Chapter 14: The Darkness Beneath Part 6

AN A big thanks to Vamanchu for helping out

Thad stands on the stage, trying to calm agitated miners and their families. While most eyes are turned toward Thad, the bar is still open and drinks are being served.

He addresses the miners, "Please, everyone, let's stay calm."

"Two dead, Thad! And we all know what the hell it is –" A miner interrupted. He was quickly cut off.

Ray frowned slightly, commenting "How rude."

"How would you feel being put in an unsafe working environment, let alone a back breaking one?" Jax retorted.

"No. You don't. And crazy rumors aren't going to help anyone." He paused as more shouts broke out. Seeing the moment, he once more began speaking, "Just hold on! All of you!" While Thad holds court at the far end of the pub, John and Zed slip in through a rear entrance. "You want to fly off the handle and make this into some idiotic spook show, then I got nothing to say to you." Seeing Thad, John lowers his head, covers his face, trying to avoid being spotted.

"That only makes you look more obvious. Who're you trying to avoid?" Zed states.

"Had a bit of a Barney with the roustabout on stage the other day."

"That happen to you a lot?"

"Hard to believe."

"If I got a dollar for every time…" Chas chuckled.

Thad begins talking once more, "We're looking into what killed Owen today, same as we're looking into what happened to Lannis out at his place. You want answers?- you gotta trust us. Trust us to get to the bottom of this."

During the above, John and Zed are moving toward the bar. John throws a jaundiced look at Thad that screams, "Bullshit!" John and Zed take seats where Thad can't readily see them. John glances down the bar.

"It doesn't take a genius to disprove that." Martin frowned as the situation onscreen escalated.

"Well… he could have worded that much better but at least they are working on finding out what happened." Ray said.

Constantine snorted but didn't say anything. Ray will find out eventually.

"Curious. The skeptical drunk's nowhere to be seen."

"You mean the ex-priest."

"Come again?"

"Ellis. He used to be a priest. Until his son died in the mines…" she goes quiet before realizing something, "Which is a good cause for payback."

"So Ellis is behind all this?" Kendra looked at Zed and Constantine for an answer.

"Spoilers." Zed replied before the two focused their attention on the TV.

John internally kicked himself at not seeing the full picture as he watched his younger self onscreen.

"When I gave you the slip yesterday, I found evidence of one of them slurry things being raised in an abandoned church outside town."

"The church that Ellis turned his back on. He could be the one conjuring the evil for revenge."

"Come on, I'm taking you for a spin." John takes Zed's arm and leads her down the bar, to an old miner sitting in Ellis's stool. John comes up from behind. "'Scuse me, mate, but my lady's havin' a bit of a spell." Playing along, Zed acts faint. The Old Miner, a gentleman, courteously smiles to Zed and steps off his stool. John sits her down. She turns to him.

Sara stared at that, pursing her lips, before finally stating, "That… that doesn't sound right…"

John thought for a second before he realized what she meant. He groaned and hoped that his time onscreen would end quickly.

"I get it... Ellis drinks in this spot. This is his stool. But I can't control my visions."

As John speaks, he gently places her hands on the counter in front of her, "You did today. Just remember what I told you. Now close your eyes. Lock out the world."

"Yeah, and last time you got to experience being burned alive." Mick stated.

Zed closes her eyes. Her face slowly transforms to complete serenity. John studies her. After a few seconds, Zed jumps in her seat, startled, like someone goosed her. "Oh! It's cold…"

"What's that, luv?"

"My feet."

"Slowly, without losing the vision, open your eyes. Look at your feet."

Zed opens her eyes and looks down to see her feet dangling in a STREAM. An actual stream. It flows under the bar. Runs right through the pub. Zed smiles, enchanted. "It's a stream!".

"Stay in the vision. Look for clues.

Zed peers down. In the water, the reflection of a dilapidated camping site - tent, etc. "There's a tent... and... a beat up old chair in front, like a living room chair... I think it's a campground..."

Back at the pub, the bartender returns, "You two decide yet?"

"Yes."

"Last I checked there was a no alcohol ban placed on you."

"Don't remind me."

"Charlie, is there a camping area on a river hereabouts?"

"Rooster Creek's the closest." The two leave the bar and head towards the river.

Zed and John walk through a riverside campground. John holds a homemade besom broom of twigs in his hand, pausing to pick up another twig and work it into the bristles. Zed points ahead. John looks to see a permanent camping site, dilapidated tent, and a weathered old living room lounge chair. John and Zed draw nearer to find Ellis, his hunched and frail back to us, stoking a campfire. They speak quietly.

"What's a broom gonna do against the murderous demonic creature thing this guy is summoning?" Jax asked.

"You could always sweep it away." Sara joked.

Silence.

"How can such a weak man be capable of such destruction?"

