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Info
SCP-5932-D - MTFinity
A psychological body horror about running from death.For more by me, check out the Greyve Page!
95.22%
(+199)4.78%
(-10)
Special Containment Procedures: Following Incident 5932-001, SCP-5932 has been effectively decommissioned, and containment is no longer necessary.
Description: SCP-5932, formerly Charlotte Violet Owens, was a European female 27 years of age, previously employed by the Foundation as a non-anomalous operative in MTF ζ-12 ("Turtle Down")1. SCP-5932 did not differ from a baseline human beyond advanced combat capabilities expected of tactical Foundation personnel.
Following an apparently random timeframe2, SCP-5932 and each subsequent instance spontaneously duplicated through an unidentified anomalous process. Subsequent instances were biologically and psychologically identical, and all instances possessed a collective memory. Each instance was capable of independent behavior and function, although research indicated that an increase in instances impaired SCP-5932's memory and sensory abilities due to human cognitive limitations.
Addendum 5932-1: Development
SCP-5932 was initially employed by the Foundation in 2008 as a security guard and stationed at Site-49 for four years until Containment Breach 049-213. Following complete recovery from near-fatal injuries sustained during the incident, SCP-5932 was promoted to MTF ζ-12 ("Turtle Down") on the basis of exemplary conduct during active duty.
In 2013, SCP-5932 volunteered to participate in Project ASTEROIDEA, a Foundation effort to develop humanoid personnel with superior regenerative capabilities. Due to the nature of the project, only voluntary personnel deemed sufficiently loyal to the Foundation were approved for experimentation. The following files from the Project ASTEROIDEA archive have been included due to their relevance regarding the development of SCP-5932 and the initial analysis of their anomalous properties.
Audio/Visual Transcript
Date: 6/27/2013
Involved:
- Senior Researcher Ezriel Abelson
- Junior Researcher Akari Ito
- Agent Charlotte Owens
[BEGIN LOG]
(Owens is enclosed within a standard humanoid medical unit connected to SCP-████. Abelson is reviewing the components while Ito is monitoring Owens' vitals.)
Ito: Initializing.
(Abelson nods slowly.)
Abelson: And you're sure — absolutely sure— that the fusion will be stable this time? The splice needs to be as clean as we can get it, and I'll be damned if the Committee lets us waste field agents —
Ito: Yes, Mr. Abelson —
Abelson: Doctor.
Ito: Apologies. Subject is compatible, with about a 2.4% margin of error. After accounting for SCP-████'s observed fluctuations, approximately 5.1%.
(Abelson pauses.)
Abelson: And how high was the previous subject's margin? With adjustments, of course.
(Ito reviews previous records.)
Ito: 3.9%, doctor. Though, all things considered —
Abelson: — human subjects have higher genetic complexity than laboratory mice, yes, I realize.
(Abelson pauses.)
Abelson: And the current subject has the highest compatibility with SCP-████ of all approved candidates?
Ito: She's the only volunteer so far, doctor.
(Abelson pauses.)
Abelson: Interesting. I'd have thought more would've been interested at the prospect of immortality.
Ito: All things considered, doctor, I'd assume the prospect of human experimentation is rather off-putting in and of itself.
Abelson: Well, that's your job now. Get used to it.
(Silence.)
(System indicates completion of program.)
Abelson: Ah, it's done.
(Steam produced during the defrosting process emerges from the capsule and the central compartment opens.)
(Ito steps closer to observe as Owens opens her eyes.)
Ito: How are you feeling, Agent Owens?
(Owens blinks several times in rapid succession.)
Owens: I — I got a splitting headache.
(Ito turns to look towards Abelson who appears to not notice and traces a finger along a scar on his left temple.)
Owens: Everything's also kind of…blurry?
(Owens blinks and her irises duplicate.)
Ito: Agent Owens?
