In the Western Pennsylvania mining town of Heddwich, Lannis returns home from a day in the mines and pours himself a drink. He says that three of his men threatened to quit, and tells his wife Mrs. Cadogan not to start talking about the sounds in the mine. Mrs. Cadogan tells him to get cleaned up but Lannis demands his supper immediately. After a moment, he goes to the bathroom and gets into the shower, unaware that something is in the room with him. Mud spews out of the showerhead and Lannis quickly shuts the water off. After a moment, flames shoot out of the showerhead, incinerating him.
Constantine is in the bunker working on his sleight of hand when Chas comes in and gives him the money from his picking winners on the daily double. The exorcist points out that one of the drops on the map is wet, and they're heading for Heddwich. Chas reminds him that there's an outstanding warrant against him in Pennsylvania and he won't be going along.
A woman, Zed Martin, is in her apartment sketching Constantine on the street watching a funeral procession.
Constantine stands in the street watching Lannis' funeral procession. He turns away and bumps into Zed, and she recognizes him. He finds her sketch and figures that she drew it from her window and then approached him as part of a con job. Zed begs him for answers, and Constantine pokes out the eyes in the sketch and holds it up to the sun. When Zed blinks, momentarily blinded, he slips away. However, Zed has taken his wallet.
At the bar where the wake is being held, Constantine sits down with a foreman, Peterson, and points out that the town's symbol is a dragon. Peterson figures that it's fracking, but Constantine says that it's hard coal. The men offer a toast to Lannis, and Peterson explains that the company closed the mines for a day so everyone is celebrating. Constantine loudly suggests that real dragons might be responsible, and another miner, Ed, says that there were nine deaths in the last year. They all died in mining accidents, and some of the miners figure that they dug all the way to Hell.
Constantine goes to the mine and slips by the guard. As he descends into the depths, the rock moves behind him. He grabs a pick axe and knocks on the rock, and something knocks back. The walls shake and Constantine runs for the surface.
Later, the townspeople go to Lannis' house and Constantine blends in, bring a TV dinner. He slips off to the bathroom and finds a sooty handprint on the door. Constantine removes the showerhead and pours out coal. Mrs. Cadogan comes in and Constantine introduces himself as a reporter. He points out that she has coal dust on her arm and asks what she thinks it happened. Mrs. Cadogan says that it didn't matter and makes it clear they didn't have a happy marriage. Constantine asks about the rumors of something in the mines, and Mrs. Cadogan describes how Lannis sent her a letter convincing a young Romani girl—her—to come and marry him, and he lied and claimed that he was a captain of industry.
Mrs. Cadogan starts to flirt with him and when Constantine refuses, she orders him out. When Mrs. Cadogan tells the miners that Constantine claimed to be a reporter, the president Thad Bowman demands to know who Constantine is. He puts up a fight but they knock him down and Thad demands more answers. Constantine warns him that there's something unusual in the mine and the danger is that it's come to the surface to kill a man. Thad says that he doesn't want reporters spreading panic, and Constantine realizes that Thad has heard the knocking as well.
Back at his hotel room, Constantine finds Zed waiting for him inside. He gives her his wallet back, minus the money, and points out that his IDs don't match. Constantine has checked her apartment and learned her name, but says that he doesn't want to know who she is. Zed figures that it's destiny and Constantine means something to her. She explains that she has visions and feelings that she can't control, and grabs his arm. She feels his pain and desperation, and realizes that they motivate him.
Constantine pulls his arm free and realizes that she's a clairsentient, and tells her to sit down and close her eyes. He tells her to focus on his voice, and then pours some of the coal sludge from the showerhead into her hand. Zed sees the bathroom and the shower, and feels the flames. She catches a glimpse of a tall cross, and then collapses. She describes what she saw and Constantine says that she did good job and they'll check it out when he's changed. However, when she checks on him in the next room, Zed discovers that he's slipped out.
The local church has a tall cross, and Constantine goes inside. The place is in disrepair and he hears a noise. A teenage couple is making out and they quickly leave. There's a demonic image painted on the wall, and the boy says that there's a local story of a tall man with no face who follows people home and peers in their windows. Once he's alone, Constantine prepares a magical ritual, pouring water over his head. He catches a glimpse of the faceless man in the church but the image fades away as the water drips away.
That night, Zed goes to the local bar looking for Constantine. Another man at the bar, Ellis, says that people used to come to him for confessions. He explains that the mines killed his son and admits that he didn't have much faith but now he has none.
