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Chapter 1: The Beginning of Whispers
In the misty mountains of the Balkans lay a small town called Velgrad — a place untouched by time, absent from tourist maps, and cloaked in a silence deeper than snow. Ancient stone buildings, strange symbols etched into damp walls, and a forest no one dared to enter... The mist that covered Velgrad was not only physical — it was a shroud woven from the past.
Detective Elena Mirek, one of the sharpest minds of the European Criminal Investigations Division (ECID), was born in Prague, but her roots traced back to Transylvania. With her expertise in ancient symbols and lost civilizations, she had earned a reputation across Europe by solving a series of symbolic murder cases.
This time, she was sent to investigate a body found in the ruins of an old monastery in Velgrad. But this wasn't an ordinary corpse. A young man had been found crucified, with the word "REDEO" — Latin for "I return" — carved into his chest.
The monastery's head priest had discovered the body. "I swear to God, we never saw him before," he said, his voice trembling like the mist around the village. But Elena could see it — the averted eyes, the hesitant steps. Velgrad feared this death.
Locals whispered of an old legend: "When the stones begin to speak again, the sleeping god shall awaken."
The legend intrigued Elena, especially when she learned about a massive stone structure deep in the forest, considered sacred by the villagers — the "Mute Stones" — megaliths that some claimed had glowed under the moonlight just before the murder.
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During the first inspection at the scene, the arrangement of stones around the body caught Elena's attention. Symbols on the stones combined Sumerian cuneiform and Greek letters — an impossible pairing. These markings belonged to entirely different millennia. And yet, someone had etched them together.
That night, Elena checked into the town's only inn. On a shelf in her room sat a row of antique books. She pulled one out at random; it was covered in dust. On its cover, in faded gold, were the words:
> "The Book of Lost Rituals – Magnus Ordus"
A single passage inside sent a chill through her spine:
> "The stones whisper only to those who remember. When blood is spilled, the gates shall open."
Outside, the wind howled, and a low hum echoed from the forest. Something was waiting. Elena could feel it — a forgotten truth stirring in the layers of time.
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The next morning, a small exhibition had opened in the town square. Old books, medals, and unidentified carved stones were displayed. An elderly woman running the booth stared deeply into Elena's eyes and handed her an ancient bracelet.
"Elena Mirek," the woman said. "You will awaken it again."
Elena stepped back. How did she know her name? The woman, with trembling hands, placed the bracelet in Elena's palm. At its center was a stone bearing a carved eye, with a spiral turning in its iris.
It was identical to the symbol found near the body.
And Elena knew — this wasn't just a murder.
It was the first step of a prophecy.
And whether she wanted it or not…
She was now at the center of it.
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