The two men shifted uneasily a few meters away. They kept nervously glancing to one another, then staring back at him. Overall Jack found it extremely annoying. After three more attempts to read the same paragraph and gleaning nothing from it he sighed and decided to indulge them.
“What do you want?” He asked loudly. The librarian shushed him. He ignored it. The two approached hurriedly.
“'Scuse me but, you’re one a them thinkers with the college right?” The fatter of the two started. He wore exclusively plaid and his neck was drowned in fat jowls and overdeveloped muscle giving him a distinctive appearance not quite unlike a painted egg. Jack already disliked having to speak with them.
“I’m a student, yes. Were you trying to find one of the proffesors?” He shook his head quickly in a way that made the fat of his face stand out. It was like it hung in mid air as the thin profile of his true face shifted underneath. It was almost as though it were some mask he was trying to pull his head out of.
“We already tried them, see? They just laughed us out.” The younger one piped up.
“All the biologists an’ vets too!” He was a little shorter and quite a bit skinnier. His face seemed to be adorned with stubble of three days unshaved but the hair on his jacket suggested he had shaved that morning. Jack turned his nose up at the two. ‘So they’re working down the list of bioscience students. Now they’re trying medical too.’
“So why seek me out? What do you want my help with?” They turned to each other as though not yet sure if they trusted him. They must have deemed him worthy or themselves desperate as they kept going.
“You see we found an animal bite. Nasty attack in the night, like what them chupa-whatsits do. We figured you bein’ a teeth doc and all you might be able to verify it.” Jack pressed his hands to his eyes letting his glasses fall forward. His mothers words burned in his mind. ‘All those years of schooling just to be a dentist? Why not a surgeon or a doctor? Learn to help people get respect.’ He barely stifled the groan at the back of his throat. Years of skill and patience in dentistry and what does it get him? Two tepid iq yokels who think they stumbled over a zoological gold mine in their back yard.
“Alright, I’ll take a look.” He said more to save his peers from having to deal with the pair than any personal interest. The two lit up their broken smiles as the smaller one emphatically shoved his hands down the front of his pants and pulled out a manilla envelope. Jack opened it and spilled out the photos. He spoke as he sorted through them. “Where did you say you saw this?” The two were ecstatic to find a believer and much less guarded than before.
“Down by the old lake. There’s a couple ranches in the area that lose a couple sheep each night.” He nodded half ignoring them. The number of lakes in the area was immense and heavily deliberated so the information was worthless. Luckily the sheep rachers were far more rare with the local 4h chapter picking up alpacas instead. He went over the photos one by one and saw the usual hoax fair. Three photos taken while moving so the photo only saw blur lines, three full brightness flash photos their subjects too saturated in white to be seen, two close ups of sticks hanging down from their branches with no relevance to it, one grainy crop of a bigger picture showing the menacing shadow of something unidentifiable, and five surprisingly high quality photos of the bites. He discarded the useless ones and put the shadow photograph next to the bites. This time he didn’t stifle the groan as he looked over them. The two leaned in conspirationally.
“Gentlemen I may not know much about cryptids but even I know your chupacabra is famous for a meshed set of teeth giving a distinct three point bite.” The two looked excitedly at each other. ‘He said our chalupa cabron!’ They thought.
“So what now?” The bigger one asked. Jack looked at them taking a moment to appreciate not being quite that empty headed.
“Now nothing.” He said throwing up his hands in mock frustration. “These bites are perfectly symmetrical. Most likely I’d say a dog or coyote did it.” Their faces fell like a sack of bricks. The smaller was indignant enough to throw a tantrum.
