“GAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!”

Here I stood, atop a moving van, undeterred by the danger and cackling like a madwoman. The forces of wind and motion threatened to toss me away at every passing moment, so that my blood-red skin may be peeled by jagged asphalt.

I only responded by digging my feet in further, and spreading my arms wide open, as if to welcome and embrace the whole entirety of the world, that had only worked to hurt me. I would return that pain one day. Tenfold, a hundred-fold, more. But that would not be today, for tonight was a night of joy and celebration.

My dream was complete, I had achieved it. The proof was in the weight that settled upon my head. For was there anything more comforting, than the subtle weight of my horns?

I was reminded, with every passing moment, that I had become a demon, just like I always wanted. The modifications and the surgeries were difficult and certainly not cheap, but the euphoria of it was indescribable to anyone who had never experienced it.

I pity them.

I took a deep breath of the city air, even the lingering smoke and dust felt soothing upon my lungs. People walked around, and cars drove past, yet it all felt shallow to me. Their lives were dull, boring, and unexciting.

I'm aware that I'm wrong, of course. They are all equally complex beings, with inner worlds just as rich as my own.

And yet, How?

Why are they so content to remain as uninspired as they are?

Why do they all look and feel the same, if they are supposed to be unique?

"Hey! Lucyfer! You okay back there?"

My friend, Harold, called out to me. He was the one currently driving the car, a large gentle bear of a man. At least, most of the time.

I crouched down a little, making sure to keep my balance, lest I fall off and die. "I'm perfectly fine. Great, even."

"Oh," he laughed. "That makes sense. You were just laughing for an entire minute straight. Which is nice, I’m glad you’re happy. I was worried when you stopped."

"What was the joke, and why did it stop being funny?" Someone added from the backseat. It was Tella, another amazing friend. She stuck her head out of the window.

I crouched, and then crawled over to where she should be. I grabbed her face and she shrieked. I laughed, before it was my own turn to scream, when my friend licked my palm and bit down.

“Ew! Gross!”

“Eh, that’s not what you said last night!”

“Fuck you, how about that!?”

“Yes! Gladly!”

“Challenge fucking accepted mate!”

The journey continued, and I relished the freedom that I had. I sat down at some point, as I watched civilization gradually disappear from view.

It grew more quiet, the districts filled with activity transitioned into more humble residences. The quality of housing dropped lower and lower until we arrived at an area that could be called the slums, and beyond even that, the city died and gave way to nature.

We entered the forest, a different kind of noise filling the ambiance. Trees towered up above, with animals both small and large just shyly staying out of sight.

We neared our destination, I could see it now. From sharp electronic lights, to the blazing flames of a massive campfire.

The van came to a stop, and I jumped from the roof, landing heavily with a smal cloud of dust. I could not help it, the side mirror of the van and even its tinted windows were too appealing not to look at.

I admired what I had become. A demoness through and through, complete with the impossibly red skin, and the sharp angular features. Big curving horns struck out of my skull, pointed proudly towards the skies. My eyes were sharp and menacing, shaped and colored like that of a goat’s. I flexed a little, and my toned body rippled beautifully from what was visible under the open front of my leather jacket.

"See something you like, Lucyfer?" Harold asked, as he rounded the van.

"Did you win the grand prize yet, you fucking narcissist?" Tella came from behind me, a can of beer already in hand. How very thoughtful of her.

"Yes." I responded simply to their praise and snatched the alcohol out of Tella's hands. Her vehement protests fell on deaf ears. "I'm amazing."

She eventually pried the bottle away from me, only to find that it was already emptied. Harold scurried over to the back of the van to take out some equipment, meanwhile I wrapped a hand around Tella's shoulder and led the both of us towards the big campfire, and the well-decorated hut in the middle of the woods. There were plenty of people here already, some singing, others dancing, all in various states of partying.

I could not wait to join them.

Harold rejoined us, armed with a strong collection of chains and other machines of steel and leather. They looked fun, and I scurried over to the man to get a closer look at the selection he had on offer. I felt at the weight and texture of them all to judge their quality.

"Oh, I cannot wait to use these." I grinned, explaining what each one did with the cadence and showmanship of someone filming a commercial.

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“Just use them already if you like them so much, you fucking demon!” Tella huffed, eyes definitely glued to the things I was holding.

“Oh, I’m a fucking demon alright,” I laughed, and she rolled her eyes, which only made me cackle harder.

“That was bad and you should feel bad.”

“But I don’t.”

I played around with the chains some more, trying really hard to get them untangled after I tossed them around one too many times.

It didn’t work. I couldn’t do it. Crap.

"They should hire you for promotion," Harold joked. He took the chains from me to fix the problem I created, but also found it difficult to undo the destruction that I wrought. Heh. I win.

"You're absolutely right." I agreed with his idea, then sent a message to my manager and agent.

"Holy shit you actually asked them." Tella laughed.

I shrugged. "I've worked with them before."

"Showoff." Harold scoffed.

"Showoff." Tella nodded.

"Showoff." I did not deny.

