Rude Awakening

“Is it really”

“Yes of course it is. The first time I've seen it, the paint was still fresh, I could

even smell the artist's sweat hanging in the air” Mark replied, with a bit of

arrogance in his tone.

“I don't know, I've seen it at least a dozen times, and to tell you the truth it is

not that great, I mean, I've seen better murals before”

“You just don't understand it. We should go and see it together, perhaps I

can explain” Mark looked at Anna, as he got lost in the pure, innocent green

of her eyes.

“Explain what? Come on, now you are trying to tell me you can explain art to

someone. This is our last year of college Mark, I think that by now the

concept of art should be very clear to both of us”

“No! I mean that's not how I meant it. I...”

“What did you mean?”

“Well, I'll take you there and we'll see, at least we can discuss it. Can we

not?”

“I guess so. Mark listen, I've got to go home, my sister is expecting me, we

sort of have to finish something. Thanks for the coffee, it's been a really

constructive conversation” She said as she reached for the purse her

mother gave her . I'll see you tomorrow at class”

“I can walk you home, if you don't mind”

Anna thought that for a second she saw a strange radiance in mark's face,

perhaps he was finally going to express his feelings for her.

“Sure, why not” She replied with a smile.

They walked for about forty minutes, and in that short time, they talked about

many different and seemingly unconnected subjects. From the Great Wall

to Easter Island, from impressionist art to Mexican food. Yet, somehow their

minds linked at a level that was unusual to them both.

The sun finally went down in the city of ituzaingó, as they reached the train

station. The tiny structure was in a bad condition, the walls were covered

with political graffiti and unknown rock band's posters.

Argentina was in one of the worst phases in its history. Decadence was

crawling in every corner of society, what once was a nation of cultural

significance, now saw its previous grandeur reduced to a mere nest of

delinquency and poverty.

“Let's go around the station, the tunnel gives me the creeps” The faint light

from the overhead fluorescent bulb, gave her a ghastly look. Her thin

shadow sliced by the steps leading down the tunnel brought to memory the

time she had to run from that same tunnel to avoid muggers.

“Don't be scared Anna, come on, there's two of us. Besides it's to early for

the thieves to come out, you know, at this time of the day they must be

drunk under cardboard or something”

“I don't know” She replied with a faint grin.

“It will be way faster than going around anyway, come on”

“Alright, let's do it your way, it seems impossible to rationalize with men!”

“That's my Anna, oh, watch the step, there's a puddle of water there”

As they went down the stairs they both saw a beggar peacefully sleeping on

the last step. Anna's hair was rustled by an eerie cold wind, very uncommon

in the summer. She felt the hairs at the back of her neck stand, but even so,

she failed to see the warning the wind conveyed. An atmosphere of loathing

and evil surrounded this dreadful place. She thought about the stories she

heard in high school, of the people that were murdered for mere dirty

sneakers in this unearthly place.

Mark was the first to set foot on the humid and slippery floor of the

quasi-abandoned passage. His step echoed twice throughout the length of

the tunnel, and as it returned, he almost heard a low voice mixed with it. It

was to late now to go back. He couldn't show fear in front of Anna.

They walked slowly, hearing and looking for anything out of place.

As they were halfway down the ramshackle passage, two shadows covered

the entrance from where they came. Anna grabbed Mark's arm, and in that

moment he felt a justified sense of heroism. That feeling was short lived

though, as he recognized the owners of the shadows as the local thieves.

They started running toward the exit, when another two thieves blocked it.

Without a choice they stood in place, their feet anchored to the concrete.

In a second, they were surrounded by the scum those four personified.

Three of them armed with a .38 caliber and the other with a sawed shotgun.

Their image barely resembling a bunch of dirty monkeys with sticks.

“So what do we have here hey?” The biggest one, that seemed to be the

leader of such feebly organized faction spoke, while looking around

unconcerned.

“Listen dude, we are just passing by. Here you want money, have it all” Mark

said as his trembling hands reached for the wallet in his pocket.

“Now that's better, gimme the cash!” The four of them laughed as a small

tear rolled down Anna's cheek.

Mimicking her sob one of the robbers yelled to his buddies: “Oh the little

bitch is crying”

“Hey dude, wait don't touch her, wait, wait. Asshole!” Mark couldn't control

himself as he saw the leader touch Anna's rear. His anger condensed in a

fist that landed in the guy's nose, breaking it. A splash of blood came out of

the now flat nostrils.

