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People think that demons are weak. That they broke. That they had to have done SOMETHING to get down there. That their moral compass was skewed and weak even before they went to hell. That they're all serial killers and drug dealers, the people you wouldn't want to meet in a dark alleyway.
Those people are wrong. Demons are the strongest of anyone. There was something that they couldn't live with, or live without, something that they had to make right. They were enterprising. They made deals; illegal, immoral, or demonic. They knew what they wanted from life and nothing could stop them.
Then, their time was up. They died, as people tend to do. Instead of going to heaven, like the ones who just took what life gave them, no questions asked, they went to hell.
These people, now on the racks, know what they want from death, too; not this. 'This' being the burning and the chains and the screaming and the blood and the pain.
Some people hold out longer than others, but they all give in eventually. Here, too, they are too strong to accept this treatment, this lack of control, the pain. As in life, they take the deal.
As they work on the others around them, they begin to accept it. They're strong. Why shouldn't they welcome the power that comes with the tools of the trade?
Their forms take on their power, their strength, and they can't be killed by ordinary weapons. They need a vessel, of course, but that's because the world can't take them in their true form for long.
Not everyone has the same strength. The ones who were strong for themselves, those are the lesser demons. Those who were strong for others, however, rise through the ranks; that is true strength, rather than self preservation, and it promotes innovation, creativity. The very strongest, the top tier, those know the power of a deal. Of offering what they have, to make others stronger. For a price, of course. Nothing comes free in this world or any other, and strength can't just be dealt for or bought. People have to find it in themselves, and that can't happen without a loss or two. This isn't all out of the goodness of the demons' hearts, oh no. Part of being strong is getting something from everything, and when they're in charge of the deal, they can raise the price. They can get what they want.
In the end, isn't that what being a demon is all about? Getting what they want, no matter what the price. Being strong enough to take what the world won't willingly give them. Being strong enough to not accept the status quo, to change the world to their will. If they're too strong to stay in hell like good little boys and girls, well, it's just in their nature.