[Mysophobia: A fear of moss or mold sometimes considered to be a subtype of germophobia as it is tied to dirt, grime, filth, and the risk of illness they cause.]
Pitch slowly recovered, having to eat a big meal or more regularly to recover. Lucky for him, the lab had a number of death row inmates who were already legally considered dead they had planned to feed to the other Umbran who now goes by Abe. Even with the larger meal, Pitch still felt hungry and had to hunt his normal number of times that week. For the first time in his life he felt grateful that New Arkham has an unofficial slums district that is ripe with criminal activity.
Fully healed and ready to go, Pitch just needed a lead on the location of the escaped Cryptid. If not Abe, then something. There was that other breakout that saw Vance escaping as well as a few other Cryptids. So now there were somewhere around five or six cryptids on the loose in New Arkham and yet no new reports of strange deaths or sightings have come up.
Pitch was sitting in a chair in his human guise when he realized something. “With Abe no longer in the lab, that means the signal that attracted Cryptids to New Arkham is no longer a thing, right?” Kathryn tilted her head. “I… guess. We theorized that the signal was because he was sending out some sort of distress call, perhaps unintentionally, because he was being tortured. However, we never actually proved that. Even if we did, there's a chance something else could draw them here as well.”
Pitch sighed and checked his phone, no new texts from Ishwada. “Well if there's no longer a signal then it's possible the escaped Cryptids spread out and are no longer in town. Although, we wouldn't be the only county that's inexplicably a Cryptid magnet if there's something else drawing them here. It feels like every state has that one county and or city that's just… Weird.” Kathryn nods. “So if the General doesn't call for you, what do you intend to do today? Because I don't know if you still have your job at NexGen or not. Even if you do, none of the researchers will look at you the same since what you are is now public among them.”
Pitch taps his fingers on the table. “Well I guess there's not much reason to keep that job anymore since the reason I started working there was to find answers and I now have them. At least the ones for myself. Anything I need from there you can get.” Kathryn scraped her fork on her half empty plate of bacon and eggs. “And it's not like you need food or rent, also you get paid by the General and had two jobs. I got a promotion to head researcher since the two most senior people were both put in holding by Ishwada.”
Pitch nodded. “Yeah, I heard they were both the sort of amoral scientists you find in a sci-fi horror or thriller movie. Progress for the sake of progress with no thoughts given to how you got there or the aftermath of getting there. Let's see if we can then immediately do. With you as head we don't have to worry as much about Cryptids being exploited or Doppelgangers being illegally tested on.” Kathryn finished her meal and sent a text. After a bit she got one back. “Just texted the building manager to see if you still have a job, apparently he can't fire you for being a Cryptid because the agreement with the Dopples prevents that.”
Pitch shifted in his chair. “Right, the non-human citizens' protections agreement with Black Eagle and Tomorrow corp. I guess I count for that.” Kathryn nods. “But you have off today so I'll ask again what you wanted to do today.” Pitch thought about it for a moment. “Do you have off today?” Kathryn does a so-so gesture. “I am supposed to be helping the team adjust to the changes in leadership, but I was scheduled for today off before my promotion. Last I checked, that hadn't changed.”
Pitch took a moment to take stock of everything that needed to be done. He had already taken time to rest and recover so he felt he should be going after Vance and Abe ASAP. Without leads there was little he could do however. “I guess we can go on a date night.” Kathryn smiled and nodded, but that nod faded as suddenly Pitch’s phone rang. He picked it up. “Holden pizzeria and abortion clinic, where yesterday's loss is today's sauce. How may I help you?” Pitch's own smile faded as the voice of the General came over the phone. “Do you know where Blue Cheese Farm is?”
Pitch made a confused expression. “It's the massive blue barn at the edge of town with a big greenhouse, right? I've seen it plenty of times but they don't do tours and the entire area is fenced off and guarded. They definitely take trade secrets and family cheese recipes seriously. I've had a few days of their specialty select cheeses. Did something happen?” Ishwada's voice responded over the phone. “It'll be easier to explain once you get here. Make sure to grab the Black Eagle i.d I gave you that has you listed as a civilian consultant.”
