A folder was handed to me, emblazoned with the legend 'TOP SECRET: Report on Beira Incident'. I looked at the secret service man who had brought it to my offices in the Ministry of Defence.
"Is this the report I was told to expect?"
"Yes."
I looked at it with the kind of expression I reserved for the most useless pieces of information. There were assumedly words printed on the pages, but all save a few meaningless verbs were lost under a spray of blotting ink and pen markers which turned it into something more indecipherable than Linear A. I looked at the man again.
"This redaction makes my job impossible. Or was that the intention?"
"We wanted to ensure you had as little as possible, given the circumstances."
"Well, you've certainly given me that. A few words. Some bylines. Nothing much to go upon."
"That's the report we've needed to prepare for the main authorities. The one you will receive is the uncensored report. I wish we could release it, for the sake of the soldiers' families, but..."
I raised an eyebrow. "But?"
"But we have no way of telling them what happened to most. Because... Well, read the report and judge for yourself."
Another folder was handed to me. This time, the text was intact. I looked up in an attempt to continue the conversation, but the man had gone. Looking down at the report, I skimmed through it quickly. There were enough phrases there which made me pause and wonder if this whole thing was some elaborate practical joke. But then I turned to the summation page, which covered the major events and a condensed version of the details.
'Royal Marine special forces teams Zeta and Explorer were sent in turn to the Scottish village of Beira after contact was lost with it when a thick fog descended on the region. Civilian forces entering the area also vanished, prompting this response. Contact was lost with Teams Zeta and Explorer, and within three hours of Team Explorer entering the region, the fog dispersed.
Upon investigation by official military and special forces, they found evidence that the residents of Beira had been abducted by an unknown third party. There were no signs of landing craft, aircraft, or land vehicles that could have been used for extraction. While local farm animals and pets were alive and generally unharmed, barring the period of time left without supervision from the people of the village, all residents had disappeared. There were also signs of Teams Alpha and Explorer being present, but also being removed from the area by the same unknown means. Some elements, such as gas beings being left on in some houses and cars being left running, indicate a lack of warning. There are also some signs of force including broken windows, and some signs of blood identified as human in larger areas or areas near the roadways leading away from Beira, indicating an attempt to escape.
The one survivor of this incident is a Private Helen Twotrees, who was discovered near the public house. She showed signs of human blood spatter across her, and an unknown substance that behaved similarly to blood but was unidentifiable. Her weapon was with her, and had been emptied. Used ammunition near her indicate what appears to have been a concentrated bout of fighting with some hostile force. Her mental state is described as catatonic, with only one or two phrases being gotten from her since she was found. These words have been reported as 'eyes in the fog' and 'life stealers'. She had not responded to questioning from doctors, or her superiors.'
After this, there was little worth repeating. No clues had been found, no further evidence, and no identifiable remains such as bodies or even body parts beyond some suspicious elements identified vaguely as 'viscera'. The surviving pets of the village had been taken in by the local RSPCA branches, and exhibited signs of nervous fright. Helen Twotrees was in care at a military hospital in Yorkshire, and had shown no improvement. The incident was being treated as a tragic incident due to some kind of spillage. Thankfully the village was isolated from most of the rest of the surrounding country, so not as drastic as it might have been.
I paused for long consideration. It was an interesting report to say the least, and borderline unpublishable. After all, who would believe someone left a catatonic mess? It was something to be avoided for anyone. Helen Twotrees might recover and add to the story, but it was entirely possible she might never recover. And what of the others? Viscera, and discarded weapons, was all that had been found. And who, or what, had attacked Beira? Who or what had left the village deserted and upended? And an awkward final question came to mind. Could it happen again? And if so, where?
I looked at the weather. Unusual fog was being reported around Morecambe Bay. But then, fog often happened around Morecambe Bay these days. But then, why am I sending you this? Perhaps you should turn on the news and find that out for yourself.
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