The Thing - Part 2

Chapter 5

MacReady flipped through the photos where what appeared to be Nauls's body was removed inside an ice pack by the Syntronic team.

— We were careful to prepare the containment module with the best technologies. The walls are lined with multiple quilts that carry carbon fiber, quartz fiber and carbon-silicon. The same material used in building rockets. The glass is laminated with polycarbonate, polyurethane and polyvinyl. It has level three of shielding. In addition, we keep it frozen at the same temperature as it was found.

— You must be crazy! - MacReady said - The son of a bitch remained frozen thousands of years, when they found him, he made a carnage at the Swedish base. Not satisfied copied a dog and it stopped at our base. Why the hell do you think this box will contain it?

— They were norwegians, Mr. MacReady - Phillipe Simon corrected - I understand your concern about the horrors you experienced in the South Pole, but I hope our research scientist, Seth Garrett, will help you change your point of view.

— First of all, Mr. MacReady, it's a pleasure to finally meet you. Childs always mentions your name when he reports what you both faced at the South Pole - Seth Garrett said in a nervous tone - I can assure you that all the necessary precautions were taken before we started our search. All specimen collection procedures are performed by robotic arms. The tests are performed in compartments similar to what you saw.

— Wait a minute! - MacReady interrupted - Have you been drawing blood from that Thing? You can only be a sucker! What kind of tests have you carried out?

— Calm down, Mac - said Childs - Dr. Garrett has everything under control.

— I think if you watch the videos, everything will be clearer - he said, picking up the remote control from the table.

The large monitor on the wall of the room showed a mechanical arm, piercing the ice with a thin needle to extract blood from Nauls' copy. After the collection, the blood passed through a series of metallic cables that were connected to the other box.

The scene changed, showing a pig inside the second box. Another robotic arm injected the blood into the animal. Immediately a series of mutations began to occur. Legs of arthropods appeared randomly on the back, while his head opened in the middle making a tentacle appear, frantically searching where to grasp.

— Look! - Seth Garrett said visibly excited - Everything looks messy.  As if it were a simple survival mechanism, but remember that we are dealing with a form of intelligence capable of building that spacecraft.

The next scene presented the strange mutation being incinerated inside the box. A chemical process took effect immediately afterwards, eliminating all remains of the aberration.

He advanced the video to another experiment. This time, a goat was used as a guinea pig. When the injection reached the poor animal, the mutations began.

— Notice that the mutation for the goat was totally different. While on the pig appeared arthropod legs, here comes the head of a reptile in the stomach. We sought to identify the existence of some pattern from these experiences - he said, still showing excitement.

— Before you continue with your educational program on killing innocent animals, can you tell me what you found out about the son of a bitch? - MacReady asked.

He adjusted his glasses with his index finger before replying,

— As to the pattern of mutations, all our experiences were inconclusive. The manifestation seems random.

MacReady shook his head in disappointment.

— But we've discovered something unexpected - He advanced the video with a smile at the corner of his mouth.