“A coyote? Man nobody wants to see that! Come on.” He screamed walking out the door pulling books to the floor at random as he went. Jack scooped up the photos and tucked them into his book to mark the page. Of course, he hadn’t told the whole truth. Coyotes were the most common predator in the area but those bites were far too large for that. Truth was he had no idea what made those bites. His first guess would be alligator but alligator teeth had an offset almost random placement. These were far too symmetrical they really did look like dog’s teeth. Whatever this was it was big with a wide head but had a very stubby snout for its width. Jack didn’t much care about lying to tweedle dee and tweedle dum. Their mystery creature wasn’t going to be some slam dunk lifetime moneymaker like they hoped. All Jack knew was it was carnivorous, the park service was offering tidy finders fees on carnivores getting too comfortable around people, and missing cattle definitely counted as “too comfortable”. He thought for a moment what help he might need to get proper evidence and figured a three way split would still put meat back in a starving students diet.
Connor O’Brian picked at his teeth as as he leaned back as far as the oldsmobile seat would let him. His buddy, pal, and partner in crime Homer was sitting in his lap grooming quietly. His much more distant friend Sean Mackinnon was complaining behind him.
“Oh have a heart will ya? I’m crushed like a kipper back here.” Connor laughed at him.
“Ya could switch with yer precious computers if ye cared.” He offered. Sean scoffed.
“An have the likes o you breakin em? I think not. Its my car why can’t ye just be civil about it?” He smiled into the mirror sure he could be seen.
“If you’re pullin that then why didn’t you drive?” He made a dismissive wanking gesture at him.
“I wanted the computers to get there in one piece.” He gestured to the bundle of black boxes hooked into a jury-rigged battery system.
“Then why not have me drive so you could be up front?” Homer gave a childish coo as he scratched down his neck finding the sweet spot.
“Jaysus no! I didn’t want the old girl shakin apart on the way here. Or to be dyin mind!”
His face lost a shade or two at the thought. “Why’d you even call fer shotgun anyway. Not like we have one nor would anyone try’n rob us.” He made a point of tapping the floorboards loudly as though feeling for the gun.
“Not like you’d give Homer a fair shake if I didn’t” Hearing his name Homer lifted his head for a pat and connor obliged him.
“Would the two of you shut up?” Jack asked thinking himself somewhat patient putting up with the argument so far. He regretted bringing on these nameless vagabonds. All his colleagues at his disposal and he cheaped out on two spuds. As difficult as it would be to get more upstanding help at least he wouldn’t have to follow such inane drivel.
“Ah come off it just harmless ribbing.” Said the first paddy. He was a behaviorist major. Had prior experience in some chop shop, but he wanted the psych degrees for a proper fluffmart medical license. He even had his thesis subject a fluffy unicorn named Homer on his lap. He seemed the most general in terms of animal psych but he was also useful in handling the bait.
“Speak for yourself. I’ll send ya same day to Peter’s gate you don’t move.” Said the other. He was a computer scientist. Didn’t have as definite a plan but was hoping designing boards would never become obsolete. He had been working on a new design of tracker for wild animals. He could use the field test even if they didn’t find their mystery predator. The napping fluffy stirred from the commotion.
“Faif n’ begowwa’!” He cried not understanding the situation he woke up to. Jack looked at him strangely.
“Is he… drunk?” He asked. Connor laughed
“No the strong stuff is wasted on him. He’s just fluffy.” He gave a scritch behind the ears and opened the car door. “I should walk him. You two get comfortable.” He set Homer onto the gravel outside and stepped out to follow him. He could hear the groaning of springs as the seat was shoved forward the moment he wasn’t on it. He took a softpack out of his jacket pocket and shook one out. ‘Not too many left.’ He thought. ‘Will need a resupply soon.’ He lit it and took a long draw as he looked out over the landscape. ‘Almost a shame to not enjoy the crisp air instead.’ He thought. ‘If only it had nicotine.’ It was a beautiful landscape of greens and blues with a slight damp to the air. ‘A perfect lakeside forest.’ He thought. ‘Hell of a far cry from the deserts a chupacabra would stalk.’ He chuckled at the thought. The day had been long but beautiful. After the sensors were placed high in the trees the only excitement had been scaring off some kid who came out to ride the slopes. They lost a couple fluffs but the sight of him dropping his dirt bike and sprinting up the hill was worth it. A technicolor fluff waddled up to him and made the signature “uppies” pose. He bent to her level instead. “Am weseawch gamesie obew? Can fwuffies go home?” He pet her careful not to jostle the monitor.
