Fire Alarm (Open)

To be fair, Grace had never promised to refrain from burning another motel. She had simply promised not to burn any motels where she and Christal were currently working. The Fair View Inn, and it's eight floors of outdated, flammable construction, were fair game.

A pair of freckle-faced twins were hanging around the billiard's room, pretending to know how to play the game. As far as Grace could tell, this was the only public room that did not have any security cameras. While half of the cameras in this place were probably inactive from being so old, it was better to be safe than sorry.

"Hey Lady," one of the twins said, coming up to her. "Do you have any quarters?"

Grace's icy blue eyes glared at the boy in contempt. "No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"We need more quarters to get all the balls back, so we can play again."

"So?"

"Do you have any quarters?"

Grace felt a spark of anger within her heart. "No, I don't, and if I did, I wouldn't give them to a little brat like you." The freckle-faced twins both cried, calling Grace a variety of unsavory names before running out of the room. Grace sighed. "Real smooth." It didn't matter. Now she had the room to herself.

The room was filled with wires going under the carpet, in direct violation of fire code. Nobody would be surprised to see a fire originate from this room. Grace pulled out a small container filled with a flammable adhesive and spread it around her target rug. Pulling out a lighter, she set the fire. Right now the fire was weak and small, like a child, like her child, Grace thought. But soon, her child would grow up to be a big, building consuming inferno. It would make Grace proud.

It wasn't like Grace wanted to hurt anyone, so she pulled the fire alarm before calmly walking out of the room. The extra minute or so could save a life. It felt like her good deed for the day.

As the alarms blared, people swarmed the hallways, trying to get out in a hurry. Grace stayed calm and was able to avoid too much contact with the panicking filth. It felt good to exert this much control over them, to make them feel fear.

Outside, she watched the customers continue to flock out like confused animals. Many of them had taken the time to stuff most of their possessions into a suitcase before evacuating. Their greed amazed her.

One little freckle-faced twin came running out, but not a second. Grace felt cold, and that didn't happen very often. If that kid died, it would be her fault. She had killed before, but it had been someone that had deserved it. The kid was a brat, but all kids were brats, and they didn't deserve to die for that.

Grace ran back into the burning building. "Why am I doing this?" she asked herself out loud. She wasn't a fireman. If anything, she was the opposite. If the kid was too stupid to evacuate when the fire alarm went off, then surely it wasn't Grace's fault if he died, right?

But Grace felt an overwhelming amount of guilt, and it drove her to do the insane.

The ceiling collapsed in front of her, putting a sudden cloud of dust and smoke in the air. Grace coughed, noticing through her teary eyes that every direction was closed off with fire. She bit her lip. She had been trying to help, but had ended up just adding to the problem. Now she needed to be rescued.

Bjorn had been in the motel as well for a much different reason though. He was actually spying on a man who was supposed to be in posession of a prototype mind control device. Pix had told him that Hive had the plans first and the man had hidden them so he needed to find out where they were. Bjorn took this mission very seriously. The creature prowled through vents sliding along on its side using its talons to force itself through.

He'd been caught though, not by the man, by a beam that held just a bit too tight, now his body was wedged. Then it happened. Bjorn screamed in agony as the alarm slammed through his skull. He was stuck writhing in agony until finally to his relief the wires burned in two. Then the scent hit him. Smoke.

Panic set in and Bjorn thrashed wildly. His talons punched through the vent this way and that before finally there was a loud crash. His section of roof had caved in, the creature righted itself quickly rising to it's nearly three feet on powerfully tendoned legs. It's torso was still hidden in the vent but that was quickly burst apart by the beast inside.

Grace if she was a religious person, would swear that hell had opened and a demon had stepped through. Bjorn's body was covered in spines and talons. His four arms each sporting a three foot blade at the end sharpened to a wicked edge. Then there were the teeth, easily a hundred piercing spikes jutting up from it's black body. The creature could have been made of oil it's whole body head to toe was black as pitch. And that's when it's eyes fell on Grace.

