The forklift truck stopped at the first container. One of the scientists ripped off the home-made sign that said “Beware: Raptors”. She turned to the soldiers with a stern look.
“Not raptors,” she said. “It’s called Variant 42.”
The soldiers shrugged and watched the scientist crumple the piece of paper and stuff it into her pocket.
“They don’t look like proper soldiers,” Krish whispered. “Maybe they’re some kind of private security? What’s the logo on their uniform, Nancy? On the right shoulder?”
Nancy zoomed in as she recorded the video so they could see.
“Oh no,” Krish whispered.
“BioMesa,” Pete said. “The shady research company. Surprise, surprise.”
Pete, Nancy and Krish had investigated mysteries involving BioMesa before. It was a company that was into all kinds of research – including fracking and animal research.
The forklift truck began moving again, driving forward so the front of the cage was almost touching the hatch on the front of the container.
The two scientists spoke to the soldiers, then climbed the steps up to the walkway that ran along the edge of the huge container. There was a heavy thumping almost as soon as they reached the top and looked down inside. As if something in there was smashing against the walls. The container shook, and the scientists jumped back as sparks burst from the top like fireflies.
Beside the forklift, one of the soldiers grabbed the RipSaw from the hook. She pressed the trigger, making the engine whine and the blade spin. She glanced at the sheep in the cage, then grinned.
“Feeding time,” she said.
“Power off!” one of the scientists shouted.
Below, the soldier not holding the RipSaw pulled a large switch on the side of the container. The sparks stopped right away.
“Engage!” shouted one of the scientists.
The front of the cage on the forklift slid upwards. A moment later, the door-hatch on the container slid upwards. The forklift rolled forward so the cage and the container were connected.
Nancy zoomed in further with her phone, but it was impossible to see exactly what happened next. However, they could tell that whatever was inside the container moved with terrifying speed and strength.
It snatched hold of the sheep and dragged it inside.
Then came an awful mix of screaming and bleating. Something banged and crashed against the inside of the container. The whole thing rocked from side to side as the forklift backed away and the door-hatch slammed shut.
Up on the walkway, the scientists looked down into the container while tapping hard on tablet computers.
Then, in an instant, everything went quiet.
The scientists stayed on the walkway for a while. Then one of them shouted, “Power on!” and they came back down the steps.
Without another word, the forklift drove away. Everyone walked back along the central aisle of the building and disappeared into a door at the far end.
“What did we just see?” Krish asked.
“That poor sheep,” Nancy said as she put away her phone. “What happened to it?”
“Those guys said ‘feeding time’,” Pete reminded her. “And … ‘Raptors’? There must be some kind of animal in there.”
“So what do we do?” Krish whispered.
Pete frowned at him. “Duh. We go and have a look of course.”