Man From The Sky

FROM THE SKY
It was late at night, well after 11 pm. Anya Fox stood in the kitchen of her old farm house, stirring a pot of ramen noodles. She was dressed in a long sleeved cotton shirt and a pair of flannel pajama bottoms with little whales on them. The kitchen light cast a soft glow and the ceiling fan spun lazily. Country music played over the radio on the counter, accompanied by the crickets outside and the sound of her Tibetan Mastiff, Jack, sloppily eating his dinner.
Anya had just poured the finished ramen into a bowl and was about to dig in when Jack abruptly stopped eating and looked up. "What's wrong, Jacky Boy?" Anya asked, using his nickname.
There was still food in his bowl, and he never stopped eating until it was all gone unless something was wrong. He stared at the window next to her, a growl rising in the dogs throat. Anya looked out the window and saw nothing. Then Jack jumped up, putting his paws on the edge of the sink and barking out the window. "Jack, what are you doing?!" She said, grabbing his collar and pulling him off the sink. He then turned and barked at her. Not a threatening bark, more like a warning. Like a guard dog alerting it's master of an intruder on the property.
It was then that Anya heard the alarms going off in her office. Running out of the kitchen, through the living room and up the stairs, Anya rushed into her office, Jack not far behind. There were several computer monitors against the wall, each one of them emitting a beeping noise, their screens flashing. It seemed to be an atmospheric issue happening on the other side of town. Then, as soon as it started it stopped. Even Jack stopped carrying on. "What the hell was that?" she asked the hairy mastiff, knowing he couldn't answer.
Sighing, Anya leaned back in her office chair, looking at her cell on the desk and waiting for it to ring. As if on cue, the familiar chimes of her ringtone filled the office. She smirked when she checked the caller ID, already knowing who it was. She accepted it and immediately put the call on speaker. "Evening, Agent Coulson." She said. "Fine weather we're having, isn't it?"
"Evening, Miss Fox." A male voice came from the phone. "I take it your computer's went haywire as well?"
"Yep." She said. "It looked like there was an extreme atmospheric discharge."
"Did you see anything?"
"Unfortunately, no. It happened on the other side of town, whatever it was. Do you want me to go check it out?"
"No. We've already sent a group over to investigate. Just keep an eye out in case-"
Before he could finish, Jack started barking again. This time louder than before. Anya took her phone off speaker and held it to her ear. "Jack, HUSH!" Daisy said sternly. But the mastiff didn't listen. If it was possible, he barked louder, staring at the window that faced the back yard. "What's going on over there?" the man on the other line asked. "I don't know!" Anya said, barely able to hear him over Jack's barking. "He did this a few minutes ago, right before-" As if to finish her sentence, her computers started going off again. This time it was happening much closer. "The readings are off the charts!" she exclaimed, furiously typing away. "Are you getting this over there?"
"Yes." He said, frustrated. She could hear their equipment buzzing and beeping in the background.
Suddenly, a flash of light drew her attention to the window. There was a loud crack of thunder as something sailed towards the earth, colliding with a tremor that shook the whole house.
"Holy shit!" she yelled, falling over. Her phone flew out of her hand and out into the hallway. "Fox?" Spoke the man on the other end, sounding faint from the phones position in the hall. "Fox!"
Anya scrambled for her phone and put it back to her ear. "I'm here." She said.
"What the hell happened?!"
"Something just crash landed in my back yard!"
"What was it?"
"I don't know! A meteor maybe?"
"Can't be. Meteors don't cause atmospheric anomalies that large."
"Alright, then." She said, getting to her feet. "I don't know what it is, but I'm going to check it out."
Anya left her office and rushed down the stairs. "Make sure to call if you need backup." Agent Coulson said, his usual calm demeanor returned. "And report back with whatever you find."
"Got it." Anya replied and hung up. She quickly pulled on a pair of boots and her dark green peacoat. Stuffing her phone in her pocket, she grabbed a large flashlight and headed for the door. Jack tried to follow, but she made him stay in the house. "I'll be right back, Jacky Boy."
She rushed out the back door, letting it close with a bang. Flicking on her flashlight, she hastily made her way over to the area where the object had hit. When she approached the area, what she saw was more than a little unexpected. Instead of a crater, there was a large circle with what looked like intricate carvings on the ground. And stumbling around inside the circle was a man. He was tall and slender, with muscles visible under his long sleeved shirt. He had long blonde hair that was tied back, and his clothes were covered in a fine layer of dust from the ground. "Hello?" she asked, pointing the flashlight at him. "Do you need help?" He turned to look at her, squinting his eyes at the harsh light. "Where are we?" he asked, irritated. "Alfheim? Nidavellir? Vanaheim?"
Anya gaped. What the hell was he talking about? "What?" she asked. "I have no idea what your talking about. This is New Mexico."
Now it was the man's turn to look confused. Then, what looked like realization crossed his face. "This is Midgard, isn't it?"
"Mid-what?"
He groaned. "Earth!" he was getting angry.
