Dark Night

                                                              Chapter One
    I awoke to the sound of a nightingale cooing out a sorrowful song. It was like the Arctic Tundra around me. I felt the chilly wind stirring the white folds around my legs. When I got up and looked at my surroundings, I gasped. A gigantic patch of moss cloaked the ground below me. A mammoth tree stood like a sentry above me. Frozen Spanish moss hung off the tree as it were the curtains of a palace. Listening closely to my surroundings, I was surprised to hear the rushing of a waterfall. Getting off my knees, and ridding my of scraps of moss, I started off.
    As I walked toward the sound, I noted my surroundings. I heard the croaks of frogs, saw the mist swirling above my knees, and tasted the clean, fresh air. Strangely, I don't remember getting here. Arriving at the waterfall, I was amazed. It cascaded over the top, gushing all over the place. Its crystalline waters empied out into a large pool which led to a strong, thick river. I was quite dirty, so I headed to the summit of the waterfall.
    When I got to the top; exhausted, my legs felt like jelly. Still determined to washmyself clean of the filth that covered me, I took a deep breath for courage- and jumped.
    The wind whistled thropugh my ears until I plunged deep into the recesses of the water. The chill of the water took my breath away. Fighting for a place back onto the surface, I struggled with the folds of the water. Breaking onto the surface, I gasped for air. Then I swam over to shore, drug myslef out, and lay there; beached. I shivered and shook like I had epilepsy. The cold was too much.
      Suddenly, I heard a haunting melody reach my ears. It sounded like the wind whistling through the rushes. Sadness overtook me like a spell. I forgot all about the cold. Then, all sounds ceased to be. All of them except the nightingale. Somehow, that terrified me even more. It seemed as if everything had stopped its nightly chorus just to hear him. Out of the blue- or out of the gray it seems- came the lonely hoot of an owl. The nightingale stopped his song. I felt a frisson of fear run down my spine. Then, a scent wafted toward my cold nose. It smelled of rotting flesh, and decaying organs. Mixed within this scent was the musky odor of a sweaty animal.
  I was really worried now. Wait, did I just hear a branch snapping? Was that the sound of steps crushing leaves? I no longer buried my fear. I frantically looked around for the something that was hiding behind a sturdy trunk. I wanted to run so badly that my legs ached. I could feel the tears just behind my eyelids. No, I won't wait here to become some creature's food. Need to move!
  Before I could even act on the thought, I felt a hot gust of breath on my neck. My eyes widen. It has found me. I might just die here, without even knowing who I am. I turned around slowly. If I were going to die, I wanted to look my murderer in the face.
    That was a bad idea. That was a very bad idea. It stood three feet taller than I. Its shaggy fur hung limp with water. The worst part was its eyes. Fiendish blood-red eyes that held a hint of yellow. In its eyes I saw hate. It was hate for me. Borne from that hate was hunger. Now would be the time to run, but my legs were frozen to the ground that would soon be my grave.
    Its arms held my arms fast. I struggled against the creature franctically, hoping for escape. It slowly dragged me away from a trunk I had latched onto. The beast grabbed my hair and tugged on it hard. The pain was intense. I was helpless to help myself.
    I screamed. I screamed like there was no tomorrow, which was quite possible right then. I wished that someone's ears could hear me scream. Someone's but my own. I didn't even know my own name.
                                                                      ~
  I was hunting the finest buck I had ever seen when I heard a woman scream. It was chilling, unlike anything else I've ever heard. At first I brushed it off as an animal; but, when I heard her scream again, I knew she was human. When my thoughts turned back to the buck, It was gone. Oh well, I guess I'd better save the damsel in distress. This was the reason I'd moved away from other humans. I didn't want to care about her, but her next scream chilled me to the bone.