“Not quite. Just sit tight ok?” She sighed discontent.
“Dawk times scawey bu’ fwuffy be bwave fow housie.” She turned and walked back to her found shelter, her foals and mate waiting for her. It was some commercial meat smoker that had been overturned its round door propped open. There wasn’t much wrong with it but the brand had gone out of business making some purpose built parts impossible to replace. Conor knew city fluffies that would kill for a home as secure and dry as this but these were shelter fluffs. Shelters drove their fluffs to self sell and sold all kinds of fairy tales of what life would be like with a human. The dark side of abusers, neglect, and annoyance leading to sudden feral status was unthinkable to them. The idea that toys took effort to find, that food didn’t just grow on trees, that song and dance could ever be bad, that they could be cold and wet and tired and still need to move away from shelter for their foals’ sake was alien to them. He looked at the oldsmobile with a sudden appreciation for humanity. It was ancient its once vibrant paint sub bleached, it was aerodynamic as a brick to the face and looked about as good, it was jury-rigged half its parts broken at any given time, it leaked and groaned with every movement and sported a patina of rust over its entire body. Still it moved, kept wind off and warmth in, even chased away darkness. It was a palace next to the cardboard kingdoms of feral fluffies. He savored the smoke and the chill as he waited on Homer to return. He watched as the sun dipped lower casting warm golden light through the forest. The fluffies settled with it trying to warm up for the night ahead. Small family units split off to cuddle under anything that could keep the damp off. A few wandered between the objects begging to have their children taken in for for the night. The bulk of the herd gathered instinctively in fluffpiles anywhere relatively dry and soft. The pile shifted in constant flux as those outward moved inward and those inward were pushed outward. There was even a dam or two covered up with anything they thought would be warm. The nearest was a hot pink and tried to wiggle her legs at a trio of dancing babies nearby, much to her nursefluffs chagrin. It was picturesque framed with the wisps of fog over the lake beyond. Connor frowned. ‘Well that tears it.’ He thought. ‘Can’t find jack if the fog rolls in.’ He stamped out his butt and clicked for Homer to follow. He got back to the car and let his fluffy companion in first. The seat was still cramped forward but it looked fair so he left it as is.
“Should we tear down? Come back another day?” Jack scoffed.
“And stay here another night? I don’t know about you two but I’m nearing my limit on patience. We should give it the night if we still don’t come across it feel free to keep looking and keep my share, I won’t join you.” Sean whined at him
“Don’t you ever sleep? I don’t even have a coffee and now we’re pullin’ an all nighter?” Jack rolled his eyes and pulled his bindle out from under his seat. He tore open a box and passed over a pair of cans.
“Nice thinkin’” Connor complimented savoring the tinny cold coffee. Sean took a drink with a look of disgust and topped off his can from a hip flask. Jack didn’t bother grabbing one for himself instead fiddling with a great thermos. He grimaced at the taste of tea left to cool for too long. ‘Cold, black, and grisly.’ He thought. ‘Perfect for a day like this.’ He watched as the stars shone through and the landscape was swallowed in fog.
“Damn it’s cold.” Connor complained shoving his hands under his jacket. “Can’t we run the engine?” jack chided him.
“And scare away anything we hope to see? No. Just grab a blanket if you’re so cold.” Connor tried stuffing his fingers under homer who chirped at the theft of heat.
“Can’t see shit out there. What do the sensors look like Sean?” He groaned half asleep.
“The battery only lasts so long. We have to preserve what charge there is. Short sweeps only.”
“Then sweep.” He said. Sean muttered something indecipherable and coaxed the box into action. The screen lit up and a tangle of lines and dots appeared on the screen. He did a quick count scrolling through displays rapidly.
“Looks like two losses.” He said panning the map about.
“Still 38?” Connor asked.