Pitch sighs. “Okay, I'll be there in a half hour or so.” He then hung up the phone. “Duty calls. Sorry love.” He gave Kathryn a kiss on the cheek. “Love ya.” Kathryn picked up her empty plate and stood giving him a kiss on the cheek as well. “Love you too, be safe out there. You may be difficult to kill, but you're not immortal.” Pitch nodded and made his way out the door as Kathryn went to do dishes.
Pitch arrived at the farm to a minor surprise as in addition to Ishwada, a few Black Eagle grunts, and the farm's owner, was Cuda. Kathryn’s jock brother. Shaking the hand of an enthusiastic grunt and rubbing the back of his head with an awkward smile. Rather than check with Ishwada first as per the norm, Pitch went straight to Cuda to see what was going on. The goon was gushing over Cuda. “Ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod. I can't believe I'm meeting the Bulldog of the New Arkham Psychos. I've been following your career since you were still in highschool. You're a local legend!” Pitch guy right up in there and interrupted the two. “Hey Cu, what uhh… is this situation?”
Cuda looked over and gained a genuine smile. “James! Funny running into you here. I came by to pick up a custom order I made since it's cheaper to pick up at the gate than to pay for delivery. However, when I got here the place was blocked off and then these PMC guys showed up. All they'll tell me is that there's an active crime scene and that I'll have to wait for my order until after it's been cleared. Then it turned out one of these people happened to be a big fan.”
Pitch chuckled. “And I'm guessing you don't want to leave till you have your cheese. I don't want to stand out here all day waiting for it, so I'll grab it for you when I'm done here. I uhhh… am a civilian consultant for these people. Not because of my mechanical or electrical experiences. I'm surprisingly good with people and noticing minor details. Also people seem to feel more at ease with a local than a stranger.” Cuda stops shaking the hand of the grunt. “That makes sense. I'll trust you to grab my cheese then. I'll catch up with ya later James.” The goon asks Cuda to sign her gun before he leaves. Cuda obliges before leaving with a wave.
The soldier holds the weapon before looking at Pitch. “I can't believe you're friends with Cuda the Bulldog Smith. That's so cool. How come you don't talk about it?” Pitch sighs. “I often forget he's a local celebrity, we went to highschool together. Let's just get through this case. This was supposed to be my day off and I'm missing out on date night.” The soldier looked at him, slightly confused. “You have a girlfriend? Does she know what you are?” Pitch nods. “I'll probably have to tell Cuda too eventually and read him into the world of Cryptids. It's… a long story.”
Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.
Pitch starts making his way to the farm followed by Ishwada. “Alright Jiryu, talk shop. I've already spent enough time fiddling around.” Ishwada grumbles lightly as the farm owner takes them to the barn. “Well the family that owns this barn are Doppelgangers. Have been since before they migrated from Greece a hundred years ago. Now the descendants of immigrants in addition to being Dopples, the family keeps dairy traditions from the old world alive as well as some more… unusual practices.”
Pitch looked to the owner and back to Ishwada. “It's my understanding that modern Dopples try their best to blend in. They don't creep up on people to kill and replace them and haven't done so for ages. So what unusual practices could they be doing?” Ishwada sighs. “Well some time before they migrated back in the nineteen twenties there was a Cryptid incident involving a group of Mysophobians. This particular Cryptid species is one that can be traced back thousands of years and appears in Greek mythology as well as a few other places.”
Pitch lit up. “A mythology creature!? That's cool. I was wondering if any were real. I may have spent time reading files but there's so many I haven't found a myth monster file yet. So what are we dealing with? A gorgon? A harpy? Oh, perhaps one of those man-eating horses.” Ishwada rolled his eyes. “No. The Catoblepas. This family managed to get a few back before they migrated and attempted to domesticate them like cattle.”
