Chapter 9 – Shadows and Threats

Dexter woke to his phone ringing at 6 AM. For a moment, he couldn't remember where he was—his dreams had been full of forests and glowing eyes and a language without words that somehow made perfect sense. Then reality crashed back and he fumbled for his phone.Bill Kowalski."Turn on the news," Bill said without greeting. "Channel 7. Now."Dexter stumbled to his laptop, still half-asleep, and pulled up the local news stream.The headline made his blood run cold: "EXCLUSIVE: Amateur Cryptid Hunters Claim Contact with Millbrook Creature"On screen, Dale Morrison stood in front of Millbrook Park, looking concerned and authoritative in hunting gear that probably cost more than Dexter's car."—deeply troubling that untrained civilians are entering a closed park and making wild claims about 'peaceful contact' with what is clearly a dangerous animal. We've documented aggressive behavior, property damage, and psychological trauma to multiple witnesses. For these people to suggest the creature is harmless, or worse, that it should be protected, is irresponsible and potentially deadly."The news anchor cut in. "Mr. Morrison, you're saying you have evidence that contradicts their claims?""Absolutely. We have footage—clear footage—of the creature displaying threatening behavior. And we have testimony from wildlife experts who say this animal poses a significant danger to the community."The screen switched to grainy video that Dexter had never seen before. It showed one of the Shadows—difficult to tell which one—in what appeared to be an aggressive stance. The video was edited to make every movement look menacing, every sound threatening. The context was completely stripped away."This is a predator," Morrison continued. "A large, intelligent predator that has already caused harm. Allowing it to remain in proximity to residential areas is unconscionable. Which is why the Trophy Trackers are formally requesting permission from the county to conduct a controlled hunt within the next 48 hours.""Forty-eight hours?" the anchor asked."The situation is escalating. We can't afford to wait a week while amateur enthusiasts play with something they don't understand. Every day we delay is another day that families are at risk."Dexter's phone exploded with notifications. The group chat was on fire.Martin: DID YOU SEE THISJesse: They're moving up the timeline. They're not waiting.Isabel: I'm heading to the Gazette office. Maybe I can get them to run a counter-story.Martin: The comments section is a nightmare. People are scared. Morrison's winning the PR battle.Dexter called Bill back. "How did this happen? We kept it quiet. Only us, you, and Dr. Marsh knew about yesterday.""Someone talked. Or someone followed you. Morrison's people have been watching the park. They've got cameras everywhere." Bill's voice was grim. "Doesn't matter how they found out. They're forcing the issue. Forty-eight hours, Dexter. Can you get evidence of the dens by then?""I don't know. Maybe. The map the Shadow created—""Won't mean anything if the creatures are dead. You need hard evidence. Photos, video, something that proves they're not just animals but something that needs protection.""Our equipment fails around them. Every time.""Then figure out why and fix it. Or find another way." Bill paused. "Dexter, there's something else. I got a call this morning from someone claiming to be a researcher from Grayson University. Wanted to know everything I knew about the Shadows. Offered money for information.""Did you tell them anything?""Of course not. But it means word is spreading beyond Millbrook. If the academic community gets wind of this, or worse, if the media turns it into a national story, this whole thing becomes a circus. Researchers, hunters, curiosity seekers—all descending on those creatures at once.""We need to move the Shadows. Get them deeper into the forest, away from the park.""You can't move them, son. This is their territory. They've been here for generations. They won't leave just because we ask nicely.""Then we protect them where they are.""Against an armed hunting party with legal permission and public support? With what army?"Dexter didn't have an answer.An hour later, the team reconvened at Dexter's apartment. Everyone looked exhausted and scared. Isabel brought coffee and bagels that no one touched."Okay," Dexter said, forcing himself to think strategically. "Morrison is winning the narrative. We need to change that. Isabel, what can the Gazette do?""I pitched a story to my editor this morning. 'Local Researchers Claim Peaceful Contact with Unknown Species.' But Derek—" she made a face "—already filed his piece. 