The Local Cryptid
The Pinewood Beast (also the Pinewood Alien and Creature of Pinewood Road) is an unidentified creature purportedly sighted in and around ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛. Reports of the creature began circulating locally and online some time in 20⬛⬛, and it has become a semi-popular local urban myth.
Description
The body is described as being long and slender, about twice the length of an average human adult, and one account describes the head as dog-like, with long ears. The eyes glow even in the absence of light to reflect on them. Descriptions of its color and patterning are inconsistent, with claims that it can change colors like a chameleon, but it is often said to bear a distinctive marking on its chest which some think resembles a bowtie.
The creature walks comfortably on two or four legs, and climbs extremely well. It reportedly scaled the side of a three-story building with ease after a witness spotted it in an alleyway and shone a flashlight in its direction. The number of limbs are variable; reports cite either four or six legs on the creature.
Descriptions are consistent with – and often explicitly identify it as – the alien species Proteus amphimorpho, a popularized modern-day cryptid associated with numerous sightings due to its shapeshifting nature.
Sightings and Encounters
The first reported sighting of the creature was in October 20⬛⬛, when a camera trap set up by a hobbyist captured a blurry photo of an unknown creature darting past. The photo was posted to an online forum to help identify the animal, and subsequently went viral – notably, the creature’s eyes glow a ghostly blue, and it appears to carry an object in its maw. The object was later identified as a tea kettle by commenters to the original photo.
Subsequent sightings are most frequently reported near the edge of the woods surrounding ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛, and the creature is alleged to be the culprit behind numerous reports of stolen items from hikers, campers, and park rangers in the area. Some believe it may reside within the nearby wildlife preserve.
The creature is shy of humans, and flees upon being noticed. It is said to disrupt camera traps it finds, and evades all attempts to capture it – some witnesses believe it to display human-like intelligence and reasoning as a result.
Notable encounters:- Some witnesses suggest that the creature sometimes takes on a convincing human form. According to one account, it frequents the local diner in town and always orders pancakes.
- It is not known to be aggressive, though one person reports being viciously attacked after pursuing it. The witness claims it suddenly grew 4 times its original size and tried to take a bite out of him with “massive fangs like a saber cat”.
- A photo of an animal alleged to be the creature was taken on the side of Pinewood Road and subsequently circulated online on April 29, 20⬛⬛. Local rangers dismissed the photo shortly afterwards, the animal in the photo identified as a deer of “unusual coloration” that had previously been seen in the area.
- A video posted on June 14, 20⬛⬛ shows the silhouette of an animal rearing up onto two legs to stare directly at the viewer from a distance. The eyes of the animal reflect an eerie blue color similar to the creature seen in the camera trap photo.
Speculation on Origin
Speculation on the creature’s origin and identity was a topic of interest on the cryptozoology forum Animalia Paradoxa for a time, with popular consensus on the species identification being P. amphimorpho, an alleged alien species created and studied aboard the Infinity Research Station prior to its decommissioning. Reports of amphimorpho sightings appear in multiple countries, owing to the species’ rumored shapeshifting abilities.
Origin theories for amphimorpho appearing on Earth vary. They are most commonly thought to be escaped specimens, sometimes thought to be linked to secret government projects. Another fringe theory posits that amphimorpho are capable of transforming other organisms into amphimorpho, and that sightings may be of animals or even humans that are victims of such an encounter.
Author's Notes
Date Posted: Nov 30, 2024I cannot tell you how just how many wiki articles about cryptids I read through to try and crack the code on how to write this one! X'3
I intended for there to be a little caption accompanying the "photo", but I couldn't figure out how to get the < figure > tag to work without it breaking the "float" property! Ah well, maybe I'll have that figured out another time.
Credit for the photograph used as the background for the drawing goes to portgrimes.