Tipsy Moon

Chapter 1. Voice from the past

Ireland, October 31, 2024

I was standing close to O'Carroll Castle and trying to get a signal on my phone.

Should I move further away maybe? At the same time, the picture would be better with ancient beauty behind me.

Finally, the phone showed a good signal. Looking at my reflection in the screen, I adjusted my unruly long black hair, and I started a live broadcast.

"Hi guys! Kat is back again! Bridie and I continue to travel around the mysterious places of Ireland, and today we are broadcasting from County Donegal and its coastal town of Ardara. Behind me, you can see the reason we are here", – I raised the tripod up a little so that the entire castle could be captured by the phone camera. – "We are in O'Carroll Castle! Well, more precisely, Bridie is already there, preparing everything necessary for the investigation. In the meantime, I decided to show you the castle and its territory while it is still not dark and tell you a little of its history.

O'Carroll Castle got its name from the clan that built it around the 1400s – 1500s. During the English attempt to rule Ireland, the castle came into the possession of an English lord who did not rule for long because he was killed by the natives in an uprising for independence. After that, the castle came into the possession of one of the leaders of the uprising, whose descendants own the castle to this day. However, they do not live there, and the castle is now used as a museum where many strange things happen.

That's it! I won't bore you with the history any longer. Let's go inside and talk to the castle manager, who has kindly agreed to spend the night with us".

I walked slowly towards the castle, trying to film this dark two-story building in all its glory, gloomily towering on the hill. Two floors of an ancient castle are not like the two floors of a modern residential building. Back then, floors were just gigantic! One such floor would do for three of ours!

I noticed that the co

"Guys, the co

A minute later, a handsome young man with brown eyes, about thirty years old, with long black hair, opened the door for me.

"And here is the manager of the castle I told you about", – I continued my reportage. – "Our knight, who could not leave us, two young ladies, alone at night in this haunted place. This castle is considered one of the most haunted castles in Ireland. Isn't that right, Mr. O'Co

"Certainly, Miss Katherine. I am sure that tonight you and your viewers will see that your visit here was not in vain", – the manager smiled. It seemed like there was a note of sadness in his voice… Did I imagine it?..

He closed the huge door and we walked into the main hall with a large fireplace, next to which stood a huge wooden dining table. We sat down near it, closer to the crackling fire, and continued our conversation.

"Tell me, how long have you been working here?" – I began a short interview, while Bridie was upstairs setting up equipment in the chapel, from which we decided to start right away.

"Almost eight years already", – the manager answered. – "At first we thought about making a hotel here, but in the end, we agreed on a museum, because these walls have a lot to tell. The renovation took us over a year, and we constantly continue to do something here, as funding comes in from the owner. Three years ago, we decided to go paranormal and open the castle to ghost hunters".

"And, in fact, that's why we are here, guys! We heard that many mysterious phenomena occur within the walls of this castle. Mr. O'Co

"Well, for example, here, where you and I are now, footsteps and knocks are often heard. Other groups of paranormal investigators have caught strange sounds and even voices on their recorders that were not heard on the camera", – I looked around nervously… Of course, it was not completely dark yet, but the twilight was already creepy.

"And one of the groups", – O'Co

He pointed with his hand at a small window behind my left shoulder. Naturally, after that I slowly turned in its direction, expecting to see a shadow looking at me there.

"But personally, I have never seen anyone there", – the manager continued. And to my relief, neither have I.

"And what is the most haunted place in the castle?"– I asked.

"Of course, the Bloody Chapel".

"Somehow these two words don't go together… Where did such a creepy name come from?"

"At first it was an ordinary chapel. In the O'Carroll clan, the first owners of this castle, there were two brothers, one of whom was a priest. And he held his masses in this chapel. But during the time of the English ownership of this castle, something went wrong… The chronicles mention several deaths that occurred in this chapel, after which it was nicknamed Bloody. Residents say that some rituals were even held there…".

"Yeah… Now I absolutely understand where such a name comes from. And what unusual phenomena were most often noticed there?"