                                                              Chapter Two
    As I made my way toward the river, I cursed the screaming girl. How dare she interrupt my loneliness and my hunt? I trudged  through the bracken and mud, getting my boots covered in foul-smelling filth. I finally made it to the bank of the Srya River. The river was long and wide, as if it were a black snake that had slithered its way through the glacial tundra of Russia.The river both gave life, and took it away. That was one of the reasons the natives worshipped the filthy river. Personally, I wouldn't want to worship a river of death, or any river for that matter; but, then again, these people were loons.
    I was looking up and down the river when I saw something that my eyes didn't quite believe. A huge beast, covered in what looked like strips of Spanish moss, was dragging what looked like a female ghost by her hair. Now I didn't really blame her for screaming. I'd never seen a monster like this before. The monsters I'd seen were only human. Granted, they were evil as sin itself, but this; this creature... was much, much worse.
    I needed to think and quickly at that. It was then that I realized that I still had my high-quality bow with me. I lifted the magnificent weapon, took aim, and let an arrow loose. The arrow hit the beast's shoulder. It roared in pain and dropped the girl. The moment its odd red-yellow eyes met my grey ones, I did the only thing I could think of doing. I ran.
    The beast, now having some better prey, hustled my way. For several hours we played. I ran through the trees, the muck, the moss, and all of the other nasty undergrowth. Eventually, I lost it, so I meandered back to the Srya. I was hoping that the girl had run away and hadn't lay there like some broken doll waiting to be torn up even more.
  I was looking around the shore when I felt a light tap on my shoulder. Being on edge from the chase; I whirled around, knocked the tapper to the ground, and held a dagger to her throat. It was the girl. Up close I could see more of her features. She had long, luxurious inky black hair that fell in waves to her waist. Her skin was the color of cream staright from a goat. Her eyes; however, were the most captivating. Her eyes were a light blue, almost colorless. They were also full of fear. It was obvious that she thought I was a threat to her safety. For some odd reason, I wante dher to feel safe with me. Pushing that thought aside, I removed the dagger and helped her up.
                                                                ~
      He was positively gorgeous. That was my first thought as he held me to the ground with a blade at my neck. Ridiculous, I know. Irrational, definitely. This guy exuded danger. Yet, there was somehting about him that drew me like moth to a flame. His hair fell across his shoulders, shining silver in the moonlight. He was also about five inches taller than I. His eyes were amazing. Those steely grey eyes told of both strength, and vulnerability. The last thing I noticed wa the scar that started on his forehead, ran across his nose, and ended on his right cheek. Someone had hurt hims. I didn't like that at all.
      Where had that come from? I shook my head. Shut up, you're being ridiculous. The man didn't seem to notice my inner conflict. Instead, he lended me a hand and helped me up.
      "Hello", he breathed, "My name is Cristoph." His voice was beautiful. It rang through the night, wrapping me in warmth. Then it occured to me that I hadn't understood a word he had said.
        "What was that? I-I didn't understand you," I softly whispered. He looked highly confused for a moment before switching to a tongue that I could understand.
        "You don't speak Russian? That's strange... I said hello, and that my name was Cristoph. What's your name and what rock did you climb out from under?" I lifted my brow at the last question.
        Since I had no idea about how to answer, I simply answered cockily, "I don't know. I just woke up, and I was here. Do you know who I am?"
        He looked despaired and shocked. "No, I have no idea who you are. You're speaking English. I guess we can come up with a name for you until we find where- and to whom- you belong." We both contemplated the idea for several minutes. I didn't honestly mind if my name were made up so long as I had one, and it was dubbed by him.
        His face lit up. "I know! Your name shall be Anastasia. We are in Russia so it makes sense for you to have the princess's name. It's better than calling you 'girl'. Yes, your name will be Anastasia."
          And so it was. It was a beautiful name. One problem made itself clear right then. "It's terribly cold out here. Have you any shelter? I would hate to impose, but I just might die of pneumonia out here," I subtly suggested.
                                                                    ~
          She had a very good point. I decided then that having someone stay at my home wouldn't be so bad. One last thing crossed my mind before I took her arm, and led her to my humble abode.
          What was that creature, and will it come back for more...?