The Tillinghast Specimen

An invisible swarm of creatures surrounds us at every moment.  These unseen organisms exist in an extra-dimensional space beyond our own, part of a vicious, ancient ecology.  Isolated incidents of dimensional crossover have occurred under rare natural conditions, but under normal circumstances our worlds never mix.

At least, that is, until Crawford Tillinghast's invention of the Tillinghast Illuminator.

This is a preserved example of the lifeforms that enter our reality when the barriers are down.     The creature is approximately 6" in length.  Six external mandibles composed of a substance similar to chitin surround the mouth, attached to the internal skeleton with a flexible joint.  Immediately behind the mouth are two grasping arms equipped with spearing points.  The dorsal surface is covered in protective spikes made of the same material as the mandibles.  Three motive vanes line each side of the body.

This was a fun little project.  I wanted something that blended the features of a deep sea fish with a "flying rod", the bizarre creatures that were a cryptozoological sensation a few years ago.  Sadly, they turned out to be an artifact of digital video recording rather than an undiscovered lifeform. 

I'm still trying to create modern gaffs with vintage techniques, so the body was constructed of bamboo and paper mache.  The vanes, mandibles, and graspers are natural materials, but I did cheat and use polymer clay for the back spikes.  I think I've figured out an organic replacement for that in the next iteration.