Owens: What's happening —
(Owens is unable to finish her statement before a new set of teeth develops from between her central incisors, forcing her jaw to widen to the point of dislocation. Excess tissue, bone, and flesh protrudes from both sides of her body.)
(Owens attempts to produce pained vocalizations, which are quickly silenced due to distortion of her neck as her clothing is punctured by a formative ribcage. A set of secondary organs developing against her exposed abdominal cavity is enveloped by developing tissue that begins coalescing into a vaguely humanoid figure.)
(The two figures violently split apart, and all excess growths are excreted along with the remains of Owens' clothing. All lesions and cuts begin to heal, leaving two identical and otherwise undamaged SCP-5932 instances. Both instances appear to be in a state of shock and are in fetal positions.)
(Silence.)
Abelson: Well, let's see if we've succeeded. Sedative and scalpel, please. And keep her hand still.
[END LOG]
Project Report
June 28th, 2013
Senior Researcher Ezriel Abelson
Regrettably, SCP-5932-1 did not regenerate its amputated finger. However, while Project ASTEROIDEA appears to be unsuccessful, the potential applications for trained field agents with a shared consciousness are nearly limitless. It would be fascinating to see SCP-5932 returned to active duty following the 14-day quarantine, and it is my earnest hope that the fruit of my labors can be put to good while I continue progress.
Ezriel Abelson
Senior Researcher, Parabiology Department Unit 11
Addendum 5932-2: Quarantine
The following documents detail significant events during SCP-5932's initial quarantine4 leading to establishment of containment procedures.
Audio/Visual Transcript
Date: 6/29/2013
Involved:
- Researcher Akari Ito
- Security Officer Marcus Brown
- SCP-5932-2
- SCP-5932-4
[BEGIN LOG]
(Brown is posted outside of the quarantine unit as Ito is delivering SCP-5932-2 morning rations. Both Brown and Ito are wearing hazardous material reinforced airtight suits.)
Ito: Morning, Ms. Owens.
SCP-5932-2: Not SCP-5932?
(Ito does not respond and places the tray in front of SCP-5932-2.)
Ito: You need to eat.
(SCP-5932-2 nods and looks down at the food.)
(Ito sits down across from SCP-5932-2.)
Ito: How are you feeling right now?
(SCP-5932-2 looks up while taking a bite of bread.)
SCP-5932-2: (Muffled) Fantastic.
(SCP-5932-2 swallows.)
SCP-5932-2: Two brains. Four eyes. Eight limbs. I feel totally normal.
(Silence.)
Ito: The moment you forget you're human, that's when you're no longer human.
(Ito stands up and looks away.)
Ito: Let Brown know if you need anything, Ms. Owens. And please, rest well.
SCP-5932-2: Oh, definitely. What do you fill these pillows with? Brick —
(SCP-5932-2 stops and begins coughing.)
(Ito turns back to look at SCP-5932-2.)
(SCP-5932-2 clutches their abdomen while continuing to cough.)
Ito: Are you alright?
(SCP-5932-2 brings their legs towards their body while vocalizing painfully.)
(Ito takes a step back as Brown enters the room.)
(SCP-5932-2 collapses on the floor and attempts to speak.)
SCP-5932-2: Why is this happening to me —
(SCP-5932-2's neck splits in two along the center as their chest develops a central cavity, exposing their internal tissue.)
(Brown guides Ito out of the unit as the latter stares at SCP-5932-2 in apparent shock.)
(SCP-5932-2's develops a large amount of excess tissue and flesh against their lower jaw which grows into a secondary head with the development of orifices and growth of hair. Large bones protrude from their abdomen which are rapidly enveloped by flesh and tissue. SCP-5932-2's uniform tears as their form begins separating into two distinct humanoid figures.)
(SCP-5932-2 and -4 lie on the ground covered in bodily fluids while sobbing uncontrollably.)