Pitch shifted through a few different expressions. “So wait… so you're telling me in addition to normal cows this farm has a herd of scaley moldy moss cows? Don't those things send out toxic spores? How the hell would you farm something like that without a gas mask?” The farmer responded. “Gas masks have been a thing in some shape or form since eighteen forty nine, so the answer to that question is that my ancestors didn't farm them without gas masks.”
The goon who was gushing over Cuda then asked. “What would the plural be for the Catoblepus? Catoblepi or Catoblepusses?” Ishwada looked at her and narrowed his eyes. “Please, for the love of God, never say Catoblepusses out loud again.” The farmer chuckled. “It's actually Catoblepae. Anyway, Black Eagle has been a big help providing what we need to care for them and keep them hidden in exchange for the ability to study them in the farm. There are things we can get here you can't get in a lab.”
Pitch nods. “I've noticed that Cryptids will mimic the actions and habits of the animals they resemble. So I'm guessing that the ancient Catoblepae tended to act like wild cows with a particular craving for plants that would normally be toxic or poisonous to normal cows.” The farmer nodded. “They were mostly deadly to people because of the bad smelling toxic fumes they created. The bulls would gore people occasionally but if you take precautions for the spores they aren't any deadlier than a normal cow. Which is to say, watch for horns and hooves and don't spook ‘em.”
Pitch nodded. “Okay, so if you domesticated the Catoblepae, that means you found a way to minimize if not eliminate the dangers. If the mushroom cow isn't a threat, why are we here? Also what are you farming them for? You never answered that.” The farmer took them into the large barn and past the normal cows. He opened an airtight quarantine door and handed a gas mask to Ishwada who wasn't wearing an air filter helmet like the goons do before offering one to Pitch. “Oh, I don't actually need that. So unless seeing me without it makes you uncomfortable I'd rather not wear it.”
The farmer shrugged and put it on before opening the second area where the Catoblepae were. “My livestock isn't the problem, they are the victims. Also, with testing we have found that a Catoblepas will eat a large number of poisonous and toxic plants, depending on what you feed it and how much you can get interesting results. Some poisons, if used correctly, make medicines. Also, they'll eat any kind of mold. If you feed one nothing but the mold for Penicillin, you can get its fur to grow it. It'll even be in the milk it produces.”
Pitch knitted his eyebrows. “I have several questions, but that can wait. Let's see the crime scene.” The farmer walked them to one of the pens where a Catoblepas lay dead, with claw and bite marks on its moss covered body. Pitch walked over and started looking at the creature. It was a bull or male, adult. Pitch combed through the moss and mold covered fur to find the scales underneath. This cow-like creature was part cow, part lizard, and part mycelium colony. The fur wasn't actually fur with mold and or moss on it, but was itself a type of fungus that served as a sort of soil bed for a plant. This fungus has roots under the scale-skin of the creature.
Pitch moved to the wounds and tilted his head letting out a hum. “Hrm… these claw marks aren't like anything I've ever seen, and there are signs of mastication on the flesh. Whatever attacked it was eating it.” Pitch looked to the door that led in. “This farm has guards, and this room is not exactly in plain sight. The quarantine door needed a code. There are no signs of forced entry and the air filtration offers no way for anything living to get in. Hell, even I couldn't get in here without breaking something. If the air filtration was busted through then we would already know that.”
Ishwada put his hand on his chin in thought. “So whatever we are dealing with is smart, able to sneak past the guards, and somehow knows the code?” The farmer grunts. “Only members of my direct family know the code.” Pitch looked over the wounds once more. “Are you by chance related to a former captain of the Teddy Roosevelt Highschool hockey team about my age? Alexander… something hard to pronounce? He died recently in a string of murders.”
The farmer knitted his brow, confused as to where the question was going. “Alexander Tsukolos, yeah. He worked here part time and was my cousin. Why?” Pitch sighed. “The guy had a shitty memory, probably because of all the drugs he did back in highschool. He kept notes on everything. It's possible Vance saw them and after learning about Cryptids came to eat one and add it to his collection.”
