On Ancient Ground

Lets Make a Trade

Livia lay flat against the stone floor as the old man placed dots on her stomach and legs. The sharp rock he was using to push in the black ink substance was painful enough that she would jolt a bit from it. The cave was getting colder now and the light was almost out.

"How will this work?" She asked.

The old man continued his work and spoke. "It is simple."

Livia looked down at him. "and?"

He continued. "I will put these marks and symbols on your body now so that it will remember everything from this life. You will have all the skills that you have now when you awake in the new life."

"Well, that is a plus." She spat. "And what else?"

The old man continued with his work as he replied. "You die in this vessel but be reborn into another. It will not be your own. You will take a life for a life, that is the price we pay for these magics."

Livia laughed. "Take a life, that isn't hard to do. I have done much of that for much less reward."

The man continued. "This will not be as easy as the body you take will have the ability to fight you. The mind is a tricky thing. It will allow you to take over this person's body but at any time they can stop you if powerful enough."

Livia frowned. There is always a catch she thought.

"After you have stayed in the body for one full month, on a full moon, you will need to sacrifice someone the host loves. Then the body is yours to keep."

Livia sat up and looked at the old man who by now was down at her feet. "That seems easy enough to me. Last a month in someone else's head and then kill the person they love most."

The old man sighed. "Take this seriously. It will be a challenge and the challenge of your life. You will need to adapt as this could take place years from now."

Livia stood up and pulled her foot away. "Years? Why so long? I want to come back and cripple those who have stopped me from finding the one I love."

The man, stood himself, hunched over and looking worn. "The spell is activated by someone touching the last thing you do before you die. There will be some markings that only someone who fits the need can see."

Livia paced. "Fits the need? What do you mean?"

The old man leaned against the wall for support. "The person will be a woman and will need to have a pure enough heart to host you. This means no men or others who touch the markings will activate the spell."

Livia stopped pacing in front of the old man. "So, what you are telling me is that someone who is pure of heart will touch the markings on the last thing that I touch before I die and poof, I will then be in their body. I have to do everything in my power to keep control and then kill the one they love on the first full moon of the new month?"

The old man nodded.

Livia laughed. "Is this a spell or a curse. I could be out for years upon years looking for a pure-hearted woman. I don't think I have ever met one. And what if the last thing I touch is destroyed?"

The old man looked at Livia. "It will not be. The spell protects it and makes sure it survives the test of time.."

Livia was about to speak again when the door opened to the cell and two strong arms grabbed her. She screamed and the last thing she heard from the old man was, "may we meet again".