[END LOG]
Administrative Notice
July 5th, 2013
Director Azalea Calloway
Despite your adamant insistence, SCP-5932 has continued to duplicate and is currently at 64 instances. Considering we only have 150 quarantine units, SCP-5932 will be uncontainable within two duplication events. It's only been one week, and we're already approaching the uppermost limits of our site.
I am fully aware of the fact that biological anomalies are not to be interfered with during their quarantine period. However, O5 Command has voted unanimously to allow an exception in the case of SCP-5932 so as to prevent our site from falling into disarray. As such, I am reassigning you to SCP-5932, effective immediately.
You did this, Abelson. Get it under control.
A. Calloway
Director of Site-49
Audio/Visual Transcript
Date: 7/5/2013
Involved:
- Senior Researcher Ezriel Abelson
- Researcher Akari Ito
- Security Officer Marcus Brown
- SCP-5932-1
- SCP-5932-64
[BEGIN LOG]
(Abelson and Ito enter SCP-5932-1's quarantine unit as Brown escorts SCP-5932-64 into the quarantine unit and positions them opposite SCP-5932-1. Both instances are sitting upright with their eyes closed and arms crossed.)
Abelson: I don't like it either, but Calloway isn't giving us much choice, is she?
(Ito bites her lip.)
Abelson: Let's just hope that this works out.
(Brown steps away and nods towards Abelson.)
Abelson: Alright, then. Go ahead.
(Ito approaches SCP-5932-64 with a syringe.)
Ito: This shouldn't hurt a bit if you don't move, alright?
(SCP-5932-64 pauses.)
SCP-5932-64: What's…in that…?
(Ito does not respond and prepares the syringe for injection.)
SCP-5932-64: 's'it…lethal?
Ito: May I see your right arm?
(Silence.)
(SCP-5932-64 abruptly stand up and backs up against the wall. Brown reacts instinctively, raising his firearm and aiming at SCP-5932-64.)
Ito: I'm sorry, Owens. But, please — it's better than a bullet, right?
(SCP-5932-64 freezes and sits back down as Brown points his firearm back towards the ground.)
Ito: Think of it like going to sleep —
(Ito presses the syringe into SCP-5932-64's elbow.)
SCP-5932-1 and -64: I — will I wake up?
(Ito does not respond and begins injecting. SCP-5932-64's body gradually becomes limp until it collapses on the floor, motionless.)
(Abelson kneels next to SCP-5932-1.)
Abelson: SCP-5932?
(Silence.)
(Ito moves to stand beside SCP-5932-1 and places a hand on its shoulder.)
Ito: Ms. Owens?
(SCP-5932-1 slowly looks up towards Ito.)
(Ito sighs as Abelson stands up and nods slowly towards Brown, who speaks unintelligibly into his intercom.)
Ito: I'm sorry.
(Abelson looks away as SCP-5932-1 clutches their head and screams while gunshots echo from nearby quarantine units.)
[END LOG]
Experiment Report
July 6th, 2013
SCP-5932
As neutralizing an independent SCP-5932 instance does not affect the others permanently, I propose adopting routine termination of redundant SCP-5932 instances as a constituent of the subject's containment procedures. Apart from this, subject can be contained as a standard humanoid anomaly.
Ezriel Abelson
Senior Researcher, Parabiology Department Unit 11
Addendum 5932-3: Containment
The following consists of records of SCP-5932's containment, compiled by Researcher Akari Ito, deemed relevant to its psychological profile leading to Incident 5932-001.
Audio/Visual Transcript
Date: 7/7/2013
Involved:
- Researcher Akari Ito
- SCP-5932-1
[BEGIN LOG]
(Ito enters SCP-5932-1's containment unit for a routine vital check. SCP-5932-1 is sitting on their bed and journaling in a Foundation-issue notebook.)
Ito: Morning, Ms. Owens.
(Ito places a scanner on SCP-5932-1's finger and wraps a blood pressure cuff around their arm.)
Ito: How are you feeling today?
SCP-5932-1: How do you think bullets feel?
(Silence.)
