Settled in the kitchen, two hard-boiled eggs and a cup of tea by her hand, the girl turned her attention to the box that now occupied the space between the table and stove. While the eggs had been boiling, she had retrieved a crowbar from the shed at the back of the house. Patience bit into an egg, feeling the heft of the tool in her right hand.

“Well, here it goes!”

The girl pried the lid of the box open, nails baring in the dim light like fangs. The lid flopped over with a crunch of splinters. Inside was a nest of shredded paper and wood shavings, a card lay half-buried in the pile. Patience took it in her hands and read.

“‘Dear Patience, I came across this specimen whilst traveling through Vyugary and thought it the perfect gift for your twenty-fifth birthday. Perhaps you can add it to your collection. The locals said it belongs to a rare beast, a legend or some sort. Even if it is a facsimile, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it. Wishing you good health, a very happy belated birthday, and all the best. Leland Unger’… “ Patience mused out loud, “Unger … Unger … Oh right! Uncle Lung. Hm, still traveling at your age! Commendable!” How sweet of him to think of her.

She thought back to the elderly man. Not a biological uncle, but he was dear friends with her late father. Patience remembered him visiting their home a few times when she was small, hence the odd nickname. She had not seen him in years and only last heard from him via a letter paired with delivery of flowers after her mother’s wake five years ago. Patience was never sure of his occupation; she only knew he traveled the world and had strong connections to anthropologists, archaeologists, and naturalists.

Uncle Lung knew of her proclivities, and Patience was certain her father had kept him up to date with her interests. From a young age she grabbed a hold of any feather, leaf, rock, or any sort of natural object that intrigued her. Her fascination only grew from there. Now a young adult, she had amassed a nice collection, not even counting the specimens from her other hobby.

Patience’s grin widened. “Hm, a rare beast? What ever did he get me?”

She dove into the nest, feeling for the prize it hid. Excitement thrummed through her body as her fingers came upon a cool, hard surface. In a flurry of wood shavings, she lifted the specimen out of the box. She gasped.

Wide, vacant eye sockets stared at her. They flanked a long, smooth snout, devoid of a nasal cavity. Two large canines splayed away from the other four front teeth, the only teeth present in the top half of the skull. Attached to the top skull by some strange ligament were mandibles. They were the creature’s unfused jaw, much like a snake’s, except these each ended with a solitary, long, pointed tooth. If the shape of the skull was not strange enough, the entire thing was a rich, dark, chestnut brown with a subtle iridescent sheen.

“A skull! Amazing!” squealed Patience. She tilted the specimen around in glee, inspecting every inch. “This thing is massive! But so light!”

The girl moved the bottom mandibles back and forth. “How odd the ligament is still intact!”

She ran her hands all over the skull. At the back was a large fracture that had appeared to have weathered down over time, but that was the only imperfection she could spot. The entire surface was unnaturally smooth; only the ligament felt like a flap of tough leather. It was unlike anything she had ever seen. Aside from a few subtle notches on the underside, the skull was completely concave and seemed more like a mask carved by some primitive tribe.

Patience paused and evaluated its size once again. “Bet I could fit it on my head.”

She giggled and glanced over her shoulder. Of course there was no one around to pass judgement. With a sharp exhale, Patience lifted the monstrous skull and placed it over her head.

Suddenly a jolt shot through her neck. She panicked and brought a hand to her braid. For a moment she thought her burn was acting up, but she had never felt such a twinge. The sensation had gone as quickly as it struck. Patience calmed herself and moved her head around with its new strange helm. She could see through the skull’s eye sockets. However, she could not see the fine mist that began to trickle out the back of the skull.

“Oh wow! I can see through this thing. Well, not well enough. I’d still have to take it off while sewing. Wait, why would I do anything with this on?” Patience chuckled and reached to take the skull off when her wrists stopped in place. She froze. Eyes wide, she gazed at her arms. Snaked around them were thick, smoking tendrils.

“Wh-WHAT IN THE NAME OF HELL—”

“Let’s not do that right now.”

Patience yelped, her eyes darting back and forth. It came from nowhere and everywhere. This voice with its unearthly timbre seared into Patience’s ears. The sound crept in from behind and tingled and pricked its way to the girl’s temples. She shuddered.

“Wh—who’s there?” Patience hollered.

“I am Anax,” hissed the voice, sending shivers down her spine.

“W-What?” If the voice was not enough, the sound of her own blood pumping blasted in her ears. Her eyes could open no wider.

All of a sudden the cold weight of muscled arms tightened over Patience’s chest.

“You’re all mine now!”

Patience screamed, and fainted.