[center][h1][color=0054a6][b]B L U E D E V I L[/b][/color][/h1][hr][/center] [center][h1][quote][i]Where are you, Danny?[/i][/quote][/h1][/center] [indent][sub][color=black][i]Several hours earlier...[/i][/color][/sub][/indent] [sup][color=black]1:17 p.m. PST | July 22[/color][sup][color=black]nd[/color][/sup] [color=black]| Los Angeles, California[/color][/sup] He hadn't expected for there to be as many onlookers when he got to the scene, and Daniel certainly hadn't considered the presence of the news helicopter circling above. As such, making his way in unnoticed proved to be a challenge. Dan stuck to the outskirts, trying to make his way closer inconspicuously, searching for a place to transform without spectators on the ground nor the eye in the sky spotting him. He knew time was fleeting in a situation such as this, and minutes had already been wasted. Minutes that could be costing the lives of a family. Frustration oozed off of him and it did not go overlooked. "[b]Why do you stand here idly, Daniel Cassidy[/b]?" Astaroth's voice broke through, "[b]You wish to take action. Do so.[/b]" Stopping in the backyard of another house a few doors down from the blaze, crouched down behind an upper deck, Daniel glanced up at the chopper. Its loop had brought it around the flaming structure, the rising smoke almost entirely blocking it from his view. The crowd off to the right had their attention focused elsewhere, paying no mind to the figure hidden a few dozen feet away. Dan took a deep breath, steeling himself. "Fuck it." Standing, he initiated the transformation. The warm sensation flowing over him followed by the dull-white flash. His scrawny arms and narrow chest replaced by rippling muscle barely contained in the black t-shirt. Dan's perspective changed slightly as his height increased by more than two feet. Powerful legs tensed like coiled springs ready to release. Astaroth was right, Daniel knew, he came here to help. To do good. And sitting back from a distance out of concern for being spotted and recognized while two children were trapped inside their home as it burned and collapsed around them... He pushed off, bolting forward into a sprint that carried him into the next yard. He could spot the crowd off ahead and to the right, their faces twisted in horror. The woman on her knees, screaming in anguish, begging and pleading for God to take mercy. The irony of that barely registering in Daniel's mind before he found himself closing in on the flaming house. The front door just ahead, the fire wrapping around the edges as it tried to escape. Lowering his right shoulder, he didn't even slow down as Dan's hybrid body connected with the frame and barreled straight through. A wave of blistering heat washed over Daniel and flames began to lick at his body. It took a moment for him to register that he felt no pain from the fire but it made sense to Dan given the Hellish origins of this form. Pushing that and other thoughts from his mind, Daniel began searching the bottom floor for the kids. Everywhere he turned, the flames consumed furniture and climbed the walls, the photos along the entryway peeled and melted from the heat. The smoke, already having filled much of the house, wrapped around Daniel, who found that it did not obscure his vision more than a very light, hazy distortion. "[b]Above, Daniel Cassidy.[/b]" Said Astaroth. "[b]I can detect lifeforce there.[/b]" Daniel was already pushing forward up the flight of stairs before Astaroth had finished. He didn't even question how the demon could know that, nor was this a time for him to bother asking. Dan realized that there was probably much about this form he didn't understand, capabilities he had yet to discover, and he trusted that Astaroth had a better comprehension of it all. At the top of the stairs, the smog was thickest. He could feel it filling his lungs but the smoke was as easy to breathe in as fresh air would be. A sudden coughing towards the right signaled that others were not quite as fortunate. Hurriedly moving towards the sound, Daniel pushed open another door at the end of the hall. Pink walls marred with black, as well as stuffed, scorching animals marked this as one of the kid's rooms. On the end of the room opposite the door huddled two young girls, one older holding the smaller as they desperately tried to avoid the flames circling around the edges and closing in. As he moved closer he heard a crack from behind as a support beam somewhere began to fail, threatening collapse. The older of the girls, probably just a couple years older than Mary, Daniel noticed, glanced up at the sharp sound and