From Darkness It Comes

Mystery Gift From A Stranger

Darrin stands there, still wrapped in just his towel, staring at the crudely wrapped package lying on his desk. Crinkled brown paper, stained in spots, wrapped around the thin foot long box and tied with fraying twine. Normally he would see himself looking upon a gift left for him as a pleasant surprise, but after the nightmare and with the shabby looking wrapping of the package he does not have those feelings with one. He does not want to know what it contains, but for some reason knows he must find out.

Before approaching it he closes his door and locks it behind him. 'Can't have any interruptions.' He thinks to himself while pulling on some clothing in a hurry. He then turns to face the lone package sitting before him, still racked with fear about its contents but driven to go forward by some unseen force.

With trembling hands he reached down for the package and carefully picked it up. It was heavier than he expected and something inside shifted with a clunk when moved, which made him jump a little. Carefully he slid the twine from the wrapping and peeled off the crisp paper. The box was old and made of chipped wood with some strange designed carved into it. The latch is closed and the lock twisted to keep it shut. The carvings look like some kind of language, but nothing Darrin has ever seen before.

Slowly he turns the lock and opens the latch, which gives with a click. Cautiously he flips the top up and reveals the contents. Sitting loose in the box is a small tarnished silver handled dagger. The hilt appears to be formed of two silver snakes intertwined, with heads out at the tip of both guards. Along the center of the blade is more of the strange writing, nearly hidden in the grime and tarnish. The blade itself is smudged and chipped in places, but still appears to be quite sharp.

Darrin reaches in to lift the blade from its box, but notices there is a small folded piece of paper lying in the box below it. He slides it out and unfolds it to reveal the handwritten lettering within.

Darrin,
You have a greater destiny than you realize and your coming to this place was not by pure chance or luck. Take this blade, the Dagger of Urnenthul, and keep it hidden until it is needed. You will know the time.
Mr. Stark

Darrin just stands there and looks back and forth between the note and dagger, with a shock frozen on his face. What is this? He thinks to himself. And who is this Mr. Stark? And why is he doing this to me? Unsure of why, however, he closes the box, flips the latch and locks it, and slides it into the back of his bottom desk drawer.

After a few minutes he is able to calm down a bit and has to decide what he is going to do with his day.