Dark Angel of Night That Fell From the Sky

A man crept through the woods, trying to be as quiet as he can. He left deep marks on the white blanket of snow, destroying the ethereal feeling of emptiness that reigned in the taiga. No sounds but his breath sounded, his heart pounded in anticipation. His gloved hands held a rifle tightly as if it was man's only possession.

That man was a hunter. He lived all alone in the woods somewhere in the northern Russia, away from the civilization. His house was rather big and had everything he needed to live: a garden under the roof, always warm even in the most freezing of times, electricity, TV, and internet. The man had been working hard to get what he now has, and thankfully for him his giant work helped him a lot since he settled down there.

So, the winter of year 2015 was rather harsh for him. There, in the deep taiga, it was very hard to get meat. The man always could, of course, move to the city, but he preferred the soothing and comforting silence of nature of the north to the bustling buzz of any city.

So, the man crept through the woods. He had already spotted paw marks of a bunny, and he was going to get it. He hasn't eaten any meat in weeks, and it started getting to him. While meat wasn't exactly necessary for him, he liked the taste and the thrill of the hunt.

The man himself was dressed in a warm pale-gray coat that was lined with fur, winter camouflaged pants, and a pair of warm high boots with small belts that helped to adjust them around the leg. The face of the man was hidden behind the scarf that was wrapped around his head, only allowing the two differently colored eyes to be seen: one was sky-blue, and the other one was dark-green. The eyes were narrowed, scanning the surroundings for prey. Small clouds of vapor were breathed out, quickly becoming snow on his scarf.

Suddenly, everything became much darker. The man looked up at the darkened skies, and saw one thing he hasn't expected to see — a total eclipse. The moon has completely hidden the sun behind itself, not allowing a single beam of winter-cold light to pass. The man frowned as something on the moon caught his eye. Some strange shape as if the moon wasn't the one he sees every night.

Suddenly, a boom echoed through the taiga, scaring away all animals. The man almost made a shot in surprise, so tightly he held his rifle.

Then, the skies became brighter and brighter. The man looked up in awe, seeing a small meteor falling from the sky. He could almost see the strange, somehow humanoid shape of it.

Yelling something surely not ethical, the man hid behind the tree as the meteor fell. A loud boom of the impact sounded, shaking the ground and the trees, making some snow fall from the branches on the head of the man. Wiping away the snow, the man looked at where the meteor landed. It was about a hundred meters away from his current position, and he was eager to find out what landed, even if it was just a piece of rock.

He carefully stood up as if he was afraid the earth will split in half. By the time he started moving through the snow to the meteor, the eclipse had ended, seemingly abruptly. The silence retook its throne, and everything became as silent as if nothing has happened just a few moments ago.

The man moved through the snowy terrain to the small trail of smoke that has risen behind the recently snow-covered trees. For a moment, the man stopped. He thought of various dangers that could await him there: biological danger or radiation. He has read that there might be life in the vast cosmic space, especially deadly bacterias. And the radiation that was in the cosmos was a danger to the man as well. However, there is only one chance to see what happened or the meteor will be soon covered by the snow, unable to be seen until summer. Witnessing the fall of the meteor is one of the rarest things, being close to the impact is even more rare. A chance in a lifetime to see the end of the meteor fully and not on the TV.

However, when the man found what he thought was just a piece of rock, he was stunned and shocked by what he saw. In a rather large crater, a humanoid figure lied. It was clad in steel armor that was slightly blue in color. The humanoid had what appeared to be black fur. The legs were that of hind legs of equine, and the face was unlike human. It was like a muzzle of a horse but shorter and flatter. A pair of equine ears grew on the head of the humanoid. The eyes were rather big, yet they remained closed. The humanoid was female, judging by its chest. It rose and fell as the human-equine breather lightly.

However, what surprised the man was that she had a horn and a pair of big raven wings, as well as the mane and tail that looked like they were made of cosmos itself.

Seeing the human-equine so weak and defenseless, the man decided to help. Turning off his brain that would have exploded from the information and thoughts it received, the man put his rifle behind his back and walked closer to the human-equine.

The man rubbed his eyes, not yet believing in what was happening right in front of his eyes. An extraterrestrial being was there, lying before him on the cold ground.

Picking her up, the man found out that she was lighter than he expected. Moving carefully, he started walking back towards his home.

He thought of the surprise chance the fate has given him, and he took it without thinking. His life will take a different turn from then on.