Cuda Smith, Kathryn's jock brother who plays football, was playing practice games and doing team building in Green Bay with his team to help new players ease in. This would be Cuda's last year with the college team before looking to be drafted into the NFL. Part of the team building was for everyone to go camping in the lush green forests of Green Bay. Everything was so normal that Cuda could almost forget that he had learned monsters were real after one had targeted him and Pitch told him the truth.

  He couldn't fully forget however, as he started to notice things he used to brush off before, things that told him one of his closest teammates has been a Doppelganger this entire time. This was someone Cuda considered a friend, someone whom he has known for years. Cuda knew it was still the same guy, and he wasn't any less of a person because he was a Doppelganger. It just weirded Cuda out a bit that he could get that close to someone without ever suspecting anything was out of the ordinary.

  Cuda did his best to focus on the team building camping trip. When it started getting dark Cuda started a fire. The team started making s'mores and swapping stories at the campfire. Some personal, some made up scary stories. Normal camping trip stuff. However, laughter from the bonding experience was suddenly interrupted by a strange noise in the distance. “What was that?” One of the newer teammates asked. “Probably just a moose, we are up north enough. They can sound surprisingly scary if you've never heard one before.” The Doppelganger teammate responded quickly. Cuda nodded in agreement. “Yeah. Have you ever heard the sounds foxes make? Those are freaky too.”

  Cuda made eye contact with his Doppelganger teammate and there was an understanding between them. They both definitely felt it, their instincts were reacting to the call, telling them that the sound was that of a predator. Cuda read a number of the files Pitch gave him and he had a hunch at what made the noise. He pulled out his phone and sent a text to Pitch. [“Possible Wendigo, my location, Green Bay.”] The Doppelganger teammate continued to build off the cover they were making. “Yeah, we're just freaked out from the scary stories. It's getting late, so maybe we should put out the fire and pack it in.”

  Cuda nodded and lifted a bucket of water as everyone finished their last smore. He then drenched the fire with the bucket before grabbing a second and drowning the fire pit. Everyone started getting into tents with their snacks as Cuda and the Doppelganger teammate stayed behind claiming that they were making sure the fire was out. Cuda looked at his teammate, keeping his voice low. “You and I both know that wasn't a moose, right Richie?” Richie looked at Cuda with a bit of shock. “W-what do you mean Cuda?”

  Cuda let out a long sigh. “My sister works in NexGen and her boyfriend is Black Eagle, Richie, I know.” Ritchie swallowed hard. “O-oh. For how long?” Cuda thought about it. “Half a year or more now.” Ritchie tilted his head. “And it doesn't bother you? You know…” Cuda shrugged. “You're still the same Ritchie. It feels a bit weird I didn't catch on to anything but that's kinda the point right? Anyway, that sound… What do you think it actually was?” Ritchie thought for a moment. “Well I've never personally encountered one, but I was thinking of Wendigo.” Cuda nodded. “Same. What can we do to deter it? I'd rather not have to pull out my Wattson in front of the team.”

  Ritchie shifted some more. “Stay low, stay quiet, hope it passes. Hope it doesn't notice us. Kinda weird for one to be in this area though. We're a bit to the east of normal Wendigo territory.” Cuda chuckled. “Yeah… it wouldn't be the first time. We had multiple incidents with them in my hometown recently. Two or three separate ones. I texted my friend in Black Eagle so hopefully they can deal with the thing. Though the friend himself would be at least an hour out if he decided to come personally.”

  Ritchie sighed. “Well I hope they send someone before that, because there's little we can do about it.” He heads into his tent. Cuda also went into his tent and laid down. He couldn't sleep however as he stayed up and listened for the noise to see if he could tell how far out the monster was. However, it was silent. A fact that actually ended up detrimental to his anxiety. Cuda jumped slightly when he heard a zipper. The sound was followed by mumbling about needing to drain the snake.

  Derrick, the team's quarterback, tossed and turned in his sleeping bag. He got up and unzipped his tent. Walking out he mumbled and grumbled to himself about needing to pee. He walked into the trees until he couldn't see the tents and picked a tree. Unzipping his pants and leaning on the tree as he let out a sigh of relief. As he was finishing up he heard the sound of branches being crushed. He looked to the side of the tree and into the distance with his weiner still in his hand. “Hello? Cuda? Ritchie? Anyone?”

  There was no response besides the wind, but then Derrick spotted what looked like white fur in the distance. He moved himself a bit to try and get a better look, even taking a cautious step forward while keeping his stuff behind the tree. His eyes focused and adjusted to the dark and distance till he could clearly see a white furred bipedal figure in the distance. It has human-like clawed hands, digitigrade legs, a thick furred tail, and a head that looked like a white deer skull with antlers on its head with little blue dots in the center of the black void that was its eyes. The figure was partly humanoid and clearly had feminine features including fur covered breasts. Its belly being the only spot with a bald section exposing its midriff and belly button.

