Wanderer's Library

Wanderer's Library
Logo of the Wanderer's Library.
General information
Official name	Wanderer's Library
Nickname(s)	KTE-7909-Alexandria Nx-01 SCP-6000
Constructed	Beginning of time
Builder	The Serpent
Leader	The Serpent
Location information
Area	Unknown, theoretically infinite
Location	Extradimensional
Anomalous information
Area class	Crossroads Dunwich (formerly)
Containment class	Apollyon (SCP-6000) Keter (formerly; SCP-6000)
Classification level	Level 1 (SCP-6000) Level 4 (formerly; SCP-6000)
Societal information
Affiliations	Serpent's Hand The Black Queen

“	Ah, yes, the Library. An endless maze of shelves living at the center of every universe. Travelogues on alien worlds. Stories written by gods. Books that will never be written, just lying on the shelves for anyone to borrow. It sounds fantastic, but some of us have seen it for ourselves. You see, back in the good old bad days, when we could put something in a box without having to worry about whether it was comfortable or not, we stumbled on a Way into the Library. It was beautiful, endless, populated with the scholars of a million different universes. The higher-ups of the time, being the hoarders that they were, decided that the best way to deal with this was to grab literally everything and take it back with them. This did not end well. My arm still aches when I open a rhyming dictionary and remember…	”
–A Foundation employee about the Library.

The Wanderer's Library (Nx-01), also known as KTE-7909-Alexandria by the Global Occult Coalition and SCP-6000 in an alternate universe that the Library assimilated, is a near-endless extradimensional library that catalogs almost all known information in the multiverse. Was classified as a Dunwich-class Nexus now being a Crossroads-class Nexus, it is only accessible via Ways: dimensional doors that require specific rituals to use. Time flows differently within the Library; for example, O5-10 Diane Walters was gone for months in real time, but stayed for eons within the Library itself. The Library is also connected to other anomalous libraries such as SCP-1726 and SCP-4001.

The Library is headed by the Serpent and managed by the Librarians. Those who harm the Library or its denizens are typically turned into Librarians as punishment, though exceptions have been made before. It is also the home of the Serpent's Hand, an organization dedicated to freeing the anomalous from the grip of the Foundation and the GOC.

Description

Interior of the Wanderer's Library.

The Wanderer's Library is an interdimensional library which acts as the embodiment of all knowledge, and as new knowledge keeps being created, the Library also keeps growing. The Library is in fact a living Platonic projection of all the places in the world where every form of knowledge that exists is stored, and it is enveloped by the omniscient entity known as the Serpent who acts as the magical shell wrapping the entire Library, although the being itself might be metaphorical. Because of this, the appearance of the Library varies throughout the multiverse as it is subject to the visitors' perception of a mundane library or bookstore. The Library contains identical copies of every single book that was ever written throughout the multiverse, and includes books which were never written. The stories contained within the Library are fixed and unchangeable, and as they intersect with reality the Library sets order on the world.

The remains of a deceased instance of SCP-1326-2, or Pages.

Everyone is capable of entering the Library wherever they are if they are clever enough to find the Ways which lead to it. In order to access a Way a Knock is required, which is trick that allows the Way to open. One Way in New York requires the user to pour chicken blood over a manhole and someone else who has already been in the Library to invite the user in. There is a set of rules that Wanderers must always follow: 1. Do not take what is not yours; 2. Keep your Library card safe; 3. Familiarise yourself with Ways; 4. Limit your possessions; 5. Stay clear of named places; 6. Avoid Library Staff; 7. Know your enemy; and 8. Survive. If anyone breaks these rules then they are forcefully taken by staff and transformed into additional staff and forced to work until their punishment is over. The Library is mostly staffed by the Archivists who guide Wanderers to the books they desire, Docents who enforce the rules and help patrons in traversing the Library, and Pages which restock the shelves. Another way to access the Library's books is SCP-1326, a book with dials on it that can be used to input combinations which cause the inside of the book to change to other books. However, usage requires payment in form of other books to absorbed into it.

Although the space within the Library is near-infinite, with endless corridors and towering cylinders of bookshelves, it is in fact fractal, as it loops in on itself due to the interior continually changing; as a result, it is difficult to map out. As stated, the Library is big enough to store all knowledge, which itself is limited despite the great number of books existing throughout different worlds and universes. Curiously, certain wings of the Library, such as the East Aera Wing, possess artificial day-night cycles as they were key to maintaining the magical and psychological function of many beings. At night the Wanderers can also see the night sky above them filled with artificial stars, one of which would be known as SCP-1591. The main hall of the Library can also change its dimensions, growing the space within in order to accommodate as many Wanderers as possible.

