"CAUTION: If you have been directly exposed to Site Director Rappaccini, please contact poison control immediately."
Secure Foundation Facility: Site-101
Dosis Sola Facit Venenum
Site Director: Dr. Beatrice Rappaccini
Assistant Director: Vacant
Head of Security: Vacant
Overwatch Liaison: Vacant
Chief Medical Officer: Vacant
Atrium of the Giacomo Rappaccini Memorial Conservatory
A Garden of Opportunity!
Welcome to the Site-101 Conservatory and Botanical Research Center! Nestled deep in the Louisiana heartland, our facility has been the Foundation’s number one source for herbal remedies for over 20 years. If you're ready to join the beating heart of our rapidly growing research campus, then settle down, read through this introductory packet, and get ready to lay down your roots!
Have you ever required antibiotics to treat a thaumaturgical infection? Have you ever been prescribed painkillers after the loss of a phantom limb? If you've ever had an injury or illness that couldn't be treated with mundane medicine, you've probably already made use of some of our very own homegrown serums, salves and poultices. If you have a passion for the more potent side of anomalous biochemistry, there's no better place to begin your career than here at one of the Foundation's most essential research branches.
Did you know?
The estate on which Site-101 is built has been in Site Director Rappaccini’s family for generations! After inheriting her father’s private research laboratory and transferring it into Foundation ownership in 2004, Site Director Rappaccini has worked tirelessly to carry on her family’s legacy in the field of botanical research.
That which dies feeds that which grows. The rotting trunk of the mightiest redwood, once fallen, lays ground for the shoots of the meekest sapling. The trees may fall but the forest grows eternal.
— Site Director Beatrice Rappaccini
A Word of Caution
Although the plants contained at Site-101 can provide miraculous cures, be careful! They require cautious handling, as many are highly toxic, and can be harmful if ingested, touched, inhaled, or directly observed.1
Mature sample of aconitum maleficarum, shown after feeding.
Here at Site-101 we recognize that what doesn’t make you stronger kills you, and while our most potent specimens are essential to creating the more specialized paralytics, psychotropics and nerve agents that keep the Foundation ticking along, safe handling of these natural beauties is of the utmost importance.
From echinacea to anesthesia to euthanasia, we've found a way to harness the power of nature's most mysterious beauties. But remember: with great power comes great risk for exposure to allergens and toxins. Site-101 is ground zero for botanical medicine, so make sure to exercise caution as you begin your exciting, hands-on journey in this burgeoning field!2
Did you know?
As a second-generation parabotanist, Site Director Rappaccini has been closely involved in cutting-edge research for so long that poison is practically in her blood.3 Site Director Rappaccini began working with the unique plant species contained at this site at the age of 10, inherited the Rappaccini estate at the age of 16, and since her appointment as Site Director has become the Foundation’s foremost living expert on botanical toxicology.
Entrance to the Medical Bay and Mortuary Building
Warning Signs
Please contact your site supervisor immediately if you begin to experience any of the following symptoms:
- Fever
- Dry mouth
- Disorientation
- Heartache
- Skin rash
- Euphoria
- Female hysteria
- Apoplexy
- Male hysteria
- Necrosis
- Love
In the event that your site supervisor has recently transferred, or is on medical leave and has not been replaced, please direct all requests for assistance to your site’s designated AI Medical Help Bot.
Do not contact Site Director Beatrice Rappaccini. She cannot help you.
In any garden, the most brilliant specimens are often the most deadly. Look if you must, but touch nothing. Their colors are not an invitation. They are a warning. If you allow yourself to be entranced by their vibrance, they will only lead you to ruin.
— Site Director Beatrice Rappaccini
Special Endeavors
Though medicine will always be our main focus here at Site-101, our sprawling facilities allow us to lead the way in various related fields of study. Highlights of our accomplishments include:
Ecological Preservation: The conservatory at Site-101 is the largest, most biodiverse collection of anomalous flora in the Northern Hemisphere. Site-101 is home to a variety of rare specimens, including the only extant living samples of slaying nettle (urtica mortiferum), grizzly bane (aconitum maleficarum), and Eurasian torpor thorn (prunus sinestrum).
The warm, damp climate of Site-101 provides ideal growing conditions for plants, parasites, algae and fungus.
Innovative Solutions: While Site-101 is proud to have been born on the bayou, we’ve still felt the impact of the region’s recent environmental hardships. As local populations of bees and other pollinators surrounding Site-101 continue to reach critically low levels, we’ve turned to exclusive Foundation technology to help us climb into the future of anomalous horticulture. Using recent developments in microrobotics, an estimated 90% of pollination is now performed by autonomous drones. But don’t worry: despite its population reduction, our friend the bee is still buzzing with excitement to do its part!4
Constant Growth: To keep up with Foundation needs, the Site-101 conservatory is constantly expanding. In recent years our flora have expanded into the site's northern campus, and now occupy the entire eastern wing of the Site-101 Research and Development Center, most of the Nathaniel Aubépine Research Library, and the first three floors of the site Medical Bay and Mortuary Building. Director Rappaccini estimates that by 2028, her specimens will cover an additional 25 acres of land, representing the fastest growth of any Foundation facility in the United States.
Did you know?
Many of the specimens contained at Site-101 were first cultivated at this very site by the late Dr. Giacomo Rappaccini. Although his discoveries were so bold and innovative that they required Foundation intervention to prevent their broader distribution, in his daughter's steady hands they have grown into miracles of modern medicine.