caught sight of the hulking figure approaching. Her scream ended abruptly as her chest heaved in a painful, hacking fit. "It's okay," Daniel said, kneeling before them and doing his best to look as unimposing as possible. He knew this visage wouldn't do him any favors. "I'm here to help." Through the coughing, the eldest clutched her sister closer, shielding her. Daniel could recognize the fear, pain, and panic. He called out once more, trying to soften the deep, rumbling voice this form possessed. "I promise I'm not going to hurt you. Please," Daniel thought back to the fire safety classes he had been given as a child. "Get a little lower to the ground, it'll be easier to breathe." The little one nodded, pulling herself from her sister's arms and flattening herself down further. The other followed, still not sure what to make of the fearsome creature before her, but realizing she had little choice given the current circumstance. "Is anyone else here? Just the two of you?" "Just us." Said the senior of the two, "we tried to get out but the door was too hot." Her voice was raspy, clearly having inhaled some smoke, as she coughed again. "I thought maybe the window, but it's too high, I got scared..." She faltered, this time shaking from tears as she once again held her sister. Daniel looked up towards the window, then back towards the open door where a wall of flames had gathered. There wasn't much time before this room would be entirely consumed as well. "Right," he told them, "the window was a good idea. I'm going to need you two to cover your heads for a moment." Moving quickly, Dan grabbed hold of the closest, largest object in the bedroom. He shifted the bureau onto his shoulder, positioning his right hand at the back and left underneath towards the front. Taking a step towards the window he adjusted the balance of the dresser, ignoring the flames dancing along its edge, and drew it back across his shoulder further before using all of his might to push forward with his right hand. Like a shotput, it launched forward, immediately crashing through the glass. Much of the surrounding frame and wall went with the bureau as it all tumbled to the ground below. Stepping to the edge of the makeshift exit, Daniel glanced down at the broken shards of furniture, drywall, and the deadly splinters of grass sprinkled around. He would need to get clear of it all or risk the girls getting cut and slashed up. A moving figure on the street ahead caught Dan's attention. A young man in a hoodie sprinting closer while aiming a phone towards the house. The crowd all had their eyes on him as well, their panicked and confused shouts ringing out. Daniel had no doubt the helicopter was also catching this all on footage but he didn't bother confirming as he walked back towards the huddled girls. There was no way he could do this subtly, that had literally gone out the window, and it couldn't be his main concern now. Gently, he scooped both girls into each arm, cradling them against his shoulders. For their part, they barely startled at the action, instead squeezing their eyes shut and holding on tightly. "Don't let go." With that, Dan dashed forward, collecting as much of his strength in his legs as possible as he took the leap. His momentum carried him in an arc, and for a moment Daniel felt as if gravity had no control over him. The yard below rapidly vanished behind him as he sailed far over the debris. Bending his knees and bracing himself, Dan landed on the hard pavement with surprising grace, the force of the impact negligible. Both girls, immediately sensing the smog-free air, gasped. Their bodies once more shaking with coughing as their lungs fought to force in the fresh air and expel the bad. A scream from the crowd caught their attention and, still in Daniel's arms, the two tried to call back out towards their mother, but the hacking coughs were too much. As Daniel slowly lowered them to the ground, a strained, rasping whisper met his ear. "Thank... you..." The older girl managed to get out between ragged breaths. He felt something akin to pride warm his chest and opened his mouth to say something in return, but just then he finally took notice of the encroaching sirens. He could see how the crowd had grown fearful of his sudden presence and appearance, and Daniel had no desire to test how the authorities might feel about him. Not today, at least. Spinning on his heel, he immediately sprinted in the opposite direction, paying mind to the helicopter above, and thinking quickly on how to best lose them so he could change back. As he ran, jumping fences and dashing from one street to