Introduction: Ismene''s employer is thankless; her years of publishing experience are wasted when her contract is cancelled. If she doesn''t accept a worse job, she''s unemployed—and there are laws about that. The government is getting restless about grass-roots labor unions.Worst of all, she''ll stop visiting the Castle, with its luxuries, its mystery, and its seemingly-magical library. She''s been using her access to help people get books. It has invited her to stay there—if she can make it.And the Castle''s ancient Voice needs a successor soon, or its systems will shut down...A science-fiction fantasy blend, with a low-tech industrializing dystopia of a society and a very high-tech Castle. A story of the protagonists'' conflict between duty and individual need. Vibes of Ghibli''s Castle in the Sky with the existential question of Annhilation. Optimistic. 87k words, complete, updating at least once a week. Please consider supporting the author at junipercalle.com or on Patreon....