'Cryptid Enthusiasts Endanger Public Safety.' His goes to print this afternoon. Mine might run tomorrow if we're lucky.""Tomorrow's too late.""I know. But the Gazette isn't going to run two conflicting stories in the same edition. It makes them look unreliable." Isabel pulled out her laptop. "However, I can bypass traditional media. I have a blog. It doesn't get huge traffic, but it's something. And Martin, you said you run that Reddit?""MillbrookMyths. Three hundred and seventeen followers now. Posted about yesterday's encounter last night and it's already at two thousand upvotes.""Post everything," Dexter said. "Your sketches, your notes from the folklore research, your firsthand account of the contact. Make people understand these aren't monsters.""Already did. But Dexter, the comments..." Martin turned his laptop around.The Reddit thread was full of skepticism and hostility:"Cool story bro. Pics or it didn't happen.""This is clearly made up to prevent legal hunting. Nice try.""Even if it's real, a dangerous animal is a dangerous animal. Better safe than sorry.""I live in Millbrook and I have kids. These idiots are going to get someone killed with their 'peaceful contact' BS.""People are scared," Jesse said quietly. "Morrison's playing on that fear. Doesn't matter what we say if we can't prove it.""Then we get proof," Dexter said. "Today. Now. We go back to those dens the Shadow showed us, we document everything we can, and we give Dr. Marsh enough evidence to file that emergency protection order.""Our equipment doesn't work around them," Jesse reminded him."It works until we get close. So we set up remotely. Wildlife cameras at a distance, triggered by motion. We don't approach the dens directly. We let the Shadows come to the cameras.""That could take days. We don't have days.""Then we make it work faster." Dexter pulled up the stone arrangement photo on his phone—one of the few images that had survived yesterday. "The map shows four den locations. We split into two teams. Jesse and Martin take the northern dens. Isabel and I take the southern ones. We set up cameras, document what we can, and meet back here by sunset.""Two-person teams going into the woods where there are creatures that can affect human perception and cause time loss?" Isabel raised an eyebrow. "That's not ominous at all.""You have a better idea?""Several. Most still involve being anywhere else."Despite the tension, Dexter smiled. "You keep saying that. You keep coming anyway.""Someone has to document your terrible decision-making for posterity.""I'll call Dr. Marsh," Dexter said. "Let her know what we're doing. Maybe she can slow Morrison down, buy us more time.""She can try," Isabel said. "But Morrison has momentum and public support. Unless we give her something concrete, I don't think she can stop this."An hour later, Dexter and Isabel were hiking through the eastern section of the forest, following the map toward the first southern den location. They moved quietly, both hyperaware of every sound, every shadow."Can I ask you something?" Isabel said after a long silence."Sure.""Why are you doing this? Really. I know the whole 'proving cryptids exist' thing, but this has gone way beyond that. You're risking legal trouble, physical danger, your reputation. Why?"Dexter thought about the question. "When I was a kid, I saw something in the woods. Something impossible. And for years, everyone told me I'd imagined it, that I was confused or making it up. My dad. My teachers. Eventually even my mom stopped defending me. And I started to believe them. Started to think maybe I was just... wrong. About everything."He paused, navigating around a fallen log."Finding the Shadows—really finding them, not just glimpsing them but understanding them—it's proof that I wasn't wrong. That the world is bigger and stranger than people think. And if I can prove that, if I can show people that impossible things are real..." He trailed off."Then you're vindicated," Isabel finished. "You get to be right.""No. Well, yes, but it's more than that. If I can protect something this incredible, this ancient, from being destroyed out of fear and ignorance—that means something. That matters." He looked at her. "Does that make sense?""Yeah," Isabel said quietly. "It does. For what it's worth, I don't think you're wrong. About any of it.""Even the parts where I make terrible decisions?""Especially those parts." She smiled. "Someone has to make terrible decisions. Might as well be you."They walked in comfortable silence for a while."Can I ask you something now?" Dexter ventured."Fair's fair.""Why did you believe me? That first day at the park, when we barely knew each other. Why did you take this seriously?"Isabel was quiet for a moment, choosing her words. "You want the honest answer?""Always.""I didn't believe you. Not really. I thought you were probably chasing nothing, that the Shadow was going to turn out to be a bear or a hoax or mass hysteria." She glanced at him. "But you believed it. Completely. And I've spent enough time as a journalist to know that most people who believe impossible things are either delusional or lying. You weren't either. You were just... certain. And that certainty was compelling.""When did you start actually