Shortly before the Progenitors left the known universe (see "The End of Races"), they decreed that all of their children should continue the cycle of Uplift that they had begun. Secondly, they bade their children to seek out knowledge forever, and to create a Great Library.

For billions of years the Library has accomplished this, and the knowledge base is continualy growing. The wisdom contained within the Library in it's entirety is tens of thousands of times greater than all published material in all of Earth's pre-contact history.

Librarian is a prestigious office, and can be held by members from any recognized race. At times in Galactic history, though, the Library has been entirely controlled by one faction or another. Now, however, the Glyph of the Rayed Spiral is sacred. All Library personel must take an oath of impartiality and forgo all political ties to race, clan, and religion. Even in times of war, oposite sides may use the same Library without fear of violence.

The Glyph of the Library

The five arms of the spiral represent the Five Linked Galaxies who are linked through the Library.

This picobranch Library has access to one trillionth, or 10^-12, of the total information in the Library. Branch Libraries come in many sizes, but all are quasi-intelligent computers connected through hyperspatial links. In order to recieve free anonymous information, many Library units require to be shown something not in its memory in exchange for the information you wish. The larger branches are quite large, and low-level queries may take hundreds of years to process. The closest Main Branch Library is on Tanith.

Many younger races, such as those of Earthclan and the Tymbrimi have gained notoriety by pointing out loopholes in the Library. These races are not highly regarded, and thought of as quite odd by not accepting the Library.