Ghost story.
Accidental close-up shot of SCP-3188's upper thigh.
Item #: SCP-3188
Object Class: Keter
Special Containment Procedures: SCP-3188 is presumably unable to leave the premises of Site-19. Viewing of SCP-3188 is facilitated through the injection of an mnestic cognitohazard into a photographic print, via SCP-2626. Studies are underway to ascertain a more permanent solution to its undetectability.
Description: Following the death of Senior Researcher Annika St. Keyne Griffiths, the Department of Tactical Theology was unable to detect the presence of a soul evacuating Griffiths' body.
According to all available measurements, Griffiths' consciousness ceased existing upon her physical body's expiration. Tactical Theologian psionics were unable to summon her during a preliminary séance, her presence was not noted in any recorded afterlives nor purgatorial spaces, and no new apparitions had appeared within the Site.
An attempt was made at reanimating Griffiths via standard galvanization techniques. Griffiths' corpse was strapped to a wooden slab in the outdoor greenhouse, with two bolts installed into the sides of her head as to embed directly into her brain, hooked to wires attached to lightning rods on either side of the slab. For her own safety, she was restrained using leather cufflinks. An atmokinetic contractor was hired to generate a thunderstorm over the area; upon its formation, the greenhouse ceiling was opened.
Lightning successfully struck both rods and maintained an electrical current that jumpstarted the functionality of Griffiths' brain. However, upon awakening, she appeared confused, dazed, and was unable to control her facial motor functions.
She did not respond to commands or questions from personnel. While the project director discussed these findings with the Tactical Theology liaisons, Griffiths was able to undo her restraints and flee the area.
Despite the cessation of the thunderstorm and a 48 hour search, Griffiths was unable to be found.
Griffiths' project at the time, SCP-2626,1 was remanded to the Containment Committee to investigate its potential field applications. During a comparative study between auto-injective technology and light-based injections by SCP-2626, it was discovered SCP-2626 could be manipulated to create much more potent mnestic effects in photographs, not only increasing the non-anomalous quality of the image but also enhancing perceptible sensory details. During these experiments, SCP-3188 was discovered within the testing chamber.
SCP-3188 typically manifests as an assemblage of blue and black strings, assembled into triangular or circular forms. On occasion, SCP-3188 has been known to shape itself into a vaguely feminine humanoid form. SCP-3188 is only visible through the potent light-based mnestic-infused photographs which SCP-2626 produces. SCP-3188 has been sighted in several areas across the Site, and can be tracked through individual photographs of its movement. SCP-3188 cannot be seen or sensed by personnel and seemingly cannot physically interact with objects or entities. SCP-3188 typically moves from room to room in slow spiral patterns, ceasing for long periods of time within the outdoor greenhouse. If the photographic principles can be applied to camera footage, this will prove a reliable method of monitoring SCP-3188 in real time.
In recent studies, SCP-3188's body appears to be changing in texture, and it maintains a humanoid form more often. The texture, initially regarded as fuzzy and indistinct, has begun to take on a latex-like sheen, with its individual strings packed more tightly together.
Though it is unconfirmed if SCP-3188 is actually Senior Researcher Annika St. Keyne Griffiths, the timing of its manifestation has been ruled, at the very least, non-coincidental by the Department of Tactical Theology.
Addendum: Notable Sightings and Experiment Log
| Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 08/06/2024 | Aviary | SCP-3188 stands in the corner of the room, facing the wall. It is hunched; its body is assembled into a triangular shape, with two long arms and backwards unguligrade-like legs extending out of the mass. |
| 08/10/2024 | Courtyard | SCP-3188 has assumed a humanoid shape. SCP-3188 is composed primarily of blue strings, looking upwards at the sky. D-Class personnel play basketball around it. One D-Class appears to be staring directly at SCP-3188, though when interviewed he denied witnessing the presence of anomalous phenomena at the time. |
| 09/09/2024 | Cafeteria | SCP-3188 is a circular shape, composed entirely of black strings. It hovers in the air above a table, which is occupied by two security guards. A single string extends downwards and "through" the head of one of the guards, though no further effects have been noted. |
| 10/09/2024 | Cafeteria | SCP-3188 is a humanoid shape, composed entirely of black strings. It hovers in the air above a table, its arms hanging limply off its torso. The cafeteria is otherwise empty. |
| 10/20/2024 | Courtyard | See attached photograph above. |
| 01/01/2025 | Testing Chamber | SCP-3188 positioned itself so it took up most of the frame. It appeared to be in the middle of forming a humanoid face; lips, a single eyeball, a nose, and most of a skull-like structure can be seen. The left side of its "head" was incomplete as the photograph was taken. |
A removable plexiglass film, molded off the lens of SCP-2626, was able to replicate SCP-2626's mnestic injective properties to a lesser degree when applied to other cameras. SCP-3188 was still visible on the printed photographs but appeared indistinct or miscolored; in one instance, the strings making up SCP-3188's body appeared to be pale.
Going on theories of a universal source for anomalous phenomena, an experiment was conducted in which this film was placed on the lens of another anomaly; SCP-978.2
SCP-3188 was located in the outdoor greenhouse using SCP-2626. A picture was taken using SCP-978 immediately after.
SCP-3188 assumes a humanoid form floating mid-air. It is not made of strings, but a black, continuous, latex-like membrane. It has unguligrade-like legs that end in thin, two-pronged structures. Its head is replaced with a pale, humanoid head with grey hair; it appears that the membrane ends underneath the neck, directly beneath the laryngeal prominence. Its eyes are blue and lack pupils.
It smiles, but is not directly facing the camera.
Since this experiment, SCP-3188 has consistently maintained this appearance. More pressingly, SCP-3188 no longer appears in photographs produced by SCP-2626, nor cameras equipped with the SCP-2626-derived film. SCP-978, when equipped with the film, is the only means of viewing SCP-3188 at time of writing. Its containment procedures are undergoing revision.
