"See you soon."
Item #: SCP-9920
Object Class: Euclid Keter
Special Containment Procedures: SCP-9920-1 is to be stored in an airtight, moisture-resistant container in order to prevent further degradation. A 35mm film projector is to be kept on-site for testing, alongside an archive of several prominent silent films.
In the event that a subject reports a successful viewing of SCP-9920-1, they are to be moved to an appropriate testing area each night until SCP-9920-2 manifests. Testing requires that all lights in the testing area be turned off, and for the subject be alone until sunrise.
Following Incident-9920-A, subjects who have successfully viewed SCP-9920-1 must be kept under constant video surveillance, or be accompanied by another person, at all times outside of testing. In the event that the video feed monitoring a subject fails, any available personnel must be sent to investigate immediately. Manifestations of SCP-9920-2 outside of a controlled testing environment must be logged as soon as possible.
Description: SCP-9920-1 is an unlabeled reel of 35mm black-and-white movie film. The film shows mild signs of degradation. When loaded into an appropriate film projector, most viewers report that the object produces no discernable images.
SCP-9920-1's anomalous properties manifest when viewed by a subject with strong thoughts on historical film.1 When an appropriate subject views a projection of SCP-9920-1 for the first time, they report that it shows a figure standing upright in a dimly-lit room, accompanied by low, droning audio. Descriptions of this figure are consistent with the reported appearance of SCP-9920-2. Viewers report that the film ends in a title card, reading “See you soon.” Repeated viewings of SCP-9920-1 produce no discernable images.
SCP-9920-2 is a humanoid entity that manifests after a successful viewing of SCP-9920-1. While there is no upper limit for the time between a successful viewing and a manifestation, SCP-9920-2 will usually appear the following night, if the following conditions are met:
- The sun has fully set
- The lights in the subject's vicinity are off
- The subject is alone in their residence,2 or their residence is entirely unoccupied
While SCP-9920-2 may de-manifest at any time, it will always de-manifest upon sunrise, or in the presence of an additional person. To date, there have been no reported instances of SCP-9920-2 manifesting in front of more than one person at a time, suggesting that it is a singular entity.
SCP-9920-2 will typically only manifest once for each subject that successfully views SCP-9920-1. However, multiple manifestations across several nights are possible. As long as a subject has successfully viewed SCP-9920-1 at any point, SCP-9920-2 may manifest in their residence at any time that proper conditions are met. (See - Addendum 9920.6)
All forms of Digital video and audio recording equipment will fail in the presence of SCP-9920-2, capturing film static. Due to this, no footage of SCP-9920-2 exists. (See Addendum 9920.4) However, the following physical features are consistently reported by subjects who experience a manifestation:
- A dark, slender figure with a tall frame
- Large, empty eye sockets which emit a bright, flickering light
- A head covered by loose film strips, in a manner resembling hair
- A constantly-spinning film spool attached to the head
- White gloves
- A tattered, dark gray dress
SCP-9920-2's presence will usually be announced by the sound of a film projector running, alongside slow, heavy footsteps. It is currently believed that SCP-9920-2 has difficulty walking, and is at least partially mechanical in nature.
Addendum 9920.1: Testing Notes
All tests were conducted within a designated off-site testing area, created from a former civilian residence. In order to facilitate successful viewings of SCP-9920-1, selected Class-D personnel were shown a variety of silent films, and were instructed to write down their thoughts on each. A correlation has been established between subjects who wrote the most about the films they viewed, and subjects who were successfully able to successfully view SCP-9920-1. Subjects who experienced a successful viewing were moved to the testing area, and used its sleeping quarters until SCP-9920-2 manifested.
Addendum 9920.2: Interview Log 1
Interviewer: Dr. Whiznitch
Interviewed: D-19181
Notes: Subject wrote predominantly negative reviews of the various films he was shown.
Dr. Whiznitch: Tell me about what happened last night.
(D-19181 starts bouncing his leg.)
D-19181: Yeah, ok. I slept for maybe an hour? Then I woke up because I heard something moving around downstairs. It was this really loud whirring. It sorta sounded like the projector you showed me that creepy tape on. At first I thought I was hearing things, but then it started to get louder.
