Charter: The Trial Of The Guardians

A dull rumble echoed down the corridor, and then ghostly silhouettes appeared out of the darkness – pale, indistinct, but their eyes burned with awareness.

–That's fine. – Lian gasped, pulling out his weapon: –The ghosts.

Calcium squeezed her palm, feeling her tattoo heat up.

–No...These are the Keepers of History. –

She didn't know what was waiting for her next, but she was sure of one thing—this place wasn't going to let them go just like that.

The ghostly figures began to move. They did not attack immediately, but seemed to be studying, peering into the Calcium and Creeper. Their silhouettes flickered, then becoming clearer, then blurring again in the semi-darkness.

Calcium swallowed. "The guardians of history." She had never encountered such a thing before. Her abilities gave her knowledge, but not protection.

–They're not alive, but they're not dead either. – She muttered.

Lian tightened his grip on the hilt of his weapon.

Calcium slowly extended her hand forward, and her tattoo lit up slightly.

– The spirits of the past. They're connected to this place... and the history it holds.

One of the figures stepped forward. A voice that seemed to come from the very heart of antiquity sounded right in her head:

"Have you come for knowledge?"

Calcium felt something tremble inside her. "This is a test."

–Yes. – She replied firmly.

The figure took another step, and her image became clearer. It was a man in a long robe, his eyes were empty, but they reflected eternity.

"Knowledge requires a fee."

Calcium felt a cold pang of anxiety.

The ghostly silhouettes did not respond immediately. Instead, the entire corridor shook, and the glowing symbols on the walls flashed brighter.

Lian instinctively took a step back.

–I don't like it, I'm sorry – he muttered.

A new system window popped up in front of Calcium:

[The Trial of the Guardians has begun.]

[The price of knowledge: one of your stories.]

Calcium froze.

"One of my stories?"

She abruptly felt something inside her tremble, as if some part of herself might disappear.

"If I agree… What will they take away"

Her fingers curled into a fist. To refuse is to lose the opportunity to find out the truth, but to agree...

The keepers were waiting.

Calcium felt a chill run down her spine. "One of my stories..."

She didn't know exactly how this exchange worked. What will they take away? A memory? Emotion? A fragment of her soul?

Lian watched her closely, but did not interfere: – Do you know what to do?– he asked softly.

Calcium hesitated. Dozens of thoughts were spinning in my head. She could have refused and tried to find another way, but the feeling inside her told her that this was her only chance.

"The price of knowledge..."

She took a step forward and took a deep breath.

– I accept the terms.

As soon as she said that, the ghostly figure raised his hand, and everything went dark.

The world has disappeared.

Calcium felt her consciousness sinking somewhere. She stood in the void, and a glowing sphere hovered in front of her, in which images of her past swirled.

She saw herself as a child–the first time she heard a story from a street storyteller. Then, as a young girl, she wrote down her first tablet...

"Choose what to give."

The Guardian's voice echoed in her head, echoing in her skull.

The choice was hers.

Calcium slowly extended her hand towards the sphere. She didn't want to lose something important. Memories of her family, her first successes, and those who helped her along the way...

But then her gaze caught on one particular moment.

The day she first realized that the world was unfair. When she had to give up trust in people and become a loner. This part of the past made her stronger, but it was also her burden.

"If I give it back..."

She didn't know if something would change in her.

But there was no choice.

– Take it. She whispered and let the memory slip away.

When her vision returned, Calcium felt light. It was as if something heavy had disappeared from her soul.

The ghostly figures parted to let her pass.

–You did well. –Lian said, looking at her carefully.

She touched her temple. Something has changed.

But what exactly is it? Calcium didn't know the answer yet.

Lian tilted his head to the side, watching her intently: – Are you okay?

Calcium blinked back to reality: –Yes... I think so.

The ghostly figures no longer moved. They just stood at the edges of the corridor, like statues imbuing this ancient temple with their history.

[The Trial of the Guardians has been completed.]

[Received: Access to the Secret Tablet.]

The system flashed before her eyes, and Calcium felt a slight jolt in her chest. Somewhere in the depths of the temple, something had changed, as if a hidden door had opened slightly, allowing her to pass through.

–We need to keep going. – She said, stepping forward.

Lian nodded curtly and followed her.

The corridors were getting narrower and the air was getting colder. The walls were covered with ancient symbols that Calcium could only partially decipher. They were talking about something great, about those who wrote down stories in tablets... and about something that happened a long time ago.

A massive door decorated with mosaics appeared ahead.Calcium ran her fingers over its surface:

–It's... not just a door.

Lian crossed his arms over his chest.

She felt a strange attraction. It was as if something inside the door was responding to her presence.

"It's here."

The tablet that the previous silver-haired Tattoo Artist of Stories was talking about. Calcium closed her eyes and concentrated, letting her tattoo respond. The symbols on his palm glowed with a soft blue light.

– Open up. –he whispered.

The door slowly began to move, creaked like old wood, resisting any interference. But under Calcium's fingers, she began to move faster and faster, as if the very structure of the temple understood her desire. The light from her tattoo softly illuminated the passage that gradually opened up in front of them.

As soon as the door opened, Calcium felt a sudden change in the atmosphere. It was unusually quiet inside, and only the faint echo of their footsteps broke the deathly silence. The smell of age and dust hung in the air, and the light that emanated from her tattoo could not penetrate the gloom gathering in this room.

A huge hall opened up in front of them, its walls covered with strange symbols and mosaics. In the center stood a stone platform, on which was located a massive, ancient object – a tablet.

Calcium couldn't take her eyes off this ancient book lying on a platform surrounded by an invisible force. She was like an eclipse, drawing the eye. Its surface was covered with mysterious writings that she might have once seen in her visions, but could not read.

She took a step forward, ignoring Lian, who was watching her every move. She felt the magic inside her grow stronger, as if it was responding to her desire for knowledge.

–Are you really going to take her? – Lian asked, holding back his step.

Calcium did not respond. She just held out her hand. A moment later, her fingers touched the surface of the tablet. At that moment, as if on cue, images flashed through her mind.

The Tablet was alive. She absorbed her thoughts, memories and desires, dissolving them into herself. She was the key to all the hidden knowledge. Calcium felt her body being filled with streams of energy, and her memory being torn into pieces, each of which was burned and transformed.

"All I want to know is… I'll get it."

//To be continued, please like and save…