You cannot instruct a flower not to grow. Give her the tiniest space to take hold, and in time her roots will split the mightiest rock in two. Look at your walls. The only parts of them that will last forever are their cracks. In time all walls become dirt, and from that dirt multitudes will flourish.
— Site Director Beatrice Rappaccini
Amenities
If you encounter leeches, flatworms or liver flukes while using the site swimming pool, please collect a specimen for analysis.
Resident researchers at Site-101 have the opportunity not just to help cultivate the Foundation’s future, but to enjoy all the rustic charm of the facility’s living quarters and surrounding campus. Built on a private estate dating back to the 19th century, the Site-101 residence center offers picturesque views, ample ventilation, and lots of greenery!
While you're getting settled in, make sure to explore all of Site-101’s fine amenities, including:
Fitness Center: The Site-101 fitness center includes a two-story gymnasium, dedicated sauna room, and open-air swimming pool, available to all full-time site research staff.
Note: Sauna facilities are temporarily closed due to mold.
On-Site Dining: The Site-101 cafeteria includes a fully vegetarian menu, featuring an exotic assortment of bold, flavorful dishes. New residents are advised not to consume more than 200g of cafeteria food per day, until their body has developed a tolerance for vegetables.
Update: All mold in sauna facilities has been successfully eradicated following the introduction of multiple species of predatory moss.
Health and Wellness: All site residents have 24-hour access to health and wellness services provided at the Medical Bay and Mortuary Building. If you cannot wait 24 hours to access health and wellness services, please contact your direct supervisor.
Note: Sauna facilities are temporarily closed due to moss.
Did you know?
In 2004, Site Director Rappaccini led Site-101’s first ever incendiary containment effort, eradicating many of the site’s more pernicious specimens, and laying fertile ground for decades of innovation to follow. Although the effort also claimed most of the site’s southern campus, along with the life of Dr. Giacomo Rappaccini, the resulting restoration represents one of the Foundation’s fastest, most cost-effective construction projects. Embodying her father’s pioneer spirit, Site Director Rappaccini has harnessed the site's network of roots and undergrowth to help rebuild what was lost, and sow the seeds of a rich and plentiful future.
Site dormitories provide a breathtaking view of some of the most precious specimens known to man.
Safety, Safety, Safety!
While the work we do here at Site-101 is important, it also comes with its own set of risks. To enjoy a long, fruitful career at Site-101, make sure to exercise caution when interacting with our more volatile specimens.
Before arriving at Site-101, make sure to familiarize yourself with these basic safety precautions:
- Always wear a respirator when working with specimens inside the conservatory, or any of its annexes. If you are not certain whether the specimens have annexed a particular area of the campus, please consult the most recent available copy of the campus directory.
- Do not make direct physical contact with Site Director Rappaccini. If contact has been made, seek poison control immediately.
- As pollen dispersal patterns can be unpredictable, wear a mask or other protective face covering in all common areas, private offices and dormitories.
- Inspect your protective suit regularly for tears or punctures, and seek a replacement immediately if any damage is discovered. If the punctures appear to have been made from the inside of the suit, request a full physical examination by reporting to the 2nd 3rd 4th floor of the Medical Bay and Mortuary Building.
- Do not eat food that has been exposed to open air for an extended period of time. Hermetically sealed prepared foods can be purchased at the site commissary. Food stored in Site Director Rappaccini's office or living quarters should not be classified as safe for human consumption.
- Make sure to study the full site handbook’s list of mnemonics to aid in identifying hazards. For example, to recognize the color patterns on the petals of the Polynesian stinging orchid, remember:
Blue then red, you'll soon be dead
Red then blue will kill you too
- In the event that you are recruited to directly assist Site Director Rappaccini on any ongoing projects, make sure to first submit all necessary waivers of liability, and wait at least two weeks to allow time for your replacement to be onboarded.
Our site staff, just like our specimens, are among the rarest in the world, but what makes them precious is what makes them dangerous. We are not sheltered from the world: the world is sheltered from us. A modest taste of the sweet ambrosia within our walls can restore the senses and invigorate the nerves. But who among us truly knows how to be modest?
— Site Director Beatrice Rappaccini
A Fruitful Endeavor
We hope you’re as excited to begin your research here at Site-101 as we are to welcome you aboard. Every employee, whether it's their first day on the job or their last day before early retirement, is essential to the work that we do here. We hope your appointment to Site-101 will be the start of a long, prosperous tenure.5
If you're ever in search of guidance on your professional journey, just remember these words from Site Director Rappaccini:
We are more than just a research facility. We are more than just a family. We are an ecosystem. A single blade of grass is not a forest, but what would a forest be without grass? Some specimens are destined to thrive, while others exist only to feed those that bloom in their wake. Whichever you are, a beginning or an ending, you have a place here. When you join Site-101, you will no longer be a solitary weed stranded in a desert of pavement. You will be an element of something bigger. You will become a part of the process.
This world is a series of cycles: life and death, birth and rebirth, beginnings and endings. From the very jaws of death, we brew the elixir of life. Venom is our antidote. Curare is our cure. Poison is our panacea.
The chalice of possibility overflows. All you must do now is drink.
— Site Director Beatrice Rappaccini
| More in this Series | |
|---|---|
| Part One | Her Future in Bloom by Mr Panik |
| Part Two | SCP-7493 by Socksesforfoxes |
| Part Three | Secure Facility Dossier: Site-101 by TheChunk |
| Part Four | In Small Doses by TheChunk |
| Part Five | Fruit of the Poison Tree by Socksesforfoxes |
