Plot

An old man, fated to collect souls for eternity, seeks atonement after trading his daughter's soul.

Bankruptcy forces William Ziel to return to the farm he inherited from his estranged father in an attempt to start a new life with his young, fragmented family. Lazarus, the farm hand who took care of William's father Frederick in his lonely final hours, reappears soon after William, Sarah and adopted daughter Mary, arrive at Hemelop- Aarde. A supposed chance meeting between Mary and Lazarus develops into a bond between two kindred spirits. But Lazarus, the old soul who struggles to find peace in this place of sad memories, carries a dark secret that constantly haunts him: the demon child with its insatiable appetite for human souls that weighs so heavily in the sack he carries everywhere with him. Despite Sarah's misgivings, this unfathomable character wins over William and Mary. At first, Sarah's apprehension seems unfounded but, judging by the reaction of the local community to his return from wanderings afar, she may be right and the Ziels' newfound domesticity could be at risk. A series of disturbing events unfolds: first the old woman dying at the kraal, then the killing in the dark forest causes the circle to draw closer to include the Ziels. Can they survive unscathed?

Grieving village healer Lazarus tries using dark magic to resurrect his beloved daughter Vuyiswa after her death in a tragic fire. The demon Uthuli ends up possessing Vuyiswa's body. Lazarus becomes cursed to reluctantly carry Uthuli around South Africa in a large leather sack in search of souls for it to feed on. One of Lazarus' victims is William's father.

In 1977, William and Sarah move into William's father's farmhouse with their orphaned niece Mary. The family meets Lazarus, who claims to have worked for William's father. Despite Sarah's untrusting suspicions about the mysterious man, Lazarus befriends Mary and takes up residence in a shed when William hires him to help repair the property.

Village shaman Obara warns locals including Suno that Lazarus and the demon have returned. While helping Mary bury a pet worm, Lazarus explains how moths carry souls, including those of Mary's dead parents. Sarah talks to William about her inability to bear a child of her own.

After seeing Suno spying on Lazarus, William drives into the village to introduce himself. Lazarus accompanies William. William mistakes hostility toward Lazarus as being directed at him, which Lazarus reinforces by purposefully mistranslating their invectives. Obara vows to leave Lazarus to his business on the farm if Lazarus promises to stay away from the village.

Uthuli warns Lazarus that he is growing too close to Mary, whom Uthuli plans to possess. Sarah spies Lazarus hauling his sack to the village, although she does not know Uthuli hides inside. After sneaking into her home, Lazarus performs a ritual that puts Suno's mother's soul inside a moth, which Uthuli consumes.

Uthuli tries suffocating Sarah under a towel while she bathes. William disbelieves Sarah's claims of something being amiss on the farm.

Mary befriends an apparent vision of Vuyiswa. Sarah finds Mary in her room speaking to no one.

To exact vengeance for his mother's murder, Suno ignores Obara's advice and steals Lazarus' sack. Thinking he can destroy Lazarus and the demon if he destroys the sack, Suno brings the bag into the forest. Lazarus initiates a confrontation in which Suno ends up stabbed with his own knife. Lazarus curses the demon for causing Suno's death.

Obara stabs Lazarus from behind, but Lazarus merely resurrects. Lazarus implies only fire can bring him peace.

Sarah eavesdrops on Lazarus plotting with Uthuli. Sarah uses a bloody shirt to accuse Lazarus of murder while telling William about the girl she saw in Lazarus' sack. Sarah insists that William banish Lazarus, but William only terminates his employment while allowing Lazarus to stay one more night.

William leaves the farm to pick up generator fuel. Sarah goes to the shed to confront Lazarus herself but ends up captured. Lazarus then lures Mary into the forest where they converse around a campfire about death and protecting each other.

William returns home to find Obara and the villagers marching toward Lazarus' shed. William frees Sarah from her rope restraints. Obara explains that Lazarus feeds souls to the demon Uthuli as he warns William that Mary is in danger. A tracker rushes into the forest with William to look for Mary while the villagers perform a ritual at the farm. Meanwhile, Lazarus performs his own ritual that renders Mary unconscious.

Obara's sangomas ultimately burn Lazarus' shed. In the woods at the same time, Lazarus and his sack spontaneously combust. William finds Mary unconscious.

Mary speaks with Lazarus in the spirit realm. Lazarus apologizes for betraying Mary while explaining that what he did was the only way to save his daughter. Lazarus presents Mary with a moth and says her soul can choose to go with her parents or return to the real world. Before making her choice and vanishing, Mary makes a pact with Lazarus to meet again.

Sarah discovers she is inexplicably pregnant. Obara and the villagers become workers on William's farm. Sarah swallows a moth while mentally reciting the same monologue about a wanderer that Lazarus was heard speaking previously. (thanks to culturecrypt)