Ito: Administration won't approve injection —
SCP-5932-1: Yeah. Bullets are cheap and effective. I get it.
(Ito finishes taking SCP-5932-1's blood pressure.)
Ito: 118/80. I need your temperature, too.
(Ito activates a thermal scanner and kneels in front of SCP-5932-1.)
(Ito pauses.)
Ito: 37°.
(Ito places the thermal scanner back in her pocket and stands up.)
Ito: You used to be with Turtle Down. You've killed before, right?
(SCP-5932-1 looks up.)
SCP-5932-1: What about it?
Ito: Is it true that killing gets easier?
(SCP-5932-1 scoffs.)
SCP-5932-1: That's an overused cliche. Killing never gets easier on your conscience — you're either human, or you aren't. But you can convince yourself it's worth it when you've got something to lose.
(Ito nods.)
Ito: And what do you have to lose?
(SCP-5932-1 shrugs.)
SCP-5932-1: Plenty. But only people are worth dying for.
[END LOG]
Personal Log
July 7th, 2013
SCP-5932
Those who are dead are not dead
They're just living in my head
— 42 by Coldplay
Josie,
Every time one of me falls, it's like a little bit of me dies with it. And I know it's crazy, because I'm still alive, but I just have to wonder, at what point do I stop being me?
It's like Gabriel's Horn — that recursive geometry thing you used to be so obsessed with. Every time one of me dies, I'm half of what I used to be, but I'm never all the way gone. But what's it even mean to live if I'm a fraction of a fraction of myself?
And then there's you. God, I miss you so much.
Josephine Lillian Whitley. Still don't know why I put up with your theories and thought experiments and whatever. Too smart to be a grunt. Hell, too smart for me —
Me. Charlotte Violet Owens. I guess underneath it all, I'm just another dumb girl scared of dying or falling in love. Too careful for my own good, too ambitious for anyone around me. Did you ever even know how I felt about you? Did you ever feel the same way?
I hope you did. I hope you knew that I was only ever so scared of dying because I was scared of leaving you. I hope you knew that every time I called you an idiot, I was really calling myself an idiot, because I only needed to tell you I love you but I marched around in circles trying to run from myself because I was afraid.
I hope you forget me. I hope you don't give a fuck about Charlie Owens, or where I am, or how I'm doing.
I hope I forget, too.
Then I won't have anything left to lose.
Charlie
Formerly MTF ζ-12
Audio/Visual Transcript
Date: 7/10/2013
Involved:
- Researcher Akari Ito
- SCP-5932-1
[BEGIN LOG]
(SCP-5932-1 is laying on their side in bed and rubbing the back of their head as Ito enters the unit.)
Ito: Can't sleep again?
(SCP-5932-1 exhales and turns to face Ito.)
SCP-5932-1: Not if you keep barging in here at 1 in the morning.
(Ito offers SCP-5932-1 a cup.)
Ito: Would tea help?
(SCP-5932-1 scoffs.)
SCP-5932-1: Tea is just a way for rich people to sell dead leaves.
(Ito smiles.)
Ito: Who said that?
SCP-5932-1: Josie — a, um, friend of mine from Turtle Down.
Ito: Mhm.
(Ito places the cup on a desk.)
Ito: Personally, I think of tea as a way to honor that which has already gone.
(SCP-5932-1 does not respond and continues rubbing the back of their head.)
Ito: That reminds me.
(Ito sets a small pill container by SCP-5932-1.)
(SCP-5932-1 sits up.)
SCP-5932-1: Painkillers?
(Ito nods.)
(SCP-5932-1 smiles, removing a small white tablet and swallowing it with a sip of water.)
(Ito sits down as SCP-5932-1 closes their eyes while continuing to rub the back of their head.)
Ito: How bad is the pain?
SCP-5932-1: Pain isn't even the worst part. There's nothing anyone can do about it, though.
(Ito looks towards SCP-5932-1.)
