The distinctive sound of a freshly taken shot feels like music to my ears... I raise my face from the small lens to check the result by moving my fingers over the buttons, eager to see that work of art. As beautiful as the original... The colorful and delicate dots on the green of the meadow in contrast with the clear blue of the sky and the sponginess of those white pieces of cotton. A few meters away, a strong tree with its waving branches and a couple of rebellious leaves that had decided to escape with the wind. A huge smile crosses my lips in which I make sure to keep it in the portable memory of the device. My eyes slowly close in response to the gentle breeze that passes through my face. A pleasant heat runs through my body while I leave the camera delicately on my chest. After a while, I choose to lift my eyelids noticing how the clarity of the sky has been replaced by a background full of purple and orange splashes with very little white.

It's getting late...

Without wasting any more time, I pick up the rest of the equipment used saying goodbye to the beautiful landscape with one last look before walking towards the black van parked a few meters away.

———————————————————————————————————————————

Through the rearview mirror, I see how the gloomy night streets welcome me. Small rays of light come from the street lamps, the broken and relieved cement of the sidewalk, and, on one side, the smooth road. My mind wanders between the thousand and one ideas extractable from that concrete landscape until it is supplanted by a picturesque house of red tiles, cream-colored walls, and the contrasting green of the plants that surround it. I lower the speed to park in front of the gate, take all the things, and, finally, get out of the vehicle by placing the lock.

Home sweet home.

After walking the short stretch to the door, I open this with a small push to be able to cross the threshold of the house. I release my feet from their leather prison by placing the thick jacket on the coat rack not without first taking out of it the memory and my cell phone, checking the time shown on the screen the way.

6:00 P.M... It's not too late to work, is it?

A smile crosses my lips as I go to the kitchen to have a cup of the coffee that had been left in the morning, giving it a good drink on the way to the living room. There, in a corner away from much of the furniture, rests that white office computer on a small and somewhat worn desk. I remove the old rodachine chair to sit down, leaving the cup next to the keyboard, at the same time, I connect the memory behind the screen. The files unfold almost immediately showing a large number of thumbnail images. I'm about to open them one by one, detailing every inch of them as if they were the most precious thing in this world. The colors, structures, lights, and perspectives combined in total harmony are a delight to my eyes. Far away, I can hear the song "No-Cigar" by ham slamm coming from my cell phone. I take it, answering almost instantly, but I don't receive any more answers than a couple of whispers... I remove it from my ear looking missed out at the screen. It's an unknown number... I hang up without hesitation twice.

It has to be a joke ca-

Sideways, I see that the file folder on the screen closes. I try to reopen it confused, but this doesn't respond. Three more attempts passed, and nothing happens.

How strange...

Suddenly, a new window emerges over the center of the background of orange mountains...

"The past would be your future misfortune"

My eyes, shrunk as a sign of complete confusion, rest starely on those seven words trying to find some reason or meaning. In the end, I prefer not to think so much, so I direct, somewhat quickly, the white mouse arrow towards the red button that will close that page. I give two quick "clicks..."

I insist twice more...

Something's not right. It'll be better to check it in case there's any damage.

Quickly and carelessly I remove the memory to prevent it from also being damaged by turning off the device soon after.

I'll call the technician in the morning to check it out.

With nothing more to do in the living room, I take the empty cup getting up to leave it in the kitchen before going to the stairs. I walk through them letting a deep yawn escape from my mouth. Tiredness begins to weigh on my shoulders increasing as I go up until I step on the last step. As soon as my two feet perch on the cold floor, I walk directly to the bedroom to change myself and thus, drop above the soft pillows...

———————————————————————————————————————————-

A mild but sudden discomfort hits my eyelids causing me to open them slowly allowing the light to say good morning. I stir a little on the blankets looking at the white ceiling of the bedroom, finishing waking up completely. The cold touches my unprotected feet causing a shiver to travel all over the rest of my body.

The heating is supposed to be working...

I get up, placing my feet on the floor to get up with a single impulse, and, thus, start walking to the bathroom in search of a relaxing shower of warm water, the minty flavor of the toothpaste, and a bit of the typical personal hygiene basic products. I take my time to prepare myself, ending with comfortable and casual clothing that looks good in the mirror in front of me combined with a confident smile on my lips.

