Chapter 1 Fallen city

It was a freezing cold afternoon, as the sun started to finally rise past the towering buildings in the distance. Shining a light on a small but nice home the soft humming of music could be heard inside the home.

A lady with short hazel brown hair and blue eyes was looking at her phone smiling as she looked at the time, her husband James and daughter Crystal were out shopping and they should be back any time. She set her phone down to finish making herself a cup of tea, she sat down to finish a novel she was reading on her phone.

Slowly, a car pulled into the homes driveway, a large man with ginger hair and green eyes sat in the front smiling while looking in the mirror at his ecstatic daughter bouncing up an down in her seat, a large gift bag next to her.

The little girl with puffy brown hair and green eyes was excited to see her mothers reaction to her gift, she and her father picked out the perfect necklace for her mother, but now they had to sneak it inside without being caught. The little girl quickly dashed out of the cars backseat as soon as the car stopped, laughing as her father brought out the large bag from the car.

Her father chuckled softly as he looked at his excited daughter.

The girl turned around laughing as she spoke,

"Daddy come on, I want to show Mom what me you got her."

Her father smiles as he pulls out his keys, speaking quietly, "Shhh, Crystal we want to surprise her, remember.". Crystal nodded tip-toeing towards the door

Crystal giggles softly as she and her father snuck inside, she could hear her mother humming from the kitchen. As Crystal silently crept her way into the kitchen she could see her mother drinking tea while reading a story on her phone.

"Boo!" Crystal yelled as she hugged her mom, Crystals mother screamed out before she saw Crystal laughing behind her, "Sweetie when did you get back?! You scared me!" Crystal laughed as she spoke, "That's confidential momma," putting up finger guns before continuing, "Come on momma I have something I want you to see.".

Crystals mother smiles as she puts Crystal down, following her into the living room. "Surprise!" Crystal and her father yell as crystals father holds out a Bouquet of flowers to crystals mother. "Oh honey." Crystal mother says as Crystals father hugs her.

Crystals father breaks the hug and motions to Crystal, "Crystal sweetie can you show your mom the gift you got her. I know you been dying to." Crystal nodded excitedly as she quickly grabbed a box from the bag, presenting upwards to her mother.

Her mother slowly opens the box, revealing a pendent necklace with all three of their names engraved on the front, James, Crystal, and Tera.

Tera lifted her daughter Crystal an hugged her and James smiling as she spoke, "thank you so much!" James smiled looking away, "I knew you'd love it. Crystal picked the pendent I just got it engraved.".

They broke the hug Tera looked at her daughter Crystal, she was looking out the window distracted by something, her giddy happy mood replaced with a look of confusion.

Crystals mother followed Crystals gaze confused as she spoke, "Sweetie? What are you looking at?" James's gaze follows behind her. A look of shock comes onto their faces as they see the distant city on fire, Crystals mother quickly covers Crystals eyes in horror.

Crystal felt heavy as she watched the burning city, like something was pressing down on her, the last thing Crystal can remember of that day was her parents frantically packing bags and carrying her into the car as a towering flaming figure slowly emerged from the crumbling city's center.

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Crystals parents struggled to keep the composure as they saw bloody body's in the mouths of monstrous beasts, and heard the screams of people around them. Their daughter was passed out in the backseat of the car, headphones in their ears so she didn't have to hear the horrors outside the car.

James struggled to keep the car on the road, as the occasional monstrous thing jumped out at the car trying to get to them. Tera was on her phone panicking as she listened to the emergence broadcast playing, while trying to find the closest emergence shelter.

"James turn right, the shelter is right over there!"

Tera shouts, the adrenaline of it all still pumping through her even though she thought they were finally safe.

James quickly turned the car to the right, the emergence bunker was in sight, but the road was completely blocked with wreckages of cars and nearby building they would have to move by foot.

It was Eerily silent, But they could see someone at the entrance to the bunker signaling to them, motioning to them to be silent. Tera and James quietly exited the car, Tera gently picked Crystal up trying not to wake her.

As they slowly walked between the wrecked cars they could hear something nearby, it's claws grinding against the metal of wreaked cars to their left.

When they made it to the halfway point, James and Tera heard a loud banging from behind them, they looked back at where the sound was coming from. They froze in shock at the thing smashing the car they were just in.

It large human like figure was hunched over, smashing its clawed hands into the windshield, large horns extended out from where its eyes were supposed to be, it's head was like a swivel moving side to side until it quickly looked at James and Tera.

He instinctively stepped back in fear sweating as the creature slowly turned to them, *crunch* , James looked down in terror at the broken glass he had just stepped on.

The creature roared out charging towards him like a bull, crystals father quickly shouted, "Tera Run!" As he started banging on nearby cars trying to divert its attention away from his wife and child.

Tera quickly started to run towards the bunker, weaving in between the wreckage, but she could see a lion like beast quickly dashing towards her from a nearby destroyed building.

The guard stationed at the quickly raised his gun, watching the blind bull like monster start to corner the husband, and the massive lion beast chasing the wife and daughter he aimed towards the lion beast, Opening fire.

As the gunshots rang out, the blind bull monster finally landed a hit on James, the wild strike slammed him into a nearby crumbling wall. It was like time froze for him, with death right in front of him, he could only hope his wife and daughter survive.

Tera held Crystal tightly trying to protect her from any stray bullets. She kept running, tears in her eyes as she watched her husband get pulped by the blind bull like monster, she knew if she stopped now death was the only thing waiting.

She was only steps away from the bunker when she felt the lion monsters claws slash into her back, it felt cold as she almost fell down, but with the last of her strength she threw her daughter towards the bunkers entrance, she just hoped that Crystal would survive this.

The guard watched in shame and horror as the lion yanked the wife back quickly slamming its claws down and killing her. The blind bull monsters was already charging towards the bunker but it's attention was drawn by this, running trough the rubble like it was nothing to reach where the sound came from. The guard looked to the door an the daughter, and quickly forwards grabbing the daughter before slamming the button to the bunkers door.

He watching the blind bull monster slam into the lion beast, mutilating it's side before the bunker door fully closed.

He listened closely to the monsters fighting outside as he fled deeper into the bunker, a still unconscious child in his arms.

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*sorry this first chapter is full of angst.

*every good hero needs a traumatic backstory