Charter 13: Sealed By Witches

The two remaining creatures growled, their dark silhouettes trembling in the uncertain light of the tower. They no longer blindly charged, but they also did not retreat.

Calcium could feel the magic pulsing in her palm. The tablet had not yet dissipated—the words imprinted in the air could have been rewritten.

Elmar took out a dagger: –Can you do it again?

Calcium looked at him: –Do what? Rewrite their fate?

He nodded, gripping the hilt. After that, Calcium thought about it.

"I can write down stories.… But what if I try to change them without destroying them?"

A new sensation appeared in her chest, as if her tattoo was responding to a thought.

She slowly raised her hand.

[Creating a new Tablet...]

[Form: Alternative.]

[Object: Nocturnal Creatures.]

The letters began to rearrange in the air. The creatures growled, but did not rush forward. They froze, their white eyes blurred, as if they were starting to remember something.

Calcium felt the flow of information. These beasts weren't just monsters. Once… they were something else.

"Perhaps a part of this city?"

The tablet flashed, and one of the creatures let out an inhuman scream. His body began to change.

Calcium held her breath.Will she be able to... bring them back?

Calcium stared as the creature's body trembled and changed shape. The black feathers began to fall off, exposing human skin underneath. The white, blinding eyes faded away, turning into normal ones—alive, filled with fear.

Elmar held his breath: –What did you do?...

Calcium wasn't sure herself. In front of her, instead of a beast, a man lay trembling on the ground—emaciated, covered with scars, but definitely a man.

The second creature staggered back, its dark fur standing on end. It didn't understand what had happened.Calcium could feel the faint pulsation of the tablet, which had not yet completely disappeared.

"If one of them was able to return... then maybe the other one did too."

She took a step closer, but the creature growled. It didn't want to change. It was struggling.

–Get back! – Elmar shouted, but Calcium didn't listen to him.

She held out her hand.

–I know you were someone else. I can help you.

A blue light enveloped the beast, and it howled—not from anger, but from pain. The darkness trembled, teetering on the verge of disappearing.

"Just a little more..."

But suddenly the tablet cracked, as if something had broken from the inside. The creature lunged forward, not attacking, but fleeing into the darkness.

Calcium exhaled sharply, feeling her knees buckle from exhaustion.

Elmar supported her.

–You… You just brought this man back from the dark.…

Calcium took a deep breath.

–So now I know... what happened to them.– She looked at the ruins of the tower.

If these creatures were once human, then the answers were out there somewhere. And she was going to find them.

Calcium struggled to her feet. Her head was a little dizzy — using the tablet was exhausting her strength so intensely, as if she was living a whole story inside herself.

Elmar was carefully watching the man she had just brought back from the darkness. He was trembling, his thin body covered with old scars and remnants of what looked like a magical seal spread over his skin.

–Do you remember who you are? – Calcium asked cautiously.

The man looked up at her with dark, tired eyes: –I... was a guardian. Of Tower. But... they... took us away.…

Calcium and Elmar exchanged glances.

–Who are they? – Elmar asked sharply.

The man shuddered, as if a painful image had flashed through his mind.

– Servants of Witches… They used us to seal the knowledge.… We've become... creatures... guards who don't remember what we're guarding.…

"The witches."

Calcium was instantly alert. She didn't like coincidences, especially when they involved a Coven of Witches.

–What exactly did they seal? – Her voice sounded tougher than she expected.

The Guardian clenched his hands into fists:

– The key. The key to the forgotten pages. Back to the history they were trying to erase.

Calcium froze.Her tattoo flashed faintly, as if confirming that this conversation mattered.

Elmar frowned: –If that's the case, then there might still be...

–The answer – Finished the Calcium for him.

She looked up at the tall dark tower, whose blue glow now seemed even more ominous.There was something inside that the Coven was so afraid of.

And Calcium was going to get to that at any cost.

Calcium stood in front of the tower, peering into its dark walls, covered with strange signs. They seemed to be moving, barely noticeably changing, as if they were alive.

The Guardian was breathing heavily, but he still managed to get up.

–Do you... want to go inside?

Elmar squinted at the Calcium: – Is there any doubt that this is a good idea?

– They left the seals. – The keeper replied weakly: –The witches didn't want anyone to know the truth. If you break them… They'll find out.

"They are."

Calcium thought about it.

The Coven of Witches…They already knew about the existence of Calcium. If everything this man said was true, then there really could be something inside that could change the course of history.

The tattoo on his palm glowed faintly, and a new message popped up in front of his eyes.

[Hidden Quest chain activated.]

[History that was tried to be erased.]

[Reward: Unknown.]

"A hidden chain?"

So she's really on the right track.

–I'll come in anyway. –Calcium straightened up and took a step forward.

The Keeper shuddered: –But if you break the seals…

– They have already been violated. – Her voice was firm.

She pointed to the ruins where the nocturnal creatures had stood.

– They wanted to erase the history, but I have already started to return it. So if the witches find out, let them. They'll come for me anyway.

The Guardian looked at her intently, and then slowly nodded.

–Then... good luck.

Elmar sighed.

–Well, if we don't get killed by some ancient trap right now, then maybe we'll even find out something.

Calcium smiled. – So let's check it out.

And with that, she stepped inside the forgotten tower.

The air inside the tower was stagnant, heavy, as if history itself was pressing down on the walls. The light of her tattoo barely penetrated the darkness, but even it was enough to see the high stone walls covered with ancient writings.

Elmar ran his hand over the nearest symbol, but immediately withdrew his fingers.

–They're warm.

Calcium leaned closer. The symbols actually pulsed, as if they were part of a living spell.

She slowly stretched out her hand and let the magic flow into her palm.

[Analyzing the tablet...]

[Available information: Limited.]

"Limited?

But before she could ask a question, one of the words on the wall flashed.

A distorted voice echoed through the hall.

– Who broke the silence?

Elmar clutched the dagger, but Calcium did not flinch.

– The one who wants to find out the truth.

There was silence. Then the signs wavered, starting to come together, taking shape.A translucent silhouette appeared in front of them— a figure in long robes, with his face hidden under a hood.

–The truth?...–The voice sounded both distant and close.–The story that the witches tried to erase?

Calcium nodded: –Yes.

The figure slowly raised her hand, and a blue spark flashed in her palm.

–Then listen...

At that moment, the entire tower trembled, and Calcium felt something begin to change.

"I'm close."

And she was ready to hear the truth that the witches were hiding. The light spark in the ghostly figure's palm trembled, and then shattered into thousands of tiny fragments. They hovered in the air, forming something like a star chart.

Calcium felt a strange pressure in her chest, as if the tower itself was trying to push her back.

[Attention! You are approaching classified information.]

//To be continued, please like and save.