What little lip covered the fangs pulled away as the creature hissed a moment. "Dangerous, fire is so bad. Where is the exit human?!" The monster was panicked by the fire something primal in it had been triggered. If she was a quick study she'd be able to tell this creature was built for speed and jumping. Maybe the devil himself was looking out for the little arsonist.

Rescuers were on their way to the Fair View Inn as soon as the fire alarm was pulled.  The men and women at the nearest fire station geared up as was the normal routine, and soon dispatched towards the burning residence with sirens ablaze.  The noise caught the attention of a passerby, a young looking man with skin as black as night and unnaturally blue hair.  The fire truck ran right by him, and he watched it as it went by.  He may not have given it a second thought had he not seen the smoke about a block away.  He paused, then figured "Well why the heck not?" and ran to see how things were going.  

Upon arriving at the scene, Kardus stopped and took a good look at the situation.  Most people had made it to safety, thanks to the warning of the early fire alarm.  However the poor condition of the building had allowed the fire to spread quite quickly.  Further examination (and the perks of X-ray vission) revealed two people still trapped inside, along with...a...something.  One person, seeming to be a young woman, and the 'something' seemed to be caught in a section surrounded by burning debris.  The other, a child, was past them cornered in a closet.  Kid probably had thought it was safe there.  Probably didn't anymore.  

It didn't take much thinking for him to decide what to do next.  Ignoring the arguments of the firefighers and attempts to stop him, Kardus darted inside.  He didn't always rush into things but this was pretty straightforward; and though he wasn't exactly fireproof, he would have no trouble dealing with the smoke, which was actually the more dangerous of the two.  

The human-like, black-skinned being made it's way toward the human-like and the black-skinned being, lifting and tossing aside the debris that had previously blocked the woman's path to the exit.  Gloves would have been nice but as long as he did it quickly he would only be left with minor burns.  Didn't even feel it, really. As soon as that was done, as if to answer the creature's question, Kardus said with a simple point.  "The exit's that way; and I suggest you get going quickly."

The building was collapsing around her, and Grace was in full panic. She didn't want to burn to death, and certainly hadn't planned on getting stuck in the inn while starting this fire. If she managed to get out of this alive, she would never commit arson again.

Well...maybe she would just exercise more control, like not running into a burning building. Who cared if the freckle faced kid lived or died? Certainly not Grace. Not anymore, at least. Helping other people only placed you in danger. It was a lesson she would not soon forget.

Suddenly, something emerged from the smokey debris. What was that thing, an alien? A demon? Was this some sort of punishment for her starting the fire? Was this monster going to kill her?

The demon's words surprised her, though. It said that fire was dangerous, and asked her where the exit was. Was the demon on her side, trying to guide her to safety? Grace grinned. She was already in a burning building, breathing in clouds smoke, so she couldn't be too shocked. If anything, she took this monster's appearance as some sort of signs. She needed to get out of here, to find the exit, because there were other fires to start.

A pile of flaming wood was quickly and systematically tossed aside by a brave rescuer. The newcomer didn't seem to be a fire fighter, but at least he wasn't covered in spikes and multiple arms. Kardus seemed to be a meta-human of sorts, judging by how he tossed support beams around. After clearing the path, Kardus pointed towards the exit and told them to get out of harm's way.

He didn't have to tell Grace twice. Grace stumbled towards the door. She was light-headed now, and would have had difficulty finding the door without Kardus' help. Come to think of it, she never had answered the little demon's question, had she? Oops. Thank goodness for this guy, he'd saved her life. Maybe she should thank him.

"There's a kid here, somewhere." Well, it wasn't a perfect way to express gratitude, but it was good enough. She had given him some information. He was playing hero, right? She had given him someone else to rescue. She was helpful.

