2021-11-21 - Sea Monsters in Our Gray Harbor??

It's early in the evening, but the sun has already set as time moves on to winter. Even the purplish evening light has deepened to black by this point, and stars can be seen twinkling through the shredded clouds. There are lights twinkling on the water, too - bright and brash from the casino, and muted and far away from the docks and the shipping vessels who come in, day or night. The beach is nearly deserted; neither teenagers nor tourists find the dark, cold, wet very entertaining. Alexander is here, though. He's using the flashlight app on his phone to examine graffiti on some of the bigger rocks. He's easy to mistake for a hobo, in the shabby, too-big clothing that he wears, the old army jacket reaching almost down to his knees.

Ellery is here, in a heavy, insulated rain jacket - the kind TV crews are often seen sporting. He's got a tripod set up with an expensive looking camera pointed at...the inky black water. He's frowning as he looks from his phone to the water. He's got a small remote in his hand that he clicks, pauses for a long while, then looks down at his phone, and pauses again. Something seems to have alerted him, because he calls out to Alexander, "Sir, hey, sir! Would you mind stopping with the flash for a moment, please?"

Sometimes it's the quieter settings that attract artistic minds, and Hera is one of them. While the gallery is her home in many ways, she decided to venture outside further and further until she came to the beach. Being a colder time of year, she wears a comfortable jacket and a thick pair of jeans to help shield her skin from the cold. (https://c4.wallpaperflare.com/wallpaper/898/426/534/women-redhead-actress-jaime-ray-newman-wallpaper-preview.jpg )Being of a wise mind though, she decided to take her dutiful German Shepard on the trek with her. Initially she seems to be minding her own business until her dog peers over at the light. "It's nothing to worry about boy, I'm sure it's not." she tells her canine companion, "Couldn't be any different from the stars above us." But of course it is. To further state that fact, Ellery's comments grab her interest so, with a shrug, the two make their way toward the 'would be' hobo in the large army jacket.

Alexander clicks off the flashlight app for a moment, straightening up. His eyes adjust to the darkness and he picks out the shape of Ellery, and his camera. With a frown, Alexander approaches. "What are you taking pictures of?" he asks, like that's in /any/ way his business. His eyes flick warily towards the approaching Hera, but - although it might be lost in the dark - he smiles to see the dog, and gives a curt, "Hey," to her. Or maybe to the dog.

"Long exposure time. Any light going on and off messes up the image," says Ellery. It's clear now that his phone is used as a monitor for the high-end digital camera and he's checking the images he takes. "There's a report of..." He hesitates and looks from Alexander, and a nod to Hera, "...a...creature in the waters. Not around here. A little further north. But this matches conditions of other sightings."

Hera continues to step closer until she is close enough to easily be heard, "A creature?" she asks, "In the waters? I didn't think we were close to Loch Ness." Of course, crazy things happen in this small town, much crazier than she would ever openly admit herself. "As far as whether it messes up the image or not that might be up for debate. I'm sure the sunlight does more damage than it should." Hans does indeed notice but for now all he does is whine a little in response and stands near his mistress.

"What sort of creature?" Alexander asks. At least he doesn't seem skeptical, just curious, peering out into the waters with a frown, himself. "And we're nowhere near Loch Ness, but most waters have tales about some sort of unusual creatures attached to them. Or just out-of-territory aquatic animals." He thinks about it, then turns back to Hera. "You're the gallery person. We've met before."

Ellery hesitates. He's clearly been met with skepticism in the past. "It's a long shot, but worst-case scenario? I get some nice long exposure night shots of the ocean I can sell on Shutterstock." He makes a few adjustments. "I have a theory that the Cadborosaurus might be migratory and it makes its way down the coast from the Victoria area a tthis time of year, and almost exclusvely at night. It's a calm night, so hey, worth a shot?"

