The Devil Doll

***The Devil Doll*** is a short film by J.P. Leck and is the twenty-third installment (twenty-fifth, chronologically) in his Endless Elsewhere multimedia meta-narrative. It is the sixth Endless Elsewhere short film. It was announced on Leck's social media on September 23, 2018. It premiered at the Shocktober in Irvington event on October 12, 2018.

## Synopsis

When an online video detailing her possession and dealings with the occult starts to go viral, Carolyn Pelfrey seeks the aid of private investigator Keith Sorrels, who suggests she comes to work for him and even gives her a trial case.

## Plot Summary

Circle City resident and YouTube sensation Adam Bomb has released his latest video: an expose detailing the past exploits of Carolyn Pelfrey. Starting with her college days as an occult enthusiast to her possession in the Roman Civic Theater and including both the assault she wrought on Joe's Diner and her subsequent exorcism, Adam is thorough, surmising that, while she's gone underground, Carolyn may still be walking the streets of Circle City.

We see Carolyn sitting outside on a bench, presumably on a lunch break from work, watching the video. She is visibly shaken. She pulls a business card for the Unclosing Eye Detective Agency from her bag, which reads "We finally decided on a name! - K." After speaking to Frederick, the secretary, she meets at the agency with Keith Sorrels, who she wants to enlist to find Adam Bomb and strong-arm him into taking down the video.

Instead, Keith is more interested in the fact that Carolyn has quit her coffee shop job as a fellow employee is the one who passed on the video to her. Rather than hunt down her foil, Keith offers Carolyn work with the agency, citing Carolyn's experience with "the weird crap" that he investigates, his knowledge of her past already, and her own desire to help set right the evils she perpetrated while under demonic thrall. When she proves uncertain, the investigator offers Carolyn the opportunity to take a trial run in pursuit of a devil doll that is currently haunting a nearby antique shop.

Armed with a cross box and some holy fireplace tongs, Pelfrey heads to the curio shop. After searching around, she encounters the doll, who recognizes some spiritual scar left over from her possession. "I know you," he says. "You're one of ours." Carolyn assures him that she is no longer the woman he recognizes and quickly dispatches him into the cross box.

Upon returning to the agency, Keith introduces Carolyn to Dr. Frederick Hardesty and offers her the job, which she accepts.

Three months later, Sorrels is seen wandering through a mausoleum in the Circle City Cemetery, tracking a vampire. While he does so, Carolyn is in the van, reading the *Codex.* Something about a picture of the Orb strikes her as familiar (a painting of it had been on display in the Curiosity Shop). She asks Hardesty about it but, before he can answer, she is called in by Keith to join the fight against the vampire. As such, she misses Hardesty's explanation that the Orb is the key to another world.

### Post-Credits

Ryan Tolliver, missing since being abducted by Gãrgolas at the end of "The Invoked," is seen wandering, battered and bearded, through a heavily-forested area. He stumbles near a creek and, upon seeing his reflection, asks, "Who am I?"

## Characters

* **Carolyn Pelfrey** - a formerly demon-possessed cultist who is trying to atone for her past sins and indiscretions.
	+ *Carolyn is portrayed by **Julia Leslie.***
* **Keith Sorrels** - a former CCPD detective and current head of the Unclosing Eye Detective Agency.
	+ *Keith Sorrels is portrayed by **Stephen E. Foxworthy.***
* **Dr. Frederick Hardesty** - the brain of a former Nazi scientist now serving as the secretary of the Unclosing Eye Detective Agency.
	+ *Dr. Frederick Hardesty is voiced by **Stephen E. Foxworthy.***
* **Adam Bomb** - a YouTuber from Circle City whose latest viral video causes Carolyn a good deal of distress.
	+ *Adam Bomb is voiced by **Matt Hurt.***
* **Lucas Dawalt** - Carolyn's former acolyte, currently incarcerated as seen in "The Acolytes."
	+ *Lucas Dawalt is portrayed by **Caleb Dunkerson.***
* **Alex Heaney** - Keith's former partner in the CCPD, currently missing in action after the events of "The Invoked."
	+ *Alex Heaney is portrayed by **Samuel Dumas.***
* **Ryan Tolliver** - a former fugitive groundskeeper, now lost and amnesiac after the events of "The Invoked."
	+ *Ryan Tolliver is portrayed by **Tucker.***
* **The Doll** - a demon-possessed ventriloquist dummy that Carolyn is sent to capture.
	+ *The Doll is voiced by **J.P. Leck** in an uncredited performance.*

