The Mazzeri: Dream-Hunters of Death

No aspect of Corsican folklore is more distinctive or disturbing than the mazzeri (singular: mazzeru). These individuals possess an involuntary gift: their spirits hunt in dreams, and what they kill in the dream world dies in reality.

The Unwilling Prophets

Mazzeri don't choose their calling—it chooses them, often manifesting in childhood: - Dreams more vivid than waking life - Unconscious knowledge of deaths before they occur - Animals behaving strangely in their presence - Most tellingly, waking exhausted from sleep, sometimes with unexplained injuries

During dreams, the mazzeru's spirit roams the maquis, compelled to hunt. They might pursue wild boar, deer, or smaller game. But when they kill and turn the animal over, they see a human face—someone from their community who will die within the year, often within days.

Lucia Mattei of Vico, recorded in 1976: "I was seven when it started. I dreamed I hunted rabbits near the river. When I caught one and looked at its face, I saw old Petru from our village. I woke crying. Three days later, Petru died in his sleep. My grandmother knew then what I was. She taught me the prayers, the protections, but nothing stops the dreams. I've seen my brother, my husband, my own son. The knowing is worse than the hunting."

The Rules of the Hunt

Mazzeri operate under strict supernatural laws: - They cannot refuse to hunt when called - They cannot warn the doomed (attempts result in the mazzeru's own death) - They must kill cleanly—wounded prey that escapes means lingering death - They cannot hunt for personal vengeance - Most importantly, they sometimes meet other mazzeri in dreams, resulting in battles that determine entire families' fates

Communities regard mazzeri with fear tinged with respect. They're invited to social functions (their absence brings misfortune) but seated carefully (never facing pregnant women or infants). Their predictions, while unwelcome, prove invaluable: families can prepare, last words can be spoken, feuds can be settled or inflamed.

Modern Mazzeri

The tradition persists. Contemporary mazzeri describe similar experiences updated for modern life: - Hunting through urban landscapes as well as maquis - Prey appearing as vehicles that crash, revealing drivers' faces - Electronic devices malfunctioning in their presence - Dreams recorded on phones showing static to others but clear images to the mazzeru

Psychologists studying the phenomenon note that identified mazzeri show unusual accuracy in predictions, far exceeding statistical probability. Whether reading subtle social/health cues or accessing genuine precognitive abilities remains debated. The mazzeri themselves have no doubt—they hunt in the space between worlds, servants of a balance they neither understand nor control.