The whispering stacks · Velstraven

A major room of chapter 2. When you walk in, the room card reads: The sealed ledger must reach the exit stand; a listener patrols the stacks.

Narrated walkthrough

The whispering stacks from its entrance — The whispering stacks: how to solve it

Getting there

Chapter 2, first upper floor, through the Teaching court's north arch. A dead end. It plays no part in the enclosure gate, but it is one of chapter 2's required puzzles.

What is wrong

"The sealed ledger must reach the exit stand; a listener patrols the stacks." The listener starts its patrol beside the ledger's rolling shelf at the back of the room. It turns its dish toward any sound and walks there. A loose metal panel above the shelf rattles when the carrier is lifted.

What you can work

Whistle: A silent whistle on its support at the far end of the aisle, well away from the ledger shelf.
Resonator: A loose bronze bowl near the far aisle; struck, it rings where it stands.
Panel: A loose metal panel above the ledger shelf that rattles when the carrier is lifted.
Hatch: A hinged hatch into the passage behind the masonry; packed grit clogs its hinge.
Wall: Bare masonry under the service ledge, two metres up.
Ledger: The sealed ledger carrier on its rolling shelf.
Keeper: The empty keeper stand beside the exit.

Solution

A nudge

Place sound grows a reed in the whistle and keeps it sounding. The listener walks toward sound, and this one keeps calling it to the far aisle, away from the ledger.

The full solution

Aim at the Whistle in the far aisle and cast Place sound (Wind + Growth + Water).
Place sound grows a reed in the whistle and keeps it sounding. The listener walks toward sound, and this one keeps calling it to the far aisle, away from the ledger.
What you see: "The supported whistle sounds from the far aisle." Whistle card: "It is sounding at the far aisle, and the listener's dish turns toward it."
Cast Tether (Will + Growth + Growth) on the Panel above the ledger shelf.
Lifting the carrier rattles the panel, a sound louder than the whistle that would call the listener straight back. A tension line holds the panel still.
What you see: "A tension line restrains the specific rattling service panel."
Wait until the listener reaches the far aisle (about eight seconds), then walk to the shelf and Handle the Ledger.
It starts right beside the ledger shelf. Carrying the ledger within about two metres of it gets you noticed.
What you see: "You lift the sealed ledger carrier from its rolling shelf." The place plate shows "Carrying · Ledger".
Walk, without hurrying, to the Keeper stand by the exit and Handle it.
The whistle drowns out an ordinary walk. Hurrying is louder than the whistle and brings the listener to you.
What you see: "The ledger carrier rests on the exit keeper stand." Then "The whispering stacks settled."

Other ways that work

Service route: cast Cleanse surface (Fire + Water + Water) on the Hatch twice ("The dusty hinge washes clear into its catch gutter."), go up to the west return landing and Handle the Hatch ("The maintenance hatch opens behind the masonry sound baffle."). Inside the passage behind the west and back masonry the listener hears nothing you do. The ledger shelf passes through a slot in the back wall, so the carrier comes off there without a rattle reaching it. Keep well clear of the listener on the open stretch to the Keeper.
Climbing growth (Will + Water + Water) on the Wall: "Frozen holds reach the service return ledge." This is another way up to the hatch landing.
Handle the Resonator, or cast Directed impulse (Fire + Fire + Will) on it: "The heat-tolerant resonator rings at its actual location." It rings once, so it draws the listener for only a few seconds.

Watch for

Getting caught: within about two metres of the listener, while carrying the ledger or moving faster than a slow walk, you see "The listener is closing on your movement." and its arm rises. Three seconds of that and it intercepts you.
Hurry (Shift; pad L1) and Rising draught both count as noise.
Without the whistle, even an ordinary walk is loud enough to draw the listener.
The whistle keeps sounding until you dismiss it. Dismiss it and the listener goes back to patrolling.
Your hand does not sound the whistle ("your hand does not make it sound"), and Place sound finds no footing on the resonator.
Before cleaning, the Hatch answers "Packed grit still obstructs the service hatch hinge."
The Reading lamp (Handle it, or Heat it) and the Reading shutter (Handle or Orient it) stand in every room. They only light the room to read by and work none of its fittings.

If it goes wrong

Caught: "The stone listener intercepted you. You and the ledger return to this room's entry state; earlier progress is retained." The room resets itself and other rooms keep their progress. You can also hold R for one second to reload the room-entry autosave.

Achievements here

Past the Stone Listener: Solve the whispering stacks.
Unheard: Unheard (focused): the listener must never catch you here, at any point in the journey. One interception spoils it for good, even after a restart. Set the whistle and the panel line before you touch the ledger, then walk.

Spells used

Place sound, Tether, Cleanse surface, Climbing growth, Directed impulse.