Once Upon Another World, Page 2

  *BRING!* In the near silent confines of his apartment and those confines within himself, the sounds of his cell phone were shockingly loud and excessively abrasive to his already agitated state. But nevertheless, of those few people aware of that number, almost none of them would have called so very late in the day unless it was of importance. Glancing up to the dial of the silent clock as its' mechanical hands recounted the passage of hours since he had last paid it any attention, he hurried off in search of that infernal device as it sounded out once more through the room. He was neither surprised to recognize the number or at all put out by so late a call, answering it even before a third ring could ripple across the space.

  "Hello." He murmured across the line.

  "Raven.." He recognized the voice almost instantly and knew that his friend was deeply troubled, just by that single spoken word. "It.. happened again.." Mr. Montoya told him in the darkest of tones and with very real fear hovering just beneath the surface.

  "Who?" Raven asked him in return, needing to hear nothing else to be aware of the troubling matter they were discussing.

  "Amelia… we tried to convince her not to go there.. but she was so worried about Raymond.." Mr. Montoya told him sounding very nearly at the edge of tears.

  "Dammit.." Raven growled. "You need to keep everyone else away from that place, my friend. Do whatever it takes… I'll… I'll go and I will find out what the hell is going on."

  "Are you.."

  "No,.. I am not sure of anything, but I feel damn certain that I can at least get away." Mr. Montoya tried to talk him out of his decision for at least a few more minutes, before he relented since he knew deep down that all of them needed to know what was going on. Soon enough Raven was able to end the call and drop his phone onto the empty couch cushions. With his thoughts even more dark and troubled than they had been moments before, he turned to the windows to peer broodingly out over the city in the distance. Had it not been for Mr. Montoya and his vast circle of friends and acquaintances, Raven would probably have left the city after merely a month spent in its' shadows, with his proverbial tail tucked between his legs. The robust, 'over the top', and at times eccentric older man, Mr. Montoya ran a small but wonderful Italian restaurant on the east side of the island. The restaurant served almost exclusively as a gathering point for his vast circle of friends most days and every night. People simply flocked there, drawn in by the warm personality, caring nature, and the vague indescribable sense that this person was someone who was larger than life. Raven had few doubts that just about anyone, even the most contrary or mean-spirited sort of people, who spent even a small amount of time in Mr. Montoya's presence, could not help but wish to be considered his friend. And Raven was all but certain that it was impossible for Mr. Montoya to ever have anyone who would consider themselves his enemy. The man was simply magnetic, drawing in all manner of people from all different backgrounds and making them wish to be his friend.

  Raven had met him in those vague first weeks after Raven coming to the city from 'MiddleofNowhere, USA'. He had been suffering from an overly abused and bruised sense of self as he did nothing but question the wisdom of remaining in a city that was so unlike anything he had experienced before. At the time he had taken to all but wandering the streets like a little lost puppy seeking something, anything that might allow him to regain some sense of balance inside his head. Like the miracle he had so desperately needed, but had not truly asked for, he found Montoya's Italian Eatery. To say that he was drawn there would be an untruth, for he had woken up one morning and was leaving his tiny hotel room before he was fully awake. Unerringly, he had crossed through the unfamiliar city until he found himself going through the door of the eatery. It had felt almost as if he had simply woken up that morning with a mission, knowing where he was going and only too aware of how he would be greeted when he got there. Practically within the first seconds of his arrival, Mr. Montoya was welcoming him like some long lost member of the family. Before Raven was truly aware of it, he had spent the whole day sitting in the same booth being visited repeatedly by Mr. Montoya and his three rather pretty daughters, as the four of them made their rounds.

  Raven was just deciding that his long stay made him uncomfortable enough to make a quiet retreat out the front door when Mr. Montoya was sliding in across from him, almost as if he had been summoned. Even in his most wild of fantasies, Raven could not have expected Mr. Montoya to invite him, a complete stranger, to 'dinner with the family'. The truth about the unusual nature of the 'family dinner' became more clear eventually, but Raven could still no more have denied that far too charming man his request than he could willingly removed one of his own limbs. That evening, Raven discovered that he was far from the first, and most likely not the last, person to be drawn to that quiet little refuge from some far flung corner of the city. The 'family dinner' was actually a support group of sorts for a wide range of diverse people, all of whom, himself included, could not be considered 'normal' when compared to most everyone else in the city. All of them were in possession of some ability that was usually assumed to only exist in the realm of science fiction. Telepaths, Empaths, Telekinetics, Pyrokinetics, and other even stranger abilities, all possessed by regular people. They had all been drawn in by Mr. Montoya's presence, and all of them, including his own daughters, took just a little extra strength and comfort in knowing that those abilities which had made them different for most of their lives. What Raven had unknowingly stumbled upon, or perhaps been summoned for, was a weekly meeting of a vast and diverse group of friends who shared the troubles and benefits of the things within them which had set them apart from those around them.

  Raven, who had long ago become aware that he was different from all of his childhood friends, quickly became addicted to the sense of belonging, especially since it was the first time that he could ever remember feeling it. Had it not been for that one event, he likely would have long since given up on that other vague and indistinct calling that had lured him across the country. While he had no doubt that the voice would not have simply left him alone had he retreated to home and hearth, he would have gladly ignored had it not been for that small group of people who had welcomed him into their number so openly and joyfully. As that year had passed, Raven had learned about all he could about them and they had learned about him in return. In time, he had come to the conclusion that they really were the family that Montoya had claimed them to be, and much to his surprise he had become a part of it.