Teen Ink

Awakening

Roaring laughter awakened me. I was lying in a beautifully decorated white room in a bed with a red comforter. Everything was white and red. I was wearing a red nightgown with white lace. My hair was pulled back in a loose braid down my back. Hell, this is what hell looks like? I thought.
I sat up in the bed and pushed the blanket back. I stepped onto the plush red carpet and slipped on the satin red robe hanging on the foot post of the bed. The room had a huge dresser pushed against one wall and a bookshelf on the other. There were two doors, one by the dresser, and one on the wall across from the bed.
I decided to check the door beside the dresser, it was a closet. So I walked toward the other one, very cautiously. I didn’t know what was waiting behind the door. I rested my hand on the knob and turned it. Did I really have to pull the door open? I guess I did.
Through the opened door, there was a table, a long square table, and around that table were Jezebeth, Asmodeus, Levithian, and a few others. They didn’t look like how they used to, they were real demons, and not the kind you read about in romance stories, the real mean demons. Twisted and all the human characteristics were gone.
The demons around the table stopped chattering to look at me “About time you woke up!” Jezebeth growled. I could tell it was Jezebeth because of how long her hair was, the shape of her face, and her curves. But other than that, she looked exactly like the others, charred like they were hot coals, boney, and ugly.
“Well, how long was I… asleep?” I asked cautiously, I guess I was a bit nervous, I mean, they can’t kill me if I’m already dead. I was still a little shaky, knowing they were demons, they could do anything they wanted.
“Exactly one human year,” Asmodeus said, pointing to the chair beside him, which was across from a demon I didn’t know. “Please, sit, Elise. We were just discussing what to do with you. You aren’t a demon, you have to learn to be a demon. Now, demons need to be-“
“Tricky, liars, smart, and beautiful.” Jezebeth cut in. She raised her fork and slammed it down into her food, it looked like maybe chicken, or turkey, but burnt blacker than her skin. She cut off a small piece of it and brought it into her mouth. As soon as it touched to tongue, she spat it on the floor. “Taste like ashes! I need to get human flesh. Every time I try to eat food, it taste like-“
“Jezebeth, you know what it means to be a demon! You can’t eat human food! Quit ordering it! The other things you said were terribly wrong!” Asmodeus shouted at her. “Elise!” I jumped.
“What?”
“Come sit!” I rushed to his side and sat at the table with plate of meat across from me. It wasn’t what Jezebeth was trying to eat; it actually looked good and wasn’t burnt. “Demons are going to war in seven hundred human years. Oh yes, and you need to learn the years of the dead. Leviathan will make sure that is in your lessons.” He motioned to Leviathan, who was all the way at the end of the table, keeping his eyes down. He wasn’t as scraggly as the others, maybe it’s because he’s younger, but he looked more human than anybody here.
“She needs to learn of the angels, too.” The demon man across from me said.
“What of them, Tzar? She should know that they’re enemies.” Said another demon, a female, who was beside Jezebeth.
“Well, does she know that we go to war, Axro?” Tzar yelled back
“Yes! Asmodeus just told her!” Axro screamed.
“Shut up!” Jezebeth stood; her chair fell back, and slammed her hand down on the table. She turned and stormed to a door that appeared by the table. She slammed it behind her.
“Angel.” Axro shot at Tzar.
“Asmodeus!” Tzar whined, “She called me an angel!”
I looked over at Asmodeus, he had his head in his hands, whispering something.
“Asmo-“ Tzar started.
“Shut up! Both of you, leave!” Asmodeus shouted. Tzar and Axro both jumped out of their seats and rushed to the door.
I picked up my fork and started to poke the meat on my plate.
“I’m terribly sorry, Elise, those two are always gibber-“ he stopped abruptly.
“Why don’t demons ever finish a sentence?” I asked and looked up at him. He was looking at my plate of meat.
“Just eat, Elise, you’ll need your strength.”
“Don’t eat, Elise, you won’t need any strength for today’s training.” Levithian said from across the table.
“Levithian,” Asmodeus said slowly, as if warning him. “She can eat if she wants to. She wants to eat. Don’t you, Elise?” He smiled the most gruesome smile I’ve ever seen. A shiver went through my spine.
“Actually, I’m not that hungry.” I set my fork down. “Could I talk to Levithian now? I want to know all about training.”
“As you wish.” Asmodeus clapped his hands and the plates started to hover above the table. I stayed put. This was an amazing sight! I could bet money you’ve never, in you’re entire life, seen what I had witnessed.
“Well, are you coming?” I looked away from the plates that were hovering over to another, now appearing, door. Leviathan motioned for me to follow him to the other door, the one Jezebeth and the others left through.
Outside the building was horrible. Never ending fire was burning through tall buildings, small shacks, and tents, screaming people, and laughing demons. The fire had no effect on anything, though. Everything was already burnt.
“Levithan,” I said in a shaky voice, “what are those demons doing to those people?” I pointed straight ahead of us, about forty yards. Three demon women were whipping a group of teenagers with flaming whips.
“They are punishing them. You see, some demons are just punishers. They punish the Unforgived. Others, fight in the war.”
“Levithan, what did Asmodeus want me to eat?”
“Flesh”
“What kind of flesh?”
“The Unforgived flesh”
I turned away from him and retched.