Ito: Do you mind telling me what the worst part is?
SCP-5932-1: Brick pillows?
(Ito smiles.)
(SCP-5932-1 exhales and looks down.)
(Silence.)
SCP-5932-1: It's the moment before. Knowing I'm about to die.
(Ito frowns.)
Ito: But you don't actually die, do you?
(SCP-5932-1 shakes their head.)
SCP-5932-1: Maybe I haven't, but they certainly do.
(SCP-5932-1 pauses.)
SCP-5932-1: It's not that I don't know one of us is going to survive. It's just that — I can't help but wonder whether I'm the one that dies this time.
(SCP-5932-1 pauses.)
SCP-5932-1: And the sheer — sheer utter hopelessness. Like — like a butterfly in a hurricane. I can't help but be terrified.
SCP-5932-1: I could die, or I could live to die again, but there's only so much of me to kill.
(Silence.)
Ito: I'm sorry. I mean, I can't ever understand — but I hope that, maybe, it gets better —
(SCP-5932-1 scoffs.)
SCP-5932-1: How could dying get "better"?
Ito: I —
(Ito pauses.)
Ito: I was thinking that — thinking maybe one day, death itself becomes so familiar that you're like good friends.
SCP-5932-1: What, like me and you? Not unless I have some serious Stockholm syndrome.
(SCP-5932-1 lays back down and turns away from Ito.)
(Ito sighs and stands up.)
Ito: Goodnight, Ms. Owens.
[END LOG]
Audio/Visual Transcript
Date: 7/12/2013
Involved:
- Researcher Akari Ito
- SCP-5932-1
[BEGIN LOG]
(SCP-5932-1 is listening to music on their bed as Ito enters the unit.)
Ito: Morning, Ms. Owens.
(SCP-5932-1 removes their headphones and pauses their music before turning to face Ito.)
(Ito nods towards SCP-5932-1's MP3 player.)
Ito: What were you listening to?
SCP-5932-1: Coldplay.
(Ito nods.)
Ito: Anyways, I'm here to get your vitals.
(SCP-5932-1 extends an arm for Ito to wrap a blood pressure cuff around.)
Ito: Put that on your finger.
(Ito hands SCP-5932-1 the scanner and waits.)
Ito: 117/80. Temperature.
(Ito removes a thermal scanner and points it towards SCP-5932-1's forehead.)
Ito: 37°.
(Silence.)
SCP-5932-1: What's the point of ASTEROIDEA?
(Ito frowns.)
Ito: Hmm?
SCP-5932-1: To Abelson, I mean. Why does it matter to him?
(Ito pauses.)
Ito: Why did you volunteer for ASTEROIDEA?
(SCP-5932-1 pauses.)
SCP-5932-1: I almost died once, I think.
Ito: Yes. It was in your medical file.
(SCP-5932-1 nods.)
SCP-5932-1: Kind of ironic how I volunteered for ASTEROIDEA to run from death, and now I face it every day…
(SCP-5932-1 pauses.)
SCP-5932-1: Like I said before, only people are worth dying for. I didn't know what ASTEROIDEA was going to do to me, but I did this for Josie. And now —
(SCP-5932-1 swallows.)
SCP-5932-1: I don't think I'll see her ever again.
(Silence.)
Ito: I think Abelson is running from death, too. Only…he lost himself in the process.
[END LOG]
Personal Log
July 12th, 2013
SCP-5932
Look at the stars,
Look how they shine for you
— Yellow by Coldplay
Josie, do you remember when we used to lay down in our bunks and fall asleep listening to X&Y, or A Rush of Blood to the Head, or whatever you left on that night? That's how you got me into Coldplay in the first place — and that's how I got into you.
I used to wish that I was lying next to you, and we'd be staring at the stars over a beach, and it would just be you and me, forever.
Now, I'm just glad I remember.