Hera would try not to sound like an airhead but reptiles, from any era of time, is likely not her speciality. "Saurus." she muses, "Must be a dinosaur of some sort? Biology was not my field of study though Shutterstock, it's more overrated really. I even heard rumors that it's not the most ethical place to sell your work. I do try to keep track of those trends. Any business that doesn't treat artists as they should, well, you'd have to worry about another type of monster on your hands if that was the case." A smile is offered toward Alexander, "Yes, I think I do remember. I hope you have been doing ok. I'm actually a bit surprised to see anyone out here this time of night then again, you never know what you are going to encounter out here apparently."

"Cadborosaurus," Alexander says the word slowly, tasting it. Then he nods. "I see. Carnivorous?" Not are you really expecting to find a dinosaur off the Washington coast, but rather will it eat us. Alexander is a practically minded sort. He glances over at Hera again, thinks about it, then says, "I don't remember four months of my life, and my house flooded in that storm. But I'm alive. Probably. You?"

"It's aquatic. I don't know why it's got 'saurus' in the end. Probably because it got named in the 50s. Named after Cadboro Bay in Victoria. Like most sea monsters, people think it's just an oarfish. But even if it's an oarfist, those things are damned cool, man." Ellery shrugs with regards to Shutterstock. "Maybe. But hell, it's easy money for the most part. I sell on a few other stock photography sites too." He taps on his phone, then turns it around to show them a picture that is pretty much your classic sea serpent. Then, "Lots of memory loss going around, it seems."

Hera gasps a little, the news of amnesia not being a pleasing thought. "Four months? Yikes." She says, "My condolences, that's got to be a horrible horrible thing." Of course, she's curious but she doesn't pry, at least not yet. "I hope that life has settled down uh, gotten better for you." Just /what/ do you tell someone who had that sort of experience? With a slight sigh she mentions, "If it's going around, it's news to me. I guess I've just been preoccupied with my classes and little else." She does manage to smirk a little at the aquatic creature, "In a way, it looks kind of cute."

Alexander's eyes flick to Ellery, assessing. "You too?" he asks. "Lots of people seem to have trouble with the last twelve weeks or so. No one knows why, though." And that irritates him, it's clear. He even kicks a rock, and watches it clatter down to the surf. His eyes flick to Hera. "But not you. Interesting." His fingers come up to scrape against the stubble on his cheeks, and he leans forward to get a look at the creature. "Haven't seen anything like it around here. Doesn't mean that it's not, though. I don't spend much time in the ocean."

"One moment, my friend and I were holed up at the uh..." Ellery almost says the actual name of it, but then decides on, "...murder motel. Next minute, we were in an apartment and it looked like we'd been settled in for weeks. I mean, I heard this place is weird. That's why we came here. But..." He shakes his head. "After that, looking for sea monsters feels positively normal."

Hera comments, "Four months, that's a very very long time. I'm going to have to ask Devlin what he has heard about it. I have had some stranger dreams, more stranger than normal, whatever normal actually is. As far as sea monsters well I heard that there's less known about the sea than any place, but maybe I still fantasize about some of the legends that Ravn used to talk about. I'm getting a bit worried though. I hope all of my friends are ok."

Alexander snorts, briefly. "You're lucky to have gotten out of the murder motel," he says. "Although there don't seem to have been any murders there for a while." Does he sound disappointed about this? Yes, actually. Just a bit disappointed. "This place is weird, though. That was right. You should probably leave, but you won't." It sounds resigned. He glances at Hera. "The kind of dreams you have asleep, or the ones where you're awake?"

"Apparently I put down roots without remembering it," drawls Ellery dryly. "Unpacked and everything. Which is unlike me. I lived out of boxes for six months at my last place. Though that might've been the roommate's doing." He shrugs, then looks back at his phone, then snaps another picture. "Maybe that's the way to chase off spirits and murderers? Just keep telling people there are murderers and spirits there? Like shining a flashlight at the pile of clothes in the dark."