Within the Wanderer's Library there was the only newspaper known as Planasthai comprised of reporters and editors, which has its own internet website that could as acts as another Way. Internet users could use the website to enter the Wanderer's Library by uploading their minds into it and imagining the room they wanted to be. The website also had Reader Discussion Forums in which some users could ask questions by others.

After the SCP Foundation formed Site Anvil on the planet TRAPPIST-1e which was located far away from Earth, personnel stationed at the site discovered a Way leading to the Library in the data archives of Pendragon Base in 5 Anvil. Because this Way, later named Aachen, is located on another completely different planet, the personnel who traversed through it found the Library in a completely different appearance: several accessible sections were devoid of atmosphere, gravity, and light and dominated by massive corridors which branch into different corridors that run in all directions, often intersecting with one another, and are lined on all sides with iron objects resembling empty bookshelves. This creates a chaotic, three-dimensional matrix as corridors go on for kilometers until connecting with a nod, in intersections between six or more corridors would occasionally contain at the center a long tungsten cube. This version of the Library is also completely devoid of any Librarian, but while exploring it, Foundation personnel found a mysterious figurine of a Lemur-like creature holding a chessboard. As it turns out, each universe in the multiverse has its own Wanderer's Library, and all versions of the Library are connected between each other, making it seem like there is one Library in the entire multiverse.

Only a few individuals are capable of threatening the Library by their very existence, a few of those being SCP-017, "Rudie" and Karcist Halyna Ieva. If a universe's version of Library is destroyed or conquered, the rest of the Libraries would sever that version in order to let it spread to the others.

History

Construction

The origin of how the Wanderer's Library came to be has been completely lost through time and there are only legends which describe how it came to be. It is largely accepted that the Wanderer's Library came to existence at the exact moment when the concept of knowledge was created. A popular legend tells that the Library was build by the Serpent on top of them, the Library resting on the Serpent's back while the Serpent resides beneath the Library. However, when a wanderer came into contact with the Serpent themselves, they explained that they didn't in fact build the Library but both came into existence at the same time and have a symbiotic relationship.

Attacks on the Library

Through time, the Library was attacked by various malevolent beings and people who sought to either take advantage of the valuable content stored within the Library or simply wished to completely destroy it along with their knowledge. When the Red King first rose to power, he tore an entire wing off of the Library, which something joyous that is now forever lost. The Unnamed One once led a schism in the Wordsmiths Guild, leading to the Library being nearly wrenched in half as the Unnamed One and its followers unleashed several monsters from dark tomes. The Unnamed One was eventually defeated, but not killed, leaving their followers the Namesmiths to try to summon it back. After the Hanged One reached his apotheosis, he began residing for a time within the Library, causing the Library to become more and more insular and depressive, eventually leading to the King taking away some of the Library's dark knowledge and storing that knowledge inside Alagadda's Black Vaults. After the Daevas' original universe was destroyed due to some unknown calamity, they fled to other universes which included the Library's founding before vanishing and leaving a text behind. Since the Library was possibly responsible for the calamity that resulted in the current state of the Daevas, they went to war with the Librarians and as the text expanded new records of the battles fought between the two factions appeared despite the oldest of the Librarians having no knowledge of such events ever occurring. The entity known as the Black Moon also took some knowledge from the Library which caused the Librarians to become wary of it.

There have also been organizations from various universes who had tried to pillage the Library. The first ones were the Magpies, also known as the "Collectors" similar to the Foundation, followed by the Chaos Insurgency who broke the Library's rules, leading to them being completely barred, but not before the Insurgency destroyed a section on paratechnology.

During the apocalyptic event known as the Great Searing, the laws of physics inside the Library began malfunctioning, causing the Ways to allow anyone to enter without the need of the Knock. This led to various hostile enemies trying to invade and pillage the Library, causing grave destruction and the deaths of countless Librarians and Wanderers. While the Librarians tried to fix the problem plaguing the Library, most Wanderers fought back against the invaders, such as Caesar's Eagles and the Global Occult Coalition, breaking the absolute rule of no violence. Despite the massive destruction which befell the Library, the Librarians through the years were semi able to return it to its previous state, with peace being established once again and numerous Wanderers entering with no problem. This era appeared to not be restricted to the past as a Wanderer and their brother who had come to the Library centuries after the war was over had mysteriously found themselves in the middle of the Searing. Just as soon as it came the war and its destruction suddenly disappeared, although the Wanderer still sustained injuries they received from the experience and could not find their brother probably due to him having perished.

Around 2018, Ion "Kip" Honda went to the Library where he proceeded to detonate a nuclear bomb, causing massive destruction before escaping. He was eventually captured by the Unusual Incidents Unit in Three Portlands for an unrelated crime and shortly imprisoned in Paramax. Following his capture, the Library made an extraction request to UIU for Honda so it could properly punish him for his crime.