believing?""The playground. The swings moving in sync. That wasn't wind. That wasn't coincidence. That was something showing us it could manipulate our environment, make us afraid without even appearing. That's when I knew this was real.""And you stayed anyway.""Of course I stayed. This is the story of a lifetime. Human makes contact with unknown species, possibly forms interspecies communication..." She grinned. "Also, you would've gotten yourself killed without supervision.""I would not—""Dexter. You walked into a clearing alone and placed your hand on the ground while three massive predators circled you. That's suicidal levels of trust.""They weren't predators. They were—""I know what they were. I felt it too. But they could have been predators. You didn't know." Isabel stopped walking and turned to face him. "That's what I'm saying. You trust too easily. You see the best in things. It's going to get you hurt someday.""Is that a bad thing?""I don't know yet. Ask me again if we survive the next forty-eight hours."They reached the first den location around noon. It was marked by an unusual rock formation—a natural cave entrance partially hidden by undergrowth. According to the map, this was one of the primary denning sites."Set up the cameras here?" Isabel whispered."Yeah. Motion-activated, night vision. We position them at different angles, cover all approaches."They worked quickly and quietly, mounting three cameras at strategic locations. Jesse had modified them to record to internal storage rather than transmitting wirelessly—hoping that would prevent electromagnetic interference.As they finished the last camera, Isabel froze. "Dexter. Look."At the cave entrance, partially hidden in shadow, were markings. Carved into the stone. The same symbols they'd seen in Bill's journals, but fresh. Recent.And among them, something new.Four stick figures, standing together. Crude but recognizable.Representations of humans."They drew us," Isabel breathed. "They're documenting us the same way we're documenting them."Dexter's throat felt tight. "They're artists. They're not just intelligent, they're creative. They have culture.""Which makes killing them even more monstrous." Isabel photographed the carvings from every angle. "This is good. This is evidence of higher intelligence. Dr. Marsh can use this."A sound from deep in the cave made them both step back. Movement. Something large."We should go," Dexter said quietly."Agreed."They retreated carefully, not running but moving with purpose. Behind them, something emerged from the cave—too large to be anything but a Shadow. It watched them leave but didn't pursue.Protecting its den. Warning them away from its home.Smart. Territorial. Exactly what you'd expect from an intelligent species defending its space.They reached the second den location as the sun began its descent. This one was more exposed—a sheltered grove where fallen trees created a natural fortress. More carvings. More evidence of habitation.And something else."Dexter," Isabel's voice was sharp with alarm. "Look."Trail cameras. But not theirs.Someone else had been here. Recently.Dexter examined the nearest camera. Professional grade. Expensive. And mounted to capture the clearest possible view of the den entrance."Morrison," he said. "Has to be. He's been surveying the dens. Getting ready for the hunt.""He knows where they are. All of them, probably." Isabel's face was pale. "When they come in forty-eight hours, it won't be a hunt. It'll be a slaughter. They'll know exactly where to find them."Dexter's mind raced. "We need to remove these cameras. All of them. Give the Shadows a chance.""That's destruction of property. If Morrison has permits—""I don't care. These creatures trusted us. Showed us their dens. I'm not going to let that information be used to kill them."Isabel studied him for a long moment. Then she nodded and started examining the camera. "Help me get this down. And we need to find the others. All of them."They worked quickly, locating and removing five cameras total. Dexter destroyed the SD cards, grinding them under his boot heel.His phone buzzed. Martin."You need to come back," Martin's voice was tight with panic. "Now. There's a problem.""What kind of problem?""Jesse's gone. We were setting up cameras at the northern dens and I turned around and he was just... gone. Disappeared. I've been searching for twenty minutes and I can't find him."Dexter's blood ran cold. "The forgetting?""I don't know. Maybe. Or maybe he wandered off. But Dexter, I found something. Blood. Not a lot, but enough. And tracks. Big ones.""We're coming. Don't move. Stay exactly where you are and don't go looking for him alone."Dexter and Isabel ran.Behind them, emerging from the grove, the Shadow they'd disturbed earlier began to follow.Not attacking.Following.Like it knew something was wrong.Like it wanted to help.Or like it was preparing to defend its territory from an invasion that had already begun.