When Father Daffney receives an emergency call about his mother, he is forced to find someone to cover his overnight duties at an old, barely functioning church. The job falls to Benjamin, a young, earnest priest who arrives expecting little more than a quiet night watching over an empty building.
Instead, Daffney informs him that the church sits atop an ancient portal to Hell.
The portal is contained inside a mysterious wooden chest hidden in the basement. Once a year, at exactly 3:47 a.m., the chest must be opened for three seconds to release the supernatural pressure building inside. If it remains closed, the portal will rupture and demons will escape into the world. Daffney has performed the ritual for fifteen years, but tonight Benjamin will have to take his place.
Benjamin is understandably reluctant—until Daffney magically transfers the mark that allows the chest to be opened onto Benjamin’s wrist, making him the only person capable of performing the ritual. Before leaving, Daffney gives him precise instructions: at 3:47, turn the combination 6 left, 6 right, 7 left, open the chest, count three Mississippis, and close it.
Left alone, Benjamin settles in for a long night of waiting.
Shortly before the appointed time, a terrified woman begins pounding on the church doors, begging for help. Benjamin eventually lets her in, only to discover that the emergency is a trap. The woman is Vox, the leader of a small group of Satanists who have come to release the demon they believe will end the world’s suffering. Her accomplices, Trevor and Barry, overpower Benjamin and attempt to use the mark on his wrist to open the chest.
Daffney suddenly returns and intervenes, having discovered that the emergency involving his mother was also part of their plan. He realizes what he forgot to warn Benjamin about: Satanists.
But there is no time to escape. It is 3:47.
With Daffney wrestling the Satanists, Benjamin opens the chest. A massive fiery light erupts from inside as he desperately begins counting. The Satanists fight to keep the portal open, but Benjamin holds on through the chaos and slams the lid shut after three seconds.
The danger seemingly over, the Satanists flee. Daffney and an exhausted Benjamin share a drink and head upstairs, relieved that despite everything, Benjamin completed the ritual.
Alone in the basement, the chest sits quietly in the darkness.
Then two yellow eyes open behind it.
A gravelly voice finishes Benjamin’s count:
“Four Mississippi.”
