Banshee2

Browser lacks capabilities required to play.

Upgrade or switch to another browser.

Loading…

<img src="imgs/woman_mirror.avif" alt="A photo of a woman crying in the mirror" height="315px" width="520px"/> <<audio "guitar_sad" play volume 0.3>> In what would be your last and final argument, he called you needy, he accused you of being unable to be alone with yourself, that he wasn't taking it anymore, you should learn to be alone, to stop bothering him. He kept saying you were unadventurous, that you always needed to program and plan ahead every minute of your life. Of course, he meant that you should let him alone playing videogames, going out every night with his friends or stop nagging about the dirty pile of laundry sitting on his bedroom chair. He broke up with you because you are a needy little girl. But did he had a point though, you wander in front of the mirror of your bathroom, while you carefully remove cast makeup from your teary eyes. Are you just putting out the independent woman sharade for other people to believe in? Do you even believe it? Are you just fine by your own? Yes. Yes. Yes. You will prove it to him, he'll see. No, you immediately correct yourself. You will prove it to you. That night, after a peacefully enjoyed tea and good movie, with some of the last money on your bank account, you book a fly to Ireland. The emerald island always inspired you, with its green vast landscapes, the ancient castles reminding of ancient lores. And, after all, you always wanted to make a road trip, and why not now, what would stop you? The next moring, you pack your backpack with the essentials: comfy clothes, your favourite Yates poems collection, and a raincoat. You step outside, ready to start your journey. [[A day in Dublin]]

<image src="imgs/dublin.jpg" alt="Dublin" height="315px" width="520px"></image> <<audio "guitar_sad" stop>> <<audio "citywalking" play>> Once landed in Dublin, you wander around the city alone, and enjoy all the touristic activities: you visit the Trinity College and the Book of Kells, the National Gallery and then you wander around the city parks and monuments. By evening, you decide to stroll around Temple Bar, and, even though you don’t particularly enjoy beer, or any drinking for that matter, you step inside a pub and order a Guinness, which you reluctantly sip while enjoying the typical pub atmosphere. <image src="imgs/temple_bar.jpg" alt="temple bar in dublin" height="315px" width="520px"></image> The bartender and some old men sitting at the counter, intrigued by your loneliness, start chatting with you, before leaving you alone with your thoughts. Once you finish your drink, you exit and walk to your night accommodation, a small hostel near the pub. Outside is dark, cloudy and rainy. The silence of the night is broken only by the sound of raindrops on your raincoat. The overall gloom of it all suits your mood. Tomorrow is a new day, which you haven’t planned yet. This makes you nervous, but you stick to your decision and go with the flow. [[The Irish countryside]]

<video width="100%" autoplay loop> <source src="video/castle_animation_Slomo.mp4" type="video/mp4"> </video> <<audio "citywalking" stop>> <<audio "wind" play>> The next morning you decide to take a train to the countryside. The bus stops in Tipperay county, in the middle of the island, and is home to a majestic castle, which you long wished to visit: the Rock of Cashel, an old medieval castle full of history and heritage. According to legends, the castle was donated to the church by a pagan king, thanks to the interception of San Patrick. The castle keeps some pagan elements, and it is a good example of the strict interconnection between Celtic paganism and Christian traditions in Ireland. The rock stands on the top of a well isolated hill, and it is surrounded by green meadow fields where you can spot many Celtic crosses and tombs. It appears that this old tradition of surrounding castles and churches with tombs may have originated in Ireland, and has been carried on in Cashel since recent times. As you enter the castle, you experience a sense of solemnity and you find yourself daydreaming about kings, queens, knights and old courts, wondering about the lives of these distant people you read about in old epic stories. While you stroll down the meadow and tombs, you almost perceive their distant call, as if their souls never left the hill. The wind blows hard on your face and it is getting darker, so you decide it is time for getting inside and enjoying a cup of tea. Descend the hill towards the town, you hear trailing steps behind you, as if someone is struggling to walk, but as you turn back, the road is empty. <img src="imgs/narrow_road.jpg" alt="a narrow descending road" height="315px" width="520px"> [[Chilling in the pub]]

<img src="imgs/irishpub2.jpg" alt="a typical irish pub" height="315px" width="520px"> <<audio "countryside" stop>> <<audio "irishpub" play volume 0.3>> Once in town, you enter a pub and order a tea, which is served with warm milk and a butter biscuit with raspberry jam. As you drink your tea, you overhear some men the next table telling old folk tales, which you start listening. At some point, one of them notices your interest, and gently invites you over at the table. You accept, even if you tend to be very shy in situations like this, and sit with them as they order a round of beers for everyone. One of them is a very old man, but he appears to be as healthy as a fish. He says he never left Ireland in his life. He was born in this very small town at the feet of the castle and spent his entire life searching for ghosts and spirits that are said to inhabit the area. He is about to tell a story, but he suddenly stops to look deep into your eyes. The table gets very quiet, and seconds seems to never end. He starts weeping, and, as he rush out the pub, he screams: "The Banshee has come for me! The Banshee has come for me!" [[A dreadful evening]]

