Under a beautiful night sky, a campfire's blazing flame illuminated the area within the dark forest. A few stones or clay pots circled the fire, providing a protected area to sit on. 

A hooded young woman sat on one of the stones, before picking a skewer she left to cook on the campfire. As the scent of roasting meat and grilled vegetables flew to her nose, she couldn’t help but smile deviously and drooled a little bit. After a second of enjoying the flavorful aroma, she quickly wiped her drool and put the skewer into a silver bowl. A sudden gust of wind swept through, whisking away her hood and revealing two pointy ears, cascading waves of blue hair, and piercing golden eyes.

“Dinner time!” said the elf, hardly annoyed by the wind while looking at her wooden carriage. 

A small creature jumped out from the carriage and glided to the campfire. Its flame revealed the creature to be a fox with silky orange furs. The elegant creature gracefully moved its slender body, causing its long and pointed tail to wiggle through the air with a captivating wave-like motion. Its eyes fixed on the delicious sustenance nestled within the gleaming silver bowl. But then the elf reached down and cuddled it gently. After that, it spat out a piece of human nostril mixed with blood and drooled before feasting on the food. The girl sighed before kicking the nostril aside.

“I didn’t know you had that in your mouth.” The elf walked toward the carriage. “Anyway, eat and guard around.” 

She reached the entrance. She delicately raised her hand and lightened up the lantern hanging nearby, casting a warm and gentle glow in the darkness within the carriage. Inside the carriage, one can find bottles of booze, neatly arranged wooden crates, a black sleeping bag, and a tied-up man. 

The man wore tattered clothes, displaying claw scars and bandages all over his body. Fabrics concealed both his mouth and eyes, while a blood-soaked bandage covered his nose. The elf punched him without mercy after removing his mouth covering. 

“Talk, human.” Said the elf in a disgusting and angry tone as she fixed her hand.

“Haah… Uugh.. Aaah.. I already told you. I don’t know where they are.” The man groaned.

“Liar! I saw you gave the girl to those cultists.” She slammed her right fists near the man.

“I’m just a third-party benefactor. They use me to hide their traces.” 

Overwhelmed by fear, the man retreated into a cowering position. Tremors coursed through his body, causing him to shake uncontrollably. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead and trickled down his face, soaking the bandages on his eyes and nose. She smiled at such a pathetic sight.

“Trafficking and associating with cultists? I wonder where I should hand you over. The government, the association- or the church.”

“NO! Please, anything but the church.” The man screamed and struggled to escape.

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“Then the church it is.” She smirked and hardly worried about the man struggling. “I can already smell the coins from the church.”

Then, the elf heard a low and whiny sound below her. She looked down and noticed the fox pulling her cloak with its mouth. She quickly reached for something in her cloak while looking around to scan enemies. But she saw nothing but lines of trees surrounding the campfire. Her long ears twitched, and she could hear the sound coming nearer. If it isn’t around them, then it must be. She looked up and was speechless at the scene. 

A shooting star? A meteorite? A fireball? Whatever it was, it radiated such a brilliant light and was heading downward. As it got closer and closer, the light became brighter and brighter. Without a second thought, she grabbed her pet and jumped inside the carriage to avoid the blast. 

“What is happening?” The man yelled frantically.

“SHUT UP!” 

Inside the carriage, she could hear the impact of the crash. It was so loud and deafening that she had to cover her ears. Then, she saw the impact’s shockwave. 

It wreaked havoc upon once-peaceful surroundings. The trees strained against the gale-force shockwave, desperately trying to maintain balance and defiantly withstand the onslaught. Once vibrant and full of life, their leaves were caught in a frenzied dance and whipped into a chaotic flurry by the relentless gusts. Each violent wind tore the leaves from their branches, sending them spinning and twirling through the air. They creaked, and groaned, and some even broke under the immense pressure as they tightly gripped their arboreal hosts. Miraculously, the carriage did not get blown away by the impact. Once the dust cleared, the elf went outside cautiously.

“What on Terra just happened?” She thought to herself as she looked around.

The shockwave extinguished the fire, and all her food was laid bare on the ground, covered in dust. However, amidst her frustration, she noticed thin lines of smoke emerging from the nearby surroundings. That must be where that thing crashed, she thought. Then, she began to grub her chin. 

“What should I do? Should I go there and take a look?” She asked herself, “What if there were a battle there, or even something worse like a Spawn?”

Amidst her thoughts, one thing came into her mind. What if it was a meteorite? Imagine all the gold she could get from selling it. She smiled deviously before rushing toward the crash site with the fox in her hands. As she reached the small crater, she noticed heaps of dirt encircled its rim. 

Buried within the crater were several trees that had suffered damage. Scattered across the ground were embers and smoke. She gave a light grin before walking closer to her objective.  

“First, I will buy skewers and boozes.” She said as she cuddled the fox, “Then, we will have this party together-”

Suddenly, she heard the sound of a tree branch crushed from the crater. Was she too careless? She asked herself. Her eyes locked into the crater as the smoke revealed a figure standing in the crater. 

The figure looked like a naked human in his early 20s, with black hair and a lean body. He looked downward at the broken tree branches under his bare feet, not noticing the elf’s presence. Why didn’t he receive any injuries from the meteorite? Should she leave? But only one question goes through her mind.

“Who are you?” She asked the man.

The man turned his head toward her. His round eyes opened up, and his light gray eyes dilated slightly. It was like, at that moment, he had a revelation. His mouth opened slowly, responding to her question with an answer. An answer that will not only change her life forever but will also shake this world to its very core.

“I’m Gabriel.”