Well, everything's ready.

As I go down to the kitchen, the feeling of emptiness lodges in my chest taking my breath away for a moment.

There's someone behind me!

I quickly turn to look around me, but I can't find anything. Strange and somewhat fearful, I look back at the stairs to continue my way to the first floor. Being in front of the cupboard cabinets, I take out the necessary ingredients to make a toast and latte breakfast, grooping with my fingers the hard and smooth porcelain from the cups noticing in one of them a different texture. I take it placing it in front of me to analyze what it has, a piece of yellow paper pasted right on the edge with something written on it.

"Do you know who I am...? I know who you are"

Written with the same fine and square letter from the computer.

What's this...?

I try to stay calm, but the sensation of being watched returns weighing on my shoulders with the rush of paranoid thoughts that creates my mind flooded with fear.

Someone was here...

...

Someone is here!

...

What should I do?

...

Call the police!

I leave the cup slowly on the inn controlling the tremors in my hands as much as I can. My heart beats completely unbridled to the point where I feel each pulsation rumbling like a strong punch on my chest.

Something covers the numbers!

"You forgot my number... You forgot me... but I never did..."

Another paper... From a single and abrupt movement, I remove it going directly to press the green call button to place the device on my ear waiting for the characteristic monotonous and infinite tone, but absolute silence is what I get.

What's going on!?

I leave the phone back on its base to run to the desk, take the cell phone and repeat the process with it, but nothing different happens. I move the object away from my ear to look at the screen searching for an explanation and finding it completely black. Almost immediately, the same screen lights up, flooded in white. In it, a few black words stand out.

"Who are you going to call, Roger?"

An intense smell of sulfur reaches my nostrils causing my head to start to hurt.

How does he know my name...?

My breathing loses its normality becoming erratic and unbridled. I can't understand what's going on. I remove the chair to sit resting my arms on the same desk. My eyes close tightly in an attempt to calm the growing fear. Suddenly, these open wide in bewilderment by sudden vibration. 

"Do you plan to laze all day...? It's as if you don't care about your work. And so much so that you claimed that it was your passion."

I need to get out of here!

I get up quickly hearing the thunder of the chair crashing with the wood of the floor to start running as fast as possible towards the entrance. The door is whipped as I cross its threshold. Immediately, I start to see my surroundings looking for some kind of help, whatever it is... but the street is completely deserted...

Again, the short notification sound next to the characteristic vibration in my hand is noticed, making everything worse...

I don't want to look but, as always, curiosity wins against the reason...

"You have fallen..."

Every sensation in my body disappears and is replaced by an overwhelming and intense weakness. The images become blurred so that my eyes don't stop blinking in an attempt to lighten them and maintain lucidity. I feel my legs tremble just before I falter, causing me to fall on my knees to the ground. With the few forces I have left, I look up at the beginning of the street from where I can see how an undulating grayish-blue figure gradually approaches from the sidewalk...

I can't take it anymore...

The hardness of the floor allows me to rest my heavy body so that the little illuminated night ends up being consumed in complete darkness in front of me...

———————————————————————————————————————————-

The pleasant and intense sensation of heat rests on my body. Blinking a little, I completely open my eyes seeing what I recognize as a clear sky.

Wait, the sky...?

Still a little confused and drowsy I try to recognize something around me by groping at my sides with my hands. The itching sensation comes immediately, small punctures such as those of a needle knit on the skin of my palms combined with the unmistakable smell of grass.

I'm outside, in an open place...

I end up feeling a little more strength in my body while the sun helps me clear the sleep, so I make the effort to get up slightly until I sit resting my hands on the floor behind my back. I massage my eyes a little trying to minimize the impact of the sudden and blinding light. 

-Oh. Until you finally wake up- I listen in front of me. All my senses suddenly wake up when I realize that I'm not alone.

-Who are you...? Where am I?- Are the only questions that come whispered by my mouth as I slowly get up.

A burst of incredulous laughter resounds in my ears. By impulse, my eyes deviate in his direction, finding myself with the slim figure of a brown-haired and informal-looking man. I can't get to see his face completely because of the shadow that the elegant red wine-colored on his head creates above his sight tilted towards the ground. What I can see, is in the form of how his lips curved into an uncomfortable smile.

