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September 10, 2008
In the Beginning
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CLASSIFIED
Doc. i. d. : 0219-37 B Class 'L' XXXXX
Security: Classified
EVIDENCE XXXXX
Concerning deaths of several dozen unknown male and female, "John and Jane Doas" at or near United States Air Force property in Chaves County, New Mexico
Contents:
One (1) reel magnetic audio tape, recovered from engineering floor of research complex
Containing voices of:
: HW - Harold Wilkins, Ph D. P.I., "Lazarus Project"
: JB - Jerome Banks, asst to Dr. Wilkins
: FS - Francis Shenson, asst to Dr. Wilkins
: ?? - voice(s) of at least one other person
Source:
Room 12, engineering floor, Roosevelt research complex, Dexter
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June 14, 1947
Roosevelt Research Center
Dexter, NM
Background:
On June 12, 1947 M.P. David. S. Branford reported a disturbance at the Roosevelt Research Center.
Upon investigation, he found three (3) civilian employees of the facility: Dr. Harold Wilkins and two assistants, Jerome Banks and Francis Shenson, surrounding a number of severely injured individuals.
M.P. Branford was unable to determine the viability of the victims. However, later autopsies confirmed the victims likely expired before M.P. Branford arrivde at the scene.
After a cursory search of the area, the three witnesses named above as well as M.P. Branford were driven to the local field office in Lake Arthur. On Rt. 2 the car collided with another military vehicle and all occupants were killed. M.P. Branford did not file a report.
The victims of the initial incident are currently undergoing additional extensive autopsy at the Lake Arthur Field Office.
On June 13, 1947, Field Agent Wilson began a thorough investigation of the facility where the initial incident took place, in Room 12 in the sub-basement at the Roosevelt research complex.
The research being conducted at Roosevelt is classified, but to this agent's knowledge no biological research was being performed.
Discovered in Room 12 were what appeared to be the mutilated remains of several dozen persons. However, the extensive damage to the tissues means that the origin of the bodies could be animal, or possibly a mix of animal and human. In some cases, two or more bodies appeared to be fused together.
Additionally, in the middle of the room was a roughly truck-sized device labelled, 'TIEZ Maschine MAR. 8' on one side.
It has been determined that the device was first delivered to the research station in November, 1945 as part of a package of technical and scientific equipment appropriated from German research stations following the fall of Berlin.
A comprehensive survey of the device has yet to be performed. The only parties with any knowledge at all about the device were Dr. Wilkins and his assistants (or Germain scientists who died in the war or are otherwise unavailable for questioning).
A brief examination by some of the Roosevelt engineers discovered that the device must use a tremendous amount of electrical power, equivalent to what an entire small town would use during a typical evening.
The device contains a door, and upon opening, the inside was discovered to be completely filled with blood.
No controls of any kind were discovered on the exterior, but several cryptically-labeled dials and switches fill one wall of the interior.
Most of these still bear their original German words, and some have been re-labelled in English, although most are too vague to help reveal their purpose.
Examples of the English labels include: "More", "More again", "Acceleration", etc.
So far the consensus is that the device is some sort of vehicle, although no wheels or propulsion system is evident.
Lastly, Wilson located a reel of magnetic audio tape on a wall-mounted megnetophone system. The system was in operation and the reel was in fact still revolving at the time of the investigation and it is assumed that Dr. Wilkins and his assistants were recording an experiment at the time of the incident.
What remains in this report is a transcription of the recording found on the tape.
- Special Agent Peter Gable
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TRANSCRIPTION OF TAPE ID 0219-37 B
est. June 12, 1947
(the identity of each speaker is inferred from context - P. G.)
FS - It's on.
HW - Jerry, [inaudible speech] fifty-four or fifty-five?
JB - SIXTY-four
HW - Sixty-four? [sounds of machinery] Glad I asked.
FS - Let me get the cable.
HW - Do you want to put bets on today?
JB - We're recording
HW - What? Frank, did you put on the tape?
FS - Yeah
JB - You can see it turning
HW - All right, let's get started. This is Doctor Harry Wilkins. Today, I and my two assistants are making our sixth attempt to power the Mar-8 machine. The five previous attempts all failed, primarily due to inadequate power supply. Today we have guaranteed adequate electric supply, and... so... Ready, Jerry?
JB - Ready
HW - O.K. Flip it!
[a cracking sound, a loud buzz, shouts]
HW - Turn it off! Turn it off! ... Frank, get the fire extinguisher... Jerry, open the door.
JB - [clears throat] This is Jerome...
HW - Never mind that, just open the door
JB - Well, you'd better...
