'Demon?'
Damian's mind quickly raced. He had heard Omni mention something about his task in this world was to defeat all the demons of the Netherworld.
"Everyone stand back!"
A man shouted from behind. He wore a light blue robe that revealed his white inner clothing, a crescent moon insignia on his back, his long black hair cascading down his shoulders as he was flanked by two more men dressed like him, each at his side.
"If you don't want to die, stay behind," the man said.
He quickly moved forward and, with a series of hand signs, materialized a blue translucent cube in his palm. He quickly threw the cube toward the burning house, and the cube grew and trapped the house within its confines.
'Who are they?' Damian thought, his eyes fixed on him.
"Seize them," the man in blue robes began. "The members of the cult."
Immediately, the two other men who flanked him quickly held the old woman and her companions.
"You damned exorcists, enemies of hell, you can't stop what's coming! The end is near, prepare yourselves everyone," the old woman screamed as she and her companions were dragged away and tied up with a mana-infused rope.
The man turned and looked at them before quickly turning back to face the burning house that had been trapped inside the translucent blue cube.
"A relative?" the man asked both Cassie and Damian.
Cassie, still in utter shock, didn't respond. She was still on her knees, just staring at the burning house. Damian nodded in approval and said, "Our father."
"That's sad to hear," the man said. "We came as quickly as we could. Our suspicions that the cult's movement is somewhat tied to the location of new demons led us here."
"As exorcists," he continued, "it's our job to quickly respond to any demon encounter."
'Exorcists?' Damian thought. 'These guys extinguish demons? It seems like that's what they do.'
"So what should we do?" Damian asked.
"No need to do anything," the man responded. "Just stand back and let the Seven Moon Exorcism Core do their job."
Cassie, her body still shaking from the sobs, lifted her head. The words of the exorcist and the old woman's pronouncements had pierced through her shock.
She quickly looked at the translucent blue cube, a crystalline prison holding the burning house and the monstrous figure of her father. A wave of despair washed over her as she screamed.
"No!" she screamed, her voice raw with emotion.
She scrambled to her feet, ignoring the searing pain in her knees from where she had fallen. She stumbled forward, her eyes locked on the cube, her movements frantic and desperate. Damian tried to grab her, but she slipped from his grasp, her focus completely on the house.
She ran towards the man in the blue robe, her hands outstretched in a plea. "Please! You can't do this!" she cried out. "He's my father! You have to give him a chance! He'll come back to his senses, I know he will!"
She believed, with a fierce, irrational hope, that the man she knew was still in there somewhere.
The exorcist, his face a mask of solemn resolve, turned to her. "I understand your pain, child," he said, his voice calm and firm. "But what you see is no longer your father. It is a demon. A malignant entity that has corrupted his form and consumed his soul."
"No! You're wrong!" Cassie sobbed, her hands now clutching at his robe. "He was just sick! I was trying to help him! It's all my fault! If I had only… if I had only given him the right herbs! He can be saved!"
"This isn't a result of any illness, there is no saving what he has become," the man stated. He looked at her with a hint of pity in his eyes. "The process of transformation is a final. The host is destroyed, and the demon takes its place. I'm sorry but your father is gone."
Cassie collapsed onto her knees again, her hands still clinging to his robe.
"Please," she begged. "Please, just let me talk to him. Just for a moment. I know he'll recognize my voice. He'll remember me. He'll remember his daughter."
The man shook his head slowly. "Once again, that's not your father, but a demon. It only seeks to destroy. The voices it hears, the faces it sees… they are merely tools to inflict more pain. To get closer to more victims." He gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "You must let go. For your own safety."
"I can't!" she said, her body wracked with fresh sobs. "I can't leave him!" She looked up at him, her eyes pleading. "He was so good, so kind! He would never hurt anyone! Please, don't kill him! Please!"
The exorcist's expression hardened. "I have no choice," he said, his voice now final. He motioned to the two other men who were standing by. "Secure her."
The two exorcists moved forward, their movements swift and practiced. They each took one of Cassie's arms and began to lift her. She cried out, thrashing and fighting against their grip.
"Get off me! Let go! You can't do this!" Her tears streamed down her face, and she screamed in defiance and agony. "Father! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"
They held her firmly, pulling her away from the man in the blue robe and away from the glowing cube. She continued to scream and thrash.
"No! I won't go! He's my father! He's my father!"
Damian stood there, watching the scene unfold, he felt a pang of sympathy for Cassie, but also a growing sense of understanding. He may have just learned that his path will probably be tied to these "exorcists" and "demons."
He looked from the screaming girl to the man in the blue robe, and then back to the burning house trapped inside the cube. He had no idea what to do, or where he fit into this chaos.
The exorcists dragged Cassie, still kicking and screaming, farther away from the site. Her pleas and cries slowly began to fade into the distance, leaving only the crackling of the fire within.
The man in the blue robe watched them go, his face etched with grim determination. He turned back to the cube, his hand moving to his side to draw a ceremonial blade. He took a deep breath, preparing to do what had to be done.
"Go back to whatever hell you crawled out of," the man spat, raising his blade.