Ito thinks that I'm overwriting old memories because humans only have so much mental storage. Hell, I can't remember my middle name now. Don't know how long it's going to be until I forget my whole name. And then how much longer until I forget you?
And once I do, what's the point?
I mean, who am I anymore? It's like the Charlie that used to exist isn't the same as the one that exists now — not sure if it's because something was taken from her, or if it's because she's just not complete anymore.
Charlie
Formerly MTF ζ-12
Audio/Visual Transcript
Date: 7/15/2013
Involved:
- Senior Researcher Ezriel Abelson
- SCP-5932-1
[BEGIN LOG]
(SCP-5932-1 is listening to music with their eyes closed as the unit's door opens.)
Abelson: Good morning, SCP-5932.
(SCP-5932-1 opens their eyes and freezes.)
Abelson: Relax. I'm only here to take your vitals.
(SCP-5932-1 does not respond.)
Abelson: Arm, please.
(SCP-5932-1 does not move.)
Abelson: For what it's worth, it's not my preference to be here. But Researcher Ito simply isn't available today.
(SCP-5932-1 folds their arms and looks down.)
Abelson: Cooperation will hasten the process.
(SCP-5932-1 does not respond.)
(Abelson sighs.)
Abelson: To be honest, looking at my mistakes makes me…sick. I didn't want this —
SCP-5932-1: (Shouting) What did you want?
(SCP-5932-1 stands up and looks Abelson in the eyes.)
Abelson: I wanted to kill death.
(SCP-5932-1 scoffs.)
SCP-5932-1: You killed Charlotte. What am I?
Abelson: You don't understand —
(SCP-5932-1 leans forwards towards Abelson.)
SCP-5932-1: (Quietly) What wouldn't I understand?
(Abelson calmly pulls his hair back and traces a finger along a scar on his left forehead.)
Abelson: December 10th, 2012 was the day your lung was punctured — and the day my skull was fractured. We met death on the same day, and we've both been running ever since.
(Abelson pauses.)
Abelson: You've died how many times now? You must be used to it. But me —
(Abelson shakes his head.)
Abelson: Death has taken ourselves from both of us, SCP-5932.
(Silence.)
SCP-5932-1: SCP-5932 — is that who I am now?
(Abelson smiles sadly.)
Abelson: That's right. As for me…I'm just another doctor.
(Abelson pauses.)
Abelson: I may be alive, but death has stolen Ezriel Abelson from me.
[END LOG]
Personal Log
July 21st, 2013
SCP-5932
Maybe death itself becomes so familiar that you're good friends.
— Ito
I'm not afraid of dying. Why should I be?
Death is like a little sparrow who taps on the window every night to carry part of me away. He comes every evening before I fall asleep against the glass. And then I wake up, and it's like Charlie was a dream from another life, and I can only remember fragments — out of order and out of place. Like I don't belong anymore.
I'm not afraid of dying. Am I even alive?
SCP-5932
Charlie
Addendum 5932-5: Incident 5932-1
The following contains transcripts pertaining to Incident 5932-1 and its subsequent Ethics Committee investigation.
Audio/Visual Transcript
Date: 7/22/2013
Involved:
- Security Officer Jordan McNamara
- SCP-5932-1
- SCP-5932-2
[BEGIN LOG]
(SCP-5932-1 and -2 are sitting against opposite sides of the room. A loud buzzer sound indicates McNamara's entrance.)
McNamara: Alright, you know the drill. Up against the wall.
(SCP-5932-1 slowly stands up and approaches SCP-5932-2, who stands up and turns to face the wall.)
(SCP-5932-1 stands next to SCP-5932-2 and also faces the wall. McNamara approaches the instances and reaches for his handgun.)
McNamara: Keep still.
(McNamara places the barrel against the base of SCP-5932-2's head and prepares to fire.)
(SCP-5932-2 abruptly turns around and knocks the gun away while SCP-5932-1 forces McNamara into a headlock.)
