Max Vasquez, 3/17/09 2:07 PM

The loud crash shot me to my feet. A familiar presence stirs within me I can feel the lust for blood surge through me warming my veins. I push Xecotcovach back for the moment and rush to my front door, a second loud crash sounds before I reach it followed by the splinter of wood.

I press my cheek against the wood and scan through the fish eyed peephole. The distorted outside world looks mostly calm except for the four black clad men I can barely catch sight of out of the far corner standing in front of my neighbor’s door. It’s Johnny’s door looks like he wasn’t being completely paranoid. I watch as two of them step back holding a battering ram and the third moves forward rifle drawn.

I take a step back and breath planning my next move, they will come for us next.. we must act, my skull rumbles in a voice not my own, in a language most have forgotten. I can’t speak it but I understand it well enough. I hesitate a moment weighing my options, another crash this one coming from inside the other apartment makes my choice for me.

I walk down the small hallway and stand infront of the wall between my apartment and Johnny’s I brace myself placing one hand on the wall. The shift is always a little rough. Xecotcovach rumbles with anticipation and I allow the spirt to flood my senses and overtake my body.

My teeth grit together and my stomach feels like its turning inside out. The transformation is quick, and painless but still unnerving to me. Bones snap and reform, my skin thickens and spourts feathers, my nose and mouth forminto a razor sharp beak, my muscles swell and grow talons and claws forming on the ends of my hands, my clothes seem to shift into my skin and I grow several feet taller. In the final stages long wings sprout from my upper back and spread as far as the narrow hall will allow. Soon I’m no longer Max Vasquez. I’m not even human, somewhere between man and crow; I am Xecotcovach avatar and sprit, harbinger of the end times. Well one of them anyways.

My fist raises from the wall and slams down against it splintering it Xecotcovach is in control now, and I watch my other clawed hand slam the wall punching a hole in it. My claws grab at the opening and tear the sheetrock and mortar apart as if it were paper and my taloned legs step through the new opening which crumbles around me as my bulk push past it.

Johnny looks up at my from his knees a look of terror filling his woozy face, I can see the three darts in his chest, probably a tranqulizer. His head lulls and he falls backwards to his floor. The two black clad men still standing stagger backwards shocked and surprised. Xecotcovach opens my beak and lets forth a mighty shriek both bird and monster like at the same time. One of the black clad agents drops his rifle and flees, the other stands shaken for a moment. A sense of grim satisfaction followed by hunger fills my sense. Xecotcovach prepares to feed.

My mass bolts forward like a streak of lightning carefully avoiding the prone form of Johnny at my feet a taloned hand reaches and clutches the stunned solider who tries in vein to raise his rifle. My other arm slaps it aside and it slides across the living room floor as I lift the man from the ground. His eyes widen with terror and he opens his mouth the shriek unable to find his voice. He’s too slow anyways as my free claw grabs at the man’s stomach and eviscerates him while my head snaps forward plucking his eyes from his skull. The act would have sickened me if I was Max, but as Xecotcovach I feel my strength bolster as the squishy orbs flood my beak.

I feel a slight plink against my feathers and turn to see the last solider who didn’t flee standing in the doorway his gun is leveled in my direction and two darts lay on the ground the needles broken as they failed to penetrate my skin. I drop my first victim in a heap of gore and guts and turn towards the last assailant. The sound of approaching police catches my attention. My time is short.

The man flips a switch on his rifle and backs away as he pulls the trigger again. The silent thump of needles is replaced by the tale tell sound of automatic gunfire. The bullets plink harmlessly off my armored feathers and I lunge forward grabbing the man by his throat through the door and tearing it out. Letting him slump lifelessly to the ground on the porch. I can hear the fleeing solider make his way down the steps, Xecotcovach wants to follow, but I can hear the crowd gathering outside as well as several police cars screeching to a stop in the lot. It’s time to get out of here.

Xecotcovach seems to agree because he steps back from the door and looks towards my downed friend. If it was just us we would shift again into a single crow and fly away, but Johnny presents a problem. I stomp over to the inert man and easily hoist him up in one hand. We need a diversion, something to distract the fast growing crowd and approaching police.

Xecotcovach calls upon another of our powers and in a puff of black smoke several crows; hundreds in number spawn around us sweep out of the apartment. They are instructed to swarm the people and keep them busy while we escape. I can hear the confused shrieks and stray gunshots from the cops. It should work pretty well, a few people may see me still, but not nearly as many.

After a few moments when the chaos is at it’s peak we run and leap through the door my wings spreading to their full span, Johnny held securely over my shoulder as we fly off, I chuckle a bit at the chaos as people bat at the crows that swoop and peck at everyone. The wings at my back beat heavily pulling us high in the sky and up into the clouds.