Tale of Tails (series name is WIP)

DISCLAIMER!!! I'm new to writing and as such will be trusting grammar checkers to better my punctuations until I learn properly but NONE OF THE STORY IS AI WRITTEN. Got it? Just. Punctuation. plz review

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It was mid-summer, and Dan was celebrating his 26th birthday. Of course, celebrating was a bit of an overstatement; what was really happening was Dan and his 2 closest friends, Shawn and Jason, were having a few drinks and chatting about their childhood years by the fire pit.

"Hey Shawn, remember when Dan first moved here?" Jason asked, taking a sip of beer.

"Oh yeah... we were all around 14 at the time. Remember the trips into the woods we always went on?" They were all looking back on their youth with nostalgic fondness.

"Remember all the weird stuff we used to see? I swear those woods are haunted or something to this day," remarked Dan to both of his friends. As youth, the group would run through the forest using sticks for swords and fishing in the various ponds all connected by streams and flowing out to a larger lake miles away. As the night continued, the guys talked and chatted from dusk till dark until around 10:30.

"Looks like it's time for us to get gone." Jason mumbled, getting up from his seat. "Let's go." Shawn replied, getting up as well. All the guys wished each other a good night and a final happy birthday before starting around the house to the gate leading to their trucks in the driveway.

"I wonder if anything is in those woods." Dan pondered to himself as he got up, exhaustion and alcohol filling his head. He decided to meander towards his bed.

The next morning, Dan readied himself for work at 6 AM, knowing it was going to be a fairly easy week. A bit of office work followed by a nice country drive home and maybe just maybe...

"Hey Dan, do you have those data sheets for tomorrow's meeting?" A voice called out from behind him. When he turned to see who interrupted him, it was none other than his boss, Greg. A bit shorter at 5 foot 9 inches, Greg was somewhere in his 60s, mostly grey with bits of black still sprinkled in his hair and not very athletic, having somewhat of a beer belly. He was also somewhat abrasive in personality but ensured everyone got their jobs done well.

"Oh... uh, they should be finished up before I get off tonight." Was really all Dan could sputter, having just come out of his daydream. Dan was 5 foot 11 inches with dark brown hair and a well cared for mustache. Going to the gym twice a week and walking often had helped him lose the extra weight he promised himself he would after the ball dropped, ringing in the new year.

After a few hours of monotonous work, Dan drove to the outdoor goods store in town. Being an adult now with a job meant Dan could afford trail cameras and digital night vision. Spurred on by his conversation the other night with his friends, Dan wanted to see if he could spot more than just birds, squirrels, deer, and Coyotes in his backyard. After spending a ton of money and a car ride home, Dan headed for his room, changing from business casual into a pair of jeans, a camo shirt, and hiking boots.

As Dan started toward the woods, he began to feel a bit silly. Having just spent over a grand on equipment he's unlikely to ever really use again to find something that probably wasn't out there. Nevertheless, he continued, setting up his 4 trail cams in positions facing the bigger of the ponds in the area. He made sure to capture multiple angles of the clearing and water's edge.

"Surely anything living in this forest will grab water and rest here," Dan thought as he set up the last trail camera, sweat forming on his forehead and running down his face. After a good wipe and a short rest, Dan headed back toward the house, unaware that he was being watched from the trees.

"Hmmm..." was the only sound the creature made, watching Dan leave the area. It quickly and effortlessly darted from 1 tree to another silently, precisely, until it reached the first camera. Reaching down, the creature slammed its powerful tail into the camera, knocking it down and burying its lens first into the tall grass and dirt before proceeding to the other 3, slowly and methodically repeating the same actions to similar results.

"Ahhhh, that feels so good!" exclaimed Dan excitedly as he took his warm shower for the evening. "Maybe after this I'll grab some dinner and then check the cameras if it's still light out."

Dan had a pretty straightforward life. A few good friends, parents that cared (if not a bit too overbearing), though he never quite seemed to hold down a relationship, he wasn't exactly in a hurry for one. Having just recently bought a house for himself in the neighborhood where his parents and friends live, and though he had sent out a few job applications looking to change his work life up, he had to admit his income and hours were steady and good.

"What should I do about this?" The feminine voice of the creature soft and almost musical. "Surely he won't be an issue..." she continued to ponder aloud from the tree she was perched in.

Dan, having had dinner with enough sunlight left, decided to grab his night vision handheld and run down to check the cams. After a bit of walking, Dan's mind began racing, wondering what he may see. Perhaps deer and other fauna resting by the lake. Upon his arrival at the first camera site, Dan was confused.

"Surely I mounted this correctly... right?" Picking up the camera revealed a gash almost like someone had hit it with some kind of blunt tool. Whatever it was, Dan decided to check the other three cameras only to find similar results. "No way a poacher found all of these and nothing here could have done this damage, right?" As he collected the last camera, something big wrapped around his waist, grabbing and pulling him up to the tree and around forcefully until... Dan saw the most beautiful woman he could have ever imagined.

Her eyes a deep blue with jet black hair hanging down to her shoulders. Her face quite light yet obviously she had spent much time in the sun. Confused and adrenaline-fueled, Dan looked down. A thick brown tail with black spots held him from the waist down. Panic and fear filled his mind as Dan opened his mouth to scream. The end of the tail, clearly connected to the beautiful woman before him, snaked its way into Dan's mouth, silencing him with an earthly taste and smell.

All Dan could do is choke and plead with his eyes.