A Phantasmal Nightmare

Mal couldn't understand the feeling of danger that he felt, but he knew he had to act on it. 

With a shove, he sent the centipede he was holding onto flying through the air like a kite, and he immediately rushed to grab Joanne and put some space between them and the creature in the form of a child. 

He very nearly gave her whiplash with how fast he moved, but there was absolutely no way in hell that he was going to let Joanne get so much as a scratch ever again. 

A pool of shadows opened up beneath the two of them and he immediately dropped her into it- sending her safety onto the couch in his living room. 

He threw out his hand to get everyone else to safety too, but in that instant the child appeared right in front of him and grabbed his wrist to stop him. 

It's unnerving red eyes bore into Malachi relentlessly, almost as if it were looking for some kind of explanation on his face. 

When it found none, it's frown only deepened.