To: GKamov3_8311 @scip.net
From: NYegorova1_8311 @scip.net
Subject: SCP draft
Greetings, sir.
Enclosed is an SCP draft I wrote up during my vacation. Needless to say, I didn't expect to find anything of this nature in that time, but I would be remiss if I didn't make any record of it. Let me know what you think: it's certainly an interesting one, in my opinion.
Regards, N. Yegorova
Enclosure
Item Number: SCP-X (number pending)
Object Class: Neutralized
Special Containment Procedures: The remains of SCP-X are to be left interred in the village of St. Fomich. Site-8311 is to monitor the village and its citizens for anomalous activity. Amnestization has been deemed unnecessary.
Description: SCP-X was a human male named Anatol Sobolevsky, originating in the village of St. Fomich, approximately forty kilometers northwest of Tomsk, Siberia. SCP-X is theorized to have possessed minor ontokinetic abilities, utilizing them primarily for medical and mechanical services, as well as the restoration of mundane inorganic articles (i.e., furniture, clothing, toys, etc). SCP-X maintained this anomalous trait until its passing from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease at eighty-five.
SCP-X first came to the attention of Junior Researcher Natalia Yegorova during her vacation in June 2023. En route from Achinsk to Tomsk, the rear passenger side tire of her automobile ruptured, prompting her to have it towed to the nearby village of St. Fomich. There, she acquainted herself with the local mechanic, who claimed that while he could have the tire repaired in three hours, a man known as "Gospodin Chudo"1 could fix it in three minutes. Upon inquiry, Yegorova was informed that Gospodin Chudo (legally named Anatol Sobolevsky) was the local town hero, renowned for his ability to quickly and effectively repair nearly anything. When asked about Sobolevsky's current whereabouts, the mechanic explained that he had been deceased for two years, but if Yegorova wished, she could pay her respects, and gave her directions to his gravesite. Due to not possessing the proper equipment, Yegorova was unable to acquire a Hume reading of Sobolevsky's remains.
Addendum: Enclosed are various statements from local townspeople concerning SCP-X.
Pavel Muromets, mechanic
He ran this shop before I did. He was the town mechanic. Took in cars of every shape, size, condition, you name it. Didn't matter if a seat was ripped or the engine was shot, he fixed it. He was very good at what he did, never took more than maybe five or six minutes to fix something. A bit longer with the engines, though. Anything complicated took a long time — for him, I mean. For us it was like that. [snaps fingers] But he fixed it. Usually didn't take money; we'd trade things with him, things like food or fuel or whatever he needed. Beer, books, nails, shoes, soap, whatever. No, I never watched him work. He said it made him nervous when people breathed over his shoulder. He had terrible stage fright, he said. Got nervous. I stopped questioning it after awhile. If he wanted privacy, I gave it to him. He did good work, so who was I to argue? We still miss him. His daughter's the mayor; you should talk to her if you want to know more.
Katya Ilyanov, Sobolevsky's daughter
I'm busy, so forgive me if I seem a little curt. Whatever you've heard about my father isn't true. Oh, he was a good man, or at least as good as any man could hope to be. He had vices, too. Smoked too much: that's what killed him in the end. Too much smoking. Couldn't carry a tune, either, but that never stopped him from singing. He was always singing when he worked — I mean, when he fixed things. That's when you knew he was fixing, when you could hear him singing. But there was no magic to it, no special power or anything. My father was just very good at repairing things. He was also a good gardener; we ate well whenever he harvested. It wasn't much, just a little spot of land.
I suppose, from time to time, he also helped people who were sick, but he wasn't allowed to have a practice. My father never learned to read. But he was a good man. I had my work cut out for me when he died. I had to wake everybody up and get them to stop putting all of their troubles on my father's shoulders. We couldn't rely on him anymore, we had to do it all ourselves. I was used to it; I never liked asking papa to fix things for me. I think…it wore him out to do it. He always looked tired, afterward. But he kept singing, so it couldn't have been that bad. Oh: sorry, that's all the time I can spare. My brother Stephan should be in town this week. He'll be able to fill you in better than I could. If you'll excuse me.
A photograph of SCP-X with his daughter.