“No two new ones. Location looks to be near the waters edge. Probably drowned.” Connor wasn’t surprised. Fluffies hardly had the fortitude to be around water. It was possible for a fluff or two to find themselves near water and panic their way away from shore. Still it didn’t explain why they even approached the water. Might have just been a nocturnal bathroom run but none of the groups were particularly close to the edge.
“Alright shut it down.” He said settling in. Something about this place just gave him the creeps. He tried to take his mind off of the feeling. “So any takers on the bet?” He asked the other two. Jack looked at him queerly.
“What bet is that?” Connor shrugged.
“What else? What mystery creature are we looking for?” Jack rolled his eyes.
“If we’re unlucky a grizzly bear. If it’s anything else we’re safe and that’s all I care to know.”
“Don’t be so closed minded. Maybe it’s bigfoot.” Sean grinned and Connor understood him.
“Shut it.” Jack said.
“Probably a sea serpant.” Connor kept up the bit.
“This far from shore?” Jack asked, catching on. “You’re off your rocker.”
“Jackalope.”
“Those are herbivores.”
“Aliens”
“Go look for your probing somewhere else.”
“Maybe a Dobhar-chú.” Connor didn’t feel like laughing anymore. Homer sensed his sudden tension and wanted to know what was wrong.
“Wha’ am d- dw- coo- do wa- dawkies? wha’ am dawkies?”
“It’s a monster.” said Connor. “That’s all you need to know.”
“The old grans back home love spinning tales about 'em.” Sean explained. “Cursed blood, destined deaths and all that.”
“That’s enough, Sean.” Connor tried to cut him off. He suddenly felt hot and the sweat rolled down his brow like ice. Sean laughed.
“You’re not still scared of ‘em are ya? They’re fairy tales nothin’ more. No spookier than the contents of your closet any given night.” He tried a consoling pat on the shoulder. Connor jumped at the feel.
“I’d still like to stop there.” Sean made no intent of stopping.
“Worried they’ll hear you lad? That they’ll stalk their way up to the car, scratch at the handle, and let themselves in?”
“Stop it.” Connor was losing control of his voice.
“They can be real sneaky like, and blinding fast too. Just one short trip and your last sound would be a horrid piercing scr-” And they heard the screaming. Not from within the car but further out. It was nothing a human would make but it had to be close.
“Give me the light.” Connor said. Jack handed it over slightly concerned at the sound. It was a big flood light and it barely cut through the fog if anything making the white clouds harder to see through. He swept in slow arcs looking for anything out of the ordinary but finding almost nothing. “What do you think it was?” He asked trying to hold the terror from his voice.
“I don’t know.” Jack responded soberly. The sound came again a low barking sound. It sounded off and had a distinct warble or chitter to it. None of them recognized the sound let alone what could be making it. He made another pass even slower and thought he saw something. He doubled back and the thing moved with lightning speed. He tried to follow but it doubled back just as quick bowling through an immobile dam “Wah! mummah wowwin’! Hewp mummah!” She cried suddenly being moved. He tried looking and found nothing. He heard a scratching at the door and nearly shit himself in terror. He tried to shine down to see what it was but it was the fluffy girl from before. He cursed and rolled down the window.
“What do you want?” He hissed not really wanting to be heard.
“Pwease wet fwuffies back in. Nu wan pway weseawch gamesie. Take back tu shewtew jus’ nu weave out hewe nu mowe.” He couldn’t believe he was losing it over a fluffy.
“No.” he said and shut the lamp off. The dejected fluffy not wanting to be both exposed and in the dark turned back to her grill house.
“Do you think you were too hard on her?” Jack asked him. Connor could hardly believe his gall.
“You’re the one that said we stay out overnight. That includes the fluffies so that’s on you.” And he shut up. Homer nudged against his hand not wanting him to be upset. Connor felt a little guilty speaking out like that, but it was far from a normal night. He’d be more himself by morning. “Should we look again?” His friends shared a look and nodded with him.
“Let me take the light.” Jack said. Connor didn’t want to be without it but still handed it over. Jack Turned it back on and they swept over the scene slower more carefully. At first they didn’t see anything, just fog and that awful warbling sound.