### Referenced Characters

* **Arvin Reyes** - the priest who performed the exorcism on Carolyn is referenced in Adam Bomb's YouTube video.
* **Emily** - Carolyn's co-worker at the coffee shop who forwarded her Adam Bomb's video.
* **Bailey Burke** - the owner of the Curiosity Shop currently under attack from a devil doll.

## Artifacts

* **The Brain Box** - the vessel for Hardesty's brain, seen on a table in the Unclosing Eye Detective Agency.
* **The Cross Box** - a leather suitcase lined with crosses used for catching small demonic creatures, like devil dolls.
* **The Lantern** - Hardesty's invention for viewing the spiritual realm, currently wrapped in chains on a table at the Unclosing Eye Detective Agency.
* **The Vampire Bat** - a wooden baseball bat sharpened into a stake for killing vampires.

## Locations

* **The Unclosing Eye Detective Agency** - the current home of the agency founded by Sorrels and Hardesty since moving out of Motel 66.
* **Curiosity Shop** - an antique shop on Second Ave. in downtown Circle City owned by Bailey Burke.
* **Circle City Cemetery** - the main cemetery in Circle City, where Sorrels and Pelfrey hunt down a vampire.

## References

*The Devil Doll* contains references to the following Endless Elsewhere stories:

* *The Novelty*
	+ Keith hunts down his vampire in the same mausoleum where Violet hunts her dead-eater.
* *The Lantern*
	+ The titular Lantern is seen as it was at in "The Unclosing Eye," chained up in the possession of Keith Sorrels.
	+ The painting stolen in the post-credits scene is seen in the room where the devil doll is captured in the Curiosity Shop.
* "The Red Mass"
	+ The events of "The Red Mass," specifically the reformation and dissolution of the second iteration of the Boonies cult, are spelled out in Adam Bomb's video.
* *The Roman*
	+ The events of the *The Roman*, specifically Carolyn's possession by a demon and involvement with the Infernaleers motorcycle gang, are spelled out in Adam Bomb's video.
* "The Acolytes"
	+ The events of "The Acolytes," specifically the shootout at Joe's Diner and Ryan's finding of Carolyn in Circle City Cemetery, are spelled out in Adam Bomb's video.
* "The Demoniac"
	+ The events of "The Demoniac," specifically the escape of Pelfrey from the hospital and her subsequent exorcism, are spelled out in Adam Bomb's video.
* "The Supernatural City"
	+ Emily, Carolyn's co-worker at the coffee shop, was previously heard calling into *Circle City Supernatural*, where she shared her experience with the Non-Man.
	+ Bailey Burke, who owns the Curiosity Shop beset with a devil doll, was previously heard on *Circle City Supernatural* revealing her discovery of the abandoned water tower listening station.
* "The Invoked"
	+ The Gargola claw given to Carolyn by Violet is seen hanging from the rear view mirror of Carolyn's van.
* "The Unclosing Eye"
	+ The business card Carolyn holds for the detective agency reads, "We finally decided on a name! - K." This is a reference to several conversations in "The Unclosing Eye" in which many characters - including Carolyn - suggest that Keith needs to come up with a name for his detective agency.

*The Devil Doll* is also referenced in the following Endless Elsewhere stories:

* "The Colonnades"
	+ Carolyn appears as a member of The Unclosing Eye Detective Agency, which she joins in *The Devil Doll*.

## Notes

* Adam Bomb is voiced by Matt Hurt of The Obsessive Viewer Podcast, which hosts the Shocktober in Irvington event each October. J.P. Leck is the only filmmaker to have a film premiere at every single Shocktober in Irvington.