"Yeah," she said. "This is Earth. Where else would we be?" Anya looked at him like he was crazy.
"Would you get that infernal light out of my face, woman?!"
Anya lowered the flashlight, pointing it at his chest. The man in front of her looked around furiously, as if searching for something.
"Did you see anyone else here, Woman?"
"No, I didn't. Just you. And my name is not Woman." She said, beginning to grow irritated herself. But the man seemed to be ignoring her.
"I don't understand." He said. "I was banished not a minute after him. He should be here!"
"Banished?" she asked to herself. Who was this man?
"Hey, buddy. Do you need anything? A Doctor maybe?"
"Why would I need a 'Doctor'?" He said, continuing to stumble around. He finally fell to the ground, holding his head. Anya slowly walked over to the man and knelt down beside him. "Because you can hardly stand." She said. "Are you sick?"
"No, I am not ill. Just…disoriented."
"Do you live around here? I can give you a ride if you wan't."
"No, I don't. I live…well I lived far from here. I do not live anywhere now." He said dejectedly.
Anya, for whatever reason, took pity on the stranger. Sighing, she asked "Do you need a place to stay for a while?"
"I would not want to impose on you-"
"Don't worry about it." She said. "It's just me and my dog at home. There's room in my house for one more."
He smiled. "I am grateful to you, Woman."
Daisy rolled her eyes. "I told you, my name isn't Woman. It's Anya."
"I am Leifr."
"That's an odd name." She said with a chuckle.
"Not where I am from." He replied. Anya just shrugged her shoulders. "Alright. Come on, let's get you inside. It's freezing out here."
Leifr stood, but began to loose his balance. Anya steadied him, wrapping one arm around his waist. "Careful." She said with a laugh. "Don't want to hurt yourself." He just smiled and let her lead him towards the house. As soon as they got inside, Jack started barking at Leifr. "Jack, stop it!" Daisy said. "He's not going to bite you!" The mastiff ceased his barking, but followed the two into the kitched. Anya sat Leifr down at the kitchen table. "Are you hungry?" she asked. Before he could speak, a loud rumble was emitted from his stomach. Anya laughed. "I'll take it that's a yes?" Seeing that the Ramen she made was still warm, she set it down in front of him. Without a second thought, Leifr grabbed the fork and began shoveling the chicken-flavored noodles into his mouth. "Wow…." She said. "You really were hungry."
Rooting around in the cabinet, Anya pulled out a glass and got him some water. Siting down herself, She put the full glass in front of him. Meanwhile, Jack just stood there, staring at him. Swallowing a mouthful of noodles, Leifr asked "Is that your mount?" he asked. Anya laughed. "No, he's just my dog. I don't ride around on him."
"Hm..he's big enough." Grabbing the glass, Leifr downed it in one go. Anya refilled it, then said "I'll be right back. I have to make a quick phone call. If you want more water, there's a pitcher in the fridge."
"What's a 'phone call'?" He asked, confused.
Anya's mouth fell open. "You don't….how can you not know what a….." She stuttered, dumbstruck. "Well it's a…." she wracked her brain, trying to figure out how to explain phones to someone who had no idea what they were. "It's a….it's a long story. Just sit tight and I'll be right back."
Anya left the kitchen and retreated to a corner of the living room. Fishing her phone out of her coat pocket, she pressed the speed dial button and put the phone to her ear and waited. She found it made things easier to have Coulson on speed dial. It rang only twice. "What have you go for me, Fox?"
"Well, you were right. It definitely wasn't a meteor." She said as she shrugged off her coat and tossed it lazily onto a chair.
"What was it?"
"I…don't really know how to explain it. I don't understand it fully myself. I mean, there wasn't even a crater."
"What do you mean no crater? It's physically impossible to hit the ground at that velocity and not leave a crater."
"I know, I know. But I'm telling you there wasn't a crater. Just a huge, flat circle with all these weird intricate drawings. They almost look Celtic."
"That's the same thing we found at the other sight."
"Odd….And there was also something else." She said, peaking into the kitchen. Leifr was still eating.
"What was it?"
"Um…..a guy."
"A guy?"
"Yeah. He was stumbling around and talking about places called Vanny-hime, El-fine and Mid-guard, and said something about being banished."
"Was he on anything?"
"I don't think so. I brought him inside and his breath didn't smell like alcohol. And I don't think he's been doing drugs because he's acting somewhat normal. He didn't know what a phone was, though."
"He might have mental problems."
"Maybe. He said he didn't have anywhere to go, so I'm gonna let him crash here for a while."
"You sure that's wise, Pajari?"
"He doesn't seem dangerous, but I'll keep an eye on him and if I need to I can defend myself."
"I'm sure you can." She could hear the amusement in his voice. "Keep in contact in case something else happens."
"Wiil do." She said. And witht hat, she hung up the phone and returned to the kitchen. By that time, Leifr had eaten the whole bowl of noodles, plus the rest in the pot. He was halfway through a new box of cheese crackers by the time she got off the phone.
"Good thing I was planning on going grocery shopping tomorrow."