“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.