The tavern was buzzing like a beehive, filled with drunken voices and the smells of cheap ale, roast meat and slightly rotten wood. Calcium sat in the corner, leaning against the wall, thoughtfully running her finger along the rim of her mug. It had been a hard day. Her legs ached from the long walk, her stomach was empty, and the last coppers jingled in her purse.
She tiredly closed her eyes, listening to the meaningless chatter around her. Merchants argued about taxes, mercenaries discussed the latest fight with goblins, and local girls excitedly whispered:
– They say a strange star has appeared in the sky…
– It's a bad sign. Maybe trouble is approaching us?
– Or luck! Sometimes the stars promise wealth!"
Calcium curled her lips.
"I wish I had gold instead of stars. Just once in my life."
She raised her mug, about to take a sip, but suddenly...
A sharp, piercing pain flared in her palm.
Calcium screamed and dropped the mug. It hit the table with a dull thud, spilling the rest of the ale. The girl grabbed her hand, expecting to see a cut or a burn, but the skin was intact. Only in the center of her palm, right under her gaze, a light appeared - unnatural, deep, shimmering blue.
She froze.
Fine lines began to form a pattern, as if fiery threads were embroidering a design on her skin. Symbols intertwined in an intricate mandala, and in the center a strange sign formed that she had not seen before. The light pulsed, almost hypnotizing.
"What the hell?!" Panic swept through her body.
She abruptly lowered her hand under the table, her heart thundering in her chest. No one in the tavern paid attention to her. People continued to drink, talk, laugh, as if nothing had happened.
But her world turned upside down at that moment.
– Congratulations! - a strange, emotionless voice suddenly sounded in her head.
– You have received a unique profession: Tattooist of Stories.
– The first task has been activated.
Calcium convulsively sucked in air.
"What the hell is this magic? Who is talking to me?!"
Her breathing was ragged, her fingers trembled. She clenched her fists, but the light from her palm did not disappear. Before her eyes, right in the air, golden letters flashed, hovering, as if written by an invisible hand.
Quest: "Remember My Story"
Objective: Find a person whose story is about to end and write it down in the Tablet.
Reward: 10 gold coins, +10 mana, 1 experience point.
Additional: Sometimes the past hides gold...
Calcium swallowed, feeling a cold sweat run down her back.
"Is this a dream? No. This is too real. Damn it, what kind of curse is this?!"
She carefully unclenched her fist, looking at the tattoo again. Her hand no longer hurt, but now the mandala seemed more than just a drawing. It felt alive.
Calcium took a deep breath.
"Okay. Panicking won't help me. Think. If this is magic, can I use it? 10 gold coins… That's more than I've earned in the last three months. Maybe it's not so bad?"
System. Task. Money.
It didn't feel like a normal curse. More like an opportunity.
Slowly, carefully, Calcium smiled.
"If this is a chance to become a rich sorceress… Then why don't I try?"
Calcium exhaled, barely able to stop her fingers from shaking. Her thoughts were in a tangle.
"This is… a system?"
She had heard of such things in old tales. In ancient times, the chosen ones could hear a Voice that gave them great powers. But no one had ever claimed that it was true. Only old drunks and crazy magicians told tales of certain "tasks", of voices speaking in the head.
But this is nonsense.
"And yet..."
The letters in front of her eyes did not disappear. They hung in the air, insistent, waiting.
Calcium swallowed: " 10 gold "
This was more than she had ever held in her hands at one time. With that amount, she could rent a room in a good place, eat normal food, and even buy something useful.
And the task sounded... strange. Find a person whose story will soon end? Write it down?
How could she even write down stories? She had no ink, no paper, and her handwriting looked more like the scribbles of an angry raven.
She carefully touched the tattoo, and in that moment, knowledge flared inside her. It just... appeared, as if it had always been with her.
She did not write stories. She sealed them.
People, creatures, even monsters - everyone has a story. When she touches them, when they are ready to share, her tattoo absorbs their fates, turning them into Tablets.
This is not magic. It is something else. Ancient.
She traced a finger over the pattern on her palm.
"Okay. Let's say this isn't a dream. Let's say I try."
The tattoo suddenly warmed up a little, and new text flashed before her eyes.
Indication: the target is in this city.
Calcium felt a strange excitement rise in her chest.
"Am I being taken to him?"
She stood up abruptly from the table, shoved her hands in her pockets, and walked quickly out of the tavern.
The night enveloped the city in a soft chill. The stone pavements retained the day's warmth, but the air already gave off a dampness. The moonlight lazily spread across the roofs, blurring the shadows.
Calcium walked without hesitation. She didn't know where she was going, but her body moved confidently. As if someone invisible was leading her.
The people had not yet gone home. The market square was gradually emptying, the innkeepers were closing their shutters, but here and there you could still hear conversations.
She turned into a narrow alley, away from the noisy streets. And then she felt it.
Her heart sank. Her breath caught. Here.
At the far end of the alley, against the wall, sat a man. Calcium came closer.
He was an old man. Thin, dirty, dressed in rags. He sat leaning against the wall, staring into space, as if he saw something no one else could see. She stopped.
"He?"
The old man suddenly turned his head slowly and looked at her. Eyes. Deep, sad. There were so many years in them, so much pain... but not fear. He looked at her as if he was waiting.
"You... came" – he exhaled hoarsely.
Calcium felt something inside her turn over. The system was silent. But the tattoo on her palm began to slowly heat up.
"I should... write down his story?"
She swallowed, took a step closer and carefully extended her hand. The old man smiled - tiredly, bitterly.
"I thought... no one would hear me," he closed his eyes. "But you... you came."
Calcium covered his palm with hers.
And the world burst into light.
The light that poured from her palm was so bright that at first she even closed her eyes. It seemed alive, pulsating, as if all the magic of this world had gathered in one point and now exploded right in her hand. When the light disappeared, only an ordinary tattoo remained on her palm. But something had changed. Everything around became... clear and pure.
The old man did not move, but his eyes, closed as if they were in another world, opened. And Calcium felt how an unknown force filled her body. Her heart beat faster, and if she had not been so shocked, she would have noticed that her body was filled not just with energy, but with the very essence of someone else's life.
// To be continued like and save :)