Cassidy, with her long blonde hair tied back in a ponytail, sat in a chair next to the couch, waiting for her best friend to wake up from her haze. Cassidy didn't like the sight of the box. Not one bit. All she wanted to do was leave and take Hannah with her to some place far, far away from here. Hannah stirred on the couch. "Cassidy?" she whispered. "Is that you?" She opened her eyes to a crack. "I'm right here, Han."
Cassidy said in a reassuring voice. "The box... the glass... Adam..." Hannah moaned, turning over on her side. "Shhhhh. Shhhh. Go back to sleep. You want some water?" Hannah let out a moan that might have been a 'yes'.
Suddenly, Cassidy heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Rita and Adam descended, brandishing their flashlights. "The lights are off up there. We're going out to the garage to check the fuse box." Rita explained. "How's Hannah doing?" Adam asked. "Fine, fine. I was just going to get her a glass of water." Cassidy responded. "Well... hang in there." Rita said, smiling. Then her and Adam turned around the hallway toward the basement.
Patting Hannah's hand one more time, Cassidy got off the chair and headed through the archway into the kitchen.
The kitchen was to the right of the arch. It was made of light-colored brown wood, with green granite countertops. There was a range near the edge and an oven and a fridge near the arch. To the left was the dining room table, and ahead, through another archway, was the family room, with a huge flat screen TV and a cushy couch. Cassidy flicked on the switch and, already knowing her way around the kitchen, opened a cabinet near the oven and pulled out a tall glass. That's when she heard the ragged breathing coming from the dark family room.
She almost dropped the glass in shock. Setting it down quickly on the counter, she pressed herself against the countertop and listened for the breathing. It continued. "Eric? Kay? Is... is That you?" she asked. The breathing just continued. Gulping, she edged her way along the countertop toward the dark archway. She reached the arch. All she had to do was reach her hand in, flick on the switch, and hoped nothing grabbed her arm in it's gnarled fingers. She reached toward the switch, flicked it, and jumped in front of the arch.
She screamed. If she had been holding the glass, she would have dropped it in shock.
Marty was lying in the middle of the floor, his eyes all red. He had expanded in size incredibly, taking up a large portion of the carpet. His fur had turned jet black and his muzzle had pushed out considerably. His collar had been ripped to shreds from his thickened neck. Red ram horns had grown out of the sides of his head. His tail was thin and pointed, and was on fire. So were his considerably larger paws. He opened his out and breathed weakly, sending out a jet of red fire.
"MARTY!" Cassidy yelled, and threw herself into the room. She collapsed on her knees and held his head in the hands. "What happened to you?" She shrieked. Marty looked at her with eyes that showed great suffering. Suddenly, they began to glaze over. She watched in shock as the light left his eyes, leaving them just two deep pools of scarlet. Cassidy got to her feet and put her hands out. She started backing away. "Marty?" she whispered. The thing that was no longer Marty got to it's feet and growled a thick, animal sound, yellow saliva dripping from it's fangs. Suddenly, the hell hound started to speak. "That's Lord of the Flies to you, my sweet." It croaked in a raspy voice. Then it laughed. A loud, mocking noise, like all the demons in hell joined together. "RUN!" The hell hound shrieked, laughing again.
Screaming, Cassidy threw herself out of the family room and rushed through the kitchen. "HANNAH! ADAM! JESSE! RITA! SOMETHING HAPPENED TOO.." she stopped dead in her tracks through the living room archway. The couch was empty. Hannah wasn't there. She heard another clanging noise.
She turned to the pantry door that stood nearby. The door itself was bulging outward, cracking, as if something on the other side was trying to break out.