Stephan Sobolevsky, son
Tomsk, eh? I practice law there — jurisprudence, technically. And what is it that you do? Ah, the university. I probably went to the same one, about thirty years earlier. Good school, good school, even out in the middle of nowhere. [laughs] So, you wish to talk about my father? What, are you doing a thesis on him or something? I knew he was famous here, but to have people in Tomsk hear about him… [laughs] My father would blush if someone told him he was famous. He was a very quiet man, very private, very…slow-going, you know. He took his time doing everything. I never once saw him run. He had a soft voice, too, never yelled or raised it unless he had to. But he was always singing. Loved to sing. He sang while he worked; did Katya tell you that? Oh. Well, I never thought he was doing anything strange. He'd start to clean up around the house, and he'd be done as soon as you turned around. I mean…done…with everything. But every so often he missed a spot. [laughs]
I remember him holding a deflated basketball I had as a child, holding it and looking at it carefully. We didn't have a pump, so I wondered if he could fix it. He asked me to get him his glasses, and when I came back, the ball was full of air. He said to me, "Oh, I guess I didn't need my glasses after all! But thank you, Stephan." I hugged him and asked him to play, and he played with me until dinner. He had just fixed our stove the other day. I was at school when he did it. [silence] Maybe you'd rather hear something different. Go ask Mrs. Petlin. Here are the directions. Just remember: Katya and I loved our father very much, but…not everyone in town did. But people are like that. It doesn't bother me. Not everybody likes lawyers. [laughs]
Sasha Petlin, local
I don't hate Gospodin Chudo. I never did, never. I liked him, just as everyone else did. I even forgave him. I… Oh, yes, I'm getting ahead of myself. Well. There was a fire, and someone was badly burned. They asked Gospodin Chudo to save the child, save them, and he knelt down on the ground, shaking his head, groaning softly, saying I cannot, I cannot. He wanted to…wanted to help fix the house that had caught fire, but they wouldn't let him. The house got torn down and a new one was built somewhere else. People think I hate him for not being able to help. My husband, he… Listen, young lady, please don't mention Gospodin Chudo to my husband, whatever you do. Nikolai is a good man, but he…was not at Gospodin Chudo's funeral, you see. He wasn't there. I was. I forgave him. I don't know why people think I hate him. [Petlin cries] He would have been thirty years old by now, my boy. Excuse me.
[Note: as per Mrs. Petlin's wishes, her husband Nikolai was not interviewed concerning SCP-X.]
Elena Radchenko, village doctor
Say what you will about the Petlin boy, Ms. Yegorova: Gospodin Chudo cured my daughter's pneumonia when everything I tried failed. Leonid [Dvorzhetsky] would say that Gospodin Chudo was sent by God, or blessed by God… Some might say he was an alien, or possessed, or he spent too much time in Chernobyl. [shrugs] When your child is suffering, and someone cures her in the time it takes for you to comb your hair, you don't question it. You say "thank you" and ask if there's anything you can do in return. [laughs coldly] He wanted western records, so I gave him one. The next day, he was singing Yesterday. He used to sing Katyusha2, or he'd make up words to Korobeiniki3. Did Nikolai tell you what happened? Oh, of course, Sasha did. That makes sense. Well, Gospodin Chudo started singing Yesterday a week or two after that fire. He'd still sing folk tunes every now and then, but while he was working…
[singing] I said something wrong, now I long for Yesterday…
Hmm? No, no, I didn't watch as he cured my daughter. He came in, asked me to get him some water, and when I came back…well, like I said, I didn't question it.
Leonid Dvorzhetsky, priest
When people come talk to me, they usually ask me only two things: who was St. Fomich, and was Gospodin Chudo sent by God. Well, St. Fomich was a man named Feodor Kuzmich, who some people believe was Alexander the First who faked his death to live as a hermit. He was our "Gospodin Chudo" before Anatol Sobolevsky came along. So that's who he was. Look. Do you see that stained-glass window? There was a storm about ten years ago, terrible storm. A tree was knocked over and crashed right in the window. We hired a construction crew to fix the wall but Gospodin Chudo fixed the window. Made it good as new. There was water damage, too, on the carpet; he fixed that. Uh…a broken pew over here, he fixed that. No tools or anything, just came in and made it whole. Fixed the plumbing as well. Uh, no, not all of it, just bits and pieces here and there. The plumber we called had a hole in his shoe, so Gospodin Chudo fixed that. I don't know how, I didn't see any of it. He just did it. But that window, that window dated back to the time of Nicholas the Second. Our town despaired to see it in pieces like that, but Gospodin Chudo… [silence] So, Ms. Yegorova, what do you think? Was Anatol Sobolevsky — was Gospodin Chudo sent by God?
