(I can't believe I wasn't the first to post a summary! I'm out of practice!) In the corner in which Twitch had curled herself into a ball with her bushy tail wrapped around her, Twitch scowled and scratched furiously at an itch along her furred neck. Damned Plane of Shadows, she thought. Damned library. Probably the damned dust motes here are like fleas. Gah. If there were one thing that made Twitch more uncomfortable than being surrounded by undead for days on end, it was being stuck in a library full of undead. A library . Full of books . Dead books. Dear sweet Traveler , Twitch prayed, not for the first time. What path have You placed me upon? Envy and the Outcasts had escaped the Ghost Council of Mabarra by leaping through a portal in the Council's inner sanctum, but that portal had not led home but merely to another portion of the Plane of Shadows. Here, the companions found themselves located at a library of the undead, where shades appeared to be engrossed--literally, consumed--by the books in which they were researching. Having grown up hardscrabble on the streets of Stormreach, Twitch had no formal education and only a rudimentary understanding of reading and writing. Fortunately, her career path--first as a pirate, now as a devotee of The Traveler--rarely required academic study. But now, to escape Mabarra, it appeared that the Outcasts were going to have to ... research?!? I'd sooner face a horde of ghasts naked and smeared with necrotic paste, Twitch thought--then added quickly: Not that I'm making any suggestions, mighty Traveler. Days had passed while the others dove--literally--into the crumbling and decayed texts and scrolls within the library's halls. Twitch had occupied herself with: Bouncing a ball against the wall until she could hit five shelves diagonally and catch the rebound; Counting the times Legion appeared to move (not often); Counting the times Lukar pretended to breathe (also not often); Counting the times Sh'Nezz'Tar smiled (even less often); and Counting the times Envy appeared to wince at a mention of "souls condemned to eternal damnation" (actually, quite often). At least Twitch had Yipping to--wait, where had Yipping gone? It appeared that Yipping was spending his time eagerly chatting up the bone dragons standing guard outside the library, one Big Dragon to another. Increasingly, the kobold seemed convinced that he was the most courageous, valiant dragon hero around. Come to think of it, maybe Yipping has a point, Twitch thought. It was to Twitch's immense relief that Lukar had announced, after seemingly endless days, that the research was concluded. The companions had set off for what they hoped would be a means to return them to Eberron--only to be confronted by what appeared to be The First Vampire himself, who had been tracking Lukar across Mabarra! Shrugging, Twitch prepared for battle. Well, at least I won't die of boredom.