HW - This is Harry Wilkins, the experimental power source seemed to have worked, although it looks like we may have shorted out something. A lot of vapor is coming from the device. Jerry is opening the door...
JB - Oh, XXXX
HW - Jerry. Jerry! [inaudible]
FS - What's that smell?
HW - What is that?
JB - It's like a... person... chopped up... but... lots of people... mixed together
FS - XXXXX! [sound of vomiting]
HW - I... I, uh...
JB - What now? What the XXXX!
HW - I don't know.
FS - Where did it come from?
HW - Only one place it could be from.
FS - Really!? But [inaudible]
HW - If this thing really is what the Nazis said it was, then yes.
FS - [inaudible] Some kind of horrible joke?
JB - No, wait. If this is real, and we really do have it... working... [inaudible]
FS - I don't call that XXXXXXX working.
JB - But, it did work, didn't it.
HW - Too bad we couldn't talk to our first visitor.
JB - I just figured we'd be using the thing ourselves first.
[mechanical noises]
JB - So... what now?
HW - Let's clean this up. Frank, get the skip loader.
[the next several minutes voices are mostly inaudible, masked by the sound of combustion engines]
HW - We won't get all of it, but that should be good enough.
JB - XXXX XXXXXX XXX XXXXXXXXXX XXXX
HW - Jerry.
JB - Sorry.
HW - All right. Well, let's try again. Jerry!
JB - Are you sure?
HW - We have everything set correctly
JB - We don't know that
HW - It's not us who are choosing to arrive here. And the only way we can test it is if it's turned on, so flip the switch!
[a cracking sound, a loud buzz, shouts]
FS - The door!
[inaudible voices]
JB - I can't!
[the buzz gets louder and higher pitched]
FS - XXXX!
[the buzz turns into a piercing whine and finally culminates in a loud pop and is then quiet save for the sounds of moaning]
HW - Are you all right?
JB - Yeah
FS - Yeah.
JB - More of the same
HW - Seems like it
JB - XXXX Look at them!
FS - They're not as... bad as the others.
JB - Look, these people, like Siamese twins...
HW - So it's thinning out.
JB - What?
HW - The frequency of arrivals is thinning out...
FS - Hey! Come here!
JB - Help him!
[grunts and moaning]
?? - What happened?
FS - Holy XXXX
JB - Who... how are you?
?? - I don't feel good...
FS - Just lie back.
JB - I'm Jerry, this is Fr...
HW - I'm Dr. Wilkins. What's your name?
?? - [inaudible] Where are we?
HW - This is the Roosevelt research complex in Dexter, New Mexico.
?? - New Mexico?! What day is it?
HW - The twelfth...
?? - What month?!
HW - June...
?? - What... What year?!!
HW - ... Nineteen forty-seven
?? - What!?
HW - Nineteen forty-seven
?? - Oh XXXX!
JB - Where... where are you from?
?? - New Canada. Twenty-one oh two
HF - Twenty-one oh two!?
?? - October. October third. Twenty-one oh two.
HF - Are you... Did you know you would arrive here?
?? - No. I. No. I just...
JB - Did you know any of these other people?
?? - No! XXXX I don't know. I mean, I sort of knew a few who had gone before me, but not really. They never came back, so I thought I'd check up on them.
HF - Have you seen this device before?
?? - Hunh? Yeah, it's what I took to get here. Looks cleaner, though, except for the... stains
HF - Are you saying you entered this same device in the year twenty-one oh two?
?? - Yeah. It was discovered last year some time. I mean, the year before I tried it.
HW - Amazing! Remember Schneider's Theory? Individuals will only be able to travel to and from the same physical machines.
JB - Let him speak.
FS - Why did you use the machine?
?? - Well, some said it was an alien artifact, and some others thought [inaudible] radiation bunker. Some guys managed to get it running, and one of them flipped some switches, and poof, he was gone. But nobody knows where. And after [moans] after a long time, there were still no answers, no one knew what the machine was for, and they figured the only way to find the first guy was to do whatever he did. [coughs] So another person set the dials the same way and no one ever heard from him again, either. [inaudible] real mystery. They weren't killed, they were just gone. So we knew the machine was some kind of teleportation device, and we figured they just didn't know how to get back. And every now and then someone else would try the machine. Most wanted the glory of discovering all the lost people, but ended up just becoming [inaudible].
JB - So this is them.
?? - What? [coughs]
JB - Look around, man. All these bodies are those people. They weren't just traveling to the same place, they were traveling to the same place at the same time!
HW - Schneider's Theory. Travelers will only be able to travel to and from the same physical machines. Which means that the earliest that anyone will ever be able to travel to is the moment at which the machine is first turned on. These people are all the ones who set the dials to the maximum setting. And all arrived at the same time.