“Check on the pregnant one. The one that was knocked over.” Connor said.
“Will it be my fault if I don’t?” Jack asked. Connor burned but made nice.
“Look, I’m sorry. Just, please, for me.” Jack took a couple sweeps to find her. The fog was so thick now the colors hardly made them stand out.
“Let me try focusing it.” he said twisting at the end of it. The beam of light narrowed as the light grew stronger the fog parted a little more. He twisted a few more times and increasingly they felt trapped by the fog. The light reached far enough she was barely obscured but the beam was only a few fluffies across at that distance. She moved only slightly and another brown fluffy thing nudged at her with every movement. “There.” he said suddenly calmer. “One red dam one brown nurse to help her up. Safe!” Connor felt a sudden chill in his ribs.
“We didn’t have a red dam.” He said slowly hoping he was wrong. Jack gulped audibly and started twisting down. The features of the two grew sharper and he cracked the window just to get that little bit more the tint was stealing away. They saw it and Connor was right. The Dam was a hot pink before the blood was slicked over her. The edges of her rib cage were split and jagged white bone tips pierced the sky. They heard a miserable peeping sound and a dull crunching of bones between teeth. Every three or four crunches a new stronger crunch set it again and the peeping became softer, less cacophonous as the choir of suffering thinned. The brown thing tore at her innards and gave a shake but caught the light as it did so. It stood stock still and that horrid warbling grew into a steady growl. It bolted back and forth in a zig zag. Jack was better on the light and he tried to follow it but the beam was too narrow and he only caught flashes of color as it screamed by. Connors heart sank as he saw it. The top was a dark muddy brown but the bottom was a soft white. ‘aquatic colors.’ he thought. ‘It’s in the water.’
“The scanner.” he said. “How many fluffies?” Sean flipped switches and tried to get back up and running with a sudden urgency. He paused unsure on his answer.
“Fourteen.” he said in a quiet way.
“It got fourteen of them?” Jack asked incredulous. Sean shook his head no comedy in his demeanor.
“There’s only fourteen left.” The computer beeped out a warning as one of the fluffy’s heart rates shot up.
“Christ look at the speed of the thing.” Sean cried. They looked at the screen as the pip marking his tracker shot across the map. Within a second it reached the middle of the lake. “That was what, 15-16 meters?” They heard a fluffy screaming outside. It sounded wet and terrified. “Hewp fwuffy!- Wawa bad fo’- Nu wan go-” It kept pleading. each desperate cry was interspersed with coughing as it sunk under the water.
“What the hell is it doing?” Sean asked. Connor laughed in sudden terror.
“It’s playing with it.” they watched as the pip wandered about the lake bobbing up to scream and sinking back down to drown. Finally the heart monitor flatlined and the pip came to a rest.
“We should leave.” Sean suggested. “And quickly.”
“Not yet.” Jack insisted. “We’ve come this far we need to take a photograph or something.”
“Come off it!” Connor cried. “It didn’t even like a flashlight you want a proper photo op?”
“Well we have to have something!” Jack argued. “Something real! Something believable! Someone has to know about this!”
“Over there!” sean was screaming. They turned to look but only saw the silhouette. It was massive taller than any man, any bear, most buildings even. It stood menecingly bouncing its stubbier forelimbs against an aspen. “What is it doing?”
“Shut it. I’m going in.” Connor laughed at the absurdity of it.
“Like hell you are, stay in the car because you will die if you leave.” Jack looked him in the eye and bolted from the car leaving the door open. Connor reached over and slammed it shut.
