Thousands of years ago, long before Dante became inspired the Divine Comedy, another living human travelled down to Hell.  Unlike Dante, this man was but a child, only eight years into his life.  The young child was elfen in appearance, with bright red hair and ears that tapered into points.  Scarlet freckles speckled his face, and devilish mischief shone from his startling emerald eyes.  The rumor in the village was that his father had been the Devil himself.  One day, while walking in the woods, the boy was drawn to a peculiar circle of trees.  Directly in the middle of the circle was a decrepit stump.  The young lad stepped cautiously into the circle and towards the stump.  As he neared it, a sense of dread filled his soul, but the child had never been afraid, thanks to his mother’s whispers about his true patronage.  Curiously, the boy laid his hand on the moribund stump, pushing his hand through the moldy, soft wood.  All of a sudden something grabbed his wrist, yanking the child down to whatever horrors lay below.  Continue reading →