The Crown of Gilded Bones (Blood and..

As the other creature started to regain his footing, I
spun, wrapping my arm around his masked head. I jerked
back and thrust the dagger into the weak spot at the base
of his skull. I let go, jumping back before the thing erupted.
“What are these things?” I yelled, backing away from
the oily stain the two had left behind.
“I have no idea.” Kieran took out another as his lip
curled in disgust. “Just kill them.”
“Oh, well, I was thinking about keeping one.” Cold,
clammy fingers grazed my arm as I whirled around. “You
know, as a—”
“If you say pet, I’m going to think you’re more
demented than Cas.”
“I was going to say friend.”
Kieran looked over at me, brows arched. “That’s even
worse.”
I snapped forward, grabbing the edge of a mask. I
yanked hard. Rope snapped. The mask slipped free—
“Oh, my gods!” I shrieked as I staggered back.
The thing didn’t have a face.
Not really. There was no nose. No mouth. Just thin, black
slits where eyes should’ve been. Everything else was
smooth, thin, pale flesh.
I would never unsee this.
“Take it back! Here.” I flung the bronze mask back at the
thing. The metal bounced off its chest and hit the ground. It
cocked its head to the side.
“What?” Kieran shifted toward me. “Holy shit, it’s a—I
think it’s a Gyrm.”
“A what?”
“Something that does not belong here.”
“That’s not helpful.” I pointed at it with my dagger. “It
has no face!”
“I can see that.”
“How does it even breathe?”