  Derrick blinked and shook his head a bit. “(Am I dreaming? This can't be real.)” He slowly started to approach the figure that was looking in his direction but not exactly at him, carefully avoiding sticks and leaves, pulling his unzipped pays up and doi6ghe button but not zipping the pants to avoid making any sudden or loud sounds. The monster looked around and sniffed the air while Derrick approached slowly. “(What even is that thing? It's oddly sexy. I wonder…)”

  Derrick got within thirty feet of the monster when he accidentally kicked something, making a noise, and causing it to look right at him. He froze, hoping it couldn't see him. It sniffed at the air in his direction before lowering its body a bit and emitting a low snarling sound. Derrick slowly put his arms up in an attempt to look non threatening. However, it seemed to have almost the opposite effect as it suddenly sprung forward and tackled Jim to the ground, knocking the air out of him. It grabbed Derrick’s wrists as it hovered over him and snarled. Derrick let out a small nervous chuckle at the monster as it hovered its face right over his.

  Derrick experienced a mix of fear and excitement as the scarerousal caused him to pop a fear boner and he continued to chuckle nervously. “(Oh God, if you are real and this is how I die, please let me at least get some first.)” The monster backed its head away slightly and moved it's head around curiously. It looked down then slowly back up again before finally snarling once more, this time louder. It then took its claw up and sent it into Derrick's guts. Derrick let out a gagging sound of pain as the creature reached its hands inside him and started to pull out his intestines before sticking them in its mouth and slurping them in like a giant thick noodle.

  If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  Derrick passed out some time before he would have passed on, there was then a sound that drew the monster’s attention before it was suddenly blasted off Derrick's open corpse but an electric burst. Cuda stepped forward with his Wattson pistol out. “Damn it, I'm too late.” The creature got up on all fours after being blasted and looked at Cuda letting out a big snarl. Ritchie cautiously walked up behind him. “What the hell is that thing? If it's a Wendigo it's definitely not a normal one.” Cuda nodded as he kept the gun aimed at the monster. “Yeah, aren't those normally bald. This thing looks like it's part yeti. Hybrid maybe?”

  Ritchie shrugged. “I think those are rare but I wouldn't know. Just kill it already, it already killed Derrick.” Cuda’s hands shook a bit. “It's already set to kill. That was me trying to kill it.” The monster suddenly leaped at Cuda who shot it as a reflex causing it to hit the ground. Its hand moved indicating it was still alive causing Cuda and Ritchie to back away. The thing once again sprung to all fours before moving to a crouched position and slowly moving around the two but not getting closer. Cuda kept his gun aimed when the monster stopped moving and started sniffing the air.

  Suddenly, the monster sprinted at high speed away from the two and started heading to the camp. Cuda gave chase with Ritchie lagging behind as he had no weapon. Cuda started firing at the monster as it ran from him and towards the campsite. “Dammit! It's making a run for the tents.” Cuda shouted as he continued to chase the monster. It tackled a tent, waking everyone as it clawed at the person in the tent. Everyone else screamed and ran as the monster clawed into and tore a man apart. Cuda shot it again, sending it to the ground but not killing it.

  The monster took a bit to roll off its back and start getting up again. Suddenly several vehicles rolled in from the dark, shining spotlights on and shooting at the monster. Black Eagle finally arrived. They managed to surround the monster and started shooting electrified metal wire nets to try and capture it. The monster struggled against the net as the group fired tranquilizer darts at the thing. Eventually it's body went limp but was still clearly breathing. One of the Black Eagle people walked over to Cuda. “Casualty report.” Cuda blinked a few times. “Two dead, several injured in the panic.”

  Black Eagle people were talking to the living teammates and checking phones to make sure they covered everything and explained to the football players that it would likely be best to not be vocal with what happened as few would believe them, especially without proof. Black Eagle people grabbed the monster and loaded it up into a containment vehicle. The one talking to Cuda looked around, then at his Wattson. “So I'm guessing you don't need to be handled.” Cuda shook his head. “My sister works for NexGen and her boyfriend works with you guys. I was let in on things after a previous incident in New Arkham.”

  The soldier groaned. “Ugh, the monster magnet city. I'm glad I'm posted up here” Cuda chuckled. “Well I hear they actually solved the issue causing monsters to be drawn to the city, so hopefully it's less active now. Anyway, if possible, send that to the NexGen in New Arkham and not the one closer to here” The soldier shifted. “Normally we drop off at the closest location. I'm guessing you want your sister to personally study this one.” Cuda nodded. “I'd like to remain in the loop considering it killed two of my friends.”

  The soldier nodded as it looked at the rest of the football team being debriefed. “It shouldn't be too much of a problem. Did any of your teammates see you fire that gun?” Cuda shook his head. “Just Ritchie who's a Doppelganger.” The soldier looked over to Ritchie who was also being debriefed. “Ah, I see. So I don't need to figure out how to explain you having the same kind of gun we do.” Once everyone was debriefed the team left the campsite and the team building trip was cut short with everyone going home. Cuda checked in with Ritchie before going home. “Hey buddy, I just wanted you to know that we don't have to be weird about this. Nothing will change between us.”

