Field Reports: March 2020 (Repost)

Re-posting because it wasn't actually edited yet!

Secret Agent Avia Jiutai was sent to a small North Asian country which had recently won a revolutionary war for independence from Russia. The SIU had no stake in the political uprising, nor was it involved in the elimination of members of the former police state, however Agent Jiutai was sent in undercover to investigate the claim by the revolutionaries that one prisoner would not die. The unnamed prisoner was hanged twice: the first attempt saw the rope snap and break, with the knots in the rope coming loose during the second attempt. A firing squad was attempted, wherein two guns jammed and all other bullets coincidentally missed. After Jiutai had fully infiltrated the organization, he was able to witness the prisoner receiving a lethal injection, only for the needle to snap and the poison to spill out. When he was able to talk to the prisoner (a former Russian police officer who claimed to be "in the wrong place at the wrong time") he described himself as simply extraordinarily lucky. Agent Jiutai has begun preparation to stage the prisoner's death in an attempt to bring him to an SIU lab for further study and possible exploitation: this may prove difficult as a certain group in the newly formed country are now hailing the prisoner as a “divine gift” in response to news spreading about his multiple survivals.

Secret Agent Gedat Rakkin is researching the independent film Zanzibar which has been continually aired in movie theaters world-wide for a record-breaking 98 months. Long runs of smaller, "cult" films are not uncommon, with certain films becoming audience events with devout followings. However, since its theatrical release, the ticket sales for Zanzibar have been incredibly consistent, entirely resisting the usual drop of sales over time other movies experience. Agent Rakkin was able to acquire a digital copy of the film for close analysis and discovered intricate runic patterns in many of the frames, suggesting not only subliminal messages but potentially arcane influence. The exact intention of these runes may never be known as the creators have not been available for comment, but they are posited to be the cause of what is now considered a compulsive need to re-watch a film that some critics describe as "meandering at best". The SIU attempted to pull the movie from circulation until the exact intention and effect of these runes could be determined, but these attempts failed, as most agents involved were too busy watching the film for the tenth time.

During their mandatory vacation week Special Agent Cat Zirka assisted a friend in investigating the appearance of eerily silent black helicopters. A staple of government conspiracy websites and stories, silent black helicopters have never actually been utilized by any known covert organization, as even "silent" air vehicles are not known to be subtle or discrete. The friend of Agent Zirka, however, claims to have been stalked by them for months and had video evidence to support the claim. In studying the footage, Zirka enacted a considerably unusual plan early one morning: using a large contraption featuring a fishing net, a cherry picker truck, and a harpoon gun, the special agent managed to capture a “helicopter” and bring it safely to the ground. Zirka's suspicion was correct: what appeared to be a black helicopter was in actuality an extremely large species of beetle which had the shape and size of a normal helicopter. The specimen, still alive but injured, has been transported safely to a secure location for study.

Special Agent Chaz Gates set sail on an ocean cruiser in an attempt to recover the crown and sword she had discovered in December, but she instead discovered a deeper oceanic mystery. On the second night of her journey, the ocean in the South Pacific became radiant with green light from deep under the water, a hazy and omnidirectional light which seemed to stretch for miles. Satellite imagery showed the cloudy area of light stretching across the ocean over an estimated hundred mile range. This persisted on the third night when Agent Gates, along with the marine scientists along for her journey, piloted a remote underwater drone to investigate the glow. Deep in the ocean, shoals of underwater creatures squirmed and shone with bright bioluminescence. Marine biologists expected a species of shrimp or holoplankton stirred up by a change in currents, but discovered a clew of glowing, finned worms instead. Samples of the species were taken to a research center, which suggested that they match a few rare deep-sea fossils, this discovery implies that this species may have its origins and hay day over a million years ago. As the worms continue to spread across the oceans, more research is underway as to their sudden reappearance.

Special Agent Kouroth is investigating a series of strange online videos and the mysterious disappearance of their creator. The internet user known by the username "fiskousfluid" was well known for videos on mysteries and occult topics, so when a secret code began to appear on his shirts in videos, fans assumed it was the beginning of a puzzle or internet game to be solved over time. However, when his regular uploads abruptly stopped and accounts suddenly grew silent, fans became concerned. The code on his shirts, when compiled and ran through several decryption methods, seemed to be coordinates: sadly, their indicated position was squarely within turbulent, international waters near Antarctica which left the online community stumped. This made Agent Kouroth a prime candidate to investigate the location, which he did in late February. Near the coordinates, in the middle of the freezing waters, a survey beacon belonging to an international coalition of marine biologists was discovered. Clinging to the buoy was the dead, frozen body of a man who would later be identified as the online user fiskousfluid. It is currently unknown how he got there, if he was dead before or after arrival, or how the apparently purposeful code in his own videos pointed to this exact, remote location.

A strange mummy was discovered in an ancient cave full of crystals. Special Agent Neo reports that in a small open cave connected to Mexico's Cave of Giant Crystals (Cueva de los Cristales), a make-shift tomb was discovered by mineralogists. Encased within one of the massive spires of clear crystal was a body, wrapped tight in cloth, cleanly preserved and accompanied by a small collection of personal belongings: a bow, a knife, and jewelry. Given the position of the body within the cave, it is suggested that this encasement was intentional, and that a new, rare form of mummification might have been discovered. In visiting the cave, Agent Neo helped discover more evidence of sentient settlement including ancient pottery and hints of art on the walls which have yet to be interpreted. As much of the rest of this cave is kept submerged in water to facilitate the growth and preservation of these unique crystals, it is not known how many other crystal mummies might exist. Archaeologists will soon begin their research in the area with help of the local government.