“What was that, babe?”He almost jumped out of his skin when he heard Emmy’s voice. Lost in his thoughts, Matt did not hear her approach. Her face told him of her feelings about the state of the first floor. Just like him, she did not pursue it. She asked him directly what he found out.The look on Emmy’s face as Matt related what he found, as he scrubbed through the video, changed almost as fast as the events onscreen. She held on to her husband’s arm while she watched. Matt played the video in standard speed and narrated what he had discovered or think he found for each section. Even the discomfort of his muscles as she tightened her grip did not sway him from telling Emmy the details. She asked to see the last part of the video again before she spoke.“What do you, I mean, just tell me frankly, what do you remember during the last part?”“I… I remember getting thrown around. Pinned to the wall. I think when we got thrown to the bed I was already out.”“Nothing else?”“Nothing else.

“And if you would, can you tell me about the first nightmare or vision. You said you were awake, correct?”“I was definitely awake.” Emmy answered. “I might have spaced out but I am positive I was not asleep.”“Alright, tell me about it then, including what you were doing or thinking before that.” Cain asked.“Well, I was…”Cain asked Emmy to be thorough. He preferred if people were thorough. Those who told the truth did not need to lengthen their stories, those who lied felt the need to lengthen their accounts. He would catch them. He liked it when people were thorough.This time, he had a different reason. Cain kept seeing things in the periphery of his vision, to the left. It always came from the left and seemed to move towards the right, to the left side of the house. In the time he spent with Emmy so far, he noticed four already. Four shadowy things.He gave the appearance that he was listening. He blinked, he nodded, Cain even asked follow-up questions and wrote notes on his not

Parking just a little bit farther than the last time, he made his way carefully down the side of the pathway. This time, he did not carelessly send his anchors forward but had them spread thickly just a few yards from him, in all directions. Though it was dark, his anchors guided the way, like a second sight.He agonized on what to do, should he encounter the dark being again. Save for the old man, he has never encountered anyone more powerful than him until the creature appeared. During his drive, he decided the best way to go about it was to observe. It took him a while to admit it but even his pride was not enough to cover for the obvious difference in ability, in power. Should the creature show itself and targeted him again his plan was simple - he would make a run for it if it was possible.It was a curious thing, he noted as we made his way towards the house. He had never used his anchors like that before. They were all, in all sense of the word, feelers. He sent them out to lat

Upon entering, Cain noticed that Matt was eager to show him the videos. He was leaning towards Jon’s laptop when Cain came in. Jon went outside briefly to get the camera and set it up such that it now pointed towards the back door. It was a simple repositioning, no new wires needed to be run but it still took a few minutes to get the angle right. When he was done, Jon played the videos captured by the CCTV’s.As his interview progressed, his doubts disappeared. He no longer called it a presence or spirit. It was a demon. What it wanted out of this family, he was still unsure. It wasn’t uncommon for seemingly happy individuals to be pestered by demons. It was rare but it happens. It was why he told Matt when he asked. Everyone save the little girl seemed to have gone through the stages of Infestation and Oppression already. A possession was a high likelihood, given the circumstances.He kept quiet and contained his reactions to temper Matt’s expectations. While he recognized the value

The pain in his head throbbed and seemed to only get stronger. Jon stopped thinking about getting medicine for it, fearing he might overdose or have an allergic reaction due to the may tablets he had already taken so far. As soon the discussion about the video was over, Jon followed Emmy to the kitchen, asking if he could get a sampling of the late snacks she had prepared.He went back to his makeshift station with a plate half-filled with potato fries and ranch dip. Jon could still function. His only job was to monitor whatever inputs came to his laptop. The laptop did most of the work, he only needed to watch and listen. As usual, on investigations with Cain, his laptop was strained to the last bit.When he was halfway through his plate, the laptop played sounds the recorders upstairs were picking up. It let out a garbled mechanical voice that meant nothing and sounded like pure nonsense. Jon pursed his lips.The software recorded the audio feed and played any sound that was above t