Dr. Whiznitch: Go on.
D-19181: I could hear this… thing creeping up the stairs. And doc, it took its sweet time. Each step was loud, and it had this clatter to it as it moved, like it was some kinda machine. Whatever it was, it was big.
Dr. Whiznitch: And what happened when it was done climbing the stairs?
D-19181: What do you think? It kept making its way towards me. I could see this bright light down the hallway. As this thing got closer, the light got brighter, the whirring got louder. By this point I was really panicking. So I… Hey doc, you’re not going to laugh, right?
Dr. Whiznitch: You have my word.
D-19181: Well, I screamed. I started yelling my head off at whatever this thing was, telling it to get the fuck out. Kept going until I was hoarse.
Dr. Whiznitch: And how did it react?
D-19181: It stopped moving. It just stood in the hallway, out of sight, for a few seconds. Then it just vanished into thin air. No more light, no more whirring, no sound of it leaving, nothing. I didn’t see any signs of it after that. And trust me, I stayed up all night.
Dr. Whiznitch: I see. Anything else you’d like to add?
D-19181: Yeah. Put a fucking lock on the basement door.
Addendum 9920.3: Interview Log 2
Interviewer: Dr. Whiznitch
Interviewed: D-98142
Notes: Subject described himself as being particularly unnerved by The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.3
Dr. Whiznitch: Could you tell me about what happened last night?
D-98142: There was… something watching me sleep. I woke up to see it in the doorway, staring at me. It was some kind of monster, but I couldn’t quite make it out. It was kinda hard to look at since it was shining this bright light at me. It made this awful racket as it stood there.
Dr. Whiznitch: And what’d you do?
D-98142: I froze up, and just started staring at it. I wasn't sure if this was some kind of waking nightmare or what, but I didn’t want to let it out of my sight. Was afraid of what might happen if I did.
Dr. Whiznitch: And how did it react?
D-98142: It didn’t, at first. But then it took a step forward, so I sat up. I was getting ready to run if it moved again. Not sure what my plan was, exactly; it was blocking the only exit. So, we just stared at each other a bit more, like we were both waiting for each other to make the next move. Then it raised its hand, and let out this awful noise.
Dr. Whiznitch: Could you describe it?
D-98142: It was shrill, kinda sputtery. Almost speech, but not quite. Like it was chopped-up bits of other people’s voices instead of actual syllables. Way too loud. Made me jump a bit, to be honest.
Dr. Whiznitch: Do you think it was trying to communicate with you?
D-98142: Maybe. …It did sound vaguely like a 'hello', now that I think about it. But I wasn’t exactly eager to talk to it. And frankly, I didn’t really know how to react. So, I just kept staring at it. Eventually it backed away, and closed the door behind itself. I went back to bed once the noises stopped. Made sure to lock the bedroom door, though.
Dr. Whiznitch: I see. Is there anything else you’d like to add?
D-98142: No, sir. The rest of the night was quiet.
Addendum 9920.4: Interview Log 3
Interviewer: Dr. Whiznitch
Interviewed: D-28631
Notes: Subject expressed enthusiasm about the films he was shown, and requested to see more.
Dr. Whiznitch: Could you tell me about what you experienced last night?
D-28631: You mean Evelyn? Oh, yeah, she’s great!
Dr. Whiznitch: I’m sorry?
D-28631: Oh, did I get her name wrong? Sorry, it can be kinda hard to understand her, she stutters a lot. I think that’s what she said her name was, though.
Dr. Whiznitch: No, I… Go on.
D-28631: Yeah, so, I was kinda creeped out when she first showed up. I said she could’ve knocked, or something. But once we got past the awkward part, and I realized that she wanted to talk about those old movies you showed me, I got pretty excited. I didn’t really feel like sleeping, anyways.
Dr. Whiznitch: And what did you do?
D-28631: Oh, we spoke for hours, man! She was kinda shy, but I didn’t mind that. She was, like, super passionate about weird old movies. And I was like, ‘hey, I like weird old things!’ I was a little bummed out, because we didn’t have anything to watch stuff on. But then she projected a movie right onto the wall! So we just… watched movies and hung out in the living room. It was pretty sweet.