[Note: shortly after speaking with Dvorzhetsky, Junior Researcher Yegorova was informed that her tire had been repaired. She remained in St. Fomich long enough to interview one more person at a diner.]
Irina Martynov, police officer
The "Petlin incident" is true. So is the church window incident. I witnessed both of them. No, I don't mean to say that I saw Anatol fixing the window, or anything else. I was there after the fire, and I went into the church after the storm and saw the broken window. Then Anatol came in and the window was whole again. There are plenty of other incidents concerning him, but I don't think you have the time to hear about them all. Some of them, I'm sure, are exaggerated, or straight-up false. I don't know about Dr. Radchenko's daughter. [silence] Would you mind coming to the restroom with me? Just for a moment?
[Junior Researcher Yegorova follows Officer Martynov into the women's restroom. Martynov lowers the collar of her uniform, showing a faded scar on her chest.]
Do you see that? I was stabbed while on duty, Dr. Radchenko was in Tomsk, things were getting bleak. I was dying. And then I heard someone humming a song, and…
[she hums the overture to The Nutcracker]
He fixed my uniform later, where the knife had pierced through. I don't believe in God, Ms. Yegorova, and I don't believe in miracles. I couldn't tell you what happened that day, or on any day that Anatol helped someone. There's never been a witness. If you want facts, Mr. Sobolevsky was an illiterate automobile mechanic who spent nearly his entire life in this town. He got married, had two children, loved to sing and smoke, grew his own vegetables, and died two years ago. If you want opinions, however… [shrugs] Anyway, have a safe trip, ma'am.
Junior Researcher Yegorova left St. Fomich shortly after, arriving at Tomsk that evening. She drafted all the information she had concerning Sobolevsky into an SCP Document, currently under review by Senior Researcher Grigori Kamov.
To: NYegorova1_8311 @scip.net
From: GKamov3_8311 @scip.net
Re: SCP draft
Hmm. Yes. Interesting.
I'm disappointed that Sobolevsky had passed on before we could learn more about him. What makes matters worse is the lack of witnesses to his supposed anomalous traits. I don't suppose any physical evidence would lend credence to these claims. Getting a good Hume reading on the remains would ascertain it for sure, but I'd rather not desecrate a body. I'll get Director Jaskin's advice on the matter. Regardless, good work out there, despite being on vacation. Consider taking another day off as thanks.
Regards, G. Kamov
P.S. You stated in your document that "amnestization has been deemed unnecessary." Care to elaborate?
To: GKamov3_8311 @scip.net
From: NYegorova1_8311 @scip.net
Subject: About St. Fomich
I apologize if I overstepped my bounds, sir. Here are my thoughts.
1: SCP-X (or Sobolevsky if you prefer) seems to have had his anomalous traits all his life, or at least for forty years, if his children are to be believed. I'm not fully caught up on my amnestics courses yet but I have serious concerns over removing or altering that large a period of time from anyone, let alone an entire town.
2: The town knew about his abilities for decades, and most of them chose not to question them. A few have already attempted to explain them via religious means, while others still have their doubts. Two years have passed since SCP-X was neutralized, and these people have moved on. That has to count for something, if I may say so.
3: St. Fomich doesn't appear on most maps, and it's in the middle of nowhere, in Siberia. The population is small and of little account. In my professional opinion, we can forego the formalities.
Thank you for the extra day off.
Regards, N. Yegorova
To: NYegorova1_8311 @scip.net
From: GKamov3_8311 @scip.net
Re: About St. Fomich
I spoke with Director Jaskin. Exhumation declined. Amnestization of St. Fomich affirmed as unnecessary. Anatol Sobolevsky is hereby classified as "SCP-6683", Neutralized.
Apparently she had interacted with him years earlier. Claimed he repaired her driver's side rear-view mirror in the time it took her to fill out a form. Small world.
We'll drink to Gospodin Chudo when you get back. My treat.