Part I – A Light in the Loa's Temple (Back on Earth)
Rain fell heavy upon Port-au-Prince, drumming against the tin roof of Maman Odette spiritual temple nestled in the hills beyond the noise of the city. Candles flickered low, casting long shadows across the painted veves and altars adorned with bones, rum, and silk.
Odetta sat before the central altar, draped in white and blue ceremonial cloth. Her eyes were closed, her breathing steady—but her hands trembled. Since the night of Zion's death, the air had changed. The spirits had grown louder. Restless.
The sacred drums began on their own. No hand touched them. The flame in the center bowl of offerings rose unnaturally high.
Then, her body stilled—eyes rolled back.
"He has crossed the veil…"
A voice—not hers—spoke through her lips. Rough and ancient, yet warm like a father's whisper.
"The boy has walked through fire and shadow… and been reborn."
In her vision, she saw him—Zion, but not as she remembered. His body younger, leaner, dressed in foreign hides and standing atop a hill with wind in his hair and a rusted blade in his hand. His soul shimmered with a light touched by the Loa.
"He does not remember all… but he walks with purpose. We are with him, child of the earth. Your prayers were heard."
Odetta wept openly, arms raised as the spirit held her gaze steady.
"You cannot follow. But your love wrapped him like a shield. He shall not walk alone."
Then the flame dimmed. The voice faded. The drums went silent once more.
She opened her eyes and whispered through tears, "Go, my sweet boy… build them a world they've never known. And when they call your name, the gods will answer."
Part II – The Temple of the Pantheon (The New World)
The morning sun broke through the trees, casting golden rays over the new encampment. Zion stood on a ridge just above the clearing, his eyes scanning for the highest natural point—the place that felt closer to the sky.
"I found it," he said aloud.
Kael and Thalia joined him moments later. "What is this place?" Thalia asked, eyes narrowed at the moss-covered rock arch and the narrow pathway leading into a tree-ringed clearing.
Zion didn't answer right away. He dropped to one knee, ran his hand across the dirt, and drew the veve of Papa Legba, the opener of the way.
"This is where we will build our Pantheon's temple," he said. "A sacred place for communion, guidance, and power. Not just belief—but a real connection."
Kael raised an eyebrow. "You said the gods aren't like others. That they answer."
Zion nodded. "And now we'll speak to them."
Part III – The First Offering
That night, a small group—Zion, Kael, Thalia, and two other youths—set out into the jungle. Their goal: a hunt not just for food, but for sacrifice. A ritual offering to call forth the gods.
After hours of tracking and waiting, they took down a silverback horned boar—a creature powerful, revered, and feared.
They returned in silence, dragging it through the underbrush, its blood leaving a trail behind them.
At the base of the chosen temple ground, Zion prepared the ritual circle. Each veve was carved with precision. The boar was placed at the center. He knelt before it, his hand resting on its still-warm hide.
"Great spirits—Papa Legba, Ogou, Ezili, Baron, and all who walk the crossroads—I offer this life not in greed, but in hope. Hope for guidance, for protection, for a bond between our world and yours."
As the final words left his mouth, wind whipped through the trees. The fire leapt high. The boar's blood glowed unnaturally before soaking into the earth.
Then…
A hush. A presence.
Zion staggered, his eyes wide.
In the fire, a figure stepped forward—not fully formed, more silhouette than flesh. A man with a cane and straw hat, smiling with crooked teeth and eyes that gleamed with mischief and eternity.
"Ah… so you remembered my name."
Papa Legba spoke in a voice only Zion could hear. "You've built the altar. You've called us. Now listen well, little chief."
"Your path will be long. The blood spilled tonight binds us. But what you build must be worthy. Respect the balance, and we will walk beside you. Disrespect it…" The smile faded. "…and not even the gods can save you."
Then the vision was gone.
Zion fell back in a daze.
Thalia rushed to him. "What happened?!"
He looked up at her, breathless but smiling.
"He came… Papa Legba came."
And so, the first communion was complete. The gods had accepted the offering. The temple ground was sacred. The bond between heaven and earth—between loa and tribe—had begun.