Alternate realities

SCP-1730

In U-1730, after the United Nations Global Occult Coalition acquired the SCP Foundation, they burned and destroyed the Library in some way according to Bobble the Clown. This was told to MTF Apollo-3 "Game Wardens" as they traversed the dimensionally warped SCP-1730.

Rat's Nest

After the Serpent committed suicide due to growing tired of resetting the universe, its death caused to enter a state of disarray as almost all the Librarians had died. As the entire Library was slowly dying, only Uncy and a disillusioned Owlpede remained alive and still kept maintaining what was left of the Library. While continuing their works the two Librarians helped the wanderer known as Mirage by giving a book which would teach how to paint the world's greatest painting.

Skies Made Strange

As the Foundation used SCP-3475 to erase the concept of the anomalous from the human noosphere, they inadvertently caused the entirety of humanity to slowly forget about everything. This resulted in great destruction not only throughout the world but even in the Wanderer's Library as SCP-2747 was able to manifest itself and consume parts of the Library. As every being became lost as a result of SCP-3475, the only wanderers who still retained their senses were X.N. and H.Y.U..

white space

As the Foundation ascended through the conceptual layers of reality to become SCP-4755, while using SCP-4736, the entire Library became completely vacant as all the wanderers dematerialized. With the Library now abandoned, the Librarians and the Serpent had lost their purpose and became unsure how to maintain the Library anymore.

Insect Hell

As SCP-3916 devoured everything in their path and steadily destroyed the world, the Serpent's Hand sealed the Way that connected the Library to that world to ensure its safety. However, as the books originating from that world crumbled due to the world having been destroyed, an instance of SCP-3916 emerged from the remains and began taking over the Library.

Residents

• Aníbal Žalost
• Anton Volek
• Bibliovores
• Book Mimics
• Brotherhood of Alchemists
• Corbenic Leander Atlas
• Cousin Dan
• Cromwells
• Discera Multiversity
• Duke Gathers
• Gottsam R'lek
• Holcombe Sufwick Efferthwaighte
• Issa Antar
• Lantern Kois
• Librarians
  • Archivists
    • Rounderpede
    • Ayman
    • Owlpede
    • Fun Guy
    • Malaise
    • Antir
  • Boilermen
  • Docents
  • Pages
  • Scribes
  • Translators
  • Volunteers
  • Wrights
• Lintukasvihirviö
• Lochan
• Masked Canines
  • Uncertainty
• Morgan James Marsh
• Mortis
• Nayáhuari
• The One Who Knows
• Orchestrum Novae
• Parcoons
• Planasthai
• Renallums
• SCP-3875
• SCP-5773
• SCP-6310
• Serpent
• Serpent's Hand
• Sqr'lk
• Ulak
• Wordsmiths Guild

Points of Interest

• Ambrose Wanderers' Library
• Barnes & Noble
• Black Queen’s Depository
• Bourgeois Technology section
• Build a Character Workshop
• Café La Bête
• Chekhov's Gun Manufacture Lmt.
• Combine Honnete Ober Advancer Mercantile
• East Aera Wing
• Forbidden Knowledge section
• Glenmire Glasshouse
• Hall of the Hours
• Hephæstus & Sons Fine Objects
• H.P Brewcraft
• Park of the Wanderer's Library
• Preceptionary
• The Restaurant at the End of the Universe
• Sea of Words
• Section 7-Mephistopheles-Pludeion
• Southwest District
  • Wanderer's Library Food Court
    • The Comet Tree
    • The Painted Palace
    • Saint Cecilia's Pastries
    • Zandral's Burgers
• Third Port Off Left
• Main Hall
• Marketplace
• Natural Atria
• Nursery School of the Serpent
• Underlibrary
• Wordsmith's Shore
• Zero-Gravathenaeum

Meta

Appearances

• Nexus Hub
• Locations of Interest
• Wanderer's Library Hub
• The Tale of the Library
• The Second Child
• Prisoners
• Part Four: Living Through Shattered Glass
• Entry Page: 001 - djkaktus's Proposal III
• Karcist Halyna Ieva, or The Mother Who Demands One's Toes
• Entry Page: 6000
• Entry Page: 6500
• A Spin Around The Library
• they'll always find a Way in
• Singed Books And Broken Worlds
• A Short Written Account of the Various Tea and Refreshments Sections Scattered Across the Library by a Dapper Handsome Creature
• Collected Musical Manifestations of Thematically Cohesive Areas in Our Library, Circa 2020
• Entry Page: 8888