Matvey Owens 🍃

Matvey had just finished reading Halloween stories to the children in his cozy library. He felt proud to be part of the Every Voice Reads charity the organization he’d been working with for a year now, bringing stories to kids who needed them most.

But tonight wasn’t just about ghost stories and costumes. No Matvey had something very special planned.

Earlier this month, a stranger online had contacted him, claiming to own an ancient spellbook from the 18th century — one said to summon mythical creatures into the human realm. The price? €2,000. And where did Matvey find him? On R/Monsters of all places.

Who in their right mind would believe that?

...Well, Matvey would.

Sure, the guy could be a scammer, but that tiny spark of hope that maybe it was real burned too brightly to ignore. So he closed his library early and headed out to the meeting spot behind a Rewe building.

The streets were alive with children and teens in all sorts of Halloween costumes. Pumpkins glowed in shop windows as laughter echoed down the road. When Matvey finally arrived, the alley was empty. He was ten minutes early, but his heart still raced.

A rustle. Then, from the shadows, a tall man in a clown mask and a long black coat stepped out. Matvey flinched but quickly tried to compose himself.

The man extended a gloved hand. “Money first.”

Matvey frowned. “Book first,” he said, voice tight with nerves.

The man chuckled darkly, then revealed a heavy black-and-purple book lined with faint, glowing runes. Matvey’s breath hitched — it looked... real. Too real. He handed over the cash, and the man’s voice rumbled low as he said, “Good luck,” before shoving the book into Matvey’s arms and disappearing down the alley.

Shady, sure... but that doesn’t mean it’s fake, Matvey thought as he hurried home, clutching the mysterious book like a treasure.

Back at his small house, he kicked off his shoes, rushed into his room, and flipped the book open. There were pages upon pages of strange potions and rituals until one title caught his eye “How to Summon a Mythical Creature.”

The page was littered with warnings: Do not proceed. Turn back. But Matvey wasn’t a coward.

He followed every instruction carefully — pouring brown sugar and salt into a perfect circle, painting a black symbol he’d never seen before, lighting a candle, and reciting the chant.

Then he waited.

A minute passed. Then two. Then an hour.

Nothing.

Was he scammed? His chest tightened with frustration. He slammed the book onto the floor and muttered a curse under his breath.

“Vögeln!”

Too tired to clean up, he dragged himself to bed.

[The Next Morning – 8:00 AM]

His alarm blared. Matvey groaned, still bitter about last night’s failure. But when he stepped out of his bedroom, he froze.

The living room was a disaster: bookshelves toppled, couch cushions torn apart, papers scattered everywhere.

“Was I robbed?” he muttered, scanning the room. Then he noticed the floor — the ritual circle was gone.

A faint rumbling came from the kitchen.

Matvey’s pulse quickened. He crept forward and peeked around the corner...

There was a massive, mythical creature munching on the Café Kränze cookies he’d hidden away.

Matvey’s jaw dropped. His mind raced between awe and terror. He’d dreamed of this since he was eight but now that it was real, he had no idea what to do.

He needed to take control. That’s what summoners did in movies, right?

He stepped out from behind the wall. “Hey, you... thing! I summoned you, and I am your master!”

...Was that too aggressive? Did it even understand him?