?? - Oh XXXX!
JB - You must have set the dials just short of the maximum.
?? - I... I guess... Oh XXXX!
JB - He needs a doctor.
HW - What? Oh, of course! Frank, get one of the MPs in here!
[end of tape]
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It is strongly recommended that this document be destroyed after reading
Posted by mslaybau at 05:53 PM | Comments (0)
September 07, 2008
Coyote's Mexican Grill
Tracy felt like going out for dinner, and had the urge for Mexican again. I always want to try a place we haven't been to before and we ended up at Coyote's Mexican Grill on East College Ave. in Decatur.
2730 East College Ave.
Decatur 30047
The place looks like it used to be a Waffle House or something similar with the drop ceiling and vinyl booths. There was a small bar, but no draft beer or liquor, so what's the point? There was ample outdoor seating, but the atmosphere was of the sights and sounds of road traffic, so we opted for indoors.
The staff was very friendly and helpful. We forgot to tip until after we had paid at the register and by the time I had cash in hand, the busboy had cleared the table. What is the etiquette in that situation? I stopped the guy on his way back to the kitchen and handed him 6 bucks.
The prices were reasonable, but not cheap (the most expensive entrées were over $13) but the other patrons seemed like they would have fit in better at a much cheaper place. (ie. they were really fat)
The food was very good. I was surprised.
Chips and salsa were on the table. The chips were warm (good sign) and the salsa was thin and spicy - not the mild chunky stuff.
We started with the Guacamole Texano, which is like regular guac, except the avocado is left in big chunks instead of mashed up. Tracy said next time she would prefer the Guacamole Dip in which the avocado was puréed.
I had the Chicken Soup which surprised me. It was my favorite part of the meal. One bowl was full of broth and chunks of chicken. Another bowl had rice and pico de gallo (diced tomatoes, onions, and cilantro) and chunks of avocado. You dump the dry into the wet and eat. It was good. Not at all like the chicken soup I think of as 'standard' because there was no sage in it, which is the hallmark of the chicken soup of my childhood, but still good.
Tracy got one of vegetarian dishes as an entrée and I got the Tacos al Pastor. I had wanted pork, which seems harder to find in Georgia than in other states.
I don't know what pastors eat in Mexico, but what I got was a spread of three tortillas covered in a mix of well-seasoned cubed pork and a little pineapple. On the side was a plate of salsa verde, onion, and cilantro. On another plate was rice and refried beans. Unlike most other Mexican food I've eaten, the rice was good and the beans were good, too.
I normally don't like the 'sweet and sour' quality that pineapple brings to savory dishes, but this was quite good. Still, I could only eat one after the chips and everything, so I took the rest home.
So, all around it was a good meal.
Matt says:
I would have liked a draft beer or two, but a few bottles of Corona was okay. The food was very good.
Tracy says:
The vegetarian burrito was okay.
Posted by mslaybau at 12:09 PM | Comments (0)
September 02, 2008
Mouser
Andrew heard the snap of a wood plank breaking downstairs and the subsequent cascading crash of broken glass and something heavy falling down stairs. There was no shout or call for help.
He slowly lowered his glass to the table as he continued to listen, waiting for William's voice to come from the basement, swearing about shoddy workmanship or crying in pain.
There was none and Andrew silently rose from the sofa and crept toward the basement door, still listening. He paused and looked out the windows. The driveway was still empty, save for his own car. Joan would be away for another few hours, and no other visitors were expected; he would investigate alone.
Andrew opened the door and peered down without stepping in. He called down, "William?" in a normal voice and waited for a response. He called again and listened for the sound of breathing.
The small light bulb was on, but was of low-wattage, a testament to William's frugal nature. All Andrew could see clearly were the top few steps, one of which was splintered and caved in on one side. He stepped over the broken wood and descended until he could see the body: splayed out face down among a pile of rusted antique farm machinery that William had been intending to restore. Tossed to the side was the box of canning jars Andrew had brought over that day, as a gift for Joan. Glass was everywhere.
"William?" Andrew's heart was racing, but he slowly and carefully moved toward the body until he could touch it. Suppressing his fear he tilted his head to look at the face - it had been smashed by the top of the blade of a plow resting on the floor and was unrecognizable. Andrew moved back, breathing hard. He wanted to vomit but just closed his eyes. Then, he reached forward to check for pulse. There was none. The skin already felt cold and almost damp.
Years ago, William and Andrew had played tennis nearly every week, after William had finished teaching at the medical school, when Andrew's business was still thriving. Andrew remembered William's physique on the court and in the locker room - broad shoulders and and muscular thighs. But that was years ago and the body lying below him now was nothing like the William he remembered: skinny arms and legs, pot belly, pale and pockmarked skin that had once been tan and healthy.