Hera frowns a little as she recalls strange visions that, oddly enough, entered her mind. Amnesia is not of her concern, but somethings weren't easily forgotten, "A dream dream " as if there were other types, "It came on suddenly I mean. I was just cat napping and there I was, issues of letting things go and, and of death." But was that what is really was about? She then bites her bottom lip nervously then she looks down at her dog, "No no don't worry." she tries to assure him, or maybe herself, "I'm not going nuts." of course the dog said /nothing/ to warrant that remark.

"Doesn't work with murderers, I promise," Alexander says, his voice deadpan. "But they do tend to object to people telling other people where they are." His head cocks to one side. "Interesting. About the roots. A lot of people who don't remember have done things that are mildly uncharacteristic. Not largely, but a little. It's interesting." He doesn't go on to speculate /why/, but just frowns about it. That frown is transferred to Hera. "If you're going nuts, there's nothing wrong with that," he tells her, solemnly.

"We're all mad here," mumbles Ellery. He steps up to his camera and shifts it, this time to include the curve of the coast. He frowns, shakes his head, and sighs. "I guess I was sort of hoping with all the other weirdness this town delivers, maybe it'd give me a cryptid. But, no such luck."

Hera sighs and in that sigh she lets her nervousness go. "Maybe, but this town, it has grown on me. Even if it makes you crazy, I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. For something that has a facade of serenity, there is something deeper there, but I don't care. The light outshines it all." She smiles a little and leans down to scratch Hans behind his ears, "But no matter what, he will always look out for me. Always."

"Give it time," Alexander says, with a weird sort of smile-grimace-thing. "I've seen mermaids, fucked up deer things...there's a lot of shit out there. What's your name?" he asks, startled, like he only just realized that he never asked. "I'm Alexander Clayton." He glances down at the dog when Hera scratches its ear. "He's a good dog," he says, with no hesitation - even if he doesn't bother to hide his skepticism about everything else.

"Ellery Briar," says the photographer. Then he attaches to, "Fucked up deer thing?" Some other people might be put off by that but he seems quite genuinely interested. "My goal is to catch fucked up deer things and other creatures on camera." And he hasn't been here long enough to realize that the Veil doesn't really like you doing that.

Hera nods politely and introduces herself as well, "Hera" she says, "And yes, yes he is. He even tolerates abuse from the cat." Yes among the talk of strange monsters, there are normal creatures out there. "Good luck with such a goal. Better luck finding a good place to show the world such a find. Not everyone is interested in strange goblins and ghouls, even if there is a deeper story there."

"Won't work," Alexander tells Ellery. At least he does sound apologetic about it. "If it's from Over There, or in a Dream, you won't be able to record it. Can't record people who stand out using their abilities, either. The Veil pushes back. It might break your camera." He smiles at Hera's mention of the cat. "Cats are always the biggest things in the room, even when they're not. Sorry, boy," he says, to the dog.

Ellery frowns, and it's a rather mighty frown. "Well...maybe it's just weird biology. That shouldn't be an issue, right? Not all cryptids have a tie to the supernatural." Ellery thumbs through the few pictures on his phone. They're nice photos, but here there are not monsters. "If this Veil thing breaks any of my gear, it owes me new gear. That's how I make my living, man," he drawls.

Poor Hans....poor fella. He doesn't understand the strange sounds that hoomans make, right? Maybe he does when Alexander points out that cats are the real bosses. He whines and hangs his head a bit as everyone discusses even odded things. "Not all things are cryptids and there are somethings that might be best to leave alone, if, indeed, you even can leave it alone and if you're speaking of exactly what I think you may be speaking of, trust me, the last thing it will care about is your gear. It'll owe you nothing and if you thought you had any sanity before, well, just wait." But the redheaded artist does have a better outlook on life, yes?

Alexander gives a rusty sort of chuckle. "If you manage to get the Veil to pay a bill, let me know how. I've got several hospital bills that could use some reimbursement." To the rest, he can only shrug; cryptobiology is clearly not his specialty. He does like dogs, though, so when Hans hangs his head, Alexander goes to one knee, heedless of the wet sand and rocks, and extends a hand to the dog. If allowed, he'll give him some reassuring scritches and pets.