  Ritchie shifted before looking around. There was a Black Eagle person in the distance keeping an eye on them. He then looked at Cuda. “Actually, now that I know you know… maybe things should change. I…” Ritchie presses his lips together before continuing. “I don't have any human friends that know what I really am. So maybe we should embrace our unique situation. I mean how many Doppelgangers other than me can say they have a human friend in the know?” Cuda chuckled. “My friend that's involved with Black Eagle told me about running into a friend of his late father's only to find out his husband is a Doppelganger and he knows it. So this guy married a man, found out about Doppelgangers, and decided to stay with his husband despite learning he wasn't even human.”

  Ritchie blinked a few times. “That's… the local council usually frowns on us being romantically involved with humans. Though they are a little less harsh on same sex relationships.” Ritchie presses his index fingers together. “Though that is a bit silly since Doppelgangers can swap genders if they want.” Cuda nodded. “I know. I read the file on them. Anyway, we should head home now.” Ritchie did a small jump like he was startled by something. “Right, home. I'll see you later then Cuda.” With a wave the two went their separate ways and Cuda started on his way home.

  Cuda tapped at the screen in his car, he connected his phone to the system and used it to hands-free call Pitch. The phone rang a couple times before picking up. “Cuda? Everything okay?” Cuda let out a sigh. “I'm fine, untouched. I lost two teammates but Black Eagle responded before anyone else died.” There was a short silence before Pitch talked again. “Well I guess it could have been worse. Are you still out there?” Cuda tapped at his steering wheel as he drove. “I'm on my way home early.”

  There was another pause, this time longer, then Pitch’s voice came out the phone at a barely audible whisper. “Good, because I need your help with a super important mission. One that requires your utmost discretion. You think you can do that?” Cuda tapped the steering wheel and made a confused expression as he cocked his head to the side. “What could you possibly need my help with?” Once again a long pause followed by a whisper. “It's better if we talk about this in person. This is a top secret mission.”

  Cuda blinked, really confused as to what Pitch could possibly need him for if it was for something top secret but agreed to the terms anyway. “Sure thing man, whatever. Where should we meet?” Pitch responded quickly. “The old mall.” Cuda adjusted himself. “I'll head right there as soon as I'm in town. It'll be a couple hours.” Pitch responded quickly. “It can wait till morning actually, I'll see you then.” The call ended as Pitch hung up the phone. Cuda continued home. After a couple hours he arrived, entered, took off his shoes, went to his room, and plopped into his bed. He quickly passed out with his clothes still on.

  Cuda woke up the next morning feeling groggy and slowly got up and got himself ready. After eating a humble breakfast of eggs and bacon with a side of coffee, he then got into his car and started driving to the city's old mall. Pitch was waiting outside the door to the old but still used building. “Okay Pitch, I'm here. What's the top secret mission? I don't know what you could possibly need me for.” Pitch looked around before pulling Cuda to the side of the entrance. “I'm going to try my best to explain things, but I was hoping for your help because it involves your sister.”

  Cuda tilted his head. “I just survived a close encounter with a hybrid cryptid that killed two of my team, one of whom I'm fairly sure was hoping to seduce the Wendigo thing. Because for every misguided individual and outright bigot that would want a public Doppelganger registry there's a down bad clown willing to put it all on the line for a chance at a piece of Wendussy. Whatever you want my help with involving my sister better not be something stressful.”

  Pitch scrunch his face, knowing the first statement to be true. “Well you won't have your life on the line if that's what you're worried about.” Pitch paused and took a number of breaths more out of habit than necessity. “Look, my life has been crazy. I've almost died more than once and have been forced to face my own mortality despite my newer and more durable form. I don't want any regrets, and although it might be a bit fast considering we've only been together for about two years…”

  Pitch reached into his pocket and stealthily pulled out a small fuzzy box. Cuda pointed to it. “Is that what I think it is?” Pitch nodded. “I was hoping that in addition to your blessing you'd be there to witness the proposal. I already have your parents' blessings. Hell, your mom's been planning for grandkids since I ate at their house that time. But unlike you, they don't know what I really am. I was also hoping you'd be my best man assuming she says yes.” Cuda shifted back and forth, looking at the fuzzy felt box. “Can you… even have kids?”

  Pitch nodded. “Kathryn ran a number of tests. Apparently it's unlikely but not impossible for her to carry my child. I have no idea what that would look like but that's a problem for me in the future.” Cuda continued to eye the box. “You've got my support. What is the plan for the proposal?” Pitch scratched his head. “I'm still working on that. I mean the timing and location usually matter for these sorts of things, right?” Cuda shrugged. “How would I know? I've never proposed to anyone before.” Pitch and Cuda start going back and forth on ideas for several hours.