Ch.1
The Story of Hannah
Darkness filled the clean, scented air, into a dark, murky, forgotten city. So much black, it could make a blind man see again. Flashes of light were found soon after the darkness swept in. It wasn't a city anymore. Instead, it had become Hell itself. Fire raged, nothing getting in its way. The flames burned through people's souls, stealing their eyes, melting them with their warm, sharp hands. Their lips were peeled, like tissue paper, with a single touch. Their hearts, holding their lives together with a single beat, were burned. The last the flames took was their memories. Their memories had been held in their toes, the most unlikely place. It would be the last thing the people would hear, touch, and smell, for death was closer than they thought. Their lives had gone, never to be seen on the face of the Earth again.
Few survived. One of the twenty-seven survivors was a young mother, looking for her lost baby girl. "Hannah!" The mother's head hung low, feet, dragging on. Lifeless. She stopped at a pile of bricks and wood, which at one point was their apartment. In the rubble lay a dangling arm, pale and still. The mother dug and dug, flinging dirt and dust clouds behind her. Her heart paced. 'It isn't Hannah... it isn't Hannah... it... isn't...' She stopped digging. Lying before her was Molly, Hannah's beautiful hand crafted doll. Her purple summer dress, ripped. Her long black hair, torn in spots. And her face, crumpled together like a plastic bag.
It too had become dead.
Hannah's mother cried, leaving trails of tears along her muddy face. She hugged Molly like she would if Hannah were with her.
"I love you Hannah, my baby girl."
She kissed Molly on the head, tucked into her arms, and laid upon the rubble beneath her. She closed her eyes, never to open them again. She was heartbroken.
Before the attack of the underworld, Hannah had been playing tea party with Molly. Hannah's worn out pink summer dress hung from her shoulders down to her knees. Her bright blue eyes sparkled with youth and her long brown hair brought caring joy around her.
Paper plates, cups, and napkins scattered along the hard wood floor. Hannah's mother insisted her to play outside with the neighbor's dog.
"No mother, the wood is cold on my back. The dog is inside anyway."
Her mother giggled at Hannah, speaking like an adult.
Screams echoed the ally separating the two apartment complex's, piercing the passer-by's ears. Hannah's mother slipped on her sandals, getting ready to walk outside. Hannah, watching what her mother was doing, stood up and ran toward her mother's legs. She clenched them with sweaty palms, looking up at her. Hannah's mother looked down into her petrified eyes.
"I'm only going out to see what the fuss is about," Hannah's mother said calmly.
Hannah stood, in tears."Don't leave me here!"
"I won't Hannah, I promise."
Hannah gave her mother a hug, squeezing every last bit of her.
"Okay...okay...Hannah...you need...to ...let go ...now!"
Hannah let go, giggling at her mother gasping for air, her face, a deep crimson red.
Her mother kissed her on the head and left. Hannah was alone. Her only comfort was the purple juice stained couch, the batted up coffee table, and her doll Molly.
Molly had been sitting on the floor, holding an empty tea cup in her stuffed hand. Holding her hand out for so long, caused her to loose her balance, and fell over.
"Oh Molly," Hannah said with a teasing voice. Hannah walked over to her, picked her up and patted her head lightly.
Hannah's mother had looked around at all the apartment complex's down the road, and didn't see anything wrong with them, until her next door neighbor came out in a panic.
"Danelle! We must hurry! The storm is coming this way!"
"Rachel, what are you talking about? Nothing is wrong."
"They've gotten to your soul too, haven't they? We must get you to a doctor!"
Rachel grabbed Danelle's arm and pulled her with little difficulty.
"Hannah! I must get my Hannah!" Danelle exclaimed.
"There is no time! She'll be alright. She's a smart girl."
Rachel pulled harder, and Danelle being so light, was carried away, unable to stop.
"HANNAH!"
"Mother?" Hannah turned, thinking she heard her mother yell for her.
"Okay Molly, you'll have to follow me in order to live." Molly sat on the floor, staring at Hannah.
"Don't give me any of that talk, alright!" Hannah picked her up by her foot and ran to the kitchen. Hannah opened a cupboard full of pots and pans, but grabbed a strainer. Next, she went to a drawer and found a spoon.
"This will be your weapon, since your head is too small to fit into a helmet." Hannah crashed the "helmet" on her head, making a vibrating sound on her head. She stood there in pain, but stood higher in bravery.
After a moments pause, and a salute, Hannah took Molly outside to find out what was going on.
It was dark and grim. Nothing with a slight ray of hope lived. Hannah had walked several steps away from the door of her once beloved home, and collapsed to the ground. Sobs choked her throat, tears streaming from her eyes. Her mother had left her promise in the forgotten city.
The fire demons had been standing, (more like floating) watching Hannah suffer. One stepped forward, causing the remains of a standing building to collapse.
"Who's there?" Hannah looked up, tears and dirt smudged her face. The three fire demons had looked into the eyes of the lonely child, wanting her more and more as they looked deeper and deeper. One of them had eventually become so obsessive, they took her by the face, and dragged her off, burning themselves into her. Molly was left in the remains of the building that had recently collapsed, where later, Danelle would find her. Hannah screamed, but nothing had come out of her lungs. Everytime she opened her mouth, the demons would kill something inside her, causing her to want to scream more.
Once they had reached the Palace of Deatherma, the Angel of Hell awaited the fire demons arrival impatiently. "My fateful servants. I hope you've brought a body to my liking, otherwise, you will pay a heavy price," The Angel said.
The demon who had lugged Hannah to the castle, dropped her on the floor, showing her face. Hannah's face had become completely burned off, except for her left blue eye, which still sparkled with youth. The Angel flinched, and stared into the eyes of the demons.
"You all are pathetic! You call this a body! It's disgusting! A princess like me should have the best!"
The Angel held her arm forward, facing the middle demon. Though there was no expression upon their faces, you could tell they were terrified. The Angel clenched her hand into a fist, tighter and tighter. The demons shook uncontrollably, and began to shrink. The Angel's hand bled. Her fingers had become numb until she let go. The demons were nowhere to be found. Hannah lay on the floor... breathing heavily.
A/N: How do ya like it so far? It took me awhile to figure the plot, but it's good, I think. Something to clear up: Hannah can breathe because she held her breath until the fire demon threw her upon the floor. She passed out as soon as that happened. If you have any other questions, just ask!