Episode 2: The Call of the Ancestors
Branoc held his breath. Before him, two vertical stones were embedded in the ground. They were slightly taller than he was and seemed to mark a passage. Three stone slabs lay on the ground—one between the menhirs and two on either side. The arrangement evoked the threshold of a dwelling.
A light mist floated between the standing stones and seemed to thicken further back. Geometric symbols were carved into the rock: spirals, straight and wavy lines, as well as inscriptions in the Gaulish alphabet.
A deep murmur emerged from the very bowels of the earth, resonating through the tumulus like an echo from another age. Strangely, the mist reacted to every vibration, pulsing and condensing as the words rose. The shadows of the stones danced around Branoc, projected onto the ground by the flickering light of his torch. All around the tumulus, the mist slowly rose from the water-filled ditches, tracing a kind of invisible sacred circle, creating an intemporal sanctuary.
Then, a clearer voice rang out.
— “Who dares to disturb the circle of the ancestors?”
The young initiate felt his heart pound in his chest. He glanced down the tumulus, searching for Segomaros. There was no one. The old druid had retreated into the shadows of the forest, leaving him alone to face the unseen.
— “I am Branoc, son of Ordos, blacksmith of the Nitiobriges. I have been sent to hear the words of the ancients.”
A heavy silence settled. Only the night sounds of the Nemus Castelionesium forest filled the air: the hooting of an owl, the snap of a branch under the paw of a furtive animal, the whispering wind through the treetops. But beyond these familiar noises, other, deeper sounds resonated through the forest, coming from multiple directions at once. Grave, almost unreal voices.
Suddenly, a chilling breeze slipped between the stones, brushing against Branoc’s face. It seemed to emanate from the threshold, carried by the mist that still concealed the other side of the passage.
The Nitiobriges believed that the souls of the dead journeyed to the Otherworld, a realm where heroes feasted alongside the gods. But some spirits remained trapped in the places where they had perished, unable to cross the sacred threshold. Branoc knew this, and the thought of standing before one of them stirred a deep fear he struggled to suppress.
His mortal eyes could see no one, yet his entire being felt multiple presences beyond the passage. He was not just looking with his eyes—but with his soul.
Suddenly, the ground trembled beneath his feet.
The mist pulsed, shifting in rhythm, and a strange humming noise, akin to a swarm of bees, filled the air. A vibration, like the tension before a lightning strike.
Branoc took a step forward, drawn in by this unseen force. In the flickering glow of his torch, he noticed engravings on the moss-covered threshold stone: interwoven circles, the stylized figure of a boar—the totem animal of his clan—and inscriptions he could not fully decipher.
— “The passage of souls…” he murmured.
He realized then that he was standing before one of the forgotten portals. These mysterious doors led to the sacred realms of the Nitiobriges. Some opened onto the immortal orchards, others to the deep caves—sanctuaries of souls, where the living had once found refuge during wars against the Roman legions or the invaders from the north.
The presences beyond the threshold seemed to intensify.
Through the mist, Branoc perceived an unreal figure, like a reflection in water, extending its hand toward him through the passage. A cold breath, laced with an unfamiliar fragrance, brushed against his face.
— “Listen… to the story of the vanquished…”
Branoc’s legs weakened under the weight of emotion.
Trembling, he reached out through the veil of mist. He then felt another hand—firm and ice-cold—grasp his own.
The spirit was speaking to him.
He was no longer just an initiate. He had become the interlocutor of a forgotten past.
Without further hesitation, he took another step forward.
An instant later, the forest vanished around him.
To be continued…
🔮 In the next episode:
➡ Who are the spirits trapped within the tumulus?
➡ What story do they wish to share?
➡ Will Branoc dare to venture into this Otherworld?
✨ Don’t miss the next chapter!
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