As for actually saving the kid, Grace was done with that. She ran towards the distant doorway as fast as her legs could carry her, bouncing off of walls and trying to go in a straight line. Looking to her little demon friend, Grace waved him on. "Let's get out of here, together."

Bjorn had been fidgeting since he saw the flames cut off from a way out. Kardus pushed aside debris and indicated an exit. That was all the creature needed. He leapt forward a good 15 feet and took off for the exit his feet literally tearing the carpet up as he ran. Bjorn came to a corner and due to his speed couldn't turn quick enough. His side slammed into the wall putting a sizable dent in it. He glanced at Grace and then headed out smashing through the doors not realizing he could open them.

Out on the sidewalk now people screamed as he emerged. Firefighters panicked grabbing at axes but the beast ran at a truck and leapt up onto the cab and then to a fire escape across the street. The monster climbed the outside to the roof and waited there shivering in fear. Bjorn was safe now and if someone came after him... well adrenaline is a hell of a drug.

The alien seemed quite grateful for Kardus' and directions, taking immediate advantage of the opportunity it was given to leave the building. It seemed like an alien anyway. It wasn't a demon; it didn't have the right kind of energy signature, AND it seemed quite afraid of fire, seeing as how desperately fast it was running. Kardus also sincerely doubted that a human made this thing, so it was most likely an alien.

Moving his observations elsewhere, Kardus waved to Grace as he began to walk by. "Yes yes..I see him; don't worry I'll get him out as well." Kardus made his way past and/or through the rubble, making his way to the closet that held the boy still inside. Opening the door and getting to his knees, he looked inside to see the boy crouched on the floor, coughing due to the smoke filling the room. "Time to go, kid; you're not safe here anymore." With a little persuasion, Kardus got the kid into his arms and started making off with him towards the exit. He had cleared a path so it was a straight run to the front door. They were out only minutes after the others.

Okay, the blue hair guy was going to save the kid. Perfect. Now there was no chance that would get on the remnants of her conscience. Bjorn beat her out, and Grace managed to stumble out the door before falling on her face. It wasn't a graceful exit, but she was just glad to be alive.

Catching some oxygen, Grace looked up to see Bjorn on top of a nearby building. Maybe it was the smoke, but Grace thought the creature looked afraid and alone.

The crowd was looking at Bjorn, too. They were talking about the creature, calling him a monster and accusing him of starting the fire. Grace was not about to confess, but she didn't like that Bjorn was being blamed. More importantly, if an angry mob formed, or if the heroes ended up chasing down the "pyromaniac demon," then it was only a matter of time before Bjorn told them he wasn't responsible. It wasn't like he was a monster. Bjorn could talk, after all. He was intelligent, and if he was framed for the fire, then he would probably start looking for the person who was truly responsible.

"No," Grace said, getting to her feet. "He didn't start the fire. He...he saved me." It was a lie. Kardus had been the one to save both of them, but that was an unnecessary detail. Plus, it wasn't like Bjorn hadn't wanted to help. The crowd wouldn't think a 'hero' started the fire, just like they wouldn't assume that about a damsel in distress. Grace would make Bjorn the hero, so that they could both be safe.

But mostly so she could be safe.

The crowd seemed slow to buy it, and Grace couldn't blame them. That thing looked like evil incarnate. Arguments started between members of the crowd, and the fire fighters had to calm a few people down.

By this time, Kardus was on his way out. Grace pointed at the blue-haired hero. "Look, they made it!" The crowd was partially distracted, and soon celebrated the emergence of a hero rescuing a child. Cameras flashed, and the crowd cheered.

Grace tried to sneak out of the crowd. She didn't want to be around when the questions started getting asked. She didn't want to have to talk to Kardus, as nice as he had been for saving her life, because he might start asking questions. Instead, Grace walked up to the building that Bjorn waited atop. She, actually, had a question for him.

"Hey," she said. "Can I talk to you? It's important." Would Bjorn trust her? She could only hope so.