#eberhart

1. distribution anomalies - animals in places they shouldn’t be; e.g anomalous big cats of the UK

2. undescribed, unusual, or outsized variations of known species -  e.g. giant anaconda (Amazonia); spotted lions (East Africa)

3. survivals of recently extinct species - e.g. ivory-billed woodpecker, presumed to be extinct in 1960; Stellar’s sea cow, presumed to be extinct in 1770; both of which are occasionally claimed to have survived into the present

4. survivals of species known from the fossil records into modern times - e.g. mokele-mbembe (Central Africa) is sometimes described as a living dinosaur

5. lingerlings, or survivals of species known from the fossil record much later into historical times than currently thought - e.g. wooly mammoth, presumed to be extinct in 12,000 BCE, but is occasionally purported surviving into later eras

6. animals not known from the fossil record but related to known species - e.g. Andean wolf; striped manta ray

7. animals not known from the fossil record nor related to any known species - e.g. Bigfoot; sea serpents

8. mythical animals with a zoological basis - e.g. griffin, partly inspired by dinosaur fossils of Central Asia

9. seemingly paranormal or supernatural entities with some animal-like characteristics - e.g. Lizard Man; Mothman; Black Dogs; faeries

10. known hoaxes or probably misidentifications - e.g. jackalope, possibly inspired by rabbits infected with Shope papilloma virus, which causes anter-like tumors

Exclusions:

1. insignificance - cryptids must be big, weird, dangerous, or significant to humans in some way.

2. lack of controversy - someone needs to observe a mystery animal and someone else needs to discredit the sighting. cryptozoologists function as interventionists between the witnesses and skeptical scientists.

3. erratics - the out-of-place alligator...that turns up in an odd spot, undoubtedly through human agency, is not a zoological mystery...[i]f someone discovers a new species of alligator that lives only in sewers, that is a different matter.

4. bizzare humans - e.g. zombies

5. angels or demons - ...the paranormal is admitted only if it has an animal shape (a werewolf sighting, which might involve a real dog, or wolf, or a mystery canid.

"A Dream, A Nightmare"

I told you Plumstripe being bisexual would be relevant eventually!

I've been excited to write the end of Beeface and Plumstripe's stories. I always meant for both of them to get a redemption arc, although their behavior in the middle of the story got away from me a little and they ended up being more abusive than I had originally intended. I don't mind it, though; it opened up interesting avenues for my storytelling and I like where it landed them in the end. It's interesting to explore characters who behave extremely terribly for not very good reasons, but actually regret their behavior and want to grow from it. I'm also really fond of Eberhart's design, it's one of my favorites from the comic as a whole.

The title quote is taken from Fredric Brown's story "Arena": “Was this a dream, a nightmare? This heat, this sand, that vague feeling of horror he felt when he looked toward the red thing?”

Name: Eberhart

Role: Loner

Mate: Plumstripe

Mother: Emm

Father: Scotty

Children: N/A

Bio: Rough-and-tumble Eberhart was born an alley cat and has lived her life on the streets, but she holds strong to a bright outlook on life and tries to see the best of all situations. Don't let that fool you into thinking she's a pushover, though.

This is Eberhart's vibe to me.