One

It all happened fast. In a second there I was, sitting on a bench at the school patio watching the girls, sharing a bag of Cheetos with Markus, my best friend. In the other, all I saw were claws, feather, flaming eyes and orange Cheetos flying through the air in slow motion.

Till then, it was just another day. My class started at 7 am, so naturally I woke up at 6:55. Two consecutive periods of Algebra before recess and me two steps away from suicide. As always, I couldn't stand still during class – in a moment I was drawing a caricature of the teacher, in the other I was playing with my pen as if it was a sword, then I was passing notes to Markus, and later I stood moving on my chair, trying to find the most comfortable position. Doing all sorts of stuff, except paying attention to the class.

The recess finally came and it was when my world turned upside down. Cliché, I know. But if something like this ever happened to you, then you know there's no better way to describe it.

- So, Paris. Have you decided what you're gonna do this summer yet? - said Markus (Paris is me, by the way. No, like the Trojan prince. Not the spoiled heiress), while orange bits of Cheetos fell from his mouth like ashes from a volcano.

- Well, I'm sorting out the options. I could spend a month near the beach, but no. I hate the sun and I hate the sea. I could get a job or do a course about something I never thought of doing… Or I could stay home, on the computer, doing something that truly matters.

- Wow, dude. You gotta go out more! See the world, have adventures. Don't you wanna do that?

- I do. A lot. But I don't know… Something's still missing. I think it's not the right time or maybe I'm just not ready yet.

- You were born ready, Paris.

- What do you mean, Markus?

My dark-skinned friend stroked his goatee, filled his hand with cheetos and tried to hide it – Nothing. Forget it.

That's Markus. Always saying mysterious stuff like that and then changing the subject as if it was nothing important. I grabbed some cheetos and started taking them to my mouth when it happened.

I don't remember much, to be honest. Just flashes and random images. It's all very shocking the first time it happens. Markus pushed me aside with his shoulder, I fell from the bench and all I saw were pieces of white wood flying amongst orange cheetos. Then, my vision was filled by the most terrifying thing I had ever seen in my 17 years of life. Huge arms with muscles the size of my head, sharp black claws, so polished I remember seeing the reflection of my scared face on them. Feathers also black like a crow's, then a human face with a crown of feathers around it instead of hair and eyes so red they looked like blood on fire.

I always thought I'd be completely paralyzed in situations like these, but I don't know what got into me. I rolled to the side the instant the creature tried to put its claws through my chest. I grabbed a broken piece of wood from the bench and slammed it against its head, which didn't seem to hurt him much. The thing looked at me and roared. Its bad breath filled my nostrils. Suddenly the stench of Markus's old snickers seemed like French perfume.

- Paris, run! – shouted Markus, on the other side of the creature, a knife in his left hand and a… Flute in the other? – Run, Paris! I'll distract him!

He started playing a complex melody with his flute and the creature screeched like a horse suffering from throat cancer – an indescribable sound – and covered its ears with its hands. Around me, people were running and screaming desperately. They all ran toward the school exits, and I decided to do the same. I was passing through a classroom when a loud bang threw me to the side. In front of me was the infernal humanoid crow, after breaking one of the walls of the corridor and throwing me against the lockers. I was dizzy and confused because of the hit. When I managed to focus my eyes, I saw the creature's face inches away from mine. Its human nostrils contracted, as if it was trying to sniff something.

- This is the end of the line for you, Hero. Who should I dedicate your death to? – it sniffed harder, widened his eyes and looked confused – What in the name of… It can't be! How did it… - the monster was interrupted by a knife that reached its heart through it's back.

- Have a nice summer, I heard the Tartarus is lovely this time of year. – said Markus while the creature screeched in pain and disappeared in a golden and smelly cloud of dust.

- What the… What the fuck just happened here? – My head hurt and my vision became out of focus. All I saw was what I presumed to be Markus come next to me before falling out of conscious.