana, Catchlocks Larana, Colette, Professor Swanson, Antarctica Mechanicsburg, The Spymaster My/Your Family , Other Smoke Knights Outer Base, Mechanicsburg, Sturmvoraus He , Madwa, The Lantern, The Librarians, The Master of Paris , My Lord Blitzengaard Revenants, Grand Curators Solera Reverse-Taccola Field Oscillator Snake Clank The Library's Pneumatic Tube System, Larana The Library, Her Father, Professor Wicker The Other, Your Mother, Librarians Master , Madwa, Old Storm King , The Order , Prince Tarvek The Deep Realms, The Silver Lands, The Great Library Van Rijn, The King's Municipal Meatloaf Works Wasp Engine, Lord High Conservator, Pain Mowers, Their (the Cats') King, The Master/Your Father Electro-Terra Induction Multiplier Thingie, The King Old Family , Jägers, Master Barry , Master Bill , Mechanicsburg Your Dear Mother Him , Master of Paris , The Tubes, Some Monsters , Your Father , Snark Beasts Tarvek, Puffer Bats, Duchy of Klopsikkle, My Father , Paris, Chocolates with the Mimmoth Centers Mechanicsburg, Paris, Goethe, The Lord High Conservator, The Library Master Van Rijn, Tarsus Beetle, Lord High Conservator, That Professor from TPU, Early Cantabrigian Dance Rituala, Crypto-bibliology The Other, Europa, Deep Dark Ones, Hated Mole Kingdom, Grubby Grubs of Doom Wasp Eaters, The "Other", The Deep Realms, Master of Paris, His Daughter, That Walking Catastrophe Hoffmann, Wasp Engine, Arguron Palace, Paris The Tubes, Paris, Transylvania Polygnostic (University AKA TPU), The Dark Empire of the Altai Wulfenbach Empire, Young Wulfenbach, The Master, Paris, Florentine Philosophy, Ghent, Reims Cathedral, Captain Bolcheck Traubhünd's Universal Apocrypha of Linguistics and Verbal Ordnance, The Recursive Roundelays of the Ouroboros Order, The Ancient Cedar Writings of My Ancestors, Lady Heterodyne, Accelerated Auto-Research Mega-Swot Engine, Reference Masters, Vogel's Quasi-Real Possibilities of Possible Realities Old Heterodynes, The Heterodyne Boys, Jägers, The Castle, Mechanicsburg, House of Heterodyne, My Father and Uncle The Library, The "Other", Paris, Young Wulfenbach, Doctor Kau The Muse's Lantern, The Muses, Tarvek, Van Rijn, Jam Tarts, "Double Secret" Waffle Recipe, Lady Selnikov, Martellus, Professor Zardeliv The University, Master of Paris, Prince of the Moligarchy The Empire, Queen of the Dawn, Lucrezia, Geisterdamen, Sturmhalten, Wasp eaters De Old Heterodynes , Hyu Poppa , Jägers , Maxim, Oggie King , Master of Paris, Jägers, Heterodynes/House of Heterodyne, Oggie, Zumzum, The Circus, Maxim The Curators, The New Heterodyne Boys, The Naked Mole Rat Queen, Giant Bat The Vaults beneath the Red Cathedral, The City, Lady Heterodyne, Chronobore Outer Base Lucrezia, Old Guys in the Order, Grandma, Madwa, Two Real Smoke Knights , Pirate Queens, Evil Priestesses Lord High Conservator, The Immortal Library, Your Loving Family , The Storm King His Family , Storm King, Lucrezia Mongfish, Eugene Proutin, Jäger Shredding Machine Arguron King, Arguron Princess, Mole King, Wulfenbach Sigil, Field Research Badge of Transylvania Polygnostic Heroic Freestyle, Hyu Poppa and Oncle , The Heterodyne Boys, Jägers Direct Descendant , Other Muses/My Sisters, That Lantern Gil, That Pirate Girl of His , The Lord High Conservator, The Incorruptible Library Heterodynes, The Storm King, Sturmvoraus, Von Blitzengaard, Smasher , Jägers, Queen Albia of England, Slasher , Van Rijn, Aldin Uncle, The Library, The Curators, Colette Voltaire, Paris, Moligarchy Princeling, Professor Ixibod, Extemporary Political Science
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abstract	The graphic novels in the canon consist of fifteen in print, a sixteenth volume complete and available and a seventeenth volume in progress on the web. Starting with the fourteenth volume, the story has now entered Act 2 and the volume numbers have started over at one. Volumes in Act 2 will be identified in the chronology by the act number, a dash, and then the volume number; for example, Act 2, Volume 1 will be numbered 2-1. Eventually, the volumes in the first part, Act 1, will be renumbered to match. The chronology pages describe the comics to assist scholars in finding the page on which something occurred. For each comic, the chronology pages identify the characters that appear, actions taken, significant quotes, and other notes. Section titles are from the canon unless otherwise noted. For a partial timeline of the events in the comic, see Internal Chronology. For more information on the double-page spreads in this volume, see double-page spreads in Girl Genius. For more information on special pages in this volume, see the list of special pages, notes, and annotations. (!) sparking < in flashback (*) heterodyning > in flashforward? (time portal) ~ imagined = in flash-concurrent