"Chief! What do we do?!" Ben shouted over the roar of the fire, his voice laced with pure terror. "He didn't even put on the coat or the respirator!
'He just...walked in! What was he thinking?!"
The chief, still reeling from Luca's unexpected entrance into the inferno, shook his head, a mixture of disbelief and a strange sense of foreboding washing over him.
"That gear...it's probably for the Sarah, not for him." He said, his voice barely a whisper, as if trying to convince himself.
"But that's crazy!" Another firefighter exclaimed, his voice trembling. "He's not going to even reach the girl before he's burned to a crisp! He'll be lucky to make it past the lobby! He's going to die in there!"
Lily, hearing their words, felt a wave of dizziness wash over her. The thought of losing not only her daughter but also the man who had become her closest confidante, her savior, was almost too much to bear.
She swayed, her legs threatening to buckle beneath her. A nearby firefighter, seeing her distress, quickly stepped forward and gently supported her.
The chief, hearing the firefighter's dire assessment, knew it was true. Realistically, there was no chance. No human could survive those flames unprotected.
And yet...something held him back from fully accepting the grim reality.
"You're probably right." he admitted, his voice heavy with sadness. "Logically, it's impossible. But...for some reason...that look in his eyes...that confidence...it...it told me everything was going to be alright."
"...That a miracle was going to happen."
The men stared at him, their faces etched with disbelief and worry. They wanted to argue, to tell him he was being foolish, that he was letting his emotions override his common sense.
But no one dared to voice their concerns.
The situation was too tense, the stakes too high. They could only watch, just like their chief, their eyes glued to the entrance of the burning building, hoping against hope that something, anything, would happen.
They watched...and watched...and watched.
The minutes stretched into an eternity, each tick of the clock a hammer blow against their nerves.
The heat radiating from the fire was intense, even from where they stood. The smoke choked the air, making it difficult to breathe.
Finally, even the chief, his hope dwindling with every passing second, gave a rueful sigh. He was about to turn away, to admit defeat, to accept the tragic reality of the situation.
It was foolish, he thought, to have believed in miracles. He had seen too much tragedy, too much loss, to believe in such things.
But just as he was about to turn his head, he saw the expression on Ben's face change.
His eyes widened in horror, his jaw dropped, his face paling. He looked like he had seen a ghost. The chief, his heart pounding in his chest, quickly turned back towards the entrance.
And then he saw it too. What he saw defied logic, defied explanation, defied everything he thought he knew about the world.
Through the blazing inferno, a figure emerged.
It was difficult to discern whether it was man or demon.
Why? Well, while the figure possessed the same dark, intense eyes that had confidently walked into the fire, the rest of its form was shockingly, horribly disfigured.
Half of its face was a charred ruin, the skin melted away to reveal bone and blackened tissue.
Its arms were charred black, the flesh seemingly fused to the bone. Its legs appeared to be melting away, the lower portions distorted and grotesque.
The figure looked like something out of a nightmare, a creature conjured from the darkest depths of imagination. No one, under normal circumstances, would have recognized this horrifying being as human.
And yet...there was something undeniably familiar about the figure. Something that pierced through the gruesome exterior, something that sent a chill down the spines of those watching.
It was those eyes...Those dark, unforgettable eyes.
They held the same unnerving stillness, the same unnerving confidence that the person who had possessed before he entered the flames.
And as the figure limped closer, its grotesque form illuminated by the flickering firelight, a horrifying realization dawned on everyone present. This...this monster walking out of the flames...was Luca.
At the same time, the charred figure also opened its mouth, and a collective gasp swept through the crowd.
Given the creature's ghastly appearance, everyone braced themselves for some pronouncement of dark magic, some guttural incantation from the depths of hell.
But instead, a voice, surprisingly high-pitched and almost...shy, emerged.
"Um...please don't stare so much~" The figure said, the voice laced with an almost girlish bashfulness. "I'll blush if you all look at me like that~" Then, the charred head turned towards the chief, and the voice added, "Especially you, Chief. Your gaze is...way too intense~"
Several members of the fire crew stumbled backward in shock, some even tripping over their own feet. Others simply stared, their minds struggling to reconcile the horrifying visage with the almost childlike timidity of the voice.
They wondered if they were dreaming, if the stress of the situation had finally pushed them over the edge.
Luca, seemingly oblivious to the sheer terror he inspired, shook his head slightly. "You guys really have to stop staring." He said, his voice regaining some of its usual calmness. "We have other matters to attend to. A little girl to take care of, remember?"
He then lifted his arms, revealing what he was holding. Everyone was so fixated on Luca's grotesque appearance that they hadn't even noticed what he was carrying. It was only when he spoke that they saw her.
Sarah was cradled in his arms, wrapped in the firefighter's coat, the respirator securely fitted over her mouth and nose. She looked peaceful, almost asleep, completely unharmed.
Lily was the first to react at this scene.
The sight of her daughter, safe and sound, snapped her out of her daze. She rushed towards Luca, her earlier fear and revulsion completely forgotten.