Dr. Whiznitch: At what point did you stop?
D-28631: Well, we kept going for a while, but I started to get kinda tired. I guess the lack of sleep was starting to catch up to me. We capped it off by watching this super cheesy romance flick. I liked it, but I think it made her kinda sad. So, we said our goodbyes, and she left. Then I fell asleep on the couch.
Dr. Whiznitch: I see… Anything else you would like to add?
D-28631: Uh… Oh, yeah! She gave me a gift!
Dr. Whiznitch: A gift?
D-28631: Yeah! Hold on.
(D-28631 produces an antique Vest Pocket Kodak camera from his pocket.)
D-28631: Check it out! It’s a super old camera. How cool is that, man? I tried to take a photo of her, but I don’t know if it’s any good. I’m not really a photographer. I felt kinda bad, since I wasn't sure if she wanted her picture taken, but she told me it was fine afterwards.
Dr. Whiznitch: We could get that photo developed for you.
D-28631: Oh, awesome! Here!
(D-28631 hands Dr. Whiznitch the camera.)
Dr. Whiznitch: Thank you. Is there anything else you’d like to add before we finish?
D-28631: That’s pretty much it. I hope I get to see her again sometime, though. She was pretty cool.
Addendum 9920.5: Incident-9920-A
Following Interview Log 3, D-28631 was moved back to his cell. Due to the fact that SCP-9920-2 had been successfully photographed using a non-anomalous camera, it was proposed that the entity could likely be recorded using other analog methods. In light of this, arrangements were made to retrofit the existing testing area with various pieces of analog video and audio recording equipment. By the time of the incident, only one such piece of equipment was successfully installed, being a reel-to-reel tape recorder in the sleeping quarters. Testing involving SCP-9920-1 was halted during this period.
On the seventh night following D-28631’s original encounter with SCP-9920-2, at approximately 3:00 AM, the following audio was captured in the testing area’s sleeping quarters:
At 3:02 AM, the security camera within D-28631’s cell went offline for a period of approximately three minutes, displaying film static. According to D-28631, this period coincides with a manifestation of SCP-9920-2. Neighboring D-Class reported hearing the sounds of a projector from within the affected cell. D-28631 reports that SCP-9920-2 de-manifested once a guard arrived at his cell, which coincides with the re-activation of the cell’s video feed. When asked about the encounter, D-28631 claimed:
D-28631: She just wanted to talk some more.
This marked the first recorded instance of SCP-9920-2 manifesting outside of a controlled testing environment. Containment procedures updated. D-28631 has been temporarily moved into a cohabitation cell with another D-Class in order to prevent further manifestations. Reclassification of SCP-9920 to Keter is pending review.
Addendum 9920.6: Incident-9920-B
Three days following Incident-9920-A, at 12:03 PM, the camera feed in D-28631’s cell went offline for a period of approximately thirty seconds. The cell was unoccupied at this time. A subsequent investigation found a copy of London After Midnight4 on a reel of 35mm film, alongside a torn piece of undeveloped 35mm film stock, beneath D-28631’s pillow. The following message was inscribed on the torn film in silver paint:
Dear Daniel,5
I apologize for having such trouble reaching you. I’m sure you can tell that these circumstances aren’t ideal for either of us. I find myself feeling quite lonely in the absence of your company. I wish I could’ve said more to you while I had the chance, but I’m not nearly as eloquent in speech as I am in writing. Regardless, you needn’t worry. I’ll find a way to reach you soon enough.
In the meantime, I’ve brought you a film that I think you’ll enjoy greatly. Perhaps those researchers would be kind enough to let you watch it on that projector of theirs? I’d love to hear your thoughts on it. I think of it as a real ‘nail-biter’!
Truly yours,
Evelyn.
Objects confiscated. SCP-9920 reclassified as Keter. Regular testing resumed in order to reduce the risk of further unexpected manifestations of SCP-9920-2. London After Midnight has been added to the film rotation used in testing. Further tests involving D-28631 are currently being considered.