<img src="imgs/banshee.jpg" alt="a banshee"> <<audio "irishpub" stop>> <<audio "horror" play>> You sit there, in shock, as the other men go after the old man. The man that invited you to the table stays to make sure you are ok. He says that the old man is kind of crazy, that he is so deeply involved in his old legends that he actually believes they are real. You ask him what he meant when he said “the Banshee has come for me”. He takes a deep breath in and starts explaining: “The legend of the Banshee is one of the oldest Irish legends. It is said that the banshee is a female fairy, which presence is believed to be an omen of imminent death. The Banshee scream can only be heard at night, and is a spectral and high pitch sound, which is said to cause pure terror in the men who hears it. In appearance, the Banshees are beautiful and pale young women, with shiny long hairs and dressed only in a shroud. And she cries, she cries and her cry makes your blood freeze”. You excuse yourself to the restroom, and when you come back, the table is empty. [[At the cottage]]

<img src="imgs/cottage.jpg" alt="a cottage" height="315px" width="520px"> <<audio "horror" stop>> <<audio "nightmare" play>> As you return to your accommodation, a small cottage at the town edge, you prepare for sleep. AS you lay in bed, unable to sleep and still puzzled by what happened earlier, you decide to dig a little deeper in this old myth. The cottage has a small but well-furnished library, and you find a book about Irish legends and folk tales. The Banshees legend goes back to the pagan era, and has taken many forms during the centuries. The Banshee roams the Irish countryside, hovering above ground like a vapour, towards houses in the distance. She clatters against the shutters, peering through the windows and revealing her ghastly complexion, screaming. The Banshee calls men to their death. Her cry is described as a deathly sound, a high pitched cry that remind of nails on chalkboard. Others, instead, describe the banshee scream as quite beautiful: a mourning lament, soft and melodic, which is able to instil even more panic in the man who listens. It is said that the banshee will induce terror in men who committed evil deeds. Some said that the cry changes according to the kind of death the man is about to face: every gruesome death will be announced by the blood-curdling sound. As you read through the pages, you discover that Banshees were believed to be young women who suffered violent death or were mistreated and humiliated, and which still wander on earth to hunt those who caused their sufferings. As you are deep into your readings, you fall into a deep sleep. [[Good night darling]]

<<audio "nightmare" play>> You are at home; it is a winter afternoon and you just got home from a very stressful day at university. The house is cold, as no one remembered to turn on the heaters. You turn them on, hop in the shower and think about what to make for dinner. You decide to surprise him with his favourite meal, baked potatoes, medium-rare steak and cheesecake. It is only 6pm, but it will take a while to get everything ready, so you start making the dessert, and then work on potatoes and meat. While the potatoes are in the oven and the cheesecake is chilling in the fridge, you set the table, open a bottle of red wine, light some candles and put on some music. <img src="imgs/dinner.jpg" alt="dinner table" height="315px" width="520px"> Once everything is ready, you carefully plate the meals and wait for him to arrive. At 9, he still hasn’t showed up, so you decide to text him and see if he had any problems at work. He answers that he is a bit late, but he is coming. You pour yourself a glass of wine and keep wait patiently for him. Two hours later, you feel tired and disappointed and decide to go to bed. Late that night, you hear the door of the room open as he enters the bedroom. The next morning, as he's in the shower, you hear his phone ringing a few times, and as you get up to silence it, you notice that a woman has sent him some very strange messages: she says that after that night they are over, she does not want to see him anymore and that she cannot believe that he lied to her. You almost fell to the ground, and you crawl back to bed just in time for him to come back in to the room. You pretend to sleep, as you cannot face him and his anger right now. That evening, you park outside his office and wait for him to exit, and then follow him and his colleagues to a bar. You watch them as they laugh and play cool with the woman behind the counter, who is clearly annoyed by them. When he walks out, alone, you follow him down the road to an apartment. You spot him from a window, with a girl you never met before. You can hear them fight through the window, as she yells him to leave her alone. He tries to kiss her, but she pushes him away and runs out in tears. <img src="imgs/fight.jpeg" alt="a couple fighting" height="315px" width="520px"> You feel like screaming, and a loud, ghostly cry comes out of your lungs, so loud and strong it breaks the apartment windows. He leans out the window and sees you, in the middle of the road, your eyes filled with tears and anger, as red as blood. He looks pale and terrified, and as you scream again and again, he goes into a state of pure panic and death-like stare. Shortly after, he falls from the window, at your feet, as cold as death. [[The end]].

<<audio "nightmare" play>> You wake up startled, in the cottage library, with the book of folk tales open on your lap. It was all a dream. You go to the bathroom and wash your face, as you think about your dream. Despite the rough night, you feel a sense of relief, of unusual calmness. You make some coffee and get ready to continue your journey. On your way to the train station, you pass in front of the pub, where the men from last evening are gathered in disbelief: the old man passed away that night. They stare at you, with the same terror you witnessed in your man eyes in your dream. As you pass by, they mumble something you cannot hear, and then they quickly run away. You fear nothing now, and you feel good on your own.

<<cacheaudio "guitar_sad" "music/sad_guitar_intro.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "nightmare" "music/nightmare.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "irishpub" "music/irishpub.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "countryside" "music/countryside.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "wind" "music/windcountryside.wav">> <<cacheaudio "citywalking" "music/citywalking.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "horror" "music/horrorstory.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "forestwalking" "music/forestwalking.mp3">>

''//“The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.” ― W.B. Yeats//'' [[Begin]]