the next, searching for possible hiding holes and aiming for places that offered sky coverage from the news crew, Daniel felt the realization of what he had just done kick in. The lives he had saved. Two young girls, who so deeply reminded him of Mary, now alive and back with their mother due to his actions. And, Daniel knew now, he could do so much more. But it was Mary that needed him now. It had only been maybe twenty minutes since he made his decision to help and Dan knew if he could lose any potential tail fast enough he could still make it home with plenty of time to spare for their promised day together. Just a little longer, he thought, as he urged himself to move faster. [center][b]* * *[/b][/center] [sup][color=black]1:40 p.m. PST | July 22[/color][sup][color=black]nd[/color][/sup] [color=black]| Los Angeles, California[/color][/sup] Daniel had been running and ducking behind obscured, shadowed structures for fifteen minutes before he decided the coast was likely clear. There had been no sign of the news helicopter after the first few minutes and he had made sure to stick to as many unseen areas as possible to avoid catching any other attention. Pausing, he took stock of his surroundings. The Santa Monica Pier with its large Ferris wheel could be seen over the immediate rooftops, and with the beach just ahead of him past the condo he currently crouched behind, Dan figured he must be somewhere in Ocean Park. The realization of how fast he had gone from Brentwood to Santa Monica on foot while evading prying eyes didn't even surprise him anymore. Nor was it a shock to find he wasn't even breathing heavily despite the distance and marathon sprinting. By this point, it was par for the course. He stretched his muscles as he took a moment to focus. This was the longest he had been in this form, he knew. Previously, Astaroth had limited their training sessions to ten-minute segments as the hybrid broken up by an hour of practice in his regular body. By now, it was over twice that. It had largely been luck that Daniel had avoided attention dashing around looking like this, and he knew that he would need to shift back in order to return to his car in Brentwood without risking being seen. With his wallet in his car and no way to afford a cab, that meant a long, slow trek as a human. Sighing, Dan resigned himself to the slow walk back and, after glancing around to ensure he was hidden, initiated the transformation once more. His clothes, burned and smelling of smoke, shrunk back down to his human size, the fabric repairing itself instantaneously. A handy benefit he had discovered a week prior. Whatever Hell magic enabled him to take on the demonic form also seemed to affect what he was wearing. It was something Daniel had been quite thankful for given how often his shirts would get ruined. Running a hand through his mess of dark hair, he turned around and began to make his way back. Okay, he thought, so they wouldn't have time for both games and a movie today, but Daniel didn't think Mary would mind much. The movie was going to be a surprise, anyway. Maybe tomorrow he'd take off and spend with her, too, to make up for— Astaroth's voice roared in Daniel's head. "[b]Get down, now![/b]" It took a moment for this to register in Dan's mind, but through some otherworldly urging his body was already reacting. Throwing himself down onto the gravel beneath, he felt something pass by overhead, then a large crack as a portion of a nearby chainlink fence was shattered into pieces. Chunks of the metal struck Daniel in his arms and side, and he could immediately feel a warmth begin seeping down his back. "Astaroth, what was..." His voice trailed off as Dan flipped over, terror immediately seizing hold as he saw what had caused the destruction. Monstrous in size with chitinous green scales it loomed over him from the roof of the condominium. Grey, bone-like spikes protruded at random intervals across its shoulders, arms, and along the jawline. That same bone-like substance forming two curled, almost bladed horns that jutted out from either side of its head. A long, barbed tail covered in the same scales swished back and forth behind its giant form. Razor-tipped fingers digging into the side of the building as it peered down at Daniel. Its red eyes almost burning with intense ferocity. A dagger-filled maw spread wide in a twisted, hungry grin. It slowly began to crawl down the side of the building, its eyes never leaving the teenager still sprawled out on the ground. Those burning eyes seeming to glow brighter... "[b]Get up, Daniel Cassidy,[/b]" Astaroth urged, "[b][i]run[/i]![/b]"