(SCP-5932-2 goes to retrieve the gun as McNamara struggles to break SCP-5932-1's headlock, striking them against their lower abdomen several times in quick succession. SCP-5932-1 rapidly strikes McNamara's face with their knee and attempts to restrain his arms as McNamara fires several rounds, which ricochet harmlessly off the walls of the unit.)
SCP-5932-1: Please — keep still. I don't want death —
(SCP-5932-1 is cut short as McNamara throws them over his shoulder, pinning them against the ground.)
McNamara: (Shouting) Cut the crap —
(McNamara is cut short as he is struck across his forehead by SCP-5932-2 using the handgun.)
(SCP-5932-1 and -2 sit down across from each other and stare directly at each other.)
(SCP-5932-2 slowly raises the handgun and presses it against their forehead.)
SCP-5932-2: I'll join you again soon, Charlie.
(SCP-5932-1 closes their eyes as SCP-5932-2 fires.)
(SCP-5932-1 screams in pain as SCP-5932-2 collapses, blood pooling around their head.)
(SCP-5932-1 falls to the floor while clutching their head and picks up the handgun, pressing it against their forehead.)
(SCP-5932-1 pauses.)
(SCP-5932-1 fires the handgun.)
(A loud clicking sound is audible due to the handgun being out of ammunition.)
(SCP-5932-1 laughs while sobbing uncontrollably and collapses over SCP-5932-2's corpse.)
[END LOG]
Audio/Visual Transcript
Date: 7/22/2013
Involved:
- Ethics Committee Liaison Lee-Saeng Kim
- Senior Researcher Ezriel Abelson
[BEGIN LOG]
(Abelson is sitting alone in a small office space.)
(The door opens as Kim enters the room. He walks around the table and sits down opposite Abelson.)
(Kim removes a flask from the inside of his blazer and takes a sip.)
Kim: Morning, Ezriel.
Abelson: Ezriel? I'm just a doctor.
(Kim scoffs.)
Kim: If you say so. Now, I know neither of us are much for small talk, so save us both some time and just get to it, shall we?
(Abelson nods.)
(Kim places a file on the desk.)
Kim: I presume you know what I'm here about?
(Abelson glances at the file.)
Abelson: SCP-5932?
Kim: Charlotte Owens, yes. Why don't you brief me on her containment procedures?
Abelson: I'm sure you've got it in your file.
Kim: Well, I'd like to hear it from you. Details can get lost in translation, so to speak.
(Abelson slides the file across the table and opens it, removing the first document and adjusting his glasses.)
Abelson: "SCP-5932 is to be contained in a standard humanoid containment unit. When removed from its unit, each instance is to be monitored at all times by no less than two handlers proficient in advanced combat training."
(Kim takes a sip from his flask.)
Abelson: "Every 24 hours, redundant SCP-5932 instances are to be euthanized —"
Kim: Killed.
Abelson: I'm sorry?
Kim: To cause the death of something or someone —
Abelson: I know what "killed" means.
Kim: Perhaps you'll consider adding it to your vocabulary, then.
(Abelson shakes his head.)
Abelson: She isn't killed. She can't die.
(Kim smiles.)
Kim: Is that so?
Abelson: (Quietly) Owens is already gone.
(Kim takes a sip from his flask.)
Abelson: "Due to the identical nature of separate instances, the specific instance chosen for termination is to be determined by random selection."
Kim: Alright then. A little demonstration, if you will?
(Abelson does not respond.)
(Kim removes a pen from his pocket.)
Kim: This is a bullet.
(Kim points the pen towards Abelson's forehead.)
Kim: If it goes through your head —
(Kim extends the tip of the pen with a sharp click.)
Kim: — what would happen?
(Abelson winces and presses a palm against his forehead.)
(Silence.)
(Kim leans back against his chair and crosses his arms.)
Kim: Operating under the assumption your current containment procedures are perpetually effective, how many deaths will that be?
Abelson: She isn't alive anymore — she's more gone than left.