"People aren't all good and they aren't all wicked. We move in and out of darkness our whole lives." John stops behind him and hands her the Besom Broom. "Here, bristles up to ward off evil."

"What will you use?"

"My wits. And a trusty verse to sever a mortal's connection to dark forces. I can twist it to sever limbs, too, but I'll try not to get carried away." John is about to begin when Ellis turns to see them.

"That hasn't exactly…" Anne Marie began to point out.

"What are you doing here?" Ellis called out.

"Are you Pastor Ellis McGee of the Good Shepherd Church of St. Asaph?"

"Not anymore."

Zed, caught up in the drama, starts to let her Besom lower. John raises it for her, then turns to Ellis and lifts his powerful voice, "Et separabunt traductionem alicuius, et omnes Satanae"

Suddenly, almost by rote, Ellis joins in, "in votis pacta, spiritualia, et animam vinculo, et opera Satanae."

Snart snorted, "Cute. You can start a bible group together."

"You know it." Constantine states.

Speaking it after all these years hits Ellis in his gut. "Or course I know it. The Breastplate of St. Patrick. What the hell's going on here?"

"I'm ending your spiritual warfare. As a man of the cloth, your skills to channel the divine can also be used to unleash evil."

"You think I'm behind the killing in this town?"

"Well, yes." Ray stated, now not so sure.

Snart, Sara, and Rip collectively face palmed.

"Your desecrated church has all the power-of-evil you'd need."

"You need faith to raise evil. In case you haven't noticed here, I'm all tapped out."

Zed sees something in Ellis that John doesn't. "John. Maybe we should listen to him." she interrupts.

Ellis scoffs, "Fools. Get your heads out of the hogwash. You can't even see the facts right in front of you."

"Like what?" Zed asks.

"The men murdered above ground, they're not miners. They're the bosses in charge. Someone's finally making 'em pay. Afraid you're looking for a garden variety killer."

Ray paled, stating, "Well…"

John comprehends the truth of what Ellis is suggesting, "You may be half right. How many bosses are left?"

"Just one. The owner of the company. Thad Bowman."

John turns to Zed, "You carry art supplies in your car? Spray paint's what we need."

Carter, bewildered by such a comment, asked, "How the hell does spray paint stop demons?"

Constantine bit back his original reply, instead deciding to sarcastically state, "You spray it down their throat before throwing it in. The gits blow up like Bonfire Night."

"Really?" Ray asked.

The exorcist sighed, "Sure."

The scene changes to show Thad stepping out of the office trailer. He looks back before calling out, "You coming, boy?". Moments later, Nathan (the young man from the church), hurries out.

"Yeah, Dad, I'm right here."

Both men carry their miner hard-hats as they stride toward the mine entrance.

"Peterson said he's cleared the east shaft. But I also know the little yellow-belly was scared to go down there. I want to see for myself before the men start showing up again at first light."

"You really think we should reopen the mine so soon? You know, after what happened today?"

Thad hides his real reasons, instead saying "Men want to work, boy. Gotta respect that."

The scene changes to the mine. Deep shadows. Several dark pockets along the walls, where anything could be hiding. Rivulets of loose coal TRICKLE down, lingering evidence of today's earlier cave-in. Thad and Nathan's hard-hat lights crisscross, creating even more unsettling moving shadows.

"Looks okay. Let's check the downshaft."

Nathan looks nervously into the darker depths ahead before swallowing his trepidation and following his father as a shadow moves behind them.

A displaced rock clatters to the ground, echoing throughout the mine. Thad and Nathan both whip around, their flashlights illuminating the inky black coalface. Nothing there.

"Seriously? Jump scares? Is this supposed to be looking into the future or a TV show?" Snart wondered.

"What was that?" Nathan asked fearfully.

"Don't you start, boy." Thad warned him. Thad turns and starts ahead as Nathan, after one last look behind them, reluctantly follows.

As Thad and Nathan continue, the ground behind them begins to rumble and rocks begin to displace upwards, shooting out in every direction as a disturbing subterranean force drives menacingly toward them. Thad and Nathan turn back to see liquid slurry forcing its way to the surface from deep underground before taking the terrifying form of a Coblynau. Neither Thad or Nathan have any time to react before the Coblynau violently backhands Nathan, sending him flying through the air and thudding into the hard rock wall. He slumps to the ground. The Coblynau's other hand darts out at lightning fast speed, seizing Thad by the throat. We hear a series of sickening crunches as the Coblynau squeezes harder, and as the light begins to dim in Thad's eyes the lights go out.

End Chapter

Quote:

Me: *reading off of a review question list* "how many terms can a president serve?"

AM: *is reading answer off board* "2? 2 tennis?"

Me: "Tennis? Where'd you get tennis from?"

AM: "T-e-n- oh my god, TERMS! 2 TERMS!"

*twenty seconds later*

Me: *repeats question*

AM: "The president can serve 8 terms."