"The Dappled Egg" is a short Cthulhu Mythos story by British author Tim Mendees, first published in the Gavin Chappell-edited zine Lovecraftiana (year unknown, Rogue Planet Press).
Synopsis[]
Claudia and her partner I are a young couple who run a pet store specialising in reptiles. When Claudia orders a new batch of iguana eggs from her supplier, she discovers an unusual dappled egg mixed in amongst the others; she attempts to incubate it, and as the days pass she becomes increasingly obsessed with the egg, turning almost feral at any perceived slight made by I against it.
When the egg comes to term, it hatches a bizarre creature which forms an immediate bond with Claudia, while displaying an overtly threatening demeanour towards I. The creature proceeds to eat many of the animals in their shared pet store, before Claudia gives herself to it and sacrifices I to assuage it’s dark appetites. She then goes on to send her freshly-laid eggs to unsuspecting recipients, presumably in an effort to repopulate the Earth in the image of her new lord Yig.
Behind the Mythos[]
In the aftermath of I's sacrifice, Claudia renames the store Yig and Sons Reptiles, showing that the entity was intended to be a rebirthed Yig, or at least one of its avatars.
Publication History[]
- Lovecraftiana (unknown year, Rogue Planet Press)
- The Best of Lovecraftiana (2023, Rogue Planet Press)
Trivia[]
- Despite the entity from the egg being named as Yig, it bears a closer resemblance to common depictions of fellow Great Old One Tsathoggua, possessing a more frog-like appearance.