-We are in the middle of the lush Banff Park forest, Roger. Have you forgotten it yet?- He mockingly mentions.

-How did I get here?- I ask him firmer than I thought my voice could come out, facing him, face to face.

As I listen more to his voice, I can say that there's something on it that puts my mind to work. This sounds very familiar to me...

-You walked here yourself- I hear coming out of his lips next to a funny, but mocking smile.

What...?

A stabbing pain establishes in my head. The pictures of my body walking calmly to the car, the streets being replaced by the rocky parking lot of the park, and a large number of trees I passed before ending up lying on the green ground. Everything passes like a photographic roll in front of me. However...

Why do my eyes have that bright amber color?

The sound of a little laugh reaches my ears, bringing me back to reality. I turn back in his direction, finding myself with a carefree and haughty face looking distractedly to the trees at his right.

-Although..., I may have had something to do with it...- Says mockingly accepting all the responsibility for what has happened to me so far. But... something still doesn't fit.

How did he know, exactly, what I was going to do and what I was doing?

-It's impossible...! What have you done!?, How did you...!?-. I claim him strongly in search of the truth, to which I only receive another sarcastic smile.

-Let's not anticipate events, would you? First, I want you to do something for me...- His voice sounds slow and smooth while I see how his face rises, letting me notice, for a few seconds, how his chestnut eyes begin to flood with a bright amber. Just like my eyes when I walked here...

A little itching expands through my eyes. His hand extends in front of me in a clear invitation to take it. I shouldn't do it. I know that I shouldn't. But...

Why do I feel like I need to do it?

I try, with all my strength, to avoid my body from reacting, but it doesn't respond to me by revealing itself to my efforts by strongly accepting that gesture. The sensation in my eyes disappears almost immediately, making me blink a couple of times to face the now free face of the man in front of me again.

It can't be...

He is...

¡Owen!

-You're really like an open book, old friend... Only with your expression, I can see that you remember now, right...?- That soft and slow tone along with a small smile again, I feel chills when I heard it.

-You and I. Both at the same university, the same year, and the same career. Our only true passion, photography...- I can't move, even though I want it with all my strength. My eyesight is fixed on the ground. 

-We met, talked and soon we were best friends... Until that day came...- He continues to speak, but his tone becomes darker as the story continues to move forward.

-We had to prepare an exhibition with our best works so that they could be presented to professional photographers. They would evaluate them and choose which they will sponsor. We were both so excited about it... but they had to ruin everything...- Those last words come out loaded with resentment from his mouth. I feel like I won't like the next thing I'll hear.

-They announced you as the winner...!- Through the corner of my eye, I manage to capture a slight movement. How muffled his words had sounded only makes me think of the strong collision that must be between his teeth. His hands are strongly welded at his sides.

-From that moment on, absolutely everything! got worse for me... They despised my work at each one of the agencies I went to. They said that it was an empty work, simple cute pictures... They humiliated me... But, all that ends here and now-. His hands unfold as his countenance changes drastically to one strangely relaxed, cynical...

-I'm sorry I didn't tell you before, but you just got ahead of me by taking my hand directly- He says, mockingly. His lips maintain another horrible smile letting the air escape in a short laugh of superiority.

I didn't want to do it!

-You didn't know, but with that simple handshake, you have agreed to make a pact with me... In simple words; you signed a contract in which only one can benefit... Just like a few years ago, we'll have a second and last confrontation of our work. However, the rules of the game will change a little this time...-

-What do you mean? What are you talking about!?- This is tiring me up. I feel how the traces of panic are quickly turning into defiant impatience and anger at every second that I pass without getting answers.

His smile only widens as he raises his face to see me mockingly from above.

-Whoever wins, doesn't only take the prestige of the victory. Also, he manages to preserve his life...-

That doesn't sound good at all...

...

None of this is fine, asshole!

I only get to just try to keep holding my gaze on his face, but this keeps oscillating between it and a part of his shoulders, expectant. None of us dares to make the slightest move.

My half-paralyzed pupils manage to wake up when I see him slightly move his head towards his right shoulder, having a completely lost and thoughtful look.

-Well... I think we can start now, then- His eyes see me completely serious again.    

