Special Containment Procedures:
SCP-8691 is contained in a 30cm by 30cm standard containment locker, located in Site-435's Secure Anomalous Item Storage units. Access to SCP-8691 is restricted to Site-435 personnel with Level 2 or greater clearance. SCP-8691's locker may be moved or transported by Level 1 staff as required by SAIS logistics. If you are a site director enacting a research order, please contact Site-435 SAIS staff via tni.pcs|534sias.ksedpleh#tni.pcs|534sias.ksedpleh for item retrieval and transportation.
SCP-8691 can be safely moved inter-site. Staff members handling SCP-8691 are required to wear protective gloves and long sleeved clothing while performing research, to prevent accidental skin contact. Personnel who exhibit a routine smoking habit should not be exposed to SCP-8691-A, including D-Class subjects.
Description:
SCP-8691 is a carton of ████████ █████ brand cigarettes, with the words "CLUB ONLY" and the current quantity of SCP-8691-A instances written on its surface. . SCP-8691 contains 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 7 6 instances of SCP-8691-A. Research into the meaning of "CLUB ONLY" is ongoing; however, the numbers update by themselves when an instance of SCP-8691-A is subsumed. The numbers on the carton are formed via ink composites found in SCP-8691, despite appearing to be handwritten. This change takes place while the object is not under direct observation.
Both SCP-8691 and instances of SCP-8691-A exhibit individual anomalous properties. These properties occur regardless of if SCP-8691-A is contained in or separated from SCP-8691.
SCP-8691 is a form of cognitohazardous suggestion exhibited in subjects who have never previously smoked cigarettes. Within 30 seconds to 1 minute of direct skin contact with SCP-8691, subjects unanimously report that they "need" SCP-8691-A, despite their previous disposition to smoking. Immediately following symptoms of cognitohazardous suggestion, the subject will attempt to smoke one (or multiple) instances of SCP-8691-A. Subjects will request a lighter, match, or other incendiary device to light the chosen instances. If denied their request, the subject will attempt to light the instance via any possible means, including lighting small fires using clothing and short circuited electrical systems.
SCP-8691-A instances physically and chemically resemble normal cigarettes. Sampled instances contain a mixture of chemicals that are proprietary to ████████ █████ brand cigarettes (confirmed via SCPCORP contacts), though no other cartons have been identified with similar anomalous properties. SCP-8691-A's effects do not appear until the instance has been ignited. Provided only one instance of SCP-8691-A (or the smoke in the vicinity of the SCP-8691-A instance) is subsumed into the lungs, the subject will immediately experience a persistent cough and difficulty breathing. The subject will report pain in their lungs, followed by sporadic blood expulsion from the respiratory system, including the nose and ears. In all instances, subjects are diagnosed with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer, and expire within 1-2 weeks of initial exposure.
Subsuming any additional instances of SCP-8691-A, or continued exposure to smoke emitted by SCP-8691-A, will stimulate acute cancer growths, accelerating development by a rate of 2-3nm per second of cell growth per instance. After roughly 3 instances of SCP-8691-A are subsumed, the rib-cage will be unable to contain additional growths, resulting in expansive lesions and bone fracturing. Continued growth inevitably results in an overgrowth of the cancer, which begins to spreads outside of the body due to the already weakened nature of the thorax structure. This process continues for roughly 1-3 days, after which the subject will expire.
Discovery:
At 23:38 on ██/█/20██, a 911 call was placed from the ███████ household in █████, Arkansas. A transcript of the phone call was recovered after the Foundation was tipped off by agents embedded in the local police department. The caller is unknown, but it is assumed to be one of the four members of the ███████ family; likely one of the two women, ████ or ████████. A transcript of the phone call is available below.
911 Call Transcript
Date: ██/█/20██
Time: 23:38
OPERATOR: 911, what is the location of your emergency?
UNKNOWN: Help me, please help me, oh my god-
OPERATOR: Ma'am, what is the nature and location of your emergency?
UNKNOWN: <INTERSPERSED CRYING> His chest - it just - oh my god -
OPERATOR: Ma'am, I need you to tell me the location of your emergency. Do you need paramedic services?
UNKNOWN: [ADDRESS REDACTED]
OPERATOR: Okay ma'am, help is on the way, can you please describe the situation for me so officers know what's happening?
UNKNOWN: <INTERSPERSED CRYING> Send someone, please, please, I don't know what to do-
OPERATOR: You say his chest exploded, do you mean he was shot?
UNKNOWN: No- no- it's worse, so much worse, I don't know how this happened, he was just smoki-
OPERATOR: Ma'am, what do you mean by worse, can you describe the wound?