Zed returns to her apartment in the morning and finds Constantine sleeping on the couch. She yells at him to get out, and Constantine says that he had to confirm what she saw. He asks who she is and points out that she moved to Heddwich. Constantine says that the things in her paintings are real and she'll soon meet them if she follows him. He tells Zed that if she can handle that then they can talk business. Undeterred, Zed says that she isn't going anywhere.
The mine alarm goes off and Zed explains that it's a collapse. They go to the mine and a miner confirms that he heard knocking before it came down. Constantine sees Peterson talking with Thad and gets into his car with him. When Constantine says that men are dying, Peterson explains that Thad's company came to Heddwich and reopened the mines. Constantine warns him that they're digging into places where they have no right to be, and people will keep dying until they shut down the mines.
The locks on the SUV suddenly close and muddy water fills the SUV. Dark hands pull them down into the water, and Zed sees it and pries the door open with a crowbar. Constantine is alive but Peterson is dead. They go into town before the police arrive, and Constantine explains that death is the price of doing business with him. Zed says that she's still there and Constantine explains that the mine is haunted by Coblynau, which knock on the walls to warn of collapses. Traditionally they don’t rise to the surface or murder, and Constantine says that there's a rising darkness that is forcing evil to the surface. He figures the conjurer is close by, and Zed says that the miners are gathering at the pub for an emergency meeting.
Once Constantine changes, he and Zed go to the bar. Thad is trying to calm the panic, and Zed points out that Ellis isn't there. When she explains that Ellis is an ex-priest and has a reason to take revenge, Constantine points out that there was something similar at the church. He sits Zed down at the bar in the stool where Ellis was sitting, and tells her to close her eyes. Zed says that her feet are cold, and Constantine tells her to open her eyes but stay in the vision. She finds herself in a waterfall with a campground nearby. The bartender, Charlie, confirms that there's a campground at Booster Creek.
Constantine and Zed go to the campground and find Ellis there. When Constantine performs a ritual, Ellis joins in, familiar with the ritual. He denies having raised any evil and points out that it's the men in charge that are dying. There's only one boss left: Thad. Constantine confirms that Zed has some spray paint in her car.
Thad and his son Nathan go into the mines to make sure that Peterson cleared things out before he died. A Coblynau emerges from the ground, knocks Nathan aside, and grabs Thad by the throat. Constantine and Zed run in and Constantine knocks on the support beams. He welcomes the Coblynau, assuring it that it's a protector, while Zed draws a symbol on the wall with the spray paint. The Coblynau disintegrates into dust and Constantine explains that he reminded the spirit of what it is. Thad is dead and Constantine sees the handprints on Nathan's face. He says that they have to make sure that no one comes down there again and tells Zed to get the injured man home.
Later, Zed brings Ellis to the mine as Constantine walks out. She says that Ellis should be there, and that now she knows what he does. Constantine hands a detonator to Ellis and the ex-priest says that he's doing it for his son. He hits the trigger and the mine comes down, and Constantine says that he has to confront the person responsible for summoning the Coblynau.
That night, Constantine goes to Mrs. Cadogan's home and says that she has guests. When he says that he knows who killed Lannis, the Coblynau emerge from the ground. Constantine says that he'll give her one chance to send the Coblynau away. He noticed the coal mark on her arm during the wake and remembered that she said she's Romani. Mrs. Cadogan says that when she left home, she promised to never use her family's magic again. However, she soon discovered that her magic was more powerful than ever.
Constantine warns her that the spreading darkness has infected her, increasing her magic, but Mrs. Cadogan doesn't believe it. He tells her to send the souls back where they belong, but Mrs. Cadogan orders them to kill Constantine. As they choke him, John says that they're the spirits of dead miners... and Lannis was a miner. Constantine calls out for the spirit of the house to seek his revenge. Lannis emerges from the cellar, grabs Mrs. Cadogan, and drags her down, screaming. The Coblynau disintegrate, their master gone.
Back at his hotel room, Constantine finds Zed lying on the bed working on a sketch of his fight with the Coblynau. He realizes that she came there to make sure that he didn't run out on her, and says that he works best alone. When Constantine says that everyone who trusts him dies, Zed says that she's been looking for him without knowing it, and he's needed her without knowing it. Constantine gets on the bed, tells her that he's tired, and collapses in exhaustion.
Ellis goes to the church and opens it.
Zed watches over the sleeping Constantine.
Written by Gadfly on Oct 17, 2015