The Echo of the Unseen🔊

In the quaint town of Alderwood on the Scottish highlands, where rolling green pastures splendour under the cobalt sky and where stone cottages lined the narrow cobblestoned streets, lived an enigmatic old man named Alistair. This town was a place isolated from the tumult of the outside world and where the passing of time seemed to brush with a tender hand.

Alistair was not just your ordinary town's person. Infamous for his claims to witness the unseen, he held a reputation that straddled between fascination and fear among the townsfolk. This story orbits around one particular event that altered the perception of the inexplicable.

It was on a bitter winter's night, the wind howled across the empty lanes and the frost held possession over the still fields. A thunderous knock echoed on Alistair's ancient wooden door. Outside stood a middle-aged woman, terrified, clothes ruffled, an expression etched with unreadable fear. It was Agnes, the town's healer.

Agnes was Alistair's childhood friend and was the only one among the townsfolk who never feared him. She asked Alistair to accompany her to see a patient in the far end of Alderwood, a place avoided by many due to fear of its tenant, Morag. Morag was the town's outcast, a witch some said, who lived in a rickety old house on the outskirts of Alderwood. Nobody ever dared to cross paths with her, let alone visit her. However, the severity of this request necessitated its fulfilment.

So, Alistair, with a lantern held high and covered in a cloak thick with wind-whipped snow, followed Agnes through the veiled darkness. The meandering path towards Morag's house was ghostly quiet except for the crunch of frozen grass under their feet and the echoes of Agnes's muttered prayers to protect from the apparent evil.

Upon reaching her house, what greeted them was far more sinister than they had imagined. The house was utterly silent; even the wind seemed to hold its breath at the doorstep. Morag was unconscious, and an eerie chill in the room sent a shudder down their spines.

Alistair focused on his abilities; an unseen force seemed to pull him towards a wooden chest underneath Morag’s bed. It was locked, old, and battered. Being sensitive to the invisible, he felt an overpowering energy radiating from it. Agnes produced a key from her pocket, which Morag had given her years ago in a cryptic delivery, "Use it when the unseen haunts."

The unlocked chest revealed a mirror, unlike any other, with a burnished golden frame and an icy reflective surface, which seemed mystical and otherworldly. Alistair touched the surface, and in an instant, he was engulfed by a bright light.

The mirror was, in reality, a door, a passage to another universe housing spirits punished for their actions and trapped for eternity. Each spirit had a story, a lesson for the living. Alistair, with his courage and wisdom, helped them find solace and in return received their blessings. As he returned back, the warmth of their gratitude counteracted the chill of the mirrored room.

From that day forward, Alistair became a beacon of hope, not only for the unseen but for the people of Alderwood as well. No longer they feared him, rather they saw him as the liaison between the tangible and the unseen, bringing peace and harmony to the town.

The story of Alistair is inimitable and serves as a reminder to Alderwood to respect and regard the unseen for every existence has a tale to tell. The echo of the unseen was now heard, not with fear but with reverence and kindness, all thanks to Alistair.