Years before Regina and Darron's lives were changed by Big E, a man named Erasmus lived in a small, secluded town. Erasmus was tall, his thin frame hunched from years spent bent over his workbench. His hair, once a rich shade of chestnut, had faded to a dull gray, falling in long, oily strands around his face. His eyes were the color of ash—pale, almost lifeless, but with a sharp intensity that made the townsfolk uneasy. They spoke in hushed tones about the dollmaker who lived on the outskirts, his small shop tucked between the edge of the forest and the town's cobbled streets.
The dollmaker's shop was a curious place. From the outside, it appeared quaint and charming, with large, dusty windows displaying beautifully crafted dolls of all sizes. Each one was eerily lifelike, their glassy eyes reflecting the candlelight from inside the shop. But step inside, and the atmosphere changed. The air was thick with the smell of varnish and aging wood. Dolls lined every surface—some half-finished, their limbs scattered across worktables, others sitting upright in chairs, their vacant faces staring into the distance.
In the back of the shop, hidden behind thick velvet curtains, was Erasmus's private workshop. This room was different—darker. The shelves were cluttered with strange tools, old books bound in cracked leather, and jars filled with unidentifiable substances. The dolls here were not for sale. These were his special creations. And among them sat Big E.
Big E had been different from the start. Erasmus had poured more than just craftsmanship into this doll. He had poured his very soul into it. The year Erasmus lost his son, everything changed. Grief twisted his mind, and he turned to dark, forbidden rituals, desperate to bring his child back. Big E was supposed to be a vessel—a way to house the spirit of his dead son. But something had gone wrong.
Erasmus's ritual had taken a piece of his soul, binding it to Big E. The dollmaker hadn't resurrected his son—he had cursed himself. As time passed, Erasmus grew more obsessed with the doll. The townspeople began to notice strange occurrences. Children who visited the shop to play with the dolls would return home different—quieter, their movements stiff, as if their limbs were no longer their own.
The townspeople tried to confront Erasmus, but nothing they did could destroy Big E. Desperate, they sealed the workshop, hoping the evil would stay locked away forever. But the doll was not so easily contained.