Ishwada groaned. “Great, so the Chimera that gains the abilities of any Cryptid he eats has added Catoblepas to it. I'm guessing he snuck in using shape shifting.” Pitch nods. “He has the ability to shape shift and use the traits of over a dozen different Cryptids. Though now we have a lead. He's still in New Arkham, hunting down any Cryptid he hasn't eaten yet. So plus one set of abilities.” The farmer shifted. “Two actually. The Catoblepas isn't one Cryptid, it's technically two. It took us a while to figure out but the cow and fungus are two separate entities living in symbiosis.”
Pitch grumbled. “Okay, so I'm guessing the fungus is the Mysophobian or perhaps Mycophobian. Then you have the cow lizard that's… what?” The farmer takes out some notes. “We think the bovine-like part was originally what was known as Gorgon. Not Gorgon like Medusa, but a cow that ate and breathed poison. In some stories it turned people to stone like Medusa. I'm guessing it's based on some sort of pollution fear. Then the fungus came later. Not knowing it was the same monster they gave it a new name. Since the cow-like one no longer exists without the fungus as a species and new ones are born as a seed bed for the spores the two entities are treated as one. The fungus Cryptid can't exist without a host and the Gorgon has become dependent on it as well.”
Pitch writes a few things down. “Kathryn will definitely want to know this. She'll probably ask to study it herself. Anyway… is there anything of note nearby? A secret farm for another type of Cryptid perhaps?” The farmer shook his head. “As far as I know I'm the only Catoblepas farmer in the state if not the world and there are no other domesticated Cryptids that I'm aware of besides the therapy dog thing. Cuddle-bug or tickle monster I think they call it.”
Pitch nodded. “I should definitely schedule an appointment with that thing, but there's probably a huge waiting list since it's one of a kind. I've yet to even see a picture of it. So it seems this is a dead end and Vance is going to make it as difficult to find him as possible. Although there is one thing I find strange.” Ishwada looked over the scene himself. “What’s that?” Pitch pointed to the door. “Why didn't he just eat the closest one to the door? Instead he went several slots in and chose this one specifically. It's not like it makes a difference.”
Ishwada looked at the other Catoblepae. “It's the biggest bull of the herd. He aimed for the pinnacle of the male specimens. The alpha bull if you will. It fits in with his prior attacks. He's establishing dominance by only going for the strongest.” Pitch took a second look at the cattle. “Ah, yes. Good catch.” He then walks back and forth getting a closer look at the different members of the herd. He stops to look at one of the smaller females that has its tongue sticking out. “What's with this goofy looking fella?” The female soldier looks at it and giggles softly to herself. “Hehe, Cato-blep-us. This one's a little goober and I love it.” The farmer lets out a short chuckle. “Heh, yeah. That's Poo-brain. She's got the I.Q. of a mashed potato. Living on two brain cells and a dream. I'm not sure why she came out that way. She's our precious bean.”
Pitch hums. “Wait, can Catoblepae breed in the normal way? That's atypical for Cryptids but not unheard of.” The farmer put a hand on his chin. “I wouldn't call it normal. Are you familiar with how platypus are mammals that lay eggs? It's kinda like that. The eggs are about the size of an ostrich egg but soft like a snake egg and are kept in pouches that grow on the sides. The babies once out of the egg live off the fungus of the mother at first but already have the spores under their scales by the time the egg opens but it's like moss on a tree and hasn't grown to resemble hair yet.”
Pitch shuffled around a bit. “We should have a look around other areas. Maybe we'll find something that gives us an idea where Vance went next.” Ishwada nods. “You heard him, canvas the entire area.” The woman soldier salutes and radios the other Black Eagle goons to canvas the area. Pitch reached out a hand and pet Poo-brain. “Don’t worry, the monster that did this is going to pay.” Poo-brain let out a strange sounding moo.