The Raven

Letting our guard down

One gloomy day, when it was raining cats and dogs, my friend and I were coming back from a visit to another friend. As usual, we were chatting about everything and anything. Although we always tried to be cautious, that day we were just two friends talking about their day and enjoying the rain. That was our first mistake, letting our guard down, forgetting our past and just enjoying the moment. 

Suddenly, we stopped. We were lost. It was the same path we had taken many times before, but somehow we still managed to get lost. 

At first, we started laughing at our clumsiness and tried to find our way back. Only when we couldn't find our way back did we panic. It seemed as if we were going in the right direction, and then we would end up where we started. The streets seemed to have turned into one huge maze that we couldn't navigate for some inexplicable reason. The weather started getting worse. It was raining so much that we weren't able to see where we were going. 

That was when it occurred to us, that it wasn't a regular rain; it was of demonic origin. We let our guard down and the demons used that, to surprise us and isolate us from other human beings. That was what they were waiting for, for us to stop being careful even for just a second. 

Dripping wet, we started shivering as we span around afraid of a sneak attack. Since we couldn't actually see, every loud sound seemed like an attack to us. We kept spinning around like crazy. 

"Why aren't they attacking? We are an easy target now!" I said. 

"I think they are feeding off our fear, playing with their food. We have to calm down, and try to summon some courage, some power we had in our previous lives." My friend told me. 

Easier said than done. Although I could remember having and using that power, I still couldn't remember clearly how I did it. I always thought that the larger power in me was unlocked only after my death. In this life, I actually never felt I had any power. I could just see all the horrible things and entities that came to my room, but I didn't notice any powers in me.

As I tried to awaken my powers, I could see that my friend was able to tap into hers, not fully, but still enough to give us some idea of what was happening. She used her power to move the rain like a curtain from the window. The moment she did that, I wished she didn't. 

What we saw was too much for me to handle. We were surrounded by ravens and a lot of other birds with shiny black feathers and blood-red eyes. Besides the birds, there were other animals, as well, with the same empty look in their eyes. There were black cats and dogs, some other smaller animals, but all charcoal black. 

I wasn't sure if the demons chose them to terrify us even more, or if it was just a coincidence, convenience. It felt like we were surrounded by darkness that exuded evil from its every particle. They didn't attack, because they seemed to enjoy our shock and fear too much to just devour us quickly. 

That is actually the problem with demons, the reason why they don't win. They are like villains in movies who spend so much time explaining their evil plans that the main characters get the chance to run away, or win the fight in some other way. With demons, it wasn't an explanation of an evil plan, it was their addiction to fear. 

For me and my friend, it was an advantage. We had more time to figure out what we should do. They didn't seem to understand that although we were petrified that didn't stop us from thinking. It was impossible to fight them off.  We weren't ready yet. However, we could find a way to run away. I looked at my friend for an answer, and I could see that a plan was forming in her mind. 

Since we knew each other very well, she didn't need to say anything for me to interpret what the plan was. Sometimes our other friends would say that it was as if we could read each other's minds. It was actually much simpler than that. We could read each other's expressions and that told us what the other person was thinking. I understood what the plan was, and I was ready to play my role.

"Hello! Hey, you ugly demons in those poor cute animals!" I screamed stepping in front of my friend. 

"I remember how ugly you were, so it is no wonder you have to hide in those poor animals. "I said mockingly, provoking them to make them focus only on me. 

"My power is great! I am sure you remember!" I said with an evil smile. "Of course as powerful as I am, it is no wonder that I can already fully control it. You see, fear is just a bodily reaction. My body expresses it since it had never encountered a similar emotion, but the truth is my soul is not afraid. 

I can crash you one by one, but I feel sorry for those innocent animals. Leave now and I will let you live! Stay and I will kill you! I will have to consider the animals as collateral damage." I kept on talking although even I wasn't sure what I was saying. 

As long as I had their attention, I decided to go on and give my friend as much time as I could. 

At first, the demons seemed to listen to me. They got very confused, probably trying to understand what I was talking about. 

Unfortunately, after some time they just shook their heads as if getting rid of my confusing words and started stalking towards us. 

My friend tapped my shoulder and I knew it was time. She let out her power, and the same rain that was moments before suffocating and trapping us started spinning around the demons and effectively trapping them. 

"We don't have a lot of time," she yelled as we started running, finally able to figure out where we were going. 

"Let's head for the river and maybe crossing it would make them lose our scent for now," She suggested. 

Since I didn't have a better plan I agreed. We were shivering violently once we swam across the river. 

Once there, I could see a huge building complex nearby, so we headed that way to at least get some warmth in the building's hallway.

"Did we lose them?" I asked. 

"I have no idea, but we will know soon enough. For now, let's just warm up a bit, and then we will see." She said as we entered the building which was luckily for us unlocked.