"I'm not very good at leaving things alone. I'm a photojournalist. I kinda like digging at things," says Ellery to Hera as he starts to pack up his gear. Apparently he's given up on his cryptid hunting for the evening, and perhaps worried about tales of the Veil wrecking expensive photography gear.

Hans would very well be overworked and underpaid for everything he does. Someone has to watch over the art gallery after all and those students coming in and out, oh the atrocities there. And these people are taking about the veil? If only the four legger could really hide behind something at times but he senses Alexander is friendly enough and, being a dog, he reaches his tongue out toward the man to give him a playful lick. What matter way to introduce yourself than offer a SLURP?

"Be careful." she tells Ellery, "If something feels bothered, law of nature, it'll push back and believe me, you will know when it pushes. More than one of my dear friends has wound up in the hospital but it could have been worse. If you like digging at the wrong things, you will get hit on the head with a shovel."

Alexander does not mind the slurp. Or letting Hera take the lead in giving the New Gray Harbor Resident Doom Tour. He smiles at Hans and gives many pets, while listening to them both from below. "I dig at things, too. You can do it. But it's dangerous. The chance of shovels on heads is non-zero," he admits, and nods towards Hera.

"Wait..." says Ellery as he pauses in the packing up of his gear, "...if you dig...you get hit with a shovel? You ever watch that movie, Hitchhiker's Guide, with the weird shovel creatures?" He flashes a grin, "Cause now that's what I'm picturing." He then returns to disassembling his gear with the practiced hands of a man who knows his tools.

Hera finds some humor in the conversation but Hans just keeps on licking. Maybe there's something salty about Alexander? "Ideas are good things. Messing with monsters, not so much. I do remember that story though. Yet Mystery Science Theater was a bit more entertaining. That was probably due to the good company at the time. I've started to get more interested in science fiction in the past five years. Before that, hopeless romantic films, that was me. I don't know why."

"I don't do much fiction," Alexander admits, with a shrug. "Living in Gray Harbor is enough." He doesn't mind the licking at all, but eventually ruffles the dog's fur and stands up again. He watches them both with a flat but intense interest. "Is it good? This movie with the shovel things?"

"It is if you like British humour. Apparently more Canadians like that than Americans, so maybe you shouldn't trust me," says Ellery as he slots his gear into his camera bag. "I'm also a sucker for anything Sam Rockwell does, so I'm a bit biased." He tosses the clips on the tripod legs and folds them up. Apparently talk of movies is safer than talk of supernatural forces destroying camera equipment and putting people in hospitals.

Hera continues on with the talk about movies, "British humour is good. One of the last movies I went out to see was The Thing when Devlin had his coworker seriously crushing on him. I kind of wish the monster would have jumped off the screen to devour her, might have been entertaining. Who knows? I guess I don't mind a horror flick here and there. I wonder if Thewlis has the theater open for now?"

Alexander gives Hera a long, thoughtful look at the mention of monsters devouring folk. "Wouldn't be the first time," he says, with a shrug. "And I like British humor. I did watch...this thing. In college. Monty Python's Flying Circus. With other students. It was pretty entertaining, especially while high."

"High. Now you're talking my language," says Ellery. He finishes stowing his gear into the backpack camera bag, and slides the tripod into an external strap. He hefts it onto his back. "Well, you've convinced me hanging out on a dark beach, trying to take pictures of creatures might not be the best idea. So I'm going to head back to my oddly settled apartment. Nice to meet you both. And dog."

Hera bows her head politely and lets Hans remain by next to her. For now, there's no extra licking but a polite wave is offered toward Ellery, "Be safe" she says, "Nice to meet you as well."

"Don't die, Mr. Briar," Alexander tells Ellery. "And don't go hunting creatures in the woods alone. Take someone." He rattles off a series of number, which happen to be his phone number. Other than that, he just nods to Hera. "Glad you're still alive," he says. "I should go, as well. It's getting cold." He smiles at the dog, then turns and walks off back towards the road.