Zicci: A Tale — Volume 01

A warm summer evening in a Naples garden, a group of English gentlemen relax under a tree, sipping sherbet while a violin serenades the night. Their easy chatter is interrupted when young Glyndon drifts into a sudden, chilling reverie that leaves his friends concerned. A striking stranger at the table notices the change and offers a curious explanation for the eerie shiver that has seized him.

The newcomer speaks of a universal sensation—blood that freezes, hair that stands, a feeling that something unseen brushes close by—drawing on superstitions from across the world. He suggests that invisible forces, as real as the tiniest particles, may lurk just beyond human perception, held at a fragile wall of nature. His unsettling theory provokes debate among the companions, mixing skepticism with a growing sense of unease. As the night deepens, the stranger’s words linger, promising that the calm garden may soon reveal mysteries far beyond ordinary conversation.