At first, Lily felt more confused than curious.
She and her mom had been walking down the crowded boardwalk when she saw it. Purple curtains hung over all sides of the exterior, littered with dreamcatchers and "evil eyes". It looked like one of those cheesy, psychic-reading and fortune teller pop-up shacks. But the wooden sign strung up above the hut didn't say "Fortune Teller". It said "Fortune
Maker".
What does that mean?
Lily wondered, the smell of sea salt and sugary funnel cake permeating the air.
In smaller font below the two words, it read: "We guarantee you'll find love!"
"You wanna go inside?" her mom asked, mistaking her daughter's trepidation for desire.
Always a shy girl, Lily blushed in the summer heat, a sandy breeze blowing through her brunette hair. "Of course not, Mom! Those places creep me out. They're blasphemous! They always have all those tarot cards and pagan stuff. It feels so...evil."
Rachel sighed, brushing her raven black hair away from her blue eyes.
I love that my daughter's so innocent,
she thought.
No one would ever mistake her for a party girl or a slut
--
But c'mon now. This is too much!
"Sweetie, it's not a hut to hell," Rachel chuckled. "It's just for fun. It's no more evil than a fortune cookie. What d'ya say?" she asked, motioning to the shack, situated awkwardly between Emilio's Desserts and the Sun City Surf Shop
.
Before Lily could respond, the curtains parted. A blonde man, no more than 30 years old, emerged from the hut. He already had a smile plastered on his face. "Hello there..." the man said, ogling the two women. "My name's Darius. Can I interest you in a session?"
They're perfect,
he thought to himself.
Having set up shop at a year-round beach town, Darius had already seen his fair share of beautiful women walking up and down the shore. But these two, undoubtedly mother and daughter--the first, a tan, physically fit woman who couldn't possibly be older than 39, and the second, a shorter, innocent beauty with an angelic face--were exactly what he was looking for.
"No thank you," Lily responded, scurrying away.
"For you, the first reading's free!" Darius shouted.
At that, Rachel perked up. She didn't believe in all that bumbo-jumbo fortune-teller crap, but she thought it might be good for Lily. For one, it would show her daughter that there wasn't anything foreboding about a little shack by the beach; and secondly, it might boost her self-confidence.
Whenever a boardwalk psychic gave a reading, they always said the same old shit, things like "Love is right around the corner," or "I see a dark and handsome man in your future!" Since Lily hadn't dated a boy in--well--ever, perhaps this would give her a little push to put herself out there. No more going to proms with her first cousin, Kevin.
"We'll take it!" Rachel declared.
After several strained minutes of arguing, Rachel finally dragged Lily into the hut. It seemed like a standard, ramshackle little pop-up: a wooden table, two folding chairs, and a crystal ball inside--albeit, a strange black crystal ball with a gaping hole at the top.
Why is there a hole in it?
Rachel wondered. And as she looked closer at the odd crystal, she noticed something else.
Is that black stuff...moving?...
"Only one person at a time, Miss," Darius cut in, momentarily staring at her hand.
No wedding ring,
he noted. Perhaps a wealthy widow? An unwed single mother? In either case, it didn't matter. "I'm sorry," he continued, "We need privacy to get a proper reading." He ushered Rachel back outside and closed the curtains behind her.
Although her daughter only sat a few feet away, she couldn't hear anything on the other side, not over the roar of the ocean waves.
Inside, Lily gulped nervously. She sat on the folding chair, her white t-shirt covering her two-piece bathing suit, her knees pressed together, her hands resting in her lap as she stared at the crystal ball.
At least there's no tarot cards and pagan idols
, she thought, slightly relieved.
"What's your name?" the blonde man asked.
She gulped again before answering. "Lily."
"Really?" he asked, widening his grin. "Is that short for Lilith?"
Lily furrowed her brows and shook her head. "No. It's Lillian."
The man's shoulders slumped down, deflated. "Oh well, that's too bad. Now tell me....how old are you, Lily?"
"Eighteen," the young girl answered.
Perfect.
No point in wasting any more time. Darius placed both hands on the sides of the crystal, and he uttered the words of exultation:
"
Asmodian!...I offer you this vessel."
Lily barely had time to react. The blackness from within the crystal rose from the hole in its center, escaping the ball in a
massive
puff of smoke. And the smoke kept rising, the Darkness swirling and growing as it gushed from its former home--and lurched toward its new host.
Lily opened her mouth to scream, but no sounds came out. The moment her lips parted, the demonic smoke blew directly into her face and down the young girl's throat.
Powerless to stop it, Lily only inhaled the darkness, sucking it in, allowing it to enter her and fill her whole body. All her muscles tightened and contracted. She was locked in place, but her eyes still rolled into the back of her head, her lids fluttering, nothing but the whites exposed. Lily had never had sex before, never had an orgasm; but if she had, it would have felt something like this.