Many pairs of eyes had locked onto us by now, but I knew most of the attention was because of me and how I looked like a literal demon that had crawled out from the depths of hell. I couldn’t help but preen at the attention, no matter how arrogant it may have been. I didn’t become a demon just to be fucking timid about it.

"An offering for the devil," a man who sort-of looked like a bartender walked up to me. I knew the guy, had big dreams of owning his own bar, but actually worked a 9-5. In his outstretched hands was a single glass filled only with the cheapest swill. "Goat piss."

I grabbed the offering and downed the foul alcohol in one go. It burned at my throat and through my stomach as I gave all the people watching a benevolent smile. My unnaturally long and sharp canines gleamed in the light of the night.

"That was a wonderful offering of goat piss,” I praised. “You have outdone yourself."

"I thank thee, Lucyfer." He bowed and walked away, keeping the same pose, until he ran into a chair and fell.

~~~

A weary yet satisfied sigh escaped my lips. I stared at the blazing campfire, and enjoyed the comforting heat against my eyes. My chest rose and fell as I panted languidly, the cold night air sending a prickling chill across my naked skin.

Sweat dripped from my body in lazy streams. It traced glistening lines across my blood-red skin. I almost envied my friends who got to see such a view in full, when I could not. But being the hot demon was at least an infinity beyond getting to merely see one.

Another deep breath flowed through my nose, and it was as if I could feel the energies flow through my demonic flesh. I was absolutely the star of the show tonight, and it was so much fun. Why did it feel so different to fuck as a demon than as a human?

And yet, for all my boasts, it still ended. I enjoyed it for as long as I could, but I still eventually grew tired. I yet remained a mortal, no matter how vicious and absolutely gorgeous I looked.

I could not walk through hellfire, I did not possess unbreakable strength, I could die to a single bullet. No matter how much I loved my horns, my eyes, or my own skin, they did not give me the power that I sought. The single path to true freedom which I coveted with all of my heart, was beyond the reach of these weak mortal hands.

I wanted more than to feel comfortable in my own body. I’m a fucking demon, and this world is too small for my dreams!

As if the world took offense to my thoughts, a screeching sound suddenly drew all eyes toward the dirt road. A car spun across it in a storm of smoke and dust, until it finally stopped and crashed into a tree.

"Holy shit." A curse escaped my mouth as I stood on shaky legs. I squinted my eyes, unable to recognize the dirty white car nor the plate number.

The airbags had gone off on the driver's seat, and I saw movement from within as the car broke down further. My people shouted and came over, worried and willing to help, but I had a very bad feeling about the situation.

I listened to my gut instinct and crouched down, my hands searching the ground for a weapon, any weapon. A slight groan escaped my lips when my fingers brushed across something hot and fierce. I decided that it was good enough, and grabbed the flaming stake from the campfire.

I stood back up and crept closer to the scene of the car crash. The door of the vehicle opened, and out came a bleeding and injured man.

In his hands was a gun.

I saw him point it at my friends. His hands were shaking, and he was delirious, but a deep terror sunk into my soul at the thought of the people that I loved being slaughtered and stripped of their freedom to live.

“AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!”

A primal and guttural roar rumbled out of my throat as I broke into a run, faster than I'd ever managed before. My body was moving before I knew what was going on, and I heard the deafening sound of gunshots mid-stride.

I noted, with detachment, the balls of lead that pierced through my torso. The pain was a slow trickle of emotion that I deftly ignored. I did not slow down for a second, and soon I was upon the bigot who wished to impose his will upon us. I endeavored to impose my will upon him instead.

Squelch.

The sound rattled in my ear, fresh and true. I swatted aside the man's gun, and forced it to shoot uselessly at the sky. At the same time, I used the burning stake in my hand, and plunged it into his eyehole. The mounting terror was visible on his face, but I quickly slammed my body into his.

We both went down in a heap as I felt the life rapidly leaking out of my body. Idly, I wondered how the red of the blood looked against my skin, although I supposed that was information we already found out in the prior revelry, albeit not at these volumes.

Agh, fuck. I just became a demon too. I just finished my long transformation. I had achieved my lifelong dream! Did I not deserve to enjoy it for at least a little bit longer? I have so many more ideas that I wanted to do…

Tears began to stream down my eyes, but not a single one of those thoughts caused me to hesitate. I smashed my hands repeatedly at the wooden spike embedded into the man's skull, burying it further inside. It was still on fire, and those same flames advanced towards the rest of his body, and even towards myself. I was not deterred by it in the slightest, for I was already dead. I only wished to use my last moments letting out all the rage and frustration inside my rotten heart. I wanted to die swinging.

My control slipped past that final ledge. I released the deep well of loathing and resentment that I kept trapped within, hidden and waiting for the proper time. Instead, it was now wasted on this worthless sack of shit, whose death would change nothing. My legacy would be the end of a totally unremarkable man, and both our names will be forgotten.

Fuck. FUCK. FUCK!

I cried. I made my sorrow heard. I grew weaker, and eventually collapsed.

"Thank you…" I heard the quiet murmurs of my friends just before I died.