UNKNOWN: <INCOHERENT SCREAMING AND CRYING>
OPERATOR: Hang tight ma'am, paramedics are on the-
Foundation agents were made aware of the unusual phone call, and arrived roughly 1 hour after the call was placed. A quarantine zone was erected around the household, and a cover story of a domestic abuse incident was fabricated for local neighbors who had heard the incident occur. First responders that entered the home prior to the arrival of Foundation staff were provided Class-A amnestics.
Inside the household was a large amorphous mass, confirmed to be all 4 members of the ███████ family. Foundation agents immediately swept the site for anomalous objects, and discovered SCP-8691 and SCP-8691-A strewn across the floor near the corner of the amorphous mass. It was quickly determined that SCP-8691 was the anomalous factor, after an experienced field agent touched SCP-8691 with her bare hand and immediately demanded a lighter. Her personnel file indicates that she is religious, and does not smoke out of principle, thus confirming the anomalous nature of the object.
The mass was comprised of largely the same genetic material, and Foundation specialists were able to recover 3 intact brains, several pieces of spinal cord, and partial intestinal tracts. Autopsy reports on the intact remnants suggest that the victims may have been alive during the growth and expansion process, and capable of rational thought and sensory input. Remains were determined to be non-anomalous in nature, and were cremated post-autopsy.
Testing and Analysis:
Testing logs related to SCP-8691 are available below. Research and analysis was performed by Dr. █████ Fargo, PhD in Cognitohazardous Materials, and her research team at Site-3281. Additional logistical reports are available upon request.
INTERVIEW-8691-01
Date: █/█/20██
Time: 13:20
Subject: F.Khawaja
Testing Manager: Dr. █████ Fargo, PhD
DR. FARGO: Okay… if you are ready, let's get started. I do have some formalities I need to complete first. Sorry about that. Today's subject is Farah Khawaja, PID 58238, a Level 1 field researcher. Agent Khawaja has given her full consent to be recorded today, and will be administered Class-C amnestics (in accordance with current unknown-item exposure policy) when this interview is complete. Agent, can you please confirm your consent for the recorder?
F.KHAWAJA: Happy to, doctor. I consent to this recording, and agree to being administered Class-C amnestics.
DR. FARGO: Thank you, agent. I'll start with some simple questions. What happened on the night of ██/█/20██?
F.KHAWAJA: Around ██:██, our team lead reported that we had received an investigation request from an agent embedded in the █████ police. About an hour later, we arrived at the scene and began our investigation.
DR. FARGO: Thank you. When did you realize the item was anomalous, and how did you come to this conclusion?
F.KHAWAJA: I mean, it's pretty hard to miss. I was a non-smoker for all my life, all the way up until I picked up that cigarette carton. Shit, I don't even like the smell of cigarettes. Anyway, I guess you could say I got lucky, though "luck" is relative here. The instant I picked it up, I suddenly knew everything about smoking, and was craving a cigarette.
DR. FARGO: You mentioned the anomalous effects set in instantly — could you please describe these effects in more detail?
F.KHAWAJA: Are you a smoker, doctor?
DR. FARGO: I am not.
F.KHAWAJA: You really don't know what it feels like then, huh. That fucking craving, that need for a substance - sorry for my language. I've never felt anything like it, but all of a sudden it felt like a normal thing for me, like I had just been living with it and couldn't ignore it or something. As soon as the item was recovered and contained, I took a break and went to a █/██ near Outpost-352 to get a box of cigarettes. That was two weeks ago, and I've smoked 3 packs since then.
DR. FARGO: Fascinating - so you would say your, shall we say, craving, continued even after exposure to the item?
F.KHAWAJA: It hasn't stopped, doctor. That's why I agreed to let them fiddle with my brain. I'm hoping that the amnestics can undo whatever that thing did to me.
DR. FARGO: Let's move to the subject of the item itself. Did you notice any other strange properties of the carton or cigarettes?
F.KHAWAJA: The only thing I remember was thinking that I really needed a cigarette. I've never thought that before. Since there were a bunch scattered around, I guess I went for those. Nobody in our team had a lighter, so I couldn't light it, not that I really got a chance. When I determined that the carton itself was anomalous, we gathered up the cigarettes and contained them with it. I was sad about not getting to smoke, but like I said, I fixed that pretty quickly.
DR. FARGO: Thank you, agent. I think that is all we require from you. Your doctor will follow up with you after your amnestics process is completed. Good luck, agent.
F.KHAWAJA: Thanks doctor, you too. If I'm still smoking that stuff after I'm wiped, do me a favor, will you? Please make sure they send me to some place I can't get cigarettes.
DR. FARGO: I will do my best, though I am not in charge of staff assignment. I will make a note on your medical form reflecting your request.