Andrew shook his head in pity for the man he used to know. Then he stood up and took a deep breath and assessed the facts: The old boy had been carrying a heavy load down a dim, narrow, rickety stairway when one of the steps broke, sending poor William plunging headfirst down to the bottom where he landed on a pile of hard, sharp equipment. That was it, wasn't it? Could there even be the possibility of any alternative? Might there be the slightest chance that this was 'foul play'? Was there anyone who would want William dead?
Andrew jogged up the staircase to investigate the broken step. If this had been sabotage, someone could have sawed through the step partway, so that anything more than say, 150 pounds would have caused it to break. He swept his fingertip over the broken edge, but felt only splintered wood, not the smooth line that a saw would have created. If it was sabotage, the saboteur was very good. Andrew caught himself smiling; he knew he was being paranoid - there was nothing to worry about, he told himself.
The next obvious thing to do was to call the police. But there was no hurry. First he wanted to check the body again for anything suspicious. It wasn't the idea of murder that motivated Andrew to begin going through William's pockets, it was the fact that the old boy was always so careful. How could he have let such a simple, common accident like this kill him? Andrew had often said that William reminded him of one if his Aunt Gloria's cats, Mouser. All the other cats and dogs were inevitably struck down by cars or cancer, or walked into the woods one day and never returned. But Mouser always came back - maybe with an injured paw, or muddied fur, but always returned. Andrew had never mentioned to William that Mouser was also the meanest, most vindictive animal he had ever known.
He laughed silently at this thought until he found a piece of paper sticking out of the side pocket of William's cardigan. As he opened it, he scrolled through a mental list of what it was likely to be: receipts? No, it seemed more like a letter. A letter to the manufacturers of something or other, threatening a lawsuit? That seemed likely. William could never let himself be taken advantage of, whether by friend, by enemy, or by corporation. So Andrew was surprised when he read the following:
"To Whom it May Concern,
Know this, I did not die in any accident. I have been murdered."
Andrew read the sentence again, twice, before standing straight up. He tried looking around in the basement, but there was no light except what was illuminating the body and himself.
Murder?! He thought to himself. He wanted to act, to react, but could think of nothing to do other than continue reading.
"The person who did this has known me for many years. He covets my job, my money, my home, and probably my wife, although Joan has never demonstrated any evidence that she knew anything about this."
No, Joan wouldn't have seen this coming; couldn't have known anything. She had her own life with her own friends.
"This person has tried to kill me before. My car's brakes have been damaged. Radios have been perched precariously close to the Jacuzzi. The most clever attempt was the antifreeze margarita at Ellen and Dave's New Year's Eve party. The ethylene glycol in antifreeze tastes sweet, can be toxic with only one ounce, and death caused by ingestion typically resembles a simple heart attack. Fortunately for me, the multiple attempts to kill me have given me a healthy paranoia, and I normally only eat and drink foods and beverages that I have prepared myself with ingredients from untampered sources. Before doing anything more than wetting my lips with it, I carried my glass upstairs and looked at the liquid under the ultra-violet light from Ellen's tanning bed. The liquid fluoresced, which is a sign of the presence of ethylene glycol. I just laughed, however, and risked taking another sip. The idiot didn't know that tequila is a very effective antidote to ethylene glycol poisoning!"
Andrew remembered the party, and remembered the old boy sneaking upstairs for several minutes, then returning with a grin and an empty glass. Andrew had known by then that William knew he was being targeted, but hadn't known that the antifreeze had been detected - he had assumed that not enough had been put into William's glass. Well, he would destroy this note, obviously. But was there any indication that William knew it was him?
"Working in the medical field has been an exhausting, frustrating, but also rewarding and educational experience. My friends in forensics have helped me determine which of my suspected poisonings have been false alarms, or the real thing. And Bruce in the morgue helped me very much by looking the other way when I needed to borrow one of the bodies. I had begun looking for someone like 'Charlie' years ago, when I first anticipated needing him. He was about my height and weight, although with a bit more of a paunch, and not as fit as I like to keep myself. Also, his (to be honest) very ugly face would never be recognized for mine. But that wouldn't be a problem. Charlie lived in the freezer for years, under the venison that Joan wouldn't have touched even if I paid her."
The hair on Andrew's neck stood up straight. He strained his eyes toward the sound of the freezer's compressor. He knew if he opened the door, there would be nothing unusual. And what would that prove? Then he heard a giggle in the darkness. Andrew turned around and there was William, naked but for his undershorts, holding a shovel over his head, laughing.
Posted by mslaybau at 01:20 PM | Comments (0)