"Usually, footsteps and various kinds of knocks. But later they were debunked mainly by the behavior of the birds that nest in this chapel. The windows there have no glass, and they can fly there freely. Surprisingly, for many years now only black ravens have been nesting there. We take this as some kind of special sign and do not drive them away. And they do not bother us much, and even exterminate local mice".

"Or maybe these are fairies in the guise of ravens?"

"I doubt it… More likely their familiars. The fairies might live in our backyard, where the ancient trees grow. Just in case, we don't cut them down, so as not to anger the representatives of the magic folk".

The Irish are truly amazing people! They passionately believe that their lands are inhabited by fairies. And they can even change the trajectory of the construction of a highway if a lone hawthorn tree stands in its way. Because under no circumstances should you cut it down! Otherwise, you will incur the wrath of these magical creatures, who were deprived of their portal to the world of humans.

"It was also in the Chapel that the largest number of our visitors heard voices", – the manager continued. – "Mostly it was the voice of a young woman. I didn't hear it myself, but it was very clear on their recorders".

"I'm afraid to ask what that voice said…" – goosebumps ran down my spine.

"Some individual words. Only "blood" and "soul" were clearly audible".

"Oh, I feel like we're in for an interesting night!"

"I have no doubt. Especially today, right on Samhain…"

"Wait a minute… Is it Halloween or something?! Oh, my… Maybe we shouldn't conduct the investigation tonight…" – I jumped up from my chair, ready to run up to Bridie and shout to her that we were packing up.

"Don't be afraid, these nights are generally no different from others, believe me", – O'Co

"It's hard to believe… The atmosphere of the castle has such an effect on me, I guess…" – I said uncertainly and sat back down. I had already warmed myself up so well here by the fireplace. And the company was so pleasant. It was so easy to talk to him, as if we had known each other for a long time. And I really didn't want to climb into the Chapel, blown by the chilly autumn wind. Not to mention a bloody one…

What the hell do I need all this for? It would be better if I went to work in some office… But no, I'm drawn to everything supernatural! I even opened my own company.

Footsteps came from the stairs. I turned my head there to ask Bridie if everything was ready, because I expected to see her coming down the steps. Well, there was no one else in the castle anyway…

I waited a couple of minutes, but no one came down. A chill ran down the back of my neck…

"Did you hear the footsteps too?" – O'Co

"Y-yes…" – I answered in a trembling voice. – "I thought it was Bridie…"

"Maybe we should go up to her, if we're already done here".

"Yes, let's go. We shouldn't leave her alone for so long".

O'Co

By the way, the co

"Guys, there is no co

I stepped very carefully, afraid of falling on these narrow ancient steps…

"Tell me, why did they build such huge rooms with ceilings several stories high in all the castles, but not normal stairs?!" – I complained to our subscribers. – "Well, they obviously figured it out later, of course, because the estates of a later period that Bridie and I had already visited had gorgeous grand staircases".

We finally reached the highest point, where I spent a couple of minutes catching my breath, bent over. And O'Co

To my right, I heard a rustling sound, like a whisper. I immediately forgot about the lack of oxygen, straightened up and looked in the direction from which I had heard the strange sounds. Birds maybe? The manager had said something about ravens…

But to my right, there was only a blank wall with a window without glass. The wind maybe?

"Do you need any help from me now?" – O'Co

"I guess not", – Bridie replied, switching on the infrared camera. – "Thank you, Mr. O'Co

"You're welcome", – the manager bowed slightly. – "I'd be happy to join you. I find these investigations quite interesting. I wonder what they're like. Those who live on the other side…"

After these words, I got the impression that he was hiding something… Who lives on the other side? Had he someone specific in mind maybe?

Usually, the employees and owners of castles and estates are very skeptical about supernatural phenomena and always try to find a rational explanation for them right away. But this manager… It was as if this was his world. Nothing out of the ordinary… Big deal, footsteps and voices…

I wonder if the camera caught that whisper. I'll watch the footage later.

"So, Bridie, shall we get started?" – I asked my partner.

"Yeah, let's do it. It's already dark".