Almost immediately, just above the shoulder, I was looking at bypassing, they begin to appear... scales...? Yes, there's no doubt. Scales of a bright grayish blue color cover what appears to be the small head of a kind of reptile. Something similar to a dragon, I could say, because of the layers of webbed skin on each side of its jaw; as if they were the legs of a frog, pretending to be something like its ears. Its body continues to rise, long and thin like a snake, a cropped crest along its back and two small wings, similar to those of a bat, protruding from it. For a fraction of a second, the creature opens its jaws proudly showing all its thin and sharp fangs with a long pointed tongue. Finally, my eyesight stuck in those small completely black eyes of which only two bright crimson red rings stand out.

-What is... that...?- I ask him in a trembling voice, trying not to stutter and camouflage the great horror that the creature has caused me. His answer is a short haughty laugh.

-I introduce you to my assistant, Roger...This creature is a leviathan, the physical and personified form of the demon of envy... He was responsible for helping me prepare and make all your misfortunes from today, as well as bringing you here and giving me the necessary power to carry out everything without lifting a single finger. Amazing, right?-

Demon...!?

It can't be possible. His look full of worship continues on that creature while caressing it as if it were just a pet. The seconds go by making the uncertainty gradually return to stay in my chest. His face begins to move until he faces mine.

It can't be...

His left eye maintains that chestnut while the right one is... a bright crimson red ring on a completely black background.

God, Owen. What have you done...?

I try to get away from him, but the grip of our hands still keeps, turning stronger after my useless attempts. The only thing that crosses my mind is that I need to get as far away from here as possible. He isn't that reliable college friend I met, not anymore.

Owen's voice brings me back to reality when it reaches my ears with a demanding tone in what seems to be an order towards the creature that I can't understand or know until she begins to approach slithering through his outstretched arm under the two-colored gaze of the man, which staringly follows her with a malevolent expression on his face. I feel the roughness of the demonic body on the skin of my arm causing me to see it getting closer and closer until it disappears from my field of vision, moving the sensation around my neck and part of my right shoulder until it stays completely motionless. The air is starting to be missing. The frenetic beatings of my heart rumble in my ears. Multiple whispers, constant and incomprehensible, are heard around me, but there's no one else more than us. The overwhelming smell of sulfur comes back while the grip on my hand weakens until it finally lets go. A strong burning sensation settles in my eyes for a few seconds until it stops next to the small weight on my neck.

What just happened!?

The thunderous laughter resounds far, becoming much stronger when I raise my sight to the opposite.

-Now we can start- He exclaims raising his hand to a side holding what I identify as a really good camera as if he wanted to show it off.  Looking at me from above, with an arrogant smile, he points to my left side where I turn to find another camera, a model much older than his. I take it suspiciously, noticing how the lens and a couple of visible buttons are broken. 

-I can't work well with this- I don't get an answer. Instead, It gives me a slight and subtle laugh before turning my back.

-Alright. For this to be... "fair", I'll explain the rules to you. We must both take a picture of what is in this park in the next forty-five minutes. Whoever manages to take the best will be the winner- He ends up explaining, lowering the tone of his voice a little.

-And, what about the judge? Who will be the judge?- I ask him calming the tremor in my hands and voice like a professional.

-Oh... of course. Well, it might surprise you to know that it will be the same from that time on campus- Almost immediately, I see how his free hand rises on his side; from his fingers, it seems that a kind of amber color trail emerges that turns into sparks when he snaps his fingers. Suddenly, I see bypassing how the same man of white complexion, a mustache, and glasses who had evaluated us that day appears behind a cloud of grayish-blue smoke among us.

-For now, he is unconscious, but he'll wake up when time runs out for us and think that he is evaluating the work of two college students aspiring to be sponsored. Just like that day- Explains in what he faced me again. He isn't lying. I see more closely the man's face noticing his closed eyes and the very relaxed expression on it. I limit myself to look back at him nodding, to which he turns again starting to walk in the opposite direction to mine.

———————————————————————————————————————————-

I start to tour the lush forest passing through several really interesting and beautiful places, but none of them is suitable for me to capture yet.