“You damn fool!” he screamed knowing full well he couldn’t hear him and they saw exactly what the beast was planning. With three resounding cracks each louder than the last it bent the wispy tree until it broke and it fell dangerously close to the car. It hunched over holding the great breadth of the log in its paws and shook its body up and down bludgeoning the metal grill. There was screaming as Jack and the fluffys scattered and the beast brought the tree crashing down again and again in some twisted mockery of whack a mole. Jack bolted back to the car dropping his camera as ran and he leapt to the front seat. The flash went off and the blinded creature blinked as Connor looked a monster straight from his bedtime stories in the eye. It was a Dobhar-chú, King of the otters, Killer of the lakes. Its snout was square and snarled with lifted lips and curled whiskers. Its body was sleek and long fifteen twenty feet easy and frightfully nimble. Its claws tore through the ground and it ran a full gallop at the car and mid leap tucked its limbs in as it soared through the open window. It tore into Sean who never stood a chance at escaping. It twisted and writhed trying to get to Connor but Homer lept to his defence and planted his horn straight into its beady black eye. It lashed backwards its neck twisting to get away as it let out a horrid screech. It was a sound not unlike a thousand squeeky toys going off at once and homer screamed at the sound. It was so high pitched the actual sound of it was minimal Connor more felt the throbbing pain in his ears from the terrible volume than he heard the bulk of the screech. It turned his blood to ice and he found himself out of the car and running before he realized what he was doing. He ran without purpose until he tripped and and went sliding over the gravel. Homer caught up to him as he heard the return call of the Dobhar-chú. The mate was hunting him. He looked to the ground and felt a sliver of hope as he realized it was the kids dirt bike he ran across. “salvation.” He said half thinking as he righted it, grabbed Homer, and kicked the start pedal tearing off into the night.
Connor’s eyes were bleary. He could hardly keep them open but all the same he knew he couldn’t stop. He’d gone through three towns already and the Dobhar-chú still wouldn’t let him go. He couldn’t keep going. Sooner or later he had to sleep either crashing his only ticket to salvation or somewhere peaceful enough for the Dobhar-chú to catch up. He turned into a gas station and weighed his options as he refueled. One by one he realized that everything he could remember about the thing made the mission seem impossible. He was no fighter, had no weapons, and could not stand against the monster. On the other side the Dobhar-chú was wicked fast, terribly strong, and had boundless rage. He grimaced ‘No, not rage. That’s far too little to expect of it. The fire of vengeance burns in him. He’ll never stop until the blood is repaid.’ he wandered into the store section and grabbed a can of skettis and poured it over a roller hot dog and throwing the mess into one of the microwaves. The cashier looked at him funny but rang him up in a fair manner. Try as he might he could only think of one possible out for all of it. He set the sketti plate in front of his fluffy buddy and smilled as he wagged his tail in excitement. He pet him as he ate and hugged him as best he could letting his tears soak in. It wasn’t him that hurt the Dobhar-chú’s mate. He sprinted to the bike and took off before Homer could realize he was leaving. The fluffy still ran after him as he left screaming “Wai’ fo’ fwuffy! fwuffy nu on bike! FWUFFY NU ON BIKE!” ‘You worthless coward.’ he chided himself as he set off for the last stretch of running one way or another.
“Homew scawed” the fluffy complained as the chill set in. His daddy had left an hour ago but he had to be coming back. Daddies always came back! There was no way he could leave him! He was important! Daddy even said he was his final, whatever that means. He curled down tighter as the wind swept over him. He just wished it wasn’t so scary. He was always a little scaredy fluff. It took him almost infinite forevers to get used to sleeping without a night light. He still remembered how daddy had been so patient walking him through it. “Just remember. When it’s darkies outside it can be scary but they can’t hurt you.” He smiled and tried to remember that. He opened his eyes expecting that winning smile he always had when he told him that. But daddy wasn’t there. The darkie was there and it looked absolutely furious. Homers confidense in his daddy flew away and he tried to remember anything else about it. “It’s a monster.” He had said so Homer tried going over everything late night television had taught him about monsters. He settled on the scary lizard tv. ‘Don’t move. It no see fluffy if fluffy no move.’ He sat still as stone trying not to breathe as the beast came closer. Its nose twitched as if smelling and he felt the tickle of one of its whiskers on his nose. The whisker bent and the darkie snapped its jaws onto the fluffy’s face. The fluffy felt a terrible pain as teeth surrounded his head. ‘It can see fluffy! fluffy needs to run!’ He thought far too late and died exhausted but fighting.