A handful of Agents had gathered in one of the quieter archive rooms on the library level, though “quiet” was a relative term when an anomalous book was actively writing itself.

The volume sat inside its glass containment case, the mounted camera focused tightly on the open pages. One of the tablets nearby refreshed automatically as fresh ink bled slowly into existence, letters forming stroke by deliberate stroke as if guided by an invisible hand.

Several Agents watched in silence as the new paragraph completed itself.

Then someone exhaled softly.

“Oh well… they’re in there now.”

Another Agent, leaning back in their chair, rubbed at their eyes and shook their head. “Yeah, no. I can’t read this stuff before bed anymore. Last time I did, I ended up dreaming I was stuck in a dungeon with something breathing behind me.” They pushed away from the tablet. “I’ll check the board for casualties in the morning.”

“Optimistic,” someone muttered dryly.

“Has anyone talked to Interdimensional Communications yet?” another voice asked, still studying the fresh text as if it might change again.

“Yeah, they’re already here,” came the reply from a woman scrolling through a secondary display. “Set up two rooms over. So far, still no luck getting messages in… or even figuring out where they are exactly.”

A younger Agent, standing near the back, leaned forward slightly, eyes fixed on the tablet. “Oh man… I hope the cute couple makes it.”

A few people glanced at him.

“Which ones?” someone asked.

“The ones from the opening scene. The nervous guy and the one who kept holding his hand. They seemed… normal.”

“Yeah,” another Agent said quietly. “Those are usually the ones that don’t do great.”

The younger Agent frowned but didn’t respond.

“I heard we’ve got a hit on at least one couple,” someone else spoke up, glancing at their phone. “David and Erica Sherman. Confirmed they went on a,” he glanced at the screen and smirked slightly, “quote: ‘fantasy weekend vacation.’”

A few people exchanged looks.

“They were due back today,” he continued, tone growing more serious, “and never showed up. Family reported them missing about an hour ago. So… we’re actually a little behind.”

That drew a few quiet sighs.

“Still,” another Agent said, folding their arms, “that gives us a start at least. If we can confirm one pair, we can start building a profile. Same travel agency, same brochures, same online trail…”

“We find the rest of them,” someone finished, “and try to figure out how this thing is selecting victims.”

“And how it’s operating,” another added, glancing toward the book as another faint line of ink began forming at the bottom of the page.

The group fell quiet again, watching.

Somewhere in the facility, someone would already be preparing to update the board.

And nine more strangers were now part of the story.