I walk a few more steps until I manage to reach the shore of a gigantic lake of crystal clear waters, where a moose of majestic horns is drinking next to the beautiful view of the bluish mountains of whitish tips behind it. Everything is bathed by the sunlight shortly before hiding.

This is it.

I rush to take the camera to take some test photos, but when I look over the small lens, everything begins to look blurry, deformed, and diffuse. The constant whispers of before return to my ears...

That beast did something to me!

I can't see what I want to capture, I have equipment in very bad condition and my life depends on a single photo.

God... What am I supposed to do now...?

The imminent anxiety quickly overwhelms me to what I try to avoid altering to the point of fainting for not breathing properly.  

Calm yourself and think with a cold head.

Ok... I adjust the lens as best as possible according to how I see the images now, placing in turn, the preliminary settings for the light, contrast, and focus. I insert the memory to lift the camera at eye level for the third time, but not before taking a slight glance at the place to put it in the same position in which I can see each of the details of that beautiful landscape. Finally, I press the take button with some force, hoping that the result will be able to finish all this.

———————————————————————————————————————————-

Time is almost running out, so I come back as fast as I can to the clearing seeing how my opponent shows his photo to the judge, the latter's features look rigid and neutral while Owen stays attentive at his side. However, the slight movement on his shoulders captures my attention. The Leviathan slithers for them until it lands on those of the judge bringing its head closer to his face, just as he had done to me.

-Hey! Mr. Escamilla!- I call him a bit loud, capturing the attention of both men. Owen doesn't seem very happy with my interruption.

I won't let you do another of your tricks.

-I... Be careful, there's a bee hovering behind you- Only those words were enough for the judge to startle by starting to move abruptly. It's the first thing I came up with, but it worked. The creature ends up falling to the ground due to the constant movement, to which I look back at Owen, who maintains a penetrating look on me accompanied by a cynical smile.

Did it take me too long to interrupt him?

As soon as the judge recovers, the chestnut's review ends, my signal to move towards them. Owen walks away from what I just focus on passing by his side without mentioning a word. One of his hands rests on my shoulder stopping me instantly. His face approaches my ear making me feel the strange cold of his breath.

-Good luck...- He whispers. A strong stream of chills crosses my back. Another short and burlesque laugh comes out of his mouth before standing beside me freeing me from the grip of his hand.

Psychopath...

The air escapes from my body in a long and deep sigh. The evaluator observes me somewhat intrigued, to which I only smile a little nervous to resume my path until I get in front of him, extending my hand with my work, my photo. The man takes it without hesitation, starting to see it immediately, so I decide to place myself by his side paying almost no attention to what he murmurs for himself until his evaluation ends. The judge only looks up at me by giving me the photo before walking in the opposite direction. I just stand in the same spot to wait.

———————————————————————————————————————————-

After a while, the judge moves his hand in our direction as a sign for us to get closer. My legs move alone, walking quietly towards him.

It's time... I survive or I die at the hands of the psychopath I once called friend...

My feet are stuck hard on the ground. Owen finds my side without losing that confident smile that I get to see sideways, which does nothing more than make me nervous. The man in front of us doesn't seem to care; he was simply dedicated to oscillating his sight between my opponent and me.

-Well, boys. I have to admit that both works have proven to be of great beauty and quality. Your concepts are clean and elegant. However, only one contract is awaiting to be signed... Eagleye's new photographer... It's you, Mr. Roger- Dictates as he extends me the elegant sheet of paper with a black ink nib. I can't help but feel relieved letting the air escape in a liberating sigh.

I get both from his hands. I use my palm, as a support to write my signature in the most presentable way, and a couple of personal data. I verify that everything has been in order before extending it back with a smile, grateful. He takes the paper almost immediately with one of his hands while extending the other to me.

-Congratula- I don't hear more of his congratulations. A large cloud of blueish smoke suddenly envelops him completely. I can't see anything until it begins to dissipate, letting me see the clean landscape of the clearing again... There's no trace of the man.

I look everywhere in an attempt to look for him until I stop abruptly when I hear what seems like applause, slowly done, just behind me. The little peace of mind I had obtained is gone.

-Impressive, Roger...  "congratulations" on your triumph- His tone of complete mockery intertwined with short and very poorly retained laughter only generates anger in me, to which I quickly turn behind my back finding myself with a crouched head, hands together in a really strong grip and the slight movement of his tense shoulders because of the laughter.