“You are dead, fucker”

A loud bang filled the empty tunnel and that was the last thing Mark heard

while he was alive. The beggar at the entrance, ran away scared, not sure if

that scene was real or caused by the recent dose of liquor he downed.

The bullet went straight into Mark's skull, where the mythical third eye is

supposedly located, and strangely, only a small, thin streak of blood left his

head.

His light body fell to the side, and with the muddy water he finally rested. At

the same time Anna fell on her knees, but she couldn't think, rationalize,

somehow her mind died together with Mark's.

“That's right girl, that's the position, just like that, ha ha ha! Just like that”

In that moment something happened, a familiar sound filled her body.

Anna's life passed in front of her eyes, in a wicked way everything made

sense, every decision she ever made, somehow brought her to this

moment. She felt pain, she felt guilt and most of all, she was already

missing Mark.

A heat erupted from her chest, her body temperature went well over the

standard of fever. As the scum placed a hand on her shoulder, a scream of

agony left his throat. “Fucking bitch! She burned me!. She burned me!

Fucking shot her!”

Anna was standing again, her eyes were greener than ever and her skin

shined red as melting iron.

The guy with the shotgun pressed the trigger. And then, the entire world

stopped in place.

Everything was frozen, even the little pellets from the shotgun stood there,

the smoke and the air around them was quiet and still.

Anna was the only one moving, but as she saw, she was standing next to

herself. Her body was frozen. It was a normal feeling for an accustomed

astral traveler as herself.

A red light illuminated the entirety of the tunnel, and in that moment a figure

appeared in front of her. It's was huge, part goat, part man. A pair of horns

protruded from his red and hairless scalp.

“Who are you?” Anna fearlessly asked, but no words left her ghostly lips;

Yet, somehow the thought reached the demon.

“I am your teacher”

“But-”

“You became my daughter the day you ventured for the first time into the

astral plane, when you were still very young; I taught you everything you

know about it, and now I feel you are starting to remember, are you not?

“Yes... but this is... different. How am I supposed to do anything in the

physical world, I... Something changed, whoever you are, please help me kill

them all” and then she added “they killed Mark! I WANT TO KILL THEM ALL”

she knew she was crying although no tears left the empty holes of her eyes.

“That's right my daughter, you will very soon. Your true self is one in all

realities. The anger and pain will you free, and now they are your only

source of power. Mark died so you can awake, that was the choice he made

even before he was born. You will see him again, someday, but don't worry

about that now. Go, and finish what you started, your life begins now” the

dark figure said as he dissipated in mid air.

Anna was back. The pellets almost reached her face, when two chains

emerged from her sweaty palms, there was a sharp oblong object hanging

from the first link of each chain. The chains intercepted the pellets, and in a

very precise move, they sliced the shotgun in little pieces of shrapnel. The

thieves desperately looked at each other while trying to run toward both

ends of the tunnel, like mice fleeting aimlessly from a cat.

A smile full of hate and purpose slowly took form on Anna's lips. At that

moment, hundreds of blood covered chains emerged from her body, tearing

her skin and clothing apart.

Bouncing off the walls they reached the four muggers. Anna's metallic

extensions totally surrounded them, and in a moment their bodies were an

unrecognizable mass of charred flesh and disintegrated bones.

The chains returned to Anna's body and her skin healed almost instantly,

she was completely normal again, the skin lost it's fire to become once

again of an innocent pink shaded tone. She was naked, but she didn't care

anymore, for her thoughts were now well over the commoner's. In a

way,they reached a depth of uncharted potential, that she finally tapped. She

was different, very different than before this moment.

She knelled next to Mark and kissed his still warm lips, now the tears

deprived of anger and full of sorrow, rolled onto his face.

Slowly, she walked towards the exit; and as she left the tunnel behind, she

slowly raised her hand and the entire tunnel collapsed, burying the five

empty shells behind.

Now she finally understood the Mural, the image of the weathered flower. It

rose in her head like vivid fire.

From this day forth, her life will have real meaning and true purpose. As a

newly awakened demon, she will bring understanding and truth in the form

of art to a deprived and much needed world. And as her father suffers from

her pain, a joy also rises from his warm heart. He can see his daughter walk

by herself in a land of wolves.