"Something burst past the lines of the Soviet Third Army
near Minsk. This humble General does not wish to repeat the reports
he has heard, indirectly in a communique. A report has been prepared
and is being rushed to you, our great leader, on this matter..."
General F. L. Berezina, June 27, 1941
June 27, 1941 - In the early morning hours of June 27, just
a day before German forces took the city of Minsk, Subject 3009
began screaming incoherently about the witch and the house.
This was followed shortly thereafter by spontaneous poltergeist
activity throughout the compound. Two handlers sent in to sedate
3009 exploded in bloody sprays of organs and gristle. Heavily armed
guards were placed outside the holding section and chemical weapons
were brought in. At 04:00, the walls in 3009's holding cell began
to split from the relentless bulldozer-like assault from the madman's
mind.
Baba Yaga, Baba Yaga, Baba
Yaga... was all 3009 would say. Stalin finally authorized
the use of Sarin nerve gas at 04:14, and the Army pumped the facility
full of it, killing hundreds of test subjects as they remained locked
in the lower levels of the facility.
As the gas seeped into 3009's cell,
silence reigned... but only briefly. Then something broke free.
Descriptions varied, but all agreed
what they had seen was some sort of house: a small ornate and brightly
colored wooden shack, perched on top of many pale long crustacean-like
legs. The thing left a trail of carnage in its path from which few
escaped, reducing the Directive Installation to corpse-laden rubble
in a matter of minutes. One hundred fifty-four people died in the
conflagration, and the House escaped into the Pripet marshes to
the northwest of Minsk, walking away on its ponderous legs before
reinforcements could arrive.
In the aftermath, Stalin ordered
an exhaustive search of the area surrounding past the German lines.
The enormous thing was never found.
It would not be the last time it was
seen. |