On Halloween evening in Birchwood, the mist mingled with the smoke of candles and leaves. Nina, a seventeen-year-old who runs a school podcast about urban legends, nervously adjusted her backpack. Next to her walked Iga and Maks, who planned to record an episode from the abandoned town hall. According to the story, the clock on the tower struck thirteen on this one night only. If true, their microphones were going to catch more than an echo. The town square emptied as the dressers disappeared into the gates and the pumpkins died down under the rain. The town hall rose from the stones like a dark tooth, guarding the square and the hushed affairs. A plaque with the words Entry forbidden swayed on a wire, as if to warn latecomers. The door was ajar, though none of them admitted to pushing. Maks said jokingly that it was a sign, but his voice sounded too loud. Inside, the dust smelled of chalk and rust, and breaths sounded like the footsteps of unseen visitors. A winding staircase climbed towards the heart of the tower, where rusty cogs and silent bells waited. Nina paused as a soft ticking came from the ceiling, incongruous with the stopped pendulum. - 'If it's a prank, it's an exquisitely planned one,' she said, raising the headlamp higher than usual. - 'A prank requires a budget, and our city only has a building and a legend,' muttered Maks. On the top floor they found a chamber with a shield through which a cold light was seeping. The pendulum was immobilised by a wire, but in the silence, non-existent seconds still counted. Iga set up the tripod and microphone, and a red circle pulsed on the recording screen. - 'We'll start with the introduction, then the legend, then wait for the beat,' she suggested. Nina drew in air and heard the ticking again, now clear as drops of water. - 'In front of us is the tower of the Birchwood Town Hall, and behind us half a hundred whispers,' she said into the microphone. At that moment, the phone vibrated in Nina's pocket, although the range had long since disappeared. A network called XIII appeared on the screen and a bell symbol flashed next to it. The door behind them slammed suddenly, as if the draught had changed its mind and wanted company. Above their heads, the hour hand stopped at twelve, then moved one more dash. Nina's watch beeped thirteen and a voice whispered her name in her headphones. Then a shadow in a hat emerged from the milky glass of the dial, holding something shiny in a sharp hand.