She didn't care anymore about the horrifying figure before her; all she cared about was Sarah. She embraced her daughter tightly, sobbing with relief, kissing her forehead, her hair, her cheeks, checking every inch of her, making sure she was truly alright.
This display of pure, unconditional love seemed to jolt everyone else back to reality.
The firefighters, shaking off their shock, quickly sprang into action. They brought over a stretcher, gently placed Sarah on it, and carried her towards the waiting ambulance. Lily, still overwhelmed with emotion, tried to follow, but Luca gently stopped her.
"She's fine, Lily." He said, his voice surprisingly gentle considering his appearance. "You don't need to worry. She was a smart girl. She knew exactly what to do. Hiding in the cooling machine was a good idea."
Lily let out a shaky breath, the tension leaving her body as she heard Luca's reassuring words. Her daughter was safe. That was all that mattered.
But then, she looked up at Luca, really looked at him, and her relief turned to horror. She saw the extent of his injuries, the charred skin, the melted flesh. Worry flooded her eyes.
"Luca, w-what about you?" She asked, her voice trembling. "You need to go to the hospital too! Look at you!" She reached out, her hand shaking as she touched his arm, desperate to save the man who had once again saved her life.
The chief, still struggling to reconcile the sight before him with any semblance of reality, walked over. He looked at Luca, at the horrific burns that covered his body, and a wave of disbelief washed over him. He couldn't understand how this...creature...was even alive, let alone conscious and talking.
"She's right." He said, his voice hoarse. "You need treatment. More than her. You...You need immediate medical attention." He couldn't bring himself to say what he was thinking, what everyone was thinking: that any normal person would have died from such injuries.
But Luca only smiled, a rather grotesque sight considering most of his cheeks had been burned away, revealing the teeth beneath. "Oh, please." He said, waving a dismissive hand. "This? This is nothing. Just a flesh wound. Tis is but a scratch...It'll heal in no time."
The firefighters stared at him in disbelief. A flesh wound? He looked like he had been roasted alive!
But then, as if to prove his point, Luca held up his charred hand.
They watched, their eyes widening in shock, as the flesh began to move and writhe.
The blackened, charred skin slowly turned red, healthy tissue pushing its way through the damaged layers. It was like watching his body regenerate in real time.
Lily gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. The chief's eyes widened in astonishment. "Who...No, what are you?" He stammered, unable to comprehend what he was witnessing.
He half expected Luca to declare himself some kind of demon, some creature of the underworld.
But Luca simply smiled again, the gesture less horrifying now that his skin was starting to heal.
"Oh, I'm not anything special." He said casually. "Just someone who follows a good diet. Lots of fruits and vegetables, so I just heal faster then others."
The chief didn't believe him, of course. No amount of healthy eating could explain what he was seeing. He was intensely curious, but he knew this wasn't the time or place for an interrogation.
Instead, he clapped Luca on the uninjured shoulder, a gesture of camaraderie.
"Whatever you are." He said, his voice filled with a newfound respect. "I don't care. The bravery you showed today...that's enough to make you one of us. Even if you are a demon."
Just then, one of the firefighters called out urgently.
"Chief! We need you over here!"
The chief gave Luca one last, long look, his mind buzzing with questions and a sense of wonder. He had seen a lot in his years as a firefighter, but nothing like this.
There was a lot more to this world, he realized, than he had ever imagined.
He then turned and walked towards his crew, leaving Lily with the rapidly healing Luca, a silent promise hanging in the air between them.
Lily then looked at Luca, her eyes welling up with tears. She opened her mouth, as if to apologize, to express the overwhelming guilt and gratitude she felt for what he had done, for the horrific injuries he had sustained to save her daughter. But Luca immediately placed a finger to his lips, silencing her.
"Don't." He said softly. "Don't say anything. Just like I helped you before because I selfishly wanted to eat your delicious bread." He continued, a faint smile playing on his lips. "This time as well, I helped because...Well, I couldn't bear to see Sarah get hurt."
"She's such a bright little girl, so full of life. She has so much to live for, especially with a mother like you working so hard for her." His words touched Lily deeply, stirring a fresh wave of emotion within her.
He added. "And I'll be fine. Really. Just give me a little time, and I'll be back to my old self." He gestured towards his face, and Lily noticed, with a mixture of relief and horror, that the skin was indeed starting to regenerate, though the process was clearly still ongoing.
But then, a new wave of worry washed over her.
"Even if you can heal..." She whispered, her voice choked with tears. "The pain...The pain you must have felt...it wouldn't just go away, would it?"
Luca chuckled, a sound that was slightly distorted by his still-healing face.
"Oh, it hurt like a bitch, alright." He admitted, his usual casual demeanor momentarily slipping. "Being burned alive...yeah, not a pleasant experience. Feels like every nerve in my body was screaming." He looked at Lily, his dark eyes filled with a strange mixture of pain and amusement.
"But..." He added, his voice regaining its usual lightness. "It's not the first time this has happened. And...well, let's just say I'm used to it. So, don't worry about me. I'll be fine."