Researcher's notes:
Agent Khawaja was provided Class-C amnestics shortly after our interview, as per our agreement and her request. A cursory medical checkup by her assigned doctor indicated that she indeed still had an impulsivity regarding tobacco products, cigarettes in particular; as such, she was re-assigned to Outpost-7728 in Siberia, ~467 miles from the nearest store that sells cigarettes.
TESTLOG-8691-01
Date: █/█/20██
Time: 9:55
Subjects: D-579871, D-572145
Testing Manager: Dr. █████ Fargo, PhD
DR. FARGO: Okay, before we begin, I just need you two to confirm your status, like we talked about.
D-579871: I'm D-579871, non-smoker.
D-572145: Yeah, I'm D-572145, and I've smoked before.
DR. FARGO: Thank you for confirming. Before you both is SCP-8691. D-572145, will you please pick up the item?
D-572145: No problem.
DR. FARGO: D-572145, can you please confirm if you have a craving for tobacco?
D-572145: Kind of a weird question, doc. I guess no more than I usually do…?
DR. FARGO: Thank you. Inside the package is a series of cigarettes. Please feel free to smoke as many as you would like.
<IRRELEVANT CHATTER REMOVED>
D-572145: Okay, this is the third one. Am I supposed to feel any different? I mean, I've got a pain in my chest, but that always happens when I smoke.
D-579871: It smells like shit in here. <COUGHING> When are you going to let us out?
DR. FARGO: You will be allowed out of the chamber when D-572145 begins to feel the anomalous effects of the item.
D-579871: And what about me, huh? Is this <COUGHING> just torture for me? You sick fucks <COUGHING> probably get off on this <COUGHING> bullshit.
DR. FARGO: D-579871, as I said, you will be released when-
D-572145: <LOUD GROANING AND COUGHING>
D-579871: <COUGHING> Hey, what the hell? What's going on <COUGHING> with him?
DR. FARGO: D-579871, remain in your seat, do not ge-
D-579871: FUCK THAT, LET US- <COUGHING> LET US OUT!
<SNAPPING SOUNDS, FOLLOWED BY A DENSE LIQUID HITTING THE FLOOR>
D-579871: <SCREAMING AND COUGHING> LET ME OUT!
<A LOUD THUD>
DR. FARGO: Fascinating. Well, this proves my hypothesis correct. Let's get them cleaned up.
Researcher's notes:
My initial hypothesis that any exposure (including indirect) to SCP-8691-A's smoke will cause late-stage effects and thorax degradation was correct. Both subjects experienced the "chest popping" phenomenon, even though only one subject was subsuming instances of SCP-8691-A. After the overgrowth stage was complete, the two individual growths attempted to merge with each other, the purpose of which is still unknown. The two subjects expired within 12 hours of the experiment, after growing approximately 55kg of combined cellular mass. As with the previous test, the number on the outside of SCP-8691 has changed, matching the current number of SCP-8691-A instances (10).
Addendum, 8/12/2027 07:45:
Following incident SAIS435-8691-1, access to the container holding SCP-8691 and SCP-8691-A has been restricted to Level 2 personnel.
SAIS435-0000-1 Incident Report
Site: 435-SAIS
Location: Breakroom 32
Item: SCP-8691
Type: Containment Breach
Casualties: 1
Entry Manager: Dr. █████ Fargo, PhD
Report Author: Agent ██████ Michael, Security and Control Analyst for Site-435
Report Date: 8/12/2027
Incident Date: 8/06/2027
Site security was called to Breakroom 32 after janitorial staff reported the smell of cigarettes and an unusual burning smell. Staff member ████ ████████ appears to have gained access to SCP-8691's container, smuggling it out of the SAIS units in a personal handbag. Using a combination of papers and an electric stove, staff member ████████ lit a small fire in a wastebasket, using it to ignite instances of SCP-8691-A. Breakroom 32 was empty at the time of this incident, as such, the room was quarantined until the subject had completed their 3rd instance of SCP-8691-A.
████ ████████ was declared functionally deceased after roughly 2 days in Site-435's intensive bio-hazard unit. SCP-8691-A instances have been reduced to 7, and the item entry manager has been contacted. No additional staff members were harmed during this breach.
Notably, ████████'s personnel file indicates that they were an avid smoker prior to employment with the Foundation, and had expressed an interest in SCP-8691 to colleagues and research staff. It is unclear if this is an isolated incident, or indicative of anomalous exposure to SCP-8691. However, no additional breaches have occurred since the incident itself. Interviews with on-duty security staff are ongoing, and will be filed via on-site HR. A full audit of security procedures has been scheduled due to the inherently avoidable nature of the containment breach.
