**Havenwood, Maine –** Authorities are investigating a disturbing and rapidly escalating event within the ongoing investigation of the disappearance of local schoolteacher, Abigail Pettigrew. Early this morning, a team of investigators, including members of the Maine State Police and a specialized unit from the Department of Biological Research, entered the abandoned St. Michael’s Chapel, located just outside of Havenwood, to assess the scene following reports of unusual activity. What they discovered has sparked widespread concern and raised questions about the nature of the events surrounding Ms. Pettigrew’s disappearance.

Initial reports described a significant alteration within the chapel’s interior. Upon entry, investigators found the entire structure saturated with a viscous, dark fluid, and the walls and ceiling covered in rapidly growing, chitinous growths resembling insect exoskeletons. At the center of the room, partially submerged in the fluid, lay the remains of Ms. Pettigrew. However, the remains were undergoing a profound and unsettling transformation. Her body was rapidly expanding, her limbs elongating and twisting, and her skin taking on a hardened, shell-like appearance.

“It was… horrifying,” stated Deputy Sheriff Dale Harding, one of the first responders to the scene. “One minute she was just…gone. The next, this…this thing was happening. It’s like something out of a nightmare.”

The Department of Biological Research has confirmed the growths are not consistent with any known terrestrial species. Preliminary analysis suggests a rapid, accelerated form of metamorphosis, exhibiting characteristics typically associated with deep-sea invertebrates, yet operating at a pace and scale far exceeding anything previously observed.

Dr. Evelyn Reed, the lead biologist on the investigation, offered a cautious assessment. “We’re dealing with something entirely new. The speed of the transformation, the biological structure… it defies conventional understanding. We’re exploring the possibility of a parasitic entity influencing Ms. Pettigrew’s physiology, but the scope of the changes suggests a far more complex and potentially self-directed process.”

Adding to the unease, local resident Silas Blackwood, who claims to have witnessed strange lights emanating from the chapel in the days leading up to the disappearance, stated, “I always felt there was something wrong with that place. Like it was…hungry. I told Sheriff Brody, but he just laughed and said I was getting old.”

The investigation is ongoing, with authorities establishing a perimeter around the chapel and urging the public to remain away from the area. The discovery raises serious questions about the nature of Ms. Pettigrew’s disappearance and the potential for further, unpredictable biological events in the Havenwood area.