-It's over, Owen. I've won- I confront him, getting courage from where I don't have. The laughter stops almost immediately. I look closely waiting for any other reaction, but nothing. He's standing completely static. 

The seconds seem like hours. The sound of the air sharply shaking the leaves is the only thing that floods the environment causing my eyesight to be distracted by deviating for a second towards this, noting how there's no more light than that white moon next to the stars on the dark background of the night.

The short sound of the endurance of laughter interrupts the intriguing and dark silence before it is broken with the release of maniacal laughter into the air.

-I had to win...!, I must win!- All fun disappears from his tone becoming a gloomy and desperate one while slowly lifts his face towards me once again. Two long and thin red paths fall from his eyes instead of the typical transparent ones. I walk back a few steps as a reflective act when I see him doing the same in my direction.  

His steps suddenly accelerate giving me a few seconds to notice how his hands are dangerously directed to the neck. My eyes close when I sense the pressure while the hardness below my feet disappears, lifting me. I put my hands around his wrists instinctively in an attempt to free me.

I can't breathe!

The only thing I manage to do is lift my head to Owen when I feel my eyelids begin to narrow, a psychopathic expression covers his face enjoying what he has in front of him. The strength of his grip increases and that of my arms decreases to the point of falling motionless at my sides. Weakness floods my body leaving it almost insensitive.

I can't take it anymore...

Everything starts to get a little cloudy. However, among the soft fog of colors, the faint movement in my attacker's shoulders captures my attention. There, cautiously entangled around his neck is the Leviathan. Almost immediately, I begin to hear the whispers dimly. I cloudy notice how its jaws open up. The voices gradually increase their volume until they stop abruptly when their fangs collide with the union between his neck and shoulder, burying themselves in the brown skin in a quick and accurate lunge. The man doesn't make any gestures to move although his grip does weaken allowing me to catch my breath a little. Due to curiosity, I focus on seeing the area of the intromission noting how, from it, fine black lines extend from part of his face and collarbone disappearing under his shirt. The grip finally weakens quickly, freeing me completely. The impact on the ground is almost imperceptible to me, yet I can feel it very far away. I sense how my body regains a little strength to which I try to get up failing uselessly in the attempt, my arms falter the moment they feel the weight on them so I decide to lean on my elbows instead to see the blurry image of the brown man while it slowly clears up. His body shakes frantically surrounding the neck with his hands until it falls to his knees on the ground leaving him static almost immediately. His arms collapse to his sides, his face slowly drops down until he gets to stay looking at me with their eyes completely exorbitant, and the color of his tears turned into a dark black.

-Owen...?- There's no answer or action...

Suddenly, the same black liquid slides through the corner of his lips before it comes out abruptly and abundantly from his mouth with the sound of an arcade.

He doesn't move more than that..., but the creature does. Its mouth withdraws leaving the torn skin aside and then raises the head looking directly towards me. The alarms in my head are triggered immediately.

I need to get out of here!

But, no matter how hard I try, I can only move my torso to sit on the floor. I turn my attention to the beast as soon as I hear a gentle hiss. When observed, it begins to slither through the man's torso until it touches the grass on the ground, which creaks under its weight as it continues on his way... In the opposite direction? Further and further away, the demon only continues to move into the lush and dark forest, where finally, it simply disappears.

That's all...?

Suddenly, a strong cough attack shakes me causing my throat and chest to start hurting.  By inertia, my body bends to the front in an attempt to minimize or eliminate it, but it doesn't work. Instead, an intense metallic flavor floods my mouth just before the liquid responsible of, it overflows through it, staining green ground red. My body begins to tremble slightly unintentionally and without any control due to how cold it begins to turn. I try to keep up the heat by hugging myself with my arms, but I can't. The weakness embraces my body again flooding every corner causing my eyelids to start struggling to stay open and not finish everything and finally... rest...

Rest now...

Is a very tempting proposal...

Finally, I have no strength left to continue seeing the moonlight. I can only say goodbye to her next to the stars while I give them one last look before completely closing my eyes distantly listening to the echo of the thunderous sirens accompanied by the whispers...