Kim: Owens is alive, last I checked.
(Abelson shakes his head.)
Abelson: SCP-5932 is alive. And they'll get used to it if they haven't already.
Kim: Did you?
(Abelson pauses.)
Abelson: I live with it.
(Kim laughs.)
Kim: And that's what ASTEROIDEA is about, right?
Abelson: (Quietly) It's all I have left of Ezriel anymore.
(Silence.)
Kim: Alright. This is what's going to happen.
(Kim folds his hand on the desk.)
Kim: You're permanently removed from ASTEROIDEA. Any disagreement you have can be voiced to the Project Management Administration — although you'd then have to explain why you're on the human experimentation blacklist.
(Kim pauses.)
Kim: And you're going to put Owens down for good. Let her die in peace already.
[END LOG]
Addendum 5932-5: Decommissioning Log
Decommissioning Proposal
Item #: SCP-5932
Object Class: Euclid
Head Researcher: Senior Researcher Ezriel Abelson
Supporting Personnel: Unnecessary*
Please check off or fill in the applicable boxes regarding the reasons for submitting your proposal:
☐ Excessive Risk of Lifted Veil Scenario
☐ Excessive Danger
☑ Expense
☑ Ethical Concern
☐ Legal Concern
☐ Potential to Decommission Apollyon-Class Object
☑ High Risk of K-Class Scenario (if so, please state which type(s)): NK-Class Type 2
☐ Other (please state):
Summary: Containment of SCP-5932 is unethical and unsustainable due to a theoretical requirement for infinite euthanasia. Additionally, the cremated cadavers of deceased SCP-5932 instances will eventually affect the Earth's atmosphere, resulting in inhospitality.
*This proposal has been submitted under direct O5 Command and/or Ethics Committee mandate.
Audio/Visual Transcript
Date: 7/24/2013
Involved:
- Researcher Akari Ito
- SCP-5932-1
[BEGIN LOG]
(Ito enters the unit and sits down next to SCP-5932-1, who is sitting with their arms wrapped around their legs and their head in between their knees.)
Ito: Ms. Owens?
(SCP-5932-1 does not respond.)
(Ito sighs and prepares a syringe.)
SCP-5932-1: (Quietly) Owens is dead.
(Ito looks up at SCP-5932-1.)
Ito: Owens is dead?
(SCP-5932-1 nods.)
Ito: How is Owens dead?
(SCP-5932-1 pauses.)
SCP-5932-1: Someone important to Owens once asked her how many grains of sand are in a pile of sand.
(SCP-5932-1 pauses.)
SCP-5932-1: How many SCP-5932 instances are in one Charlotte Owens?
(Ito nods and does not respond.)
(Silence.)
SCP-5932-1: Do you know why Owens was afraid of death?
(Ito pauses.)
Ito: I don't think Owens was afraid of dying. She was ready to die. She volunteered for ASTEROIDEA. It's just that —
(Ito pauses.)
Ito: I think most of us aren't scared of dying, you know. I think we're just scared of losing what we love — scared of losing who we are.
(Ito pauses.)
Ito: But even if you aren't who you used to be — even if the old you is dead — that doesn't mean you don't belong, or that you deserve to die. And I —
(Ito pauses.)
Ito: If it were up to me, I'd say you deserve a chance to live. Not as who you were, but as who you would have been. A life where you don't have to live as though death were your shadow, but you don't have to fear it, either.
(Silence.)
(SCP-5932-1 sighs.)
SCP-5932-1: I guess it's too late for that, though.
(Ito nods slowly and approaches SCP-5932-1 with the syringe.)
Ito: Think of it like going to sleep.
(SCP-5932-1 smiles sadly and looks up at Ito.)
SCP-5932-1: Will I wake up?
(Ito swallows and slowly presses the syringe into SCP-5932-1's forearm.)
